Category Archives: Holidays & Special Occasions

Of Halloween Shopping.

The Lady of the Manners is going to start off with a disclaimer: this installment of Gothic Charm School is primarily going to be of use to the Snarklings in the USA. The clicky-links of coveting lead to assorted retailers that may or may not ship outside of the USA, so be sure to read all the fine print about shipping and whatnot before you buy something!

So what is the Lady of the Manners going to burble enthusiastically about? Snarklings, it’s the most wonderful time of the year! The Halloween season is upon us! Now is the time to stock up on goodies festooned with bats and skulls, on stripy tights and fishnets, and on candles and candle holders! Continue reading

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Of Gently Refusing Gifts, and of Reality TV

Oh goodness, Snarklings. The Lady of the Manners knew exactly what she was going to write about; a letter from someone in the vampire subculture, and the long-threatened holding-forth about the sparkly skull accessory trend. But then things got busy (as they do), and then one of you wrote in with a question about a delicate situation concerning holiday gifts. The Lady of the Manners realized she absolutely needed to try and help, which brings us to this: Continue reading

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On Dealing With Relatives. And Security Guards.

Hmmm. The Lady of the Manners said she was probably going to talk about Dealing With Parents for the November lesson, didn’t she? Well, Snarklings, is Dealing With Parents and Relatives During the Holidays close enough? The Lady of the Manners will even include a bonus lesson of how to politely deal with being harassed by security guards at shopping establishments, which is probably a very timely topic, what with the holiday shopping season looming near and all.

So. The holidays (as the media is so fond of reminding us) are a time for family. Which the Lady of the Manners agrees with, actually, but the Lady of the Manners realizes that not everyone is lucky enough to have family who accept them for who they are. The Lady of the Manners is also aware that it’s a bit difficult to be full of holiday cheer when arguments about “You aren’t going to your grandparents dressed like that!” are ringing through the air instead of, say, sleigh bells.

First things first: there is no such thing as a picture-perfect holiday celebration, and the Lady of the Manners is sure that you know that. But! No matter how aware of that you (and probably your family) are, that doesn’t change the fact that deep in everyone’s heart of hearts, they think that if they just do the right thing, say the right words, then they WILL have that greeting card”“perfect holiday. And there’s nothing wrong with striving for that; just keep in mind that you may need to be a little more patient and accommodating than usual. Continue reading

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October Weddings

Hello Faithful Readers, and welcome to the October musings at Gothic Charm School. Now, let’s see ”” October is the traditional time for the Lady of the Manners to burble gleefully about Halloween, isn’t it? The gothy things to do (and NOT to do), the reasons why cheap Halloween makeup shouldn’t be substituted for club makeup (no matter how enticing the sale price is), you know, the usual sort of thing. Guess what? Not this year. Nope. This year, the Lady of the Manners is going to devote an entire column to another fine gothic tradition for October.

Weddings. Continue reading

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Mobbing the Newly Single, Club Behaviour, and Holiday Gift Guide

Hello Faithful Readers, and welcome to the December edition of Gothic Charm School. This month, the Lady of the Manners is presenting you with a sort of hodgepodge column; a couple of different questions to be answered, a quick restating of one of the Lady of the Manners’ pet peeves, and then! A handy Holiday Gift Guide for all of you to try to get your nearest and dearest to read, in the hopes that the enticingly-wrapped box you receive isn’t filled with a pastel green fuzzy sweater. Clip and Save! (Well, more like Copy, Paste, Print, and Save, but you get the idea.) Continue reading

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More Halloween Do’s and Don’t’s

Hello Faithful Readers, and welcome to another month of ranti . . . lectures about etiquette at Gothic Charm School. A quick glance at the calendar shows it’s October; a quick list of important things about October are:

* The weather FINALLY starts behaving itself, allowing more velvet clothes to be taken out of storage.
* Halloween!!

Which means of course, the annual Gothic Charm School rules for Halloween! Now those of you who have been reading this column for years and years may recognize some of this advice from Octobers past. But tucked in amongst the familiar Do’s and Don’ts there are bits of new advice. With that gentle nudge, on to What to Do (and NOT to Do) at Halloween time for the denizens of GothyLand! Continue reading

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Summer Etiquette

Hello, Faithful Readers, and welcome to the July episode of Gothic Charm School. Ahhh, summer vacation, or even just summer weekends. Nice weather, and (hopefully) the time to enjoy it. There’s so much to do! Picnics, outdoor festivals, the zoo, theme parks, the beach (while the Lady of the Manners herself doesn’t go to beaches, she’s been assured they can be quite nice), outdoor concerts”¦ Continue reading

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Hosting a Gathering

Greetings, Faithful Readers, and welcome to the June edition of Gothic Charm School. With June comes longer days and warmer nights; what better way to use them than to throw parties? Of course, there are certain things one should keep in mind when being a host or hostess for a clot of goths”¦ Continue reading

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Holiday Shopping and Parties

Hello, Faithful Readers, and welcome to the holiday edition of Gothic Charm School. The tell-tale signs of the holiday season are upon us: fake snow in window displays, every storefront covered in twinkly lights, and glazed expressions on the on the faces of salesclerks from non-stop exposure to piped-in holiday music.

Now, last year, the Lady of the Manners explained to you how to keep family harmony during the holidays by being polite, friendly, courteous, and practicing at keeping a somewhat cheerful, but neutral facial expression when asked, “so, aren’t you done with this weird phase yet?” by well-intentioned but clueless relatives. This year, the Lady of the Manners is going to cover some other points of surviving the holidays: shopping, and holiday parties ”” both the attending and throwing thereof. Continue reading

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Halloween Do’s and Don’t’s

Hello, Faithful Readers, and Happy Anniversary! Yes, it’s been a full year of advice from Gothic Charm School ”” it didn’t seem that long, did it? In amongst the questions that Faithful Readers sent in, there were also various missives from people asking, “what gives you the right to tell people how to dress and behave?!” To which the Lady of the Manners responds: She’s not telling anyone in a dictatorial fashion. Everything has been advice, which means people are free to ignore it completely. For those out there who have felt slighted by the Lady of the Manners’ disdain for face-covering elaborate eyeliner and plastic capes, oh well. Rest assured that she would never run up to you and tell you that you look silly. That would be rude and unkind.

Anyway, it’s October, and we all know what October means for goths, right? ALL THE STORES ARE STOCKING HALLOWEEN THINGS!! Continue reading

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