We are in the process of updating and refining our online shopping experience. During this time you may find some difficulty in placing orders through the web. If you happen to run into any problems, please contact our Customer Service Department via email at: Customer_ Service@theoriginalcult.com with the following, and we would be happy to assist in placing your order.

 
Thank you for your patience and cooperation!
 

*If you have an account with us specify whether you would like to charge the most recent CC on file, if you do not have an account or wish to use a different card, please let us know in the notes and we will contact you to confirm or obtain your credit card information.

Merry Nightmare before Christmas, everyone!  Hope you’re having a spooky time with friends and family. I certainly am.

During the winter, there’s no need to trade style for warmth. Long skirts, velvety layers and tights are my favorite ways to beat the cold.

I’m wearing a Lippy Plaid Paradox halter ballgown, with d-rings and pyramid studs. I love how the back of the skirt is long and gathered.

Over the top, I’m wearing a Dark Delphina velvety jacket from a past Blacklist collection. It’s currently on sale via the Lip Service website!

I accessorized the look with silver cross and bird skull jewelry by Fashionology, and a Lady Gaga ribbon / bow hairstyle.

Have you been wearing Lip Service this winter? I hope this gives you some styling inspiration!

I can’t wait to share my new projects with you in 2011. There’s several video and TV projects to debut in January, including something with the Amazing Race Goth team, Kent and Vyxsin (who are also Lippy fans).

Stay warm and spooky!

La Carmina
More on my blog - http://www.lacarmina.com/blog/

Never fear, last minute Charlie! When you spend $150 or more, we’ll RUSH your shipping!

There’s no code, no special instructions to remember. Just buy some Lippy style for everyone on your list at the Lip Service webstore and, if your order is $150 or more, we’ll upgrade to RUSH shipping ON US.

Pretty simple, huh?

So, why drive yourself crazy with malls and crowds? Get what they really want, some killer gear to rock in the new year!

Happy Holidays, Fashion Freaks!

Here are all the details:

- Lip Service webstore purchases must be made between 12:01 AM Monday, December 19 and 2:00 PM Wednesday, December 21 (all times are Pacific)

- CUT-OFF TIME FOR ORDERS TO BE SHIPPED WEDNESDAY (DEC 21) IS 2PM PACIFIC. THERE WILL BE NO EXCEPTIONS.

- Free shipping upgrade applies to domestic orders only.

- Free upgrade is based on domestic order subtotal; tax or shipping charges do not apply.

- Lip Service is not responsible for shipping performance of selected carriers.

- If you have any questions regarding free upgrade or your order, please email customer service through our Contact page for assistance.

Producer/Model/Stylist:Vanity Kills

Photography: Maura Housley

We also thought you might like to meet the artist behind the fashion, so asked Raven a few questions about her craft and how she puts her gorgeous creations together.

What inspired you to first start making jewelry? Did you receive
formal training or did you teach yourself?

I started being obsessed with jewelry at an early age. After I got my ears pierced when I was 6, I would draw page after page of earring designs. I had some formal training starting in High School, then focused on the arts in college and worked for fine jewelers as well.

What are your favorite types of pieces to make and why?

Headdresses are by far my favorite pieces to design.

What types of materials do you mostly use, do you ever use found
objects or collaborate with different artists?

I use vintage and new old stock stones, metal and beads for over half of my designs. I am a control freak, so to speak and am way to obsessive to work with people usually, lol. But I do have a ton of dear friends who make jewelry and are artist and designers.

What was the most exciting piece you ever made and who did you
make it for?

The most exciting piece I made was my Ultimate Mucha Headdress, I made it to see how far I could push my skills. I sold it last year.

If someone wants to start getting into making their own jewelry
what is the one piece of advice you would give them?

I have taught jewelry classes for years and my best advise is good lighting and quality tools! Other than that it should be fun!

If someone wants to purchase your items where can they find your work?

Most of my work is for sale in my Etsy shop and some is at my main site, raveneve.com, which I am revamping next year.

To see Raven Eve’s additions to Lip Service’s upcoming collection and place your preorder reservations, check out Step In Time: Gypsy Nights.

For more of her work, visit her etsy store:

For every $50 purchase you make December 19 – 23, we’ll give you $10 credit to treat yourself, after the holidays.

There’s no code, no special instructions to remember. Just buy at least $100 of killer Lippy style for yourself, maybe a few friends too and, after the holidays, you’ll have a treat of your own waiting for you in your inbox. On us.

Pretty simple, huh?

So, why drive yourself crazy with malls and shopping? Get what you really want and get a head start on building your killer look for the new year!

Happy Holidays, Fashion Freaks!

Here are all the details:

- Lip Service webstore purchases must be made between 12:01 AM Monday, December 19 and 11:59 PM Friday, December 23 (all times are Pacific)

- Minimum purchase to receive credit is $100 order subtotal (not including shipping and/or tax).

- Issued credit will be based on purchase subtotal (not including shipping and/or tax), with $10 credit issued for every $50.

- Credit information will be sent to the email address on record for the purchase the week of December 26th.

- Individual credit codes will be issued for each Lip Service purchase. If you have several purchases and would like to request a combined credit for these orders, please email customer service through our Contact page for assistance.

You’ve taken a look around and, sigh, you’re having a rough time figuring out how to get a really kickass gift but not break your holiday budget. Never fear! We can help.

Every week, we’ll put together a collection of great Lippy gifts that will not only make your Lippy Addict squee with joyful fashion-freak excitement, but won’t break the bank, either. This week, we focus on mixing and matching, with 10 gifts that add up the savings … all for 100 bucks or less.

We’ll be next week with a guide to affordable gifts by style. Until then, happy shopping!

Under 50

#1 Cat’s Meow $31 – 33

Babydoll Set
$25.00

or

Mini Slip Dress
$23.00

+

Ruffled Wrist Gloves
$8.00

#2 Pin Me Up $37

Fingerless Gloves With Bows
$15.00

+

Garter With Lace And Bow
$22.00

#3 Men’s Jeans + Service Collection $39 – 48

Junkie-overdyed Denim
$25.00

+

Service Logo S/s Screen Tee
$14.00

or

Service Logo L/s Screen Tee
$21.00

or

Honor S/s Work Shirt
$23.00

#4 Vinyl Classics $43

Neck Corset With Zip Front
$21.00

+

Unisex Gauntlets
$22.00

#5 Cat’s Meow $46

Bra And Bikini Brief Set
$20.00

+

Garter Skirt With Thong
$15.00

+

Ruffled Wrist Gloves
$8.00

Under 100

#6 Vinyl Classics $78 – 100

Take #4 ($43) and add

Itty Bitty Micro Mini
$35.00

or

5-pocket Hipster Peg Leg
$57.00

#7 Men’s Jeans + Steampunk Tee $88

Mens Suspender Tee
$37.00

+

Mens Rocker-dark Blue Vintage Wash
$51.00

#8 Black Fetish/Clubwear $90 – 93

Coated Spandex Leggings
$24.00

+

Waist Cincher
$36.00

+

Cami Top
$33.00

or

Long Sleever
$30.00

#9 Casual Pin-up Style $97

Sweater With Faux Fur Collar
$52.00

+

Black junkie fit jeans
$45.00

#10 Men’s Vinyl Fetsh/Clubwear $100

Mens Vinyl O-ring Pants
$78.00

+

Unisex Gauntlets
$22.00

As the calendar date shifts towards the 24th of November, people across the United States are make their pilgrimages back home to reunite with their families in order to celebrate the great turkey holiday. Their thought dials are set to tune in only to feelings of intimacy, festivity, and gluttony; and they no doubt eagerly await the anticipated merriment promised with the holidays. They are completely unaware that a mutant strain of influenza type A virus subtype H3N2 has re-emerged a hemisphere away in the Australian coastal city Brisbane, similar to the incident in 2008. Unfortunately, a cargo ship loaded illegally with infected turkeys was launched for the USA three weeks prior to the holiday…

The freight ship docks in southern California on November 8th. The workers unload the turkeys as planned and transfer them rapidly to slaughter houses. The day following the allocation, the dockhands experience headaches and sore throats. The abnormally cold weather is blamed. The turkeys are redistributed into packaged goods and sent to stores and markets a few days later. Some farmhands begin to notice dark spots on their body, but no apparent pain or discomfort. Business continues as usual. The turkeys make their way to myriad sectors of the country, and on their journey the meat comes into contact with uncountable additional shipments of good. The first full blown cases of the H3N2 outbreak happen in rural, sparsely populated areas and go generally unnoticed by the populous. Several families in North Dakota are admitting to the hospital coughing up blood and bile, typically with black spots littering their skin. A man in Wyoming with similar black spots is brought to a clinic with bleeding from the eyes, mouth and anus. By the time thanksgiving arrives, it is too late to contain the tempest of disease. Families across the country lay out their meal platters and begin to feel their flesh crawl with plague. Mothers begin to rend and tear at their skin to alleviate the hellish itch. Children cough and spew blood all over the table, filling rooms with the heinous contagion. The plague’s advanced form rapidly shows the signs of a viral hemorrhagic fever and leprosy. A child’s skin hardens and he peels away at the scabs; a man drinking wine collapses into his mashed potatoes as his lungs fail. Twins are driven into a berserk state and attempt to use a carving knife to remove the other’s face. A woman feels her entrails slide out of her body in a slimy stew of bile and acrid stench. There is no escaping the pandemic, it is carried by the birds and they are flying overhead now…

Happy Thanksgiving!

BIRDEMIC

She’s draped in lace and bones and something else you can’t put your finger on. Is it the distinct scent of death? This highly fatalistic look, styled to remind us of our own mortality in these uncertain times, borrows liberally from authentic plague doctor beak-shaped protective masks while adding some fresh ingredients to the mix such as feathered posture collars. The latter serves as a tongue-in-cheek tribute to our avian friends, which might or might not eventually be responsible for our extinction. Meanwhile pink ruffles trimming the Nocturnal Rendezvous Shrug which faithfully mirror the distinct fanlike folds of intestines provide a literal take on organic fashion. Go on. Catch the twenty-first century plague with Vanity Kills.

• Historically, plague physicians were suited in head-to-toe waxed leather cloak or gown-like garments designed to protect the wearer from exposure to life-threatening germs. Completely enshrouding the body was standard practice, and in the spirit of concealment I’ve taken great care to ensure that no bare skin was left exposed by attiring myself in a posture collar (to cover my neck), black gloves (to keep my hands from coming into contact with who knows what) and a floor length skirt. Since the amorphous, tent-like silhouettes of genuine plague doctor wear are not what I consider to be very conducive to femininity, I focused on adapting other attributes of the aforementioned medieval ensembles – namely the waxen texture of the over-garments. And so I fended off contamination (while bringing it to YOU) by choosing shiny, black pieces such as the Nocturnal Rendezvous Ruffle Shrug #38-116 and an equally slick underbust corset.
• Behold the blood glistening against a medley of caged guts and snow white feathers. You don’t personify a disease without toting around an accessory that boldly proclaims “Hi there, I’m not sidestepping subtlety; I’m running it over with a bus”.
• I opted out of the traditional wide-brimmed hat in favor of “bird’s nest”-like hair, complete with a small raven surveying the terrain from amidst the chaos on my head. The partially disguised presence of an ebony plumed pestilence carrier provided the finishing touch this “pretty in plague” outfit needed.
• Dem Bones cami top #56-296 and a floral lace button down blouse boost those style antibodies.
• I have a confession to make. I wasn’t always a fan of those “super creepy plague doctor bird masks”, as previously noted in Plague Widow. Something about that long-snout, just didn’t sit right with me. Inexplicably, that same eerie sensibility that initially turned me off drew me right back in, because it’s hard to resist adornments fashioned with a poxy lady in mind.

In conclusion, let us give thanks for making it another year without being wiped out by a global pandemic.

Obligatory Disclaimer: No live poultry was “fowled”, harmed or otherwise made uncomfortable for the sake of capturing these images. Not unless you count a tacky feather boa sacrificed to the photo Gods. The swine guts were purchased at a supermarket and if I didn’t use utilize them for artsy purposes, in all likelihood they would’ve wound up as someone’s dinner. I have no qualms about “bimboing around with pig parts” (Thank you Bud Bundy for that great quote), but I’ll never go as far as retrieving them from a live pig. Even if it’s a member of the Kardashian family.

Be sure to check out 2010’s take on Thanksgiving terror here.

Credits

Photographer: Stevie Oh! Photography

Model: Vanity Kills

Location: Letchworth Village, NY

<3

Vanity Kills

[Show as slideshow]

A white wedding isn’t for everyone, especially if you’re of a Gothic disposition. Hail Satan for alternative wedding blog Rock n Roll Bride. My friend Kat Williams posts unconventional marriage photos and tips, encouraging couples to put a personal stamp on their big day.

I’m thrilled to interview her for my column in Lip Service Webzine. What are Kat’s favorite Goth weddings? How would she plan La Carmina’s? Read on and be inspired. (More photos of Kat from her photoshoots here.)

† Tell me about your site.

I started Rock n Roll Bride when I was planning my own wedding in 2007. On discovering wedding blogs, I realised there was a whole world of inspiration out there that you didn’t get in traditional magazines. I started the site as an online diary — a place to gather my thoughts and inspiration.

However after the wedding I decided I rather liked this blogging thing. Although I loved the blogs I read, none of them really posted about alternative weddings. So, in January 2009, I moved to WordPress and started blogging about other people’s weddings — the kinds I loved.

† What was your wedding like?

Contrary to popular belief, our wedding was actually quite traditional. We had a black & white theme — I wore a long white dress but I added a black sash, and my hair was my natural brown! Looks weird to see me in those photos now, it doesn’t look like me at all.

I really only found out about all the amazing alternative weddings and suppliers afterwards. I was sick of being told what our wedding should be like by the wedding industry portrayed in the magazines, and I wanted to inspire other brides (like me) who don’t realize there is another way to do it.

Of course if Gareth and I were to get married again now, our wedding would be totally different to how it was back then, but I don’t regret the way we did it.

† What’s your advice for planning a Goth wedding, and dealing with resistance from family?

I am a massive advocate for people doing what makes them happy and showcasing their personalities. Some of the weddings are simple and laid back, and others are extravagant affairs with burlesque dancers. But at the center of every wedding I feature is a couple in love – that’s the most important thing, so I guess ‘keeping it real’ would be my number one piece of advice.

I think these days, families are more open when it comes to themes — the media has shown a lot of differently styled weddings. I would say physically showing them your ideas is a better way to approach it then just explaining. When I told my Mum we were having a black and white theme she said ‘oh Kat, it’s going to look like a funeral.’ Luckily when I showed her some photos I’d found, she saw that it was anything but that!

† How would you plan La Carmina’s wedding?

I’d imagine you with a very glam wedding — I’m thinking a sexy and tight-fitting PVC dress (maybe black or deep red!) and jewellery with crosses or skulls. I love this crown by Butler and Wilson and this amazing necklace! For your flowers and centrepieces it would have to be decedent deep red or even black roses in tall candelabras, maybe dripping with crystals. Black tablecloths and glassware and candles.

Your cake would have to be a Choccywoccydoodah. They are the most amazing cakes I’ve ever seen, and even do skulls. Your location would obviously be in your favourite themed restaurant in Japan and your music would be J-rock! Doesn’t that sound like an awesome wedding?

And now, a selection of Goth weddings featured on Rock n Roll Bride. The headers link to the full posts.

Darkly dramatic Goth & rock wedding (photos by Devlin Photography)
“We were inspired by all that is dark and whimsical: a fusion of Victorian vamp, fanciful garden beauty and Old-World luxe tweaked with flavours of Rock n Roll and Carnival/Circus. Elements included mismatched French style furniture, vintage silverware abound with roses and ostrich feathers and candelabras, all in a rich palette of blood red, deep plums, black and white. I walked down the aisle to Sweet Child O Mine by Guns N Roses.”

Sleepy Hollow marriage ceremony (photos by Made U Look Photography)
“My initial inspiration was Sleepy Hollow meets a carnival meets a dark wonderland. I also wanted all the guests to wear all black. The bridesmaids’ looks are inspired by 1930s cabaret look. DIY weddings are totally worth it because it ends up really making your day.”

The Ghoulmores’ Night of the Living Wed (photos by Al Overdrive Weddings)
The colorful duo runs the horror-themed clothing company Kreepsville 666. Their ghoulish, retro-horror themed wedding took place on Friday the 13th. The cake was a skull and all the attendees took home a set of cast-silver effect fangs that said ‘fangs for coming’ [groan].

Deep Purple Wedding Gown and Ceremony (photos by Annamarie Stepney Photography assisted by Kim Hawkins)
The venue: a deconsacrated Roman Catholic Church in the centre of London. The bridesmaids wore 1950s-style swing dresses and birdcage veils. The cocktails followed the theme: Black Russians, Raspberry mohitos and passionfruit bellinis.

Fabulously theatrical Gothic ceremony (photos by Toast of Leeds)
“We got prices from Kirkstall Abbey (ludicrously cheap to hire) and the whole thing grew arms and legs all by itself. The lights, fog, music, shrubbery… we had an insanely theatrical wedding with a rock music soundtrack to boot.”

Mad Alice in Wonderland wedding (photos by Freyja Photography)
“It was like gothic Alice in Wonderland meets Avatar. The reception areas were filled with the giant mushrooms and flowers and you felt so tiny when you entered the room. For the party I asked for an old-queen crown, like Count Dracula era. I love vampires.”

Tim Burton Wedding (photos by D Park Photography)
“We were inspired by a visit to Disneyland’s holiday-decorated Haunted Mansion. After looking more at the work of Tim Burton, we decided we wouldn’t limit ourselves to just one of his movies but try to select something from all of them. The purpose wasn’t to be creepy and eerie but to help describe us (like many of his characters) as off-center.”

Burlesque Gothic reception (photos by Eden Exposed)
“The theme for the wedding really revolved around my dress, which was designed and handmade by the amazingly talented Kim Denman. 1950′s underwear themed colour scheme of dusty pink and black, with plenty of feathers, beads, and netting thrown in. Oh, and a massive stuffed pink bow on the back!”

For more corpse brides, you can revisit my Gothic Lolita Weddings post on my La Carmina blog.

† Dark Wishes †

LA CARMINA