Clothes are ideal for setting oneself apart from the mainstream and making a public statement. For subcultures, clothes are immensely important. They are a sign of identification and a feel-good factor at the same time. Representatives of the gothic subculture are of course immediately recognisable by their black clothing. But this is not the exclusive preserve of the goths. So it takes a few more details to turn the simple black T-shirt and the simple black trousers into an outfit for the gothic underground.
Characteristic of the black scene, for example, are certain fabrics such as brocade, velvet, silk, leather or fishnet. Details such as the thumbhole on the much too long sleeve, D-rings as decoration or a lacing are also details that are typical of Gothic fashion. In addition, there are of course many garments that are not seen in current mainstream fashion. Who walks around town these days in a frilly shirt, harem pants, corsage or fishnet shirt? Even sweeping Victorian-style dresses are only seen at Gothic parties. Even the black romantics of the scene only put on the large and elaborate wardrobe on special occasions. In everyday life, more discreet clothes are enough, but they like to pimp them with gothic accessories. These can be brooches with vanitas motifs, ribbon buttons or patches.
Many goths also wear simple band shirts or plain black clothes with matching jewellery in everyday life. Shoes are very important for the goth. Most members of the Goth scene wear either Pikes or boots by Dr. Martens. Recently, however, some brands have been added, so that the choice of gothic shoes is wider. Special buckles, for example in the shape of a pentagram or bat, and motifs from the gothic box make the shoes suitable for the scene. Gothic boots are particularly popular, especially those with platform soles. Of course, black is the dominant colour for gothic clothing. However, colour accents with purple, blue, green, white or wine red are also common in the scene. Goths with a penchant for glamour also love silver and gold colours.
In general, even goths have an everyday life in which they don't have time to stand in front of the mirror for hours and optimise their clothes. Many professions have a dress code that does not necessarily include the Morticia vampire outfit. But when you're going to a party or a festival, you like to dress up and get the right gothic outfit out of the wardrobe. Nevertheless, you can assume that goths can also be recognised in their everyday life by predominantly black clothing and gothic accessories.