From Tragedy to Treasure:
Braud's Gothic Journey Through Life
Raymie Braud was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, in August of 1975. Much of his time was spent between his Aunt & Uncle’s house, in Metairie or with his paternal Grandmother, in Gramercy. His father Ralph, left this mortal realm, when Raymie was just 14 months old.
Subsequently, this prompted his moving to California, when he was 4 years old. It was Always his plan to “come back home.” As a young man, Raymie learned a variety of skills, many of which he still uses. Raymie has always had a constant need to “keep busy” yet foster his creativity.
His maternal Great-Grandparents taught him basic carpentry, farming, sewing and cooking skills. While in school, Raymie excelled in woodworking, metalsmithing, glassworks, wire wrapped and die-cast jewelry. He also enjoyed the performing arts, prompting him to join the local shadow cast of the Rocky Horror Picture Show. In September of 1994, Anne went to a showing of the Rocky Horror Picture Show with a few friends.
The cast was doing a Marathon of Back-to Back performances. At the end of the 1st show, as Anne was about to leave, a voice cried out “Hey Wait, Stop! Come Back!!” Anne turned around to witness someone waiving a sheet of paper, while running toward her. It was Raymie, of course, and when he got to Anne, he dropped to one knee and said “Please come back.” He handed Anne the sheet of paper, which was a cast application.
Anne hardly looked at what was handed to her, said something truly sarcastic and walked off; leaving Raymie to wonder if he would ever see Anne again. Little did he know, that she would return about 4 hours later, dressed like a Transylvanian with the cast application filled out.
Raymie and Anne’s unconventional courtship immediately began, making their relationship “Official” November 2nd, of that year. Shortly thereafter, Raymie and Anne started going to the local nightclubs that catered to the Goth/Alt aesthetic. Raymie’s sewing skills would come in handy many times. Anne is over 6ft tall and has health issues that causes her to constantly fluctuate. It wasn’t always easy finding clothes/accessories to fit, much less in the style she likes.
Raymie would alter pieces by hand, making necessary adjustments. He also added embellishments, to update and get more milage out of things she already owned. Raymie hardly got to take vacation from any of his “Normie” jobs, so, in lieu of vacations, Raymie and Anne would do their best to attend, at least 3-4 concerts per year. Recently, they compiled a list of all the concerts they have attended together. At minimum, the count is at 40, although in truth, it’s probably a bit more.
When it comes to music, Raymie and Anne enjoy a vast array of different genres. Throughout all the different concerts, different concerts, usually a shirt or poster was bought to commemorate the event. It was always the idea to one day, incorporate the posters into their home decor. In march 2004, Raymie and Anne joined the Society for Creative Anachronisms (SCA). It is a reenactment of the years 600-1600 AD, leading up to the reign of Queen Elizabeth. Here is where Raymie got the idea to make affordable “beginner Garb” aka clothing for people who wanted to “Dress Accordingly but not have to blow their budget to do it” Raymie accomplished this by scouring thrift stores for men’s dress shirts to alter. He also used men’s sweatpants as a pattern for making draw string pants.
Raymie would share a merchant booth, with others and sell his beginner garb for $40 a set. Needless to say, this kept him busy for quite awhile.
October 2010 was the last SCA event for Raymie and Anne due to Anne’s health issues.
They hope to return to it, one day, if possible.
In August 2015, Anne began taking classes and attending Pagan Sabbath Rituals at the home of Eric and Katrina Rasbold. In June 2016 Raymie also began taking classes and attending Rituals. After they had attended for a full year, Raymie and Anne both were welcomed into the circle and continued their studies of CUSP traditions. During this time, Raymie would attend the yearly Pagan festivals, in the area. In April 2017, Raymie opened his own pop up business, Raymie’s Relics, to sell hand made jewelry, wands, Norse runes and other goods.
He took the skills he learned, both in school and the SCA and applied it to cater to the pagan community. Raymie did this till 2020, until his “Normie” job took president. In early 2022, Raymie and Anne made the decision to sell their Northern California home.
There were many things that contributed to this decision, one of which Anne learning to come to terms with being the soul survivor of her immediate family. This understandably caused great sadness and depression. She quickly learned in order to thrive, she needed to leave her home state.
She had always known that it was Raymie’s dream to return to Louisiana. So, in May 2022, that is exactly what they did. They stayed with Raymie’s family, while Raymie found work and he and Anne closed on their new home in Baton Rouge. Since August, Raymie and Anne have been slowly getting settled; creating the gothic home of their dreams. Anne started binge watching DIY videos on YouTube about how to create your “dream home on a budget.”
Raymie soon started watching with her and an idea was formed: show people how they too can have the goth lifestyle of their dreams. So welcome to Our so called goth life...
Connect With The Braud's
Speak your mind, unleash your dark thoughts - send us a message, if you dare.
©️ All Rights Reserved. Raymie Braud and Anne Marie Braud | Privacy Policy
