While socialites and richies of our time grab for haughty fashion labels and cool tech-ccessories, things were a smidgen different back in the 1800s.
Check out this vampire killing kit from the 19th century. Deanna of Collector's Quest wrote "These are expensive kits, made for the wealthy; not some cheap and cheesy plastic novelty items. Such luxury concedes a seriousness -- a deadly seriousness. These items were made to address deep, dark, primal fears. And then, like our fears often are, they were not thrown away but stored in equally dark and out of the way places... Antique wooden killing kits in the attics of old houses, just waiting for the day when the creatures creep from the attics of our minds."
Why, these beauties are enough to make a gothic kid dance with joy! Ok, not exactly joy (smiling and laughing - not so big in the goth world) and the "dancing" might be a bit more of the shadow dancing/shoe gazing variety, but you get the idea.
Hmm...this makes me miss my 10 hole oxblood Doc Martens something fierce...
