8 Goth DIY Tips

Hey! Today's post is targeted toward goths/alternative types, but these tips may help anyone of any fold. I have made a post or two about this before, this is more of a revisit.

 

To start, these tips are personal to me. They are based on my likes and opinions, only!

 

1. Thrift Shop

 

It is so underrated! Thrifting has been the most fun I have ever had while shopping! If you don't thrift, you should at least try it. Not every thrift shop is for everyone, just like any other store. Find one that works for you, fall in love with it, know their clearance days. For example, here in Tucson, the 3rd Saturday of every month they have a 50% off everything sale!

 

2. Sewing

 

I know sewing is a sensitive subject for some. Let me tell ya, I suck at it and I've been sewing for 6 years. I have even invested in a $200 brother serger! It doesn't really matter how bad I suck at sewing, I like my clothes unique and fucked up anyway. Plus, if you thrift some nice material, you can sew a whole new article of clothing and not feel too bad if you screw it up.

 

3. Print your own t-shirts

 

There are many methods of printing your own design on to clothing. I made video on how to make your own stencil:

 

 

 

As well as making your own stencils, you can make your own silk screen too. I plan on making a video on that as well, very soon. Acrylic paint is cheaper and more effective than fabric paints!

 

4. Clearance

 

I'm sure you are aware of pawing through every clearance rack in sight, and my mention earlier about thrift shops clearance days. What about clearance materials? I know, you may not like sewing, but you may not even have to touch a needle and thread. There are tons of tutorials on "no-sew" goth clothes and diys and such. If you check the Walmart craft section, they usually have "clearance" fabrics. If you buy fabric from Walmart, take it all (if this becomes a usual craft for you) because that specific fabric will never be seen again!

 

5. Studs and Spikes

 

Buying and applying your own studs and spikes can be extremely satisfying! Ebay is a great place for this. If convenience is what you are looking for, Michael's and hobby lobby usually have small bags of studs for a few bucks more.

 

6. Plain Black

 

By combining a few of the previous tips, buying plain black articles is a must! For example, I buy comfy, plain, black flip flops from Walmart. Now I can add anything to them. Studs, spikes, print, the options are endless.

 

7. For the care of your hair

 

Going off the path for a moment. I've had my hair so many different colors, I have officially touched the damn rainbow!

• Red: The hardest color to keep, yet, the hardest to get rid of! Louna (on youtube) has some great tips on how she keeps her hair red. The maintenance was too much for me, and every single time I dyed it red, it was never the same red as before! 
• Purple: The most laid back color of them all. Purple was easy to maintain, took forever to fade. Fades very well!
• Pink: Difficult! Extremely hard to get out of hair, especially splat. It fades to pastel, of course. Always fades unevenly for me.
• Blue: I hated blue on me. It never EVER wanted to leave! The green clung for far too long! If you go blue, avoid the dyes that contain yellow/green, unless that's what you are going for!
• Blonde: Hair death!! For me, it was harder to maintain blonde (My natural color) than black!

To care for your hair, I suggest using a nutrient rich, low chemical shampoo and conditioner. Personally, I use Miracle 7 Keratin (not sponsored) shampoo, conditioner, and deep conditioner from sally's. It has never stripped my color, my hair responds very well to this stuff! If you have natural/ethnic/porous hair, be very careful when bleaching! I'm no cosmetologist, but I am aware of the sensitivity of that hair type. DEEEP CONDITION OFTEN! There are a bunch of diy hair masks on youtube. I've never had much success with making homemade hair care, but I can tell you that Vaseline is NOT a moisturizer! Please don't put that garbage in your hair! Now, for the ultimate secret pertaining to this tip...
I guess we will number this one by itself, because it is one of my two biggest secrets/tips.

8. DIY purple hair dye
Hang in there, I'm almost done! This tip has been quite the life saver for me when I was fun coloring my hair!

Gentian Violet!
Mix just a few drops with conditioner and use as a toner. 6-10 drops as a dye. I've even had it so dark that it looked black for over a week. It fades so nicely, I loved this stuff! Add it to your red to darken the shade. Its an amazing additive, or a dye by itself.
You can find this stuff at Walmart for just a couple of dollars and it LASTS! Look in the first aid aisle, if you don't find it there, it may be hiding in the baby section.

That is all I have for you today. If I think of anymore, I will put it in a post <3

Thank you for reading, I love ya beauties!!!!

 

Further Butthurt and DARK MAGIC!

Yesterday, I was tagged in a post by my beautiful mother...

How interesting! I've come by things like this before! 
Actually, I've lost sleep over trying to figure out a clean way to do it myself with what I have.

1. Is it embroidery?
2. It's bonded! No.
3. IT'S BLACK MAGIC!

I've tried looking this style up and NO ONE has made a video on it! What is this dark magic? 

Welp, because my mother knows me all too well, I was back on one yesterday over these! I was ready to try every method in my tool box, OK! But, guess what? All my craft stuff is packed up and triple taped in a pile, ready to be transported...

My butthurt is too much right now! Help?

Thank You So Much!

To everyone who follows my blog(s), Thank you from the bottom of my heart! 

Every person that likes my posts, or adds me to their circle, thank you! 

I know I'm not the cheeriest person on this planet, and I whine A LOT! But, I can't tell you how good it makes me feel to know that I am not alone. The few conversations that I've had with some of you have lifted my spirits so much, it brings a whole new light into my life and I love you for it!

I've been pulling a ton of my craft stuff out of storage (the dark depths of my garage) and I've decided to put a lot of effort into it and make an attempt at restocking my storenvy. Even if it isn't much at all, it'd still be nice to get some of these things done and make them available.

 Here's what I found that has inspired me:

Mounds Of KK Hair (for dreads)

 Flexible Skull Molds For Charm Making?

 Material, maybe as add ons to old clothes? Idk

 Dem Batz from the tutorial

 My hand-printed/painted/silk screen shirt thing, maybe make some extras?

Maybe? Yes? How bout I do and say I did…

No, that's not right.

How about I do and do it GUUD!!!!

Yeah :)

I love you so much, and thank you thank you thank you!!

I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday, merry christmas, hanukah, kwanza, tree day, or whatever you may celebrate! 

Are Mini Hats Cool?

There was a point in my late babybat days when all I wanted was victorian themed everything!

I wanted the velvets and the canopy bed, the poofy dresses and chamber pots…well, not so much the chamber pots, I enjoy my modern plumbing! But the cute little hats and big hair was very attractive to me, it was all I could think about…

I made my own little hats and I was so proud of them! The fact that I loved them, I thought everyone else did too…

I made so many, these aren't even half of them…

But, to my shock and disappointment, no one else had much interest in them. A few friends would wear them to make me happy, carebear loved everything I made. So, just the two of us would parade around in my little top hats.

I had given up on them for a while…4 years+

But, this past halloween, I wanted my top hat with my outfit…I didn't have time to put the clips on it. However, it did inspire me to show everyone else how I make mine.

VIDEO COMING SOON!!!

DIY Skull Lights *Dollar Store Treasures*

So easy, cheap and FUN! I LOVE IT!!!

The skulls and lights are from the dollar store. $5 craft that is super duper awesome!

New DIYs every week!! 

Check out my youtube channel for MOAR AWESOME!!

Batty Clips DIY!!!

Here we are, 2 months from halloween!

I have many diy videos coming and some serious advice to my goth folk. 

Its time to shop for DECOR! 

Here is my Batty Clips DIY. REALLY simple and cheap! 

My next video will be another diy on those skull lights in the background ;) oh yes!

We are gonna have some FUN this year!!!

Any requests? Let me know!! I need some feedback <3

My Top Ten Must Haves *Goth DIY* + Examples

Instead of spending your life savings on a few articles of clothing, invest in materials!!

If you step back and look at the amount that you spend on materials, you might say "Well, I could've just bought that outfit already." But, if you are like me, I don't want what is available to everyone else. I love unique and individualized things, so I invest in my materials. In the long run, its worth it, here are some of my personal tips:

1. Thrifting (it saves lives) You can find blank canvases while thrifting!
2. Acrylic paints! Painting on your own clothing is cheaper than paying a company that prints the same T for millions of other consumers.
3. Cheap Materials. Your local super market or fabric stores will have some really cheap fabric, I always go for stretchy, that way when your measurements are off, its not that big of a deal. Also, look for really thin, sheer material, this will come in handy if you want to make your own screen for screen printing!
4. WOOD GLUE! Its always handy and a perfect glue for screens (screen printing)
5. SALES!! At your crafty stores, always look at the clearance sections! 
6. Know your brands! At Hobby Lobby, I always have a specific brand I stick to, because I know how well the quality is for the price.
7. Bring a friend. Friends can help you sweep the stores and help find what you are looking for faster.
8. Food coloring (kool-aid)! Its cheap and always handy!
9. Poster board/Cardboard. For anything and everything
10. Sharp Utensils!! Exacto knives are preferred due to their precision, but a box cutter works too.

Things you can do if you already have these things:

Acrylic paints allow you to paint your own Coffins!

Sheer Material=SCREEN PRINTING DIY!!! (thats an embroidery ring holding the screen)

Thrift material and Cardboard, DIY Mini hat!

Poster board and Cardboard+Sharp Utensil=Awesome project time!!

Kool-aid or other inexpensive dyes can dye your Wool/Human hair weave/Clothing etc.

I hope this was helpful and inspiring!! Follow my Youtube channel for video tutorials, random acts of craaaaaayyyyy and funny vlog stuff <3

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Rib Cage Stencil DIY

Yes, Finally! I am making a much needed diy post!

What you will need:

• Poster Board/Thick paper/UN-corrugated Cardboard
• Pen/Pencil/Marker
• Picture or outline of desired stencil
• Exacto knife
• Hard, Flat surface to cut on
• Acrylic paint
• Scrap fabric

Let me know what you think!

OH NO! Oh yes.

I've fallen out of the swing of my own pendulum!

I forget what I wanted to talk about on here…just spaced on out, earth to zaney!!!

So, I updated a little section on my blog under my About section over there >>>>>

It is links to my other social media sites where you can follow me and my random or planned activities.

I found an amazing video! I'm obsessed with the cover this band did! I never liked Diamonds by Rhianna, but I like it by Any Given Day:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vvviVulgdms

If youtube wasn't messed up, I would've embedded it. It's an amazing cover, though.

I miss the music scene soo much, I feel so useless lately. Oh well.

My Birthday post

http://zaneybatzlife.blogspot.com/

There is my personal blog. If you ever get bored, to bore yourself further you can read my random posts on there :)

I am working on getting that tutorial on youtube…long story as to why it isn't up yet. But I will post the video and link on this blog if you are interested.

Plenty of tutorials and posts coming soon! One is about purple and hair ;)

DIY Tools and Necessities

Whenever the moment arises that you just HAVE to make something, its always best to be prepared. Here are a few of my favorite and very necessary tools:

#1. Scissors 

(duh, right?!)

My lovely family always misplace my craft scissors. So, I have a special pair for them and for myself. Keep them in a hidden but unforgettable place!

#2. Exacto knives

(Great for those detailed cut outs)

Buying exacto knives can be a pain, but they last a life time! I've used them for things they probably shouldn't be used for and they still work wonders.

#3. Duct Tape

(Not exclusive for redneck projects)

So many of my projects include duct tape, its ridiculous. I freak out when I don't have my duct tape!

#4. Glue

Us DIYers always need our glues! Fabric glue, hot glue, elmer's glue…all glue is needed glue.

#5. Paint and paint brushes

Paint is always nice to have on hand. Acrylic paint is cheap, handy, and easily accessible. You can get the little bottles at walmart :)

Paint brushes of all kinds! I cannot paint to save my life, but my poor attempts are glorified by the brushes I use.

These 5 things are what make my little crafty heart thrive! Without them, I am useless.

I have been editing a craft video thats almost a year old (hehe) so, hopefully I can get that posted to my youtube AND my blog.

If you ever want to contact me, feel free to comment below! I love you, be safe, craft carefully and keep an eye out for more tutorials.

1034D Brother Serger Review (Problem and Solution)

Firstly, I had mentioned a few months back that I was getting a serger. DIY goth is my everything, so a serger seemed like the right machine to have. I bought it from Amazon, and when it arrived I quickly opened up the box and started learning how to thread this monster!

What I saw when I first opened the box.

So, I specifically chose this brand and style because its the only 4 threaded serger that had adjustment knobs for different kinds of material, instead of having to mess with each tension wheel.

Well, I thought I was doing something wrong right from the start! I have watched evert threading video out there, read the instruction (which I now have memorized!) but the serger was eating my material! I could not figure it out, then I was pissed!!

After 3 weeks of endless searching, I found that the two guiding needles, underneath the foot, one of the two did not exist!!! Duh! I felt this overwhelming urge to scream! How dare they send me a broken machine! And, and how can something so small be sooo significant?! Luckily, Amazon let me send it back and they replaced it, no cost to me.

See the right guiding needle is there, but the left one is missing.

Now you can see, there should be 2 guiding needles! yay!

Got that all straitened out, and my second serger is amazing!! I'd recommend to anyone who loves making their own clothes, it was only $199, which is cheap considering the magic it makes!

Now, here is a picture of my very first hoodie!!!

Altogether, it might have taken me 4 hours, just because I freehanded it! WHAT?! YEAH! I got the material from walmart (stretchy, comfy, lovey) all for less than $5! The zipper was only a few bucks. So, yeah! Awesome sauces!

To wig, or Not to wig...

That is a question for us Goth Folk!

Wigs come in many quality categories, but the most popular is usually the least expensive and the most itchy!

I have a lot of hair, so its hard for me to wear hair pieces that require snug fitting. I do, however, love clip-in/tie-in  pieces! I've made a handful of pretty colored head things.

Being a diy-er and a goth at heart, it is no surprise that I've looked like this:

...or this....

(((So, I guess hair pieces have always been "my thing". I remember how excited I was when I made all of these. Every piece has a story, but shockingly, I no longer own any of them, now! I am an artist, I can make some similar, but I could never ever clone any of these pieces! I've tried)))

Now, Some of us do not like hair pieces, but some of us have gone out of our way to purchase or create some kind of extravagant creation to wear! Here it is again, To wig or not to wig?

What are the pros and cons of wearing hair gear of every category?

Does it not always come back down to the price? When I originally made either of these pieces, I did it to: 

1. Save money
2. Be original
3. Create for others
4. Artistically express myself through my appearance.

None of this was cheap! Even buying the cheapest materials, It ended costing a few hundred dollars altogether due to the learning process. When I started, there were 2 tutorials on youtube and only a few pictures...I learned the hard way. It was a fun, yet, a frustrating process, but I would not trade those experiences for the world! Now that I know how to do these things, I want to share with everyone else who is interested, I want to be the one that starts a 16 year old girl on her dread making, or clip-ins selling extravaganza!! I want my people to join me in creating and DIY-ing! I want us to come together and share our knowledge and our methods of madness!!

WHOSE WITH ME?!!

Let me know in the comments below!

Can You Afford Quality?

Hmm, lets touch this subject with reality! I have an average frame, an inch shorter than average height, so why do I have a hell of a time finding goth clothes?!!

Answer: Goth clothes are at their best when they are custom fit! 

Yes, but I don't have the money for all that!

Answer: No one does.

I have thrown away enough money to put a down payment on a house just by buying my goth clothes from the wrong stores! Ha, and I cannot even begin to explain how badly I wish I could make my own!

Hot Topic is obviously not a quality gothic clothing store. Tripp NYC was Hot Topics biggest and best brand they've come across and even that has devolved from quality to shitty. The most irritating part has to do with the manufacturers of the clothing! Why would anyone use pure synthetic material that is so weak it can't even stay in tact on the rack in the store?! Walmart is guilty of this, too, along with many other high priced, low quality stores. "Look, its shiny, buy it! NO, that rip isn't a rip....its just the seam that was not sewn properly...I mean, buy it, its shiny and printy!". C'mon now! Give me quality or give me death.

Is it worth the investment to buy custom goth clothes?

Are any of the sellers trustworthy?

Why can't I afford nice clothing?

Questions from every little goth girl with a dream. 

P.S. If I could make my own damn clothes AND shoes! oh, You better believe I'd be struttin' my stuff through wally wally wally-world!

~Love Zaney~

Leave me a comment and let me know what you think or if you experience the same inconvenience.

Recycling Accessories-Goth DIY-Studs

Got an old studded belt that fell apart and is no longer functional? 

                            

I got just the thing!

You will need one of these:

• needle nose pliers
• hemostats 
• butter knife

Depending on which of these tools you have will greatly impact the outcome. In this case, I have needle nose pliers:

Now, get to the back side of the studs and pry the claws upward and try not to let it bend out of shape too much.

Just pop it off and set aside.

Now decide what article of clothing or accessory you want to relocate the studs to. Now would be a great time to have pliers.

Just press the stud into the fabric until it penetrates through to the other side.

Using Pliers or crimping tool of some kind, bend the claws down inward and now you have a great start to a new project.

Recycled studs can go a long way. Be as creative as possible and really enjoy this project!

If this version was not sufficient enough, and you would like to see this tutorial in video form, Please comment on this post and let me know. Any questions or suggestions are always welcome.

~Love Zaney~