DIY - costumes, headpieces and photography

At some point many burlesque artists start to make their own costumes and accessories. I'm no exception.  Some are also photographers and / or models, or like in my case, wannabe ones.

When it comes to costumes, I'm lucky to have my mum near by. I have tons of brilliant ideas but just few to execute them. That's when mum is handy helper in sewing and problem solving. One third of my costumes are self made either by me or my mum. The rest are made by seamstress for convenient, lack of time or pure laziness. If only I would be wealthier I would custom order all my costumes. But I'm not, so I'm in place where to learn new skills, which is not necessarily a bad thing at all.

Same goes for props and accessories, some are diy, when some are custom work or bought ready-made. Headpieces however are one thing I love to do! I get inspiration from some single thing and I start working on it. I usually have an idea about the end result, but the work takes shape during the process and the outcome can be a surprise even to myself. Like the Halloween themed headpiece in a the picture. I had no idea it's going to turn out like it did, but I'm so pleased! 

As a burlesque artist you can't avoid cameras, we all have at least one promotion picture. I remember my first photo shoots, I felt so natural on front of a camera. I didn't know how to pose but I wasn't afraid of a camera, and it was a good place to be. Since then I've been a tfcd-model and learnt posing in process. Every now and then I build up a home studio and take selfies in order to practice. Then I play with photo editing to get different vibes for the pictures. I'm never going to be a photographer or a true model but it's a world I find interesting and artsy.

As is world of burlesque.