By: Asherra

Nothing says anarchy like a post apocalyptic sex goddess in a silver PVC dress! When I started out in the Goth scene, I came from a world where band t-shirts and black jeans meant you passed as a Goth. I absolutely LOVED the cyber punk style with its tough yet super sexy style however I had no idea how to bring the whole outfit together. Here are a few things that I have learned over the years of investigation into this futuristic fashion.

• Dreads are an essential part to having the complete cyber look. However these can be tricky as most people are not up for the commitment a full head of lime green dreads come with. This is where hair falls come into play. Hair falls are extensions that you can clip in to your hair to give you the illusion of longer or different hair. There are many different places you can buy these from in any wide variety of colors and media. These stores are mostly found on the web and if you do a search on “dread falls” or “cyber falls” something is bound to turn up. Some sellers that come highly recommended to me are www.ikickshins.net and www.jadeddreads.com (highlighted at the Bats Day in the Fun Park black market). E-bay also has a decent selection of hair falls. Most falls will range in price from $40 - $100 a pair depending on the dread or strand count, its length, and what other types of accessories you choose to include. There are several different types of media that your falls could be made out of. The most common is the synthetic dread which is made of synthetic hair that has been dreaded and steamed into place. There is also braided falls where the falls are synthetic hair that has been braided or twisted. Yarn or wool falls are also common, as are cyberlox falls. Cyberlox falls give the appearance that one has tubing instead of ‘hair’. For those of you who don’t feel comfortable buying on-line or simply would rather make your own, stay tuned for a how-to on how to make your own cyber and yarn falls in upcoming issues! For the cyber look, you may want to purchase a pair of falls with cyberlox, plastic lacing, lengths of foam, and other synthetic adornments. If you’re looking more for the naturally weird look, dreads are your best bet.
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  Hair falls add a great accent to your outfit however they can be tricky at times to wear properly. The easiest way that I find is to put your hair up in two pigtails, make sure that they are tight. If you have long hair, braid your pigtail and fasten it at the bottom. You can also put the hair in a bun if you so choose. Take the hair fall and flip your head over. Tie or clip the hair fall into place so that it faces up. After you flip your head back over the hair falls will settle into place. Make sure you tie or clip the hair falls in tight so that when you are dancing or moving around they don’t fall out. To make them look even fuller, you can take a few pieces of each braid and cross them over the other, filling in the gap between the two. To hide your hair in front, I always like to use a piece of black fishnet that I have which I pin to my forehead. You can also pull out a few strands of bangs and then put a pair of workman’s goggles up there. Those make great accents to the hair falls.(Falls by Heretic 13 Inc., Photo by Poisoned Sweets)
• One thing I have noticed in all dashing cyber outfits is that the wearer always has a specific color theme. Instead of choosing 4 or 5 colors, stick to one primary color pair. After all, we don’t want to resemble Rainbow Bright in a blender but rather Rainbow Bright gone Goth. My advice is to stick with black or silver as a base and then add on one other primary color. For example, make your outfit black and then accent it with hot pink fishnet, eye shadow, or hot pink hair falls. After that, perhaps a hint of lime green here and there. Shy away from pulling in more than three colors.

After you have your wardrobe and hair all sorted out, make-up is the icing on the cake! After applying your foundation and powder, try these Technicolor techniques.

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  Shimmer powder can be used to give the skin an inhuman sheen. I like ICE shimmer powder by DuWop ($18 at Sephora) which, if applied generously gives the skin an eerie glow. It also hides imperfections. If you like the way that looks, you can also try Two Faced Liquid Light which is a cream highlighter at the edges of the cheek bones to highlight.
• Glitter is almost a must when it comes to dolling your self up cyber style. I recommend glitters that are made in specific for your face, either in a gel or loose. If the glitter is loose adhere it with a small amount of spirit gum or clear lining liquid. You can also purchase glitter liners from companies like Urban Decay.
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  To give your eyes an alien beauty try this: wet a medium eye brush and take a metallic silver eye shadow. Apply a full coat of silver to a bare upper lid. After the first cote is dry apply a second and third until the shadow is at the desired density. Thinly line the lower lid below in the same manor, but this time sweeping the shadow outward toward the cheek bone. Make sure to also bring the shadow in to the corners of the eye. After the shadow has dried, line the upper and lower lid with a contrasting color, try blue glitter for example. Make sure the make the line heavy and constant all the way around the eye. If you so desire, add false lashes or at least mascara at this point
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  It’s really hard, especially after Halloween to find funky color lipstick. If you can’t find a lipstick you like, use some chap-stick and then dust some of the appropriate colored eye shadow onto your lips. It allows you to create what ever lip color you desire but beware, this technique doesn’t last very long so you have to reapply quite often.