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Alternative clothing - Goth Punk and Kinky fashion E-mail


Alternative clothing covers a variety of styles from a range of subcultures. Punk, goth and emo clothing, grunge, glam and rockabilly,  burlesque, fetish even just plain kinky clothing. Alternative clothing is non mainstream fashion, often designed, if not made, by independent fashion designers who are part of the alternative subculture from which it draws its influences.

"Alternative subculture clothing in the 70's, 80's and 90's"


Nowadays, Camden Town is seen as the established location for alternative clothes in London, but throughout the 1970's, 80's and 90's, Kensington Market was the place to get all manner of weird, wonderful and bizarre clothing. Jed remembers going to Kensington Market often in the late 1980's, buying her gothic and alternative clothing and accessories. Keeping her warm as she travelled home from the Catacomb nightclub in Manor House was a long black canvas coat. Her alternative gothic style included a crimped and backcombed mohican, black eyeliner, lipstick and nail varnish. Kensington Market was a subcultural phenomenon. The market spread over three floors, and housing a cafe, tattooist, hairstylist, and even a clock repair business whose customers included the royal family. Kensington Market was the place to find a plethora of stalls selling hippy skirts, 1970's punk fashion, and white frilly shirts - a staple in any mens alternative clothing wardrobe.

"Independent alternative designs in Camden Town market, London"


In early 2000, after 30 years of being the bastion of British eccentric fashion, Kensington Market closed. Many of the alternative clothing companies that traded there moved to Camden Town with its six thriving markets. It was in one of these markets, held in The Electric Ballroom every Sunday, where Jed Phoenix started selling her Obscure Labels T-shirts. In 1999, having received funding from The Prince's Youth Business Trust Obscure Labels was born. The philosophy behind the T-shirt designs was that we each have labels assigned to us, but that those labels don't tell the whole story. The Obscure Labels alphabet consisted of letters with bits missing so words such as "anarchist", "drug fucked" and "queer" took a little decoding to read. But there were plenty of misfits, freaks, punks, goths and emo kids frequenting Camden Town in the early noughties to start building a customer base. Jed's own alternative punky style, with her mohican haircut and big Swear shoes, attracted many curious tourists. But Camden Town, like other areas in London with a reputation for being alternative and quirky, came under threat of redevelopment which would have led to the closure of The Electric Ballroom and Buck Street market. The uncertainty surrounding The Electric Ballroom's future, as well as the increasing prevelence of mass produced cheap alternative clothing in Camden Town meant that many independent alternative designers either moved to other pastures or shut up shop completely. Initially, Jed found the challenges of market life very empowering and each slow trading day led to advances in her designs as she improved and refined her alternative style and added trousers, tailcoats, skirts and jackets to her range.

"Kinky Fashion with a Passion"


In 2005, however, Jed found that her unique style was becoming more and more influenced by the fetish and kink scene and she couldn't compete with the cheap alternative clothes that were being made in Asia and Turkey. Jed applied for a pitch at Birmingham Bizarre Bazaar, a monthly alternative clothing and lifestyle market in Birmingham, and started trading there in July 2005. In March 2006, London Alternative Market was launched, providing a retail outlet for around 40 businesses selling predominately BDSM equipment, kinky fashion and subculture clothing.