June 30, 2014

20 Dark and Sinister Etsy Shops to Peruse Instead of Working on a Monday Morning

1. Angelyques Trinkets

Josie's store in Montreal, Canada sells "whimsical and geeky jewelry and accessories." She's open to custom cosplay orders, too. There are lovely things here - skull cameo brooches, tiny tophats, rhinestone skull earrings, crowns and scepters, some steampunk jewelry pieces, keychains, and a couple of really cool stained glass masks.

It's hard to pick my favorite item from all the crowns here, but I suppose if my arm is twisted I'll select this Sanguine red crown.

https://www.etsy.com/shop/angelyques

Angelyques Trinkets on Facebook

2. Bats and Bones

"Gothic inspired creations" from South Carolina. There are a few lovely pieces of jewelry here, plus candles, fuzzy gloves, and a bat trinket box.

https://www.etsy.com/shop/BatsandBones

3. Criduchat Jewelry

(Take a second and look up what Criduchat means!) This shop is based in Lodi, California. The jewelry here is very unusual - for example, here's a cruelty-free real mouse fetus cameo pendant. The rest of the jewelry here includes scarab beetles, teeth, jawbones, mandibles and the like.

https://www.etsy.com/shop/CriduchatJewelry

4. Dark Elegance Designs

Though this Scotland-based shop sells other jewelry, it's known mostly for gorgeous gothic chokers. Their chokers are categorized by styles including "Sinistra," "Immortal," "Nightfall," and "Lucretia."

My favorite is the Black Onyx choker.

http://www.darkelegancedesigns.co.uk/

https://www.etsy.com/shop/DarkEleganceDesigns

Dark Elegance Designs on Facebook

5. Decayed Angel

Jennifer's shop from Greensboro, North Carolina. She sells art dolls, jewelry, and some hair accessories. Check out the bloody skeleton hands bra!

https://www.etsy.com/shop/DecayedAngelMerch

6. Dolls 4 Emma

This shop specializes in handmade doll fashions, most of them goth-themed. Elizabeth dresses Monster High dolls, Blythe dolls, Living Dead dolls, Lalaloopsy dolls, and Bleeding Edge dolls from her home in Victoria, Canada.

My favorite is this Black Widow outfit sized for a Living Dead doll.

https://www.etsy.com/shop/DOLLS4EMMA

Dolls4Emma on Facebook

7. Fuzz On Me

This shop is full of adorable handcrafted felt Halloween ornaments. There are bats, ghosts, and pumpkins.

http://www.etsy.com/shop/fuzzonme

8. Graveyard Shift Costumes

Whoah, the gowns here are incredibly unique and sort of, well, gory! (For example, this Blood Stained and Spattered Bride gown). There's a zombie prom queen gown, a Victorian ghost bride, a Bride of Frankenstein satin wedding gown, and even a "Road Kill" gown.

If I had to pick just one favorite, I suppose it is the Victorian ghost bride!

https://www.etsy.com/shop/GraveyardShift13

Graveyard Shift Costumes on Facebook

9. Liv Free Creations

Bespoke accessories from Lincoln, England. The headdresses here are stunning - many would be perfect for a gothic wedding.

My favorite is this black glitter rose headband.

https://www.etsy.com/shop/livfreecreations

Creations by Liv Free, on Facebook

10. Metamorphoses Masks

As you can imagine, I've seen quite a lot of gothic, fantasy and Halloween masks in my time upon this planet. Here's a shop that actually has distinctive, unusual masks that impress me. These leather masks are handcrafted in Chicago, Illinois. Many feature spikes.

While I would be too creeped out to wear this, my favorite mask here is this spider mask.

https://www.etsy.com/shop/MetamorphosesMasks

11. The Moonlight Muse

Here are some really intriguing, intricate paper cuttings. They depict horror topics such as Dracula and Frankenstein's monster, as well as the Hellraiser Lament configuration puzzle box.

The most stunning things here though are the Dracula's Castle, hand cut out of paper, and the paper Addams Family House, hand cut out of paper. There's also the Bates Motel Psycho house, set in a shadow box. Incredible!

https://www.etsy.com/shop/themoonlightmuse

12. MYantz

Myckel Yantz sells sugar skull art and pop culture art from this shop based in Oklahoma.

Is your favorite thing here this Maleficent sugar skull art print?

https://www.etsy.com/shop/MYantz

Myckel Yantz on Facebook

13. Th1rte3nsCloset

How fitting that this shop happened to end up #13 on my alphabetical list! Glendale, California is the home of the "Deadly Bears." There are also some Edward Gorey goodies, a cute bat coin purse, jewelry and key chains, and hair bows.

Don't miss the amazing Batpacks that this shop is known for.

https://www.etsy.com/shop/Th1rte3nsCloset

Th1rte3nsCloset on Facebook

14. More Than Porcelain

This Athens, Greece shop specializes in altering old porcelain, or creating new porcelain with dark themes. There are dinner plates, soup bowls, mugs and teacups with gorgeous Alice in Wonderland, sugar skull, skeleton, and Edgar Allan Poe themes.

The most delightful thing to me here is this set of four stacking Alice in Wonderland espresso cups.

https://www.etsy.com/shop/MoreThanPorcelain

15. Poisoned Porcelain

Here's another shop with handmade dark dinnerware. This one is based in Stamford, Connecticut. The plates feature skulls and nautical themes that might make them suitable for steampunk uses. There are just a very few plates here.

https://www.etsy.com/shop/PoisonedPorcelain

16. Sisters of the Moon

This Rhode Island shop sells handmade tutus, many of them suitable for goth needs. There are also goodies such as skeleton hands hair clips, hair falls, and boot covers.

There are also several bridal tutus that are gorgeous, including this purple one.

https://www.etsy.com/shop/SistersOfTheMoon

Sisters of the Moon on Facebook

17. Spooky But Cute

Empress Eccentric (Rachel) sells her cute dark art dolls from Cornwall, England. Besides goth dolls, she sells a couple of fairy art dolls too.

https://www.etsy.com/shop/SpookyButCute

SpookyButCute on Facebook

18. TataniaRosa

Beautiful tatted lace jewelry and home decor from Heather's shop in England. I can't imagine how much work goes into making these! Most stuff here is not the right color scheme to be considered goth, but there are several lovely dark items here as well.

For example, here's the Lizzie tatted lace cuff.

https://www.etsy.com/shop/TataniaRosa

TataniaRosa on Facebook

19. The Thanatos Archive

The Thanatos Archive is a longstanding website of postmortem, funeral and memorial photography. They're located not far from me in Woodinville, Washington. Here's their Etsy store where you can buy morbid original photographs and antique photograph albums.

One of my favorite photos here is Queen Victoria in Mourning. I bet you'll spend quite a bit of time browsing this shop!

https://www.etsy.com/shop/diabolus

The Thanatos Archive on Facebook

20. The Wishmaster's Capes

What a fun and fabulous Halloween and cosplay costume store this is! Based in Orlando, Florida, they specialize in higher end capes, but also well a few jackets. Check out their Lily Munster casket cape, which they will customize for you in regards to fit and fabric selection.

I am most tempted by the Wicked Queen cape here.

https://www.etsy.com/shop/TheWishmastersCapes

The Wishmaster's Capes and Costumes, on Facebook


--Copyright 2014 Carrie Carolin

Dark Side of the Net gothic shop links

June 29, 2014

New Gothic Links for a Sepulchral Sunday

DARK/GOTH BLOGS:

Biohazardous Beauty

Tori is a self-described "creature of the night" who blogs about cosmetics from Erie, Pennsylvania. Recent posts show the samples she's been trying out and what the cosmetics look like on her. Good way to find out about new brands or newest products from brands you already like.

http://biohazardousbeauty.blogspot.com/

Craft for Misfits

Michelle's blog on goth crafts, and her life in a geodesic dome in Australia. Recent posts include pics from a recent warp she was working on, the infinity scarves she's knitting because it's winter in Australia right now; and a pic of her in her awesome mohawk on the beach.

http://threefolddesigns.blogspot.com/

Dark Classics

Here's a blog that specializes in finding and sharing really old weird dark artworks, most of them pre-1930. I've discovered so many amazing artists from this blog. The images come in really handy for my research for Dark Side University too. I'll come back to this blog once a week to see what other new dark gems they've discovered.

http://darkclassics.blogspot.com/

Empress Bat

Empress Bat is a goth herbalist living in Australia. She runs a business on Etsy in addition to her work and studies. Current posts include how to find steampunk and DIY supplies on the cheap; steampunk musings after she watched "Warehouse 13"; and her list of blogs to follow.

http://empressbat.blogspot.com/

Flora Gothica

"Flora Gothica is a page devoted to environmentally-friendly choices that meld well within alternative lifestyles." Recent posts include tips on suiting up for summer, a post on gothic drinks, and one on and a goth Etsy recommendation: La Veille Lune.

http://floragothica.com/

Odd Things I've Seen

J.W. Ocker travels and then writes about the oddities of culture, art, history, and nature that he experiences. Recent posts include his visit to St. Andrew Memorial, news about the Morbid Anatomy museum in Brooklyn, and a post about the "They Live" exhibition in Los Angeles. You definitely won't be bored when you stop by this blog.

http://www.oddthingsiveseen.com/

Odd Things I've Seen Facebook Page


DARK EVENTS:

Ghoultide Gathering

This event is a "Magical Bazaar of Halloween Art." The eighth anniversary event takes place in Chelsea, Michigan on October 4, 2014. After browsing the info on exhibitors, I'm rather glad I live too far away to attend - I'd spend so much of my hard earned money on their adorable and spooky items!

http://www.ghoultidegathering.com/

Ghoultide Gathering on Facebook


DARK AND GOTHIC MUSIC:

Shiv-R

An industrial band from Australia. Their debut album "Hold My Hand" came out in 2010.

http://shiv-r.com/

Shiv-R on Facebook

Shiv-R on YouTube


DARK SIDE OF THE WORLD:

Dark Dorset

This website covers all the unexplained, mysterious happenings, customs and folklore of this part of England. There's a blog, events calendar, video gallery, newsletter, and emporium listing. Useful and kept up to date nicely!

http://www.darkdorset.co.uk/


DARK SHOPS:

Abigail Larson Illustration

One of my favorite artists from Deviantart has a shop at Society6. You can buy her fabulous gothic designs on mugs, shower curtains, tote bags, throw pillows, iPod skins, and of course on art prints.

My favorite item here is the Nightmares of the Alchemist's Wife throw pillow.

http://society6.com/abigaillarson

Dark Desire

As you can probably tell, I never get bored of browsing for cool dark Etsy shops. I hope you still enjoy seeing them when I share links. Dark Desire is a particular recent favorite of mine. They're from Lisbon, Portugal, and have exquisite taste in clothing. Besides Gothic/Victorian, they sell a few pirate and steampunk styled pieces.

The loveliest item here, to me, is this Victorian velvet underbust corset.

https://www.etsy.com/shop/DarkDesireStore

Dark Desire on Facebook

Fallen Angel Brass

This NY state based shop sells antiqued black brass and pewter jewelry "findings" - supplies you can use to make your own cool gothic jewelry. There are cabs and cameos, charms and pendants, drops, frames, settings, bezels, filigree, plus chain and wire supplies.

My favorite item here is this pewter skeleton key.

https://www.etsy.com/shop/FallenAngelBrass

Nightshades Clothing

This UK-baesd shop specializes in plus-sized goth and steampunk clothing for men and women. Aah, I love shops that take Paypal instead of just credit cards only. I much prefer browsing their Etsy listings than their outdated looking website.

My favorite item here is this pinstripe frilled skirt.

http://nightshades.org.uk/

https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/NightshadesClothing

Nightshades Clothing on Etsy


HORROR GENRE:

Basement of Ghoulish Decadence

This horror review blog most recently has been excited about Dario Argento's Opera from 1987 being released on Blu-Ray; plus thoughts on Raiders of the Doomed Kingdom. This blog doesn't update often though.

http://www.ghoulbasement.com/

Cannibal Reviews

A horror movie review blog. Recent posts include a video review of the Mezco monster scale Frankenstein toy, a review of ostensibly exploitation film Sugar Cookies, and a look at Hallmark's 2014 Halloween horror products.

http://www.cannibalreviews.com/

Cannibal Reviews on Facebook


--Copyright 2014 Carrie Carolin

Dark Side of the Net

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