Thursday, August 24, 2017

Spooky Basket: Killstar Stuff.

So earlier in the year I was given a couple Killstar goodies by a friend for my birthday.

...Well, 'given' is a loose term I'm using to feel better about the circumstances, hehe; I made an agreement and gave only half of it at the time but since my birthday was close by he said to consider it a birthday gift... though I technically still owe him the other half of our bargain to this day.

Tangent aside, I received the Cult Ritual Hood and the Grave Digger Skull Bag; a picture of me wearing the hoodie can be seen here: IG @ mari_mortem, along with a couple scattered ones of the purse incorporated in a couple outfits.

The hoodie runs very big-- it's for men after all. We initially ordered a medium, and I was drowning in it in the most unflattering way. I know it's supposed to be kind of baggy, but this was very comical.
Exchanging it was a relatively easy process for those living within the US... but I hear it's kind of pain for those outside. One of my friends was charged over $200 CAD for customs fees-- quite ridiculous.

I exchanged it for an XS and now it fits the way it should. I'm very happy with the material of it, it's a nice thick sweatshirt fleece material; one side is smooth like jersey almost like a ponte, and the inside/wrong side has fleece. I think the seams could be reinforced by looking at them, but I don't fully expect a major malfunction... however, living in San Antonio, I don't have many days I can wear it for any length of time to be certain of this. Regardless, I am a seamstress, I can fix whatever may rip on it... it would just be very unfortunate to discover major flaws for the price you're paying.

Which seems to be something I'm good at doing it.
Finding flaws.

The Grave digger purse... how pretty it is! ...




Sad to say that I found its flaw.
It's no surprise the bag handles awkwardly. It's not soft, it's hard and somewhat cumbersome-- although I could also argue that part of the reason I love it was for the size and amount of room within it.

Nothing technically ripped off like the case of my eyeball bag from Kreepsville which was an incredibly infuriating shoddy craftsmanship discovery, but rather for the grave digger bag it was merely a bad choice of notions.


These appeared to be actual rivets that are originally installed into the bag, but after a few occassions wearing it out I was unfortunate to discover the hard way that these were actually the screw-in type.
My bag fell off my shoulder-- d-ring, tab and all-- because the simple sway of the awkward bag managed to unscrew the rivet from its seating. Since this doesn't have any other handle, I carried it like a basketball back to the car.


I thought, maybe it was a fluke maybe I just need to tighten it better because it wasn't fully done so in the manufacturing process. But again on a different occasion, it eventually unscrewed itself in the sway and I carried it back to the car the same way as before.

So, frustrated, I took a little knife and slit the lining, removed these stupid screw ins and replaced them with real, heavy-duty-for-leather-rivets.



I haven't had an issue since. Knock on wood.

Have you bought anything from Killstar?
What was your experience like?




15 comments:

  1. It's good it was fixable, although for anyone not as crafty this would be an even bigger issue!

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    Replies
    1. It's a fairly easy fix even for the un-crafty type =)
      But it can get pricey, I couldn't find a smaller pack of leather rivets than a 30 count, and they were $10 at Tandy with a gold tier membership =(
      Plus the tool in order to apply them correctly, it runs about $5 to $8 with a coupon at any other craft shop.
      Luckily I can always use rivets of any kind... but, someone who wouldn't ever use them from there on out-- that's a lot of money for just two rivet replacements =S

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  2. I have a couple of their skater dresses which are cute and durable - but I did buy them at sale prices and I'm not sure they're worth paying face value for (they do very good sales in the UK, to be fair). Their fabric is hit and miss - when they use jersey it's lovely, when they use synthetic it can be shiny and trashy. I have just bought their fluffy lunar jumper for autumn and that is just gorgeous. I would say girl's stuff sizes quite small - I'm a petite UK 8/10 (US 4/6) and I am a medium in KS.

    I also bought KS's wiccan flats and they ae nice but I'm not that keen on pleather shoes and they're probably not as durable as I'd like.

    As a brand in a similar mould I prefer Disturbia but I suspect they may be UK based only. Their quality is consistently better and they do some lovely pieces.

    Jane :)
    www.irregularfiction.wordpress.com

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    Replies
    1. Sales are good! But I definitely agree with you, face value... I dunno, these made me do a double take as well.

      Disturbia, huh? I haven't heard of them so you may be right on that one, though I am not in tune with what's what, even in my own area. Worth a look!
      Thank you =)

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  3. Good save with the rivet! I'm glad you reviewed this because I always wondered about this bag. It looked like a well-made bag in the photos. I have a few dresses and a body suit, the pentagram belt, and earrings. The quality is good for all for the price point, except for pleather on the belt.

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    Replies
    1. I feel rather guilty for saying this, but I'm glad I didn't spend any of my actual dollars on this bag. I think I would be much more annoyed than I was.
      That's a shame about the belt... really love it too. Heck, if I see it on sale though, I may just snag it and redo it in a better quality-- if anything else the hardware might be worth the dollar lol.

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  4. Oooh cool that you were able to salvage the bag. I bought from Killstar, I am from Canada. The customs fees are pretty high. The owner of my local goth shop often places orders with them and we can tack on items to avoid paying the fees.

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    Replies
    1. Ooooh, that's very generous of the shop to do that for you!
      I can't believe what people are paying for up there-- we're supposed to be close neighbors...

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  5. I have that bag too but I haven't worn it yet. I'm saving it for a night out. I might go ahead and replace the rivets like you suggested. I ordered a few items recently so I should do a post also. I'm impressed with how fast they ship items and the quality has been ok so far. Oh goodness I'm behind on posts!

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    Replies
    1. Now it may just be me, I have so far been the only one I read having this same experience with this bag. I may just be really really unlucky... which doesn't at all surprise me, hahah. Everything I touch crumbles and withers in my grasp. I'm not Mortem for nuthin' lolololol

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  6. I've seen a lot of Kill Star items and I find they don't appeal to my taste. I feel some of the products are overpriced for what they are. I feel this way about a lot of alternative fashion brands. Also, I am not keen on their patterns I find their some what garish. I do like some of their items just not enough to pay for their prices. Each to their own.

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    Replies
    1. True true, I'm not sure why I remain surprised that yet another brand has let me down. Though this one wasn't as bad as Kreepsville. On par with Sourpuss, though... the one dress I bought is so faded now, and the one I made to dupe it is still so vibrant and fresh. Though to be fair, that Sourpuss dress is two years old... but my galaxy dress which is now the same age is still trucking along... heck even a skirt I made a decade ago is still very much wearable and only slightly faded!

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    2. I've found that some of my things that I've made years ago are still going pretty strong. I now just making my own stuff I find whole process enjoyable.

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  7. I find that Killstar is very hit and miss. Some of the things I have ordered have been very nice while others have been terrible quality. I also find that the sizing is quite inconsistent.

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    Replies
    1. It's very unfortunate. Reeeally wanted Killstar to be different, and to be fair, it's not quite as bad as other brands... but I suppose we're no longer able to expect great quality with our top dollar =/
      I think my standards would be different if they weren't such big names.

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