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hey! dark academia tips for a beginner?
Hey, thanks for sending! Here are my best tips for amateur dark academics:
1. Indulge intellectually stimulating activities. Dark academics are always looking to learn more, do more, and be more. Do things that better your brain, such as researching. Find a topic that interests you— one that cannot be easily answered by a simple Google search and collect as much information as you can about it. And despite popular belief, that topic doesn’t have to be literature-based; it can be abnormal psychology, French history, hell— anything your heart desires and your brain would benefit from knowing.
2. Improve your penmanship. Dark academics are always taking notes, annotating, and scribbling things down in their journals. Said notes are usually in cursive or at the least—legible. And what’s worse than distasteful penmanship? Not only will this help you channel your inner dark academic, the people who have to read what you write won’t have to squint and sigh when reading it.
3. Drink more herbal teas and rich coffees. Tea and coffee are probably the two most consumed beverages by dark academics. Tea is relaxing, nice to sip after a laborious day at work or school and coffee is stimulating, a nice early morning wake-up beverage for a majority of the human population.
4. Learn about the classics. This is not exclusive to books and authors. If you’re more of a movie person, like myself, don’t hesitate to go back in time and learn what you can about the most iconic screenwriters of say… the 1940s. If you’re into vintage music, learn what you wish about the most influential musicians of the time. You can never go wrong with vintage! Well… except the racism, homophobia, sexism, slavery, classism, and poor tastes in eyebrow makeup, but that’s a discussion for later.
5. Purchase clothing of darker and earthier tones. This isn’t an absolute must, but many correlate the clothing with the aesthetic, so it would be a helpful identifier if you want the world to know that you’re a dark academic. By “dark and earthier tones”, I mean shades of brown, dark greens— including forest green and sage, greys and of course, blacks. Stay away from the ostentatious neons and pastels, as this is more common in the cottagecore aesthetics. Plaid and tweed are also treasured amongst the dark academia community, but they certainly don’t look good on everyone, so find what works for you. Dark academics also LOVE button-down blouses—especially ones with unique sleeves and Victorian-Era designs.
You don’t have to spend an arm and a leg curating your wardrobe, either. I personally purchase most of my clothing from thrift stores and online resell sites, such as Depop and Poshmark because they’re so much cheaper than buying them new.
6. Opt for darker makeup. This is pretty self-explanatory— wear darker lipstick shades and darker eyeshadow, if you wish. Also, you don’t have to conceal your eyebags, as they give an enigmatic depth to most people’s eyes.
That’s all I have right now, I hope this was helpful!