The photoset I am sharing with you today will hopefully be the first edition in a series that I shot with DWS Photography. I had a wonderful time working on this beautiful set. The lingerie featured was created by me with exception of the beautiful Victorian style corset from Louise Black. This underbust corset is one of my favourite pieces and I am glad to have these wonderful photos to show it off. Enjoy this small set and hopefully there will be more to come….
Russ Meyer was not only known for his scandalous films featuring voluptuous vixens, he was also a popular photographer of the female form. His photos showcase the unique love he had for women. They are joyous, relaxed, playful and captivating, just like the women in the photographs. As an huge fan of pinup photography I find Meyer’s to be some of the most striking and creative work from that era. He has an obvious love for each model and does a wonderful job of showcasing all her finest features. Enjoy some of my favourite shots from Russ Meyer.
This Go-Go inspired photoset was shot by the lovely Tyrone Islington. I had a really fun time with this shoot, which took place in my apartment and features some of my favourite classic cult movie posters. This costume is from a duet burlesque act that I perform with Betty Quirk inspired by the Russ Meyer film Faster Pussycat Kill Kill so I was happy to shoot it in from of my poster for the film. Enjoy!
This year’s Girlesque Expo in Toronto was an especially monumental one for me as it was the debut of a brand new act from myself and Betty Quirk. It is hard for me to even put into words that joy that I felt finally bringing this act to life. It has been a dream of ours for sometime to take the Little Rock number from the film Gentlemen Prefer Blondes and put our own burlesque twist on it. The scene, which has a very silly theme about finding a man with money, also showcases a genuine bond between two girlfriends who are navigating the world of men and relationships. Betty and I enjoyed playing up both this friendship aspect as well as the silliness of the number and concluded with a whole lot of booty shaking. We also took on the task of recreating the costumes from the film and creating our own fun undergarments. It was a very successful show for us and we are very thankful to have such awesome photos from Photolena of our performance as well as a video from Candid Dragon Fire Productions which is at the bottom of this post.
Way back in the summer of 2013 my uber talented friend Sam asked if I was interested in posing for a portrait for her gallery show. Obviously I jumped at the chance to be a part of the amazing collection of body positive artwork that is Saucy Nudles. I am consistently awed by Sam’s ability to, with a few skilled strokes of her pen, bring to life the essence and beauty of her subjects. Her portraits are honest and show a love and respect for the female form. Saucy Nudles celebrates a changing beauty standard that embraces all bodies. I am thrilled to have my own portrait from Sam and I can’t wait to see what comes next from Saucy Nudles.
Click here to visit Saucy Nudles Facebook page.
Portraits start at $150.
Love is in the air today and one lady I love dearly is Zilly Lilly! This gorgeous red head is not only a phenomenal dancer and burlesque babe, she is also a wonderful, smart and funny lady and friend. I was very lucky to have Zilly join me in a saucy photoshoot earlier this year and Valentines day seemed the perfect day to post a little teaser from our shoot. Enjoy Zilly Lilly and I in the first image of our series Behind the Burlesque Curtain.
Photo by Lick My Lens Cap.
I had the absolute pleasure of starting my year by creating what might be my favourite costume to date! The effervescent Laura Desiree came to me with the idea of celebrating her heritage and creating a new costume and act inspired by her recent European tour. We chose a rich colour pallet of deep reds, purples and bright gold for this look and completely decked out each piece in jewels and beaded fringe. Her undergarments have rows of coin fringe as if her loot is hidden beneath her outer layers. The headpiece was her crown of roses complete with a long flowing veil. Laura was a mystical wonder at this year’s Girlesque Expo in her gypsy ensemble.
Photos by Photolena, Chris Hutcheson, MOPO, Rawesome, and Ruth Gillson.
On January 11th 2015 at age 83 legendary actress and model Anita Ekberg passed away.
The Swedish beauty Kerstin Anita Marianne Ekberg began her career as a model in her teens. She travelled to the United States in 1951 to compete in the Miss Universe pageant and though she did not win she was one of 6 finalists to receive a starlet’s contract with Universal Studios which offered her training in drama, elocution and dance. Her first big break into the film industry was in the 1955 short-lived TV series Casablanca. After that she starred in two Paramount films in 1955 and 1956, Artists and Models and Hollywood or Bust, and was marketed as Paramount’s Marilyn Monroe.
Ekberg was not one to shy from the limelight and would participate in publicity stunts such as having her dress burst open in the lobby of London’s Berkeley Hotel. In 1960 Ekberg starred in the biggest role of her career as Sylvia in Federico Fellini’s La Dolce Vita. Ekberg was very frank and honest with the media and would frequently talk about which stars she disliked. In an interview with The New York Times in 1999 Ekberg was quoted as saying, “They would like to keep up the story that Fellini made me famous, Fellini discovered me”.
Anita Ekberg died earlier this month in Italy from complications of an enduring illnesses. Her striking image of sultry seductress is burned into the minds of all who gaze upon her photos or soak up in her many cinematic appearances. She will be missed.
I am so excited that next weekend is the 10th Annual Great Canadian Girlesque Expo! Girlesque is arguably the biggest and most exciting burlesque event in Toronto and is often a chance for performers to debut there newest creations. Myself and my design partner Betty Quirk have been preparing for months for the Girlesque expo as both performers and costumers to many other performers involved. We are very lucky to be outfitting Laura Desiree, Gigi Vanilla, Delicia Pastiche, Dottie Dangerfield and Dolly Berlin for this year’s expo!
We are even more excited to be debuting a dream act of ours at the closing Sunday night show! With inspiration from Marilyn Monroe and Jane Russell, our act will be a fun mix of genres and styles. We can’t wait to share it with you!
Click the poster below to purchase tickets to Girlesque.
For my first photo shoot of 2015 I had the pleasure of working with two of my favourite people and one of my favourite themes; showgirls in backstage dressing rooms. I am very excited to share these photos with you, but you will have to be patient. As a tease, here are some of my inspiration photos for this shoot. Photos of backstage showgirl photos offer a glimpse behind the curtain. A peek at the prep and primping of a performer. Enjoy!
CLASSICALLY CURVY 