Come see me shimmy and shake tonight at the Bovine in Toronto for Dances the Cramps Taught Us!
Cover is $5, doors at 9:30.
See you there!
Tag: Laura Desiree
Gypsy Rose LD
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.
Girlesque Festival 2015
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.
2014: Reflecting on a Fabulous Year!
It’s hard to believe 2014 is finally coming to a close. This year has been so full of joy and success, good times and great friends. I have a new job which I love so much and is the start of a wonderful career. I have the most amazing group of friends a girl could ever ask for, not to mention the cutest kitten on the planet. And I’ve been able to express my creativity through so many amazing fashion photo shoots and design projects. I performed in an international burlesque festival, got a giant mermaid tattoo, met two of my idols (Yaya Han and Tess Munster) and I even started this blog. I can’t believe what a lucky girl I am and I feel so incredibly thankful to have had all these experiences.
So here we go. This is my year in photos; memories from most of the big events, photo shoots, friends, lots and lots of friends and the most fabulous fashions. Thank you for following my blog and I wish the happiest New Year to you all!
Laura Desiree at Girlesque 2014
Early in 2014 I was working tirelessly on one of the biggest costume commissions I have ever had. My muse, Miss Laura Desiree requested a new costume for the Girlesque Festival in Toronto. Working with her dance partner, Sexy Mark Brown, Laura wanted an outfit that had three changeable bottoms to reflect the three types of dance they were performing. First a knee-length circle skirt for a romantic slow dance, then a pair of short shorts for their tap number, finally a long chiffon skirt for their ballroom waltz. I also made a bustier to go with all three looks that was heavily embellished with lace, beading and swarovski crystals. I absolutely love how these garments turned out and Laura looks absolutely lovely flowing through this dance. Please check out the video below for the full routine.
Laura Desiree at the Toronto Burlesque Festival
Once again the lovely and talented Laura Desiree dominated the stage in her Rock n Roll Red Fringe outfit created by me! This time it was at the Toronto Burlesque Festival’s opening show where she strutted her stuff before a packed house of burlesque enthusiasts and performers. Since the last time I blogged about this outfit we added another piece which is the flowing red satin skirt with fringe detail from waist to hip. I love what the skirt added to the overall outfit and I think it finishes the look perfectly. Check out these wonderful photos from photographer Ruth Gillson of the gorgeous Laura Desiree at the Toronto Burlesque Festival!
Pussy Whipped Wednesday
Last night was Pussy Whipped Wednesday at the Boxine Sex Club in Toronto. The lovely Laura Desiree produced the second monthly Dances the Cramps Taught Us event with burlesque performers and go-go dancers shaking it to songs by the Cramps. My design partner/bff, Betty Quirk and I did our go-go/cat fight routine. We were surrounded by lots of talented dancers including Tanya Cheex, Fionna Flauntit, Esther DeVille, Lorretta Jean and Aviva Mirage!
Bettie Page Reveals All
Last friday I attended the premiere of the documentary “Bettie Page Reveals All” at Toronto’s Bloor Cinema. To start the show the radiantly beautiful burlesque pinups, Laura Desiree and Coco Framboise did their best Bettie impressions and sensually stripped for a cheering crowd. The movie was an intimately detailed look into the life of the original pinup girl Bettie Page. Since Bettie herself narrated most of the film you really got a sense of her fun, sassy personality and parts of the film were like listening to your grandmother tell inappropriate stories from her youth. Even with a hard and troubled life, Bettie playfully described her love of sex and sexuality in describing her younger self and her relationships through her life. She was a brilliant model with an unending supply of poses and facial expressions, a perfect pinup figure, and a carefree attitude that comes across in absolutely every photo of her. Truly an inspiring woman who had a long, roller coaster ride of a life. I definitely recommend watching this film, check out the trailer at the bottom of this post.
Laura Desiree in Rock n Roll Red
My muse, the Big City Kitty, Laura Desiree performed for Great Canadian Burlesque at the Libertine this past Sunday in a brand new outfit I created for her. With a fringe bra, fringe-bottom and sparkle-crotch shorts, super glitzy g-string and divine satin gloves with long fringe, Miss Desiree was the perfect rock n roll pinup queen! These amazing photos from MOPO really captured the essence of the look! Please check out the video at the bottom of the post to see Laura Desiree in action!
Laura Desiree’s Dreamy Evening Gown
As a designer and seamstress I am lucky enough to have many beautiful burlesque performer clients. Last summer I was contacted by Laura Desiree, the Big City Kitty, and we began working together on some lovely pieces for her acts. The first outfit I created for Laura was a tight fitting, ivory gown with a plunging sweetheart neckline, leg-revealing slit completely decked out in swarovski crystals. To go with her gown I also made matching garter belt and g-string and sparkled-up a pair of gloves. I absolutely love the way this dress hugs Laura’s curves. She is a total old hollywood vamp in this outfit!
Top 3 photos from Photolena
CLASSICALLY CURVY 