OK, I'll try to summarize my thoughts on fashion with only a slight touch of sarcasm and hatred. I'll use myself as a model.

I wear a kitty cat bracelet on my right wrist, mirroring my watch, at all times. It doesn't have massive spikes, but studs, and unfortunately the strip is made out of leather, thus I'm a hypocrite, but that story is for another day. I wear to interviews, school, funerals, and so forth. Why? Not to support the scene, or at least not directly, but a constant reminder of who I am.

Here's the situation. I'm at the Mall, wait, I don't go to the mall. Hmm. Who cares. I'm at the mall, and dressed relatively "normal" because it's cold outside and I always put the elements in front of fashion. I'm shopping for a birthday gift lets say, and someone comes up and says "Nice bracelet". There's a slimmer of a chance I've found a kindred soul, and I would of missed them if the bracelet had not been on. That's my use for the trendy "punk rock bracelet."

I get more "dressed up" when I go to shows and people say that's a fashion punk thing to do. I don't. I'll wear my vest that's only dotted with a few patches and pins, to show people what I'm into and help weed out people I'd rather not meet. Nothing pisses me off more than people who put on any and every patch they can find. They usually end up putting on something like Stormwatch in their ignorance.

When else do I wear my vest? When it's warm but nippy out, cause that's what a vest is made for. Fashion is a part of punk, but don't let it run you. Be proud for what you stand for and let other's know. Do it for yourself most of all, not the others around you. People who dress for other people are very weak, in my opinion. That's my definition of a fashion punk, one who gets the punk clothes or whatnot and tries to ride it for fame and stuff. Over patching and the like are examples. They try to be "punk rock" 100% of the time, or try to. Bad stuff.

DIY or die? Not needed, though I paid nothing for my bracelet, made my vest out of my seven year old jacket (snip, snip, goes the scissors and off come the sleeves!) and all but two of my patches I made myself. One I bought and the other was sent to me, the IRC #Punk patch. That patch is a great example of finding friends, even if IRC is very satanic. Go ahead and buy your stuff, though be aware that it may be better to buy stuff from other punks then hit the dreaded Hot Topic and pay +50$ for a collar you could of bought for 12$ at a pet store. Hot Topic sucks. Exploits the mainstreams of fringe culture. Bad place.

Never take fashion to seriously. I think the punk humor is a false sense of security, but it's a nice one. My vest as a tiny hood, that I can barley fit over my bulbous head, but on it I made a big "X" and wrote "CTPR" (CT is Connecticut's postal thingy) where the respective "NYHC" should go. Funny, but don't wear to a straight-edge-new-school-hard-core-jenco show unless you can run real fast or know karate. Another good one I saw was simply a jacket that said "Punk Snot Dead", a take off on the classic "Punks Not Dead". Runny noses are up their with heroin. Yeah.

Finally, don't wear turtle necks no matter what you do. They are evil aliens sent down from Zorblox-7 and given the chance, will devour your whole head. If you haven't noticed they are already fairly close when you put them on. Shh, don't tell them I told you.