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During the winter months I get cold very easily so I live in sweaters and hoodies! As a gothic designer and creator I love bat designs in my fashion and now you can have your own bat sweaters!
One of my favorite is the blanket style bat hoodies with bat wings.
Wearing a black bat-shaped blanket hoodie with cute little bat ears feels like wrapping yourself in cozy gothic magic. The oversized wings drape around you like a soft, shadowy cloak, keeping you warm during moonlit, chilly winter nights. Whether you’re curled up on the couch, stepping outside to admire the night sky, or sipping a warm drink by candlelight, this hoodie feels like your own personal cocoon.
The soft plush fabric makes every moment feel snug and enchanted, like you’re a nighttime creature ready to glide through the winter air.
This bat blanket hoodie is the perfect blend of comfort and goth girl fashion—straight from the aesthetic world of Gothic Darling. It’s playful, stylish, and wonderfully dramatic, with pointed bat ears that peek up from the hood and wings that wrap around you in the coziest way. It’s not just loungewear—it’s a whole mood. Perfect for spooky-season lovers, gothic fashion fans, and anyone who wants to stay warm while looking adorably dark and mysterious, this hoodie turns winter nights into your own soft, gothic fairytale.
Anyone who knows me knows my house and porch is decorated Halloween year-round so I love when Christmas comes.
Skull Christmas decorations are my favorite, fun and family friendly without offending anyone and keeping the Christmas cheer spooky.
Add a hauntingly beautiful twist to your holiday with skull Christmas decorations that blend gothic charm, dark elegance, and cozy winter magic. From eerie ornaments to glowing yard lights, here’s how to create a Christmas display that’s both spooky and merry.
🕯️ Skull Ornaments
Start with your tree. One of my favorites on this list is the little skull tree ornaments, they are so fun! Replace the usual baubles with skull ornaments.
A skull-themed wreath on your front door sets the tone for your gothic holiday. Use black pine garland or spray a green wreath with matte black paint. Add mini skulls, dark red roses, and a few glittery black ornaments. Finish with a big velvet bow or lace ribbon. You can even add a small strand of LED lights to make your wreath light-up at night — spooky and stylish all at once.
Bring your dark winter wonderland outside with skull yard lights. Look for skull pathway lights, or wrap string lights around large skull props. Mix red and purple bulbs for a haunting holiday glow. If you have statues or gothic garden pieces, drape them with black garland or faux snow to create a spooky-meets-merry atmosphere. A glowing skull in a Santa hat by the door adds the perfect gothic greeting for your guests.
Top your gothic Christmas tree with a dramatic skull wearing a Santa hat! Good thing is you can get one online and do not have too make one, but you can! Wrap strands of black tinsel or red ribbon flowing down from the skull like eerie ribbons of magic. It’s the perfect mix of creepy and festive — the gothic star of your tree.
Hang your stockings with a spooky twist! Skull-patterned stockings in velvet or faux leather add gothic glamour to your mantle. Look for designs with lace trim, chains, or metallic embroidery. You can personalize them with names written in silver paint. Fill them with small dark-themed treats like black candles, mini perfumes, or glow-in-the-dark trinkets for the ultimate gothic stocking surprise.
Ever since I watched Nightmare Before Christmas I have adored Christmas and Halloween combined, and know many others do too. I hope this guide helps you find what you need to make your holidays a little more spooky.
An outdoor gothic bathing area transforms a simple patio into a private sanctuary and a nice place to relax under a full moon.
Here’s how to create your own moonlit retreat.
🌙 Intro: A Magical Bath Under the Moon
Taking a bath outside under the moon can feel like stepping into a dream. The night air is cool, the candles glow softly, and the world feels quiet and peaceful. You don’t need a fancy spa to make it happen — just a little imagination!
With a few simple things like an inflatable bathtub, cozy lights, and some gothic style, you can turn your patio into your own private moonlit bath. It’s the perfect place to relax, think, and enjoy the beauty of the night.
🛁 Step 1: Choose Your Tub
An inflatable outdoor bathtub or freestanding soaking tub is perfect for moonlit bathing. They make portable ones or larger hot tub style. Look for one in black, dark purple, or silver, or add a sheer lace overlay for a romantic touch. If you’re feeling extra fancy, surround the tub with black velvet pillows or a small gothic-style rug so you can step out in comfort.
Privacy is everything for your gothic escape. Drape black or deep lace curtains around your bathing area using a canopy frame, patio poles, or bamboo stands. You can also use outdoor privacy screens or ivy trellises to keep your sanctuary hidden while adding a touch of mystery. For a witchy vibe, hang faux vines, sheer drapes, or bamboo fencing that sway in the night breeze.
Nothing sets the mood like the lighting choice and luckily you can find so many different style lights. Line your space with black pillar candles, floating candles, or LED flickering candles if you prefer safety. Go with patio light strands or lanterns.
Make your experience luxurious with essential oils, bath bombs, and rose petals. Keep a folding side table or gothic tray nearby for your anything you might need. Soft black towels, a cozy robe, and scented incense complete the spa-like feeling.
🌿 Step 5: Surround Yourself with Nature
Add life and texture to your sanctuary with potted ferns, black petunias, dark succulents, or purple lavender. Place them around the bathtub for a secret-garden effect. The blend of shadows and natural fragrance makes the space feel both wild and sacred — like something out of a Victorian dream.
🖤 Step 6: Personal Touches of Magic
Put some plug-in Jack O’Lanterns or any outdoor decorations you want to enhance the vibe.
🌒 Your Gothic Sanctuary Awaits
When the candles are lit and the night breeze kisses your skin, your gothic patio bath becomes more than décor — it’s a ritual. A place to breathe, to dream, and to feel the beauty of the night.
Today I visited the resting place of one of New Orleans’ most beloved and legendary gothic authors — Anne Rice.
The cool autumn air whispered through the oak trees of Metairie Cemetery as I walked among marble angels, weeping willows, and shadowed tombs. The sun broke softly through the clouds, and it felt like the perfect All Souls’ Day — a moment suspended between worlds, just as Anne would have written it.
Fans brought flowers, her novels,pumpkins and other mementos , while some wrote letters to her and this was the first photograph I took upon arrival.
The Queen of Gothic Literature
Anne Rice (1941–2021) forever changed the landscape of gothic fiction with Interview with the Vampire, her groundbreaking 1976 novel that introduced the world to Louis, Lestat, and the immortal melancholy of New Orleans’ darkly romantic underworld. The novel — later adapted into a film and TV series — became the cornerstone of The Vampire Chronicles, a sweeping saga that fused philosophy, sensuality, and the supernatural.
Her stories weren’t merely about vampires — they were meditations on love, grief, faith, and immortality. She brought New Orleans to life as a character itself: humid, haunted, and heartbreakingly beautiful. Beyond her vampires, she also wrote about witches, ghosts, and angels, always exploring the sacred and the profane with her signature elegance and empathy.
The Tomb in Metairie Cemetery
After decades of literary fame and a life spent in devotion to her art, Rice returned to her beloved New Orleans in eternal rest. Her family tomb, built before her death, stands in Metairie Cemetery — a grand white stone mausoleum bearing the name RICE in bold letters above its doors. It is both solemn and majestic, a fitting final home for the woman who gave the city its modern gothic soul.
Inside rest Anne Rice herself, her husband Stan Rice, and their daughter Michele, who passed away tragically at the age of five. Michele was the inspiration for the haunting child vampire Claudia in Interview with the Vampire. After Anne’s passing, her daughter’s remains were moved from California to New Orleans, reunited at last with her parents in the tomb Anne designed.
If you look through the glass doors of her tomb you can see a lovely stained glass window illuminating their resting place with the beautiful phrase: “May perpetual light shine upon them O Lord.”
Stan Rice: The Poet Beside Her
Stan Rice (1942–2002) was not only Anne’s husband but an accomplished poet and painter in his own right. He served as a professor at San Francisco State University and published several volumes of poetry, often exploring the same themes of death and transcendence that Anne wove into her novels. His words — powerful, raw, and deeply human — are engraved on the side of the family tomb, a lasting testament to the love and creative bond they shared.
Standing before their tomb, I could feel the intertwining legacies of their lives — two artists whose work reflected beauty in darkness, and whose love story was as eternal as their characters.
A Gothic All Souls’ Day
My visit today felt like a pilgrimage. The gentle breeze carried the scent of fallen leaves and flowers left by admirers. The marble glowed softly in the afternoon light as crows circled lazily above the ancient oaks. It was peaceful, reverent, and hauntingly beautiful — everything one might expect from a visit to the resting place of New Orleans’ gothic queen.
As I filmed and took photos among the tombs, I couldn’t help but think that Anne Rice would have loved this day — the quiet reverence, the artistry of decay, and the endless inspiration found in the Crescent City’s cemeteries.
In death, as in life, Anne Rice continues to remind us that beauty and darkness are never far apart — and in New Orleans, they dance together forever beneath the shade of the live oaks. 🌙🖤
— by Monique Lula, All Souls’ Day in New Orleans 2025
When I got my house I couldn’t wait to begin decorating it for Halloween year-round!
Yes, I have skull lights in my yard all the time. There’s something so hauntingly beautiful about skull-shaped yard lights glowing along my walkway at night. 💀✨
These gothic path lights turn any patio into a mysterious place to relax, like something straight out of a haunted mansion in New Orleans. The warm, eerie glow casts the perfect shadows across the ground, lighting your way with a touch of dark magic. Whether it’s Halloween night or just another moonlit evening, these skull lights keep the spooky season alive year-round. 🌙🕯️
Each skull is a little work of art and detailed, they are durable, and weather-resistant for years of use. Line them up along your walkway, on the porch…. circle them around your garden, or place them by your front steps for a spooky welcome. They’re perfect for those who believe Halloween isn’t just a holiday, its a way of life!👻
Here in New Orleans, I keep mine glowing all year long. Between the flicker of gas lamps and the charm of old oak trees, these skull lights fit right in. 🖤🌒
Whether you’re decorating for Halloween or embracing your spooky soul daily, these lights look great in any yard at night.
