05.12.08
Posted in Costuming, Dance at 8:06 am by deRomilly
There have been a few posts that sent you off on a hunt for the cabaret style bellydance costuming.
Modern cabaret costumes come in a variety of styles. If you are looking for something authentic to a specific time/ethnicity/dance style you need to be pretty knowledgeable. If you are American, and looking for an “American Cabaret” style costume, you have a LOT more leeway in decision making (and in embellishment).
For this reason, and because nothing I dance is likely to be completely authentic – as Saqra says, I will always dance with an American accent, I tend toward mixing and matching almost willy-nilly. There are still a few conventions I follow, however.
First, stylistically.
Egyptian Raqs Sharqi. This format is demure not so much by original nature, from what I can learn by reading, but by law. Egyptian law has mutated over the years to specify what dancers can wear, who can dance where, and how much leg can be displayed in Cairo. Stomach coverings and long skirts with very little slit (so as not to show much leg) are de rigeur. This does NOT preclude the “big names” such as Dina from fiddling with this and pushing the envelope.
Egyptian costuming has two different basic variations: the bedlah, or “uniform” which is generally the two-piece costume (with a stomach cover) that we know here - the bra and belt set over a skirt, whether straight or full, and the beledi dress which is a one-piece, evening-gown or caftan like garment used primarily for the more folkloric styles - for example, dancing with a cane.
Turkish Danse Orientale: This format can be much more “out there,” possibly because of the secular nature of the Turkish government, and possibly simply because the Turkish dancers have a more sexual take on the dance form. In my experience, movements are bigger, costumes are smaller. Music styles are different, there are more unique rhythms involved, including time signatures of 5/8, and 9/8, and the instrumentation is different.
American Cabaret: this format combines bits and pieces of all the other formats, and the costuming reflects that. Beads, side slits in the skirt, harem pants, heels or bare feet, and other shinies. The Americans added and expanded on the use of props in the dance. Here you’ll find sword work, veil work, candle dances in various formats, and all manner of gimmics. Costuming often varies depending on the prop used.
Tribal costuming and beadwork techniques covered later. 
There is a wonderful description of various costumes at Atlanta Bellydance.
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04.24.08
Posted in Costuming, Dance, Dance Accessories at 10:00 am by deRomilly
Bellydance costumes are amazing things. Whether you are looking at a hipscarf used for practice, a fully beaded cabaret costume, or some of the confections that the tribal style dancers put together, you are looking at a work of art. Heck, even the basic hipscarves that students like to wear to class are amazing works of beaded artwork.
This is just a quick overview of the field. There are several major designers out there, from Sim Moda Evi in Turkey to Bella and Madame Abla (may she rest in peace) in Egypt. You can see a beautiful selection of designer costumes at www.dahlal.com .
There’s a beautiful article at the LA Times about the designer Ahmed Diaa Eddin. In addition, there are some absolutely drop-dead creative people in the US creating their own costumes, and guaranteeing that they will be unique in the process. The Costume Goddess (Dina) is a guru of hand-made costumes on the cheap.
And that’s just the cabaret costumes. When you get into American Tribal Style and Tribal Fusion you get funky pants, coins, folkloric patterns and so on and so on. Tribal costuming is still more likely to be made by the individual than purchased, so examples can be seen on the sites of the various dancers and dance troupes.
The costuming Blue Moon Dance company wears at the Renaissance Fairs is typical of ATS costuming (they are a fusion group and wander out of “traditional” tribal costuming quite often) and the Indigo for Tribal Fusion (their myspace site) costuming ideas can’t be beat.
Dance costuming is a treasure trove of needlework and embellishment techniques, as well as basic costume design. Exploring them can become a hobby in itself!
Later I’ll go into some of the dance costume styles in more detail, but this shoud get you started on some eye candy!
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03.19.08
Posted in Artwork, Dance, General at 8:52 am by deRomilly
In a previous post I asked myself if I am an evil cultural appropriator for wanting to use traditional ikats in my work. This question came up, in many ways, because of my alternate hobby of bellydance or raqs sharqi.
There is a debate raging through the dance community - quietly for the most part, although it flares up now and again. The debate revolves around the question: “by learning, performing, and transforming this dance, are we appropriating the culture of another people, just because it is exotic, in much the same way as Europeans in the 19th century appropriated the lands the dance comes from?
It’s a valid question, and one that bears deep thought. It can be easy, when you are American, and of multicultural descent, even if primarily European, to say, “Everything around me and my American heritage comes from different cultures, so what’s the big deal?” It IS a big deal to some Middle Easterners, many of whom feel that their entire culture is stereotyped by Europeans and Americans into the word “bellydance,” a word they don’t use to describe what they do.
Now, personally, I don’t see bellydance as much of anything but American. If I am discussing Egyptian dance, I’ll say “raqs sharqi,” if Turkish - “danse orientale” (which is, of itself a European term). “Bellydance” is an American term applied to a dance form imported in the 1800s and transformed into a performance art by mostly Americans, some of Middle Eastern descent, in the 1950s and 1960s, the US’s “Golden Age” of nightclub performances. I’ve seen many women, and some men, too, find peace with their bodies and their emotions as they learn this dance (a wonderful description of this phenomenon by another dance teacher). I respect its origins and try to learn as much about its history as I can. But “bellydance” in the US is as much Middle Eastern tradition as ballet is French tradition. It has drifted so far from its roots that while you can recognize the seeds of the movements as related, they are very different plants. I am not, of course, referring to the myriad of people who try very hard to learn the “traditional” dances (which have also been influenced heavily by colonial expectations, and could therefore be accused as being somewhat tainted even in their own countries. Modern Egyptian raqs sharqi, for example, has drawn from ballet as well as movements from various tribal groups in the region).
Which leads me to textiles. When I or my family travels, I am often gifted or purchase as souvenirs, fabric and embroideries. Sometimes I buy pieces here that were created specifically for export. The question my dance experience triggers is, if I use these pieces in my art, or even the techniques I learn from them in my art, is it cultural appropriation in a bad way? My community has always been extremely diverse. My friends include Vietnamese, Indian, Native American, European American, African and African American, and the list goes on. Personally, when I use a textile or a motif in my artwork, especially if it comes from one of the cultures I am tied to by friendship - it will be used to bring those friends and acquaintances into my work - much as I might use a piece of my grandmother’s dress in a crazy quilt to evoke her life and work. I try to incorporate every textile and image I use with respect. When all is said and done, someone somewhere will probably be offended, whether because I have excluded their culture, or used it.
But hopefully, the people who matter to me won’t be, because they know I respect them as people.
Thoughts? This cultural appropriation thing is a HUGE topic. And one that can fall into any genre, be it painting, dance, writing, textiles, etc.
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12.18.07
Posted in Drawing, "Freestyle" embroidery, Dance Accessories, Knitting at 11:23 am by deRomilly
My determination to write regularly seems to have been stymied at every turn over the course of this year. That has got to change. But I’m not sure how to change it. I’ve got several posts started, and I’ll continue to work on them and try to get better. In the meantime…
I’m on a “finishing” kick right at the moment. And I made the decision, mistake or not, of announcing it to my husband before I started it. He jumped up and down and said “Yes!” very emphatically, so apparently my tendency to start projects and take 8-10 years to complete them is weighing on him again! He’s very supportive, but he’s a “finish before you start another project” type of person. And as you can guess, I’m not.
So in any case, I’m quite “knitted out” right now. So I’m trying to finish up several knitting projects that I want the finished garment, but not so much the knitting. Last month I completed my Shapely Tee from the White Lies website. I have to say… if you haven’t knit this? KNIT IT! I have never had a sweater fit so well. I knit it without any ease at all- the other option was a full 2 inches, and I did actually knit that first and just swam in it. Your mileage may vary. I’m so proud of it that I’m actually going to post a picture: (as soon as I can download it from my camera, sigh).
Let’s see. What else have I finished? I got almost all the way finished with a candlewicking project and ran out of thread. There probably was JUST enough, but the last yard had so many knots in it that it was useless for the end of the stitching! So now I’ve got to find about a yard of a candlewicking thread that matches what I’ve got… and the kit’s at least 30 years old. Found it at a garage sale a while back! Then I’ll have a new cushion for the couch.
So. Two down. All I have left is the very top of the back and the hood on Fiona Ellis’ celtic hoodie (not the real name) to finish and of course blocking and sewing together and I’ll have a really neat knotwork hooded sweater. The celtic knots done in cables are amazing on this piece, and I’m looking forward to wearing it, but I can’t bring myself to knit.
I’ve got the sewing up and the button band to finish on a big fluffy acrylic sweater of my own design. One more seam and then the button band.
I’ve finished my first piece for Sumptuous stitches, over for lots and lots of weeks now, and I’m almost done with the sequinned flowers for the dance troupe. I think the next step is to finish the second piece started for Sumptuous stitches. I really like it, and want it finished, too. It’s deer staring at you, based on an experience I had this summer that was simply magical. So. Sequins and deer. Then I can start some of the new designs. Which are… well, VERY different from what I’ve done in the past. Before I can do that, though, I need to finish the sequinning that actually goes ON my dress for the troupe, separate from the appliques.
I picked up a book last month called the Keys to Imaginative Drawing. Actually following imagination has recently been my downfall. This book actually steps through a process and rules for doodling and noodling those doodles into something better. Though it’s aiming at people who want to draw, it’s been very freeing for needlework designs.I’ve now got a stack of so-called doodles that really need to be rendered in thread and fabric; one is crying for goldwork. But I’ve got to finish a few more things first. That’s really gnawing at me right now. 
(Since I wrote this I actually transferred one of them to fabric and took a break to stitch it. It’s going to become part of a tote bag…)
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10.24.07
Posted in Dance, Uncategorized at 10:57 am by deRomilly
Last Saturday I performed at Blue Moon Dance Company’s Haflaween. It was sold out way back in July and I got the last performance slot! The show was a blast. And since the community has several photographer/dancers within it, there were some very nice photos taken. Even of me, and I RARELY like a photo of me.
All photos by Megan H. Freeman.
Like this one, wrapped up in my veil…
Or this one, caught mid-flourish!
There was even a close-up portrait that I like! I think the hat suits me, don’t you? (I stole it from the photographer… ok, BORROWED it. I did give it back, even if I considered running!)
Now it’s back to stitching and designing for a while, though I do start the next teaching session next week. Enough people for class, so here we go!
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10.04.07
Posted in Drawing, Dance Accessories at 3:37 pm by deRomilly
I haven’t had a chance to focus on needlework at all, really. Gotta love “Real Life” But what I’ve been working on these days on rare occasions when I do find the time is sketching and sequins! They’re keeping me sane…
The sequinning project for my dance troupe goes ahead quite well. The first flower applique has been done for a while now.
I need to shorten the fringe on it, but otherwise it’s been approved and adored. Yay! This style will go in our hair. The dress will have flowers with the colors the other way around, turquoise in the middle so they show up on the turquoise dresses; but I had to order more small turquoise sequins and big black ones to do those… And of course, while I was on the site placing the order I got carried away and ordered enough for another project I’m thinking of, too… But it’s gonna be PREEETTTY!!! (Shhh. that project’s a secret! and I still need beads for it.)
And I’ve been sketching when I haven’t been writing help files at the day job. Dancers, mostly. Here are a couple of my favorites. Both ballet and bellydance. I might scan them in properly and design note cards of some of these I’ve done recently. I’m liking them.
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| Ballerina pencil sketch |
Ballerina Ink sketch |
Bellydancer pencil |
In other news, I’ve donated to the Spin Out charity drive. I found the link via Mason-Dixon knitting. They’ve extended the deadline for making a donation and being entered into an amazing raffle until the 15th of October. It’s for a good cause, and buying chickens or cows for a small village is very satisfying.
And my friend CyberBertha found this wonderful video of a seagull shoplifting Doritos in Scotland… Cheeky beastie!
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09.26.07
Posted in Classes, Dance at 3:30 pm by deRomilly
If you’ve been wondering what I’ve been up to, wonder no longer! I’ve been up to art. And dance and advertising… all rolled into one.
I’ve had the opportunity to begin teaching bellydance at my local community center. So I did a brush drawing of myself for publicity purposes:
And then I did a Flyer (flier? Fly-er? hmmm and *I’m* the writer!).
The whole thing happened so quickly that none of the publicity got put up before the first session. Because of website issues, potential students missed me as well. In fact, there weren’t enough students for a class… So for session 2 I’m hoping to nip that in the bud. I’m now listed with the statewide “find a teacher” website, and I’ll be putting up posters at the local community college in the next week.
The community center programs brochure is located here (pdf format, 7 megs). It’s kind of hard to find from the main web page, and it’s easy to get sidetracked by program information listed that’s WAAAY out of date, so that’s a direct link.
If you’re near Fuquay-Varina, NC and at all interested in wearing pretty coin scarves on your hips and shimmying like there’s no tomorrow, come see me!
P.S. I’m also stitching sequinned appliques for our new dance troupe like it’s going out of style… more on that later.
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04.10.07
Posted in "Freestyle" embroidery, Dance Accessories at 6:22 pm by deRomilly
I’m sorry I haven’t posted… I just realized that I haven’t gotten to a computer other than the one at work in two weeks! Bad Romilly!
I’ve got a couple of plans in the works, though. I’ve been plugging away at the embroidered fabric for my new bedlah (see last post) and the first piece is pretty much all beaded now. I’ll probably have to add beads here and there as I sew it together, but it’s a good start. The second piece is about a third embroidered. Beads to come. In this case AFTER I’ve got a pattern for the belt. It suddenly occured to me that I needn’t bead everything, even the parts that aren’t going to show… I want the embroidery to fold around, so it gets done first… but the beading?! Pshaw. That’s silly. And very me-like!
I did, however, finish sewing a turquoise jersey knit dress that I’m planning on wearing to the hafla over harem pants on Thursday and then for every day. Very simple, casual princess line. If photos come out after the show I’ll try to post them. Maybe even a video.
Not much needle art happening my way over the past week. But that will change. And I do have a backlog of posts to make. It’s just a matter of getting things pulled together. And wrestling the computer away from the ten year old nephew…
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03.21.07
Posted in "Freestyle" embroidery, Dance Accessories, Uncategorized at 5:09 pm by deRomilly
When you still like the effect of the stitching when you reach the halfway point!
The sample I posted about last time I was here is becoming a final piece of fabric quite quickly. I’m about halfway done with the first fat quarter. I’m guessing I’m going to need to stitch about three, maybe four fat quarters to make a full belt and bra set. I’m thinking it will be really pretty with a white vest and skirt.
And it’s pulling together in a way that I really like. It’s cotton, but the beads give it a shine that make it appropriate for a casual costume. I think it’s going to be interesting, and definitely different from anything any other dancer has! I did decide to switch to green and pink beads to match the embroidery. The entire thing is much lighter than the photo I posted would lead you to believe.
The problem is, since the herringbone stitch is so durn easy to do, and I’m a bit achey, it’s pretty much ALL I want to do right now. This kind of cuts into the enjoyment of the day job. And the husband would prefer that I help him maintain the house where we live as well… and there’s that garden that now needs to be planted…
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03.18.07
Posted in Dance Accessories, General at 6:43 pm by deRomilly
Yesterday I REALLY wanted to stitch. I mean REALLY wanted to do some stitching. I had an idea, and I needed to express it. There’s got to be a catch, you say. Of course there is. When it comes to my obsession, there is always a catch!
I was at work. I had brought knitting to do on my breaks, not stitching. (Oh, the downsides of multiple obsessions!) No problem, I thought. I’ll just run up to the fabric store on my break and pick up a little piece of fabric and a couple of colors of DMC. Well, I picked up a fat quarter of quilting fabric that was exactly what I had in mind for my little experiment. But instead of getting the DMC, I decided I wanted more choice in colors and didn’t have time to stand around picking them all out, besides, I’ve got ALL the colors at home, right? And this is just an experiment anyway… So I picked up a little package of cheap embroidery floss with several different colors – a brand I’ve never heard of before.
So I’ve been stitching away on breaks yesterday and today, and I’ve come up with some ideas I really like. In fact, I like them so much that I think I want to finish them and use the fabric to cover a dance bra and maybe a belt. The catch? That cheap embroidery floss… It stitches really nicely. It’s soft and shiny. It SEEMS to be a pretty good quality. But is it? What will happen if the fabric gets folded so that some of it stays in the sunlight? Will one part of my embroidery fade? I can’t be sure.
So what am I doing today? I’m going back to the fabric store to buy ½ a yard of that fabric, and several skeins of DMC floss and I’m going to start over in the stitching department. Thank goodness it’s only herringbone and buttonhole stitch… and that I came to my senses before I did too much of it as “practiceâ€! Besides… I needed enough fabric to make a belt, too!
Oh, you want pictures? Here’s one. I’m now already well into a “final draft” with more fabric and DMC floss - the other catch? The only way I could GET this fabric was in fat quarters. Now I am NOT a fat quarter wide, though that’s an interesting metaphor… I’m going to be piecing my belt… Wonder how THAT will work out?
And yes, I am doing some more experimenting on THIS fabric. And I’ll probably keep playing with the cheap thread so that I can see how it holds up. I don’t have high hopes for it, though.
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