(You might have already caught a few glimpses of her here and there in my posts in Rising from the Ashes, though.)
Let’s start this with the basics. What is vampirism? Who is considered a vampire? There are various definitions for vampirism and vampire, some very similar to the original concept and some very different. In this blog I’m writing about vampirism and vampires the way I see, or rather feel them. I’m personally not too strict about how to define a vampire. It doesn’t matter that much whether vampires are described as vile monsters who can turn into bats or wolves or as inhumanly beautiful creatures that sparkle in sun. From Dracula to Twilight – bring it on. And when I’m talking about vampirism it doesn’t necessarily involve the thirst for blood, burning in sun or sleeping during the day and staying awake at night. For me it is more about the aristocracy, the aesthetics, the romance and the perfection of it. The mystery behind those beautiful creatures, the wisdom they have gained during the decades, the centuries, even the millennia of their existence. I don’t enjoy the vulgar massacres. For me, the mindless beasts who kill violently for their lust for blood are just the bad guys, inevitable to the story progression.The ones who fall in love with humans and drink only small bits of their perfectly intoxicating blood are definitely my favourites.
How did it all start?
This is a question I love to ponder, and not only when it comes to vampires. How did it all start indeed… I can’t name just one thing that would have been the ultimate source for my love of vampires. The question how walks hand in hand with the question when. I guess my love started growing after primary school, claiming its place in my heart after my obsession with elves. Reading horror books and listening to metal must have been some kind of a trigger, as well as my growing interest to gothic culture. Books like In the Forests of the Night by Amelia Atwater-Rhodes and the manhwa series Model by Lee So-Young are some of the earliest things I remember getting hooked on. Then there were, of course, the Twilight books, Hellsing anime, Malice Mizer’s song Transylvania and Interview with the Vampire (movie & book). I am a girl who has always loved all kinds of supernatural things, fantasy and dark beauty so it isn’t a surprise I ended up with a huge vampire obsession.
The vampire in me
I know there are some people out there who would rip my heart out for even mentioning ‘an inner vampire’ without the thirst for blood. No, I definitely do not drink blood on a daily basis. A glass full of blood looks good in a comic or movie and sounds appealing in a book, but to even think about actually drinking it myself makes me sick to my stomach. My parents always laugh at me who loves vampires but nearly faints at the sight of blood. It’s complicated. I think blood makes a great visual effect in a painting, for example, and it can look very aesthetic when used with care. I guess the line for my fear of blood follows the line that separates fiction from reality. The things I can tolerate are mainly small wounds slowly dripping blood. Sharp white fangs sinking to the soft flesh of an ivory neck, silver knife dancing over the silky skin, drawing a thin line of blood… You know the deal. But when it comes to slashing something open so that the blood spurts out like a geysir, you won’t find me conscious. And the same goes with needles. I feel like I’m going to pass out soon just from writing this. I guess I do like the taste of blood in small amounts though, if I don’t think about it too much. If I get a small wound, I most likely lick it clean rather than search for a napkin or rush for the nearest sink to wash it off. Yeah, my mind works like that. Contradictory, isn’t it?
Well, I guess it would be better to move on or else I won’t have anything interesting to write about in the future. ;) So here we go. These photos go pretty much with the text in the sidebar. Compared to the vampire photos I’ve taken previously, these are more on the black side. There’s some green and quite much light, something you probably wouldn’t come up with when thinking about vampires. Now I think I should shut up before I completely ruin the vampiric feel I’m going for. (Click the photo to enlarge)
About 30 photos made it to my computer, but in the end I felt like only these five are worth showing. This is why I’m not a model or a photographer. Well, I guess the bad quality doesn’t matter after all, since these photos were taken for me in the first place. Feel bad –> dress up & take photos –> feel better.
The clothes and accessories used:
Skirt – from Morticia
Corset – from Morticia
Shirt – from Lindex
Cross necklace – from Claire’s in Portsmouth, England
Silver pendant & earrings – from Kelttikorut.com
Silver bracelet – from my grandmother
Rings – from my mother, Heureka and some random seller at a local fair
I think that was it for now. I’m thinking of writing about my favourite vampires next time… If you have any suggestions/ideas for future posts, questions, things you would like to know or anything else, please feel free to leave me a comment.
I dare you to bite me, darling. ♥
