SEAHORSE

This was made on a whim, after I heard the theme from the event coordinator.  I started with sheer chiffon and took liberties with a Butterick Pattern. I often just cut things out on Butcher paper and alter as I go. I wanted it to look as though I was walking through water, so I extended the length of the pattern. I found that having a rise and fall haphazard ruffle gave me the look I wanted. This is the dress pre-embellishment. The ruffle starts at mid calf, then extends with a 4 foot train in various lengths that followed me like the Tide as I walked.

Next I found two sets of assorted Seashells, as well as a few assorted larger Starfish at a craft store. I used different spray paints and glitters, as well as ombre-airbrushed specific shells according to where they would catch the most light.

Since this was for both a Modeling event and a Burlesque event, I multi tasked. For the Burlesque portion, I made a basic 4-way stretch gold underbust corset. I stretched that as far as possible over a form to pin the non-stretch true fishnet (this ensures when you go to put it on, you have room to do so!) I also had Gothfox Designs make me a custom soft merkin (attached with Medical Adhesive) .I then embellished to look like shells in the sand.

I used FlexFoam to carve Hooves from a pattern of a pair I had from previous costumes (please comment if you want a step-by-step how to, as it is extensive and particular) then painted them with light blue and teal spray paint. I used Epoxy to glue them to transparent 8 inch Pleaser heels. (*practice walking around the house in these!!!) 

I then began placing my shells where they would work best. Once I had a basic design, I used High Temp Industrial hot glue/gun to set the foundation. From there I filled in with a combination of half-pearls in assorted sizes and many shades of crystals in various sizes. I scattered them all together as I worked to keep a random 'sand-like' quality. Depending on the weight of the item, and the position (i.e. how much flexibility I needed in that area), I altered between E6000 flexible clear glue and drilling fine holes to hand sew with fishing line.  Clear straps were added in a halter style to offset the weight of the costume.
Here you see where I just began pinning how I wanted the hem of the dress to go. I wanted to create the illusion that I was walking in a pool of water, with a floating net of shells. I began with greenage found at the craft store, then painted it a deeper green sprinkled with a blend of green micro-fine glitters, then re-applied in shades for highlighting.

The Headdress Base was made for me from a specialty Foam. I added a foundation that allowed me to alter whether I wore it above my head (like a crown) or over my head. I used several colors/shades of paint and shimmer to airbrush key features. I then used hot glue to adhere beautiful metallic purple and blue glass beading  to the base of the cheeks and tail, as well as huge Swarovski nose markers.

Below are pics I took from my workshop in the garage. This is something I always do as a test run in case I need to fix or revise anything I don't find either comfortable or aesthetically pleasing.

 And here is the finished product. I am 5'4" tall normally, and my Seahorse put me at a towering 6'5", comfortable level of tall.

 This was brought to life for PhenomAnon Events exclusively for Mojo Deville. Photo credit: Benjamin Webster.

Ambient Entertainment

As I move more towards Theatrical Costuming, I am exploring the world of Ambient Entertainment. I adore being one part of many parts, all coming together to create one large, beautiful experience for the Guest. Please visit my Media set, and do not hesitate to inquire if your event has specific needs. I specialize in creating a one-of-a-kind costume and character for each client. If you have questions, please message me via the Contact Form Page.

https://www.facebook.com/mercybeaucoup.sanfran/media_set?set=a.414746825365610&type=1&pnref=story

STEAMSTOCK 2013

Costuming for STEAMSTOCK

This was by far the most fun and certainly the most satisfying costume to date. I knew very little about the Steampunk Culture, and I still have so very much to learn, but there are many avenues within that fascinate. 

I was hired to do a family-friendly dance number for Steamstock, and feather fan seemed the perfect fit. I made this costume keeping in mind that I would ABSOLUTELY be using it for a Striptease after this event.
The idea was to represent one side of my body as Victorian- lace and pearls, and the other side of my body as what that Victorian side would look like had it not fared so well in Time Travel.

I started with a premade white corset, no busk, steel boned, then removed the steel boning so I could have movement onstage, and replaced it with flexible, sturdy bones to hold the shape. I put in a side zipper for easier dressing/undressing since this corset was going to be heavy. I covered half the corset with black burnout velvet floral fabric so I had 2 even parts to look at, and laid out a preliminary design with some supplies. I began on the white Victorian side, using different sized half pearls in Ivory I placed them in a pattern using E6000 flexible glue. 

Silver door hinges were drilled, sewn and hot glued onto the Black Velvet side, after being threaded with black plastic chains from Michael's. I had to limit the amount of metal being used, or I wouldn't be able to perform due to extreme weight. Thanks to Brett Stillo's incredibly detailed and vast research and numerous wonderful ideas for this project, and Austin Sirkin's amazing blogging, I learned about a wax paint called Rub-N-Buff. I recommend doing some reading and trial and error with this stuff, but it makes almost anything look metal. I used it to transform almost everything on my costume- the silver door hinges became brass, the  plastic chains became gold. I used several shades of Antique Gold, Grecian Gold, Gold Leaf, Autumn Gold, and Ebony and Pewter for accents and shading. A few things needed Primer first- I choose matte black spray paint and by doing so, was able to create a reverse-shading effect. Application was done with my fingertips and fine-line brushes. Here's a better look at the once silver door hinges and the completed pearl pattern:

I found beautiful French lace and added that to the camisole and bloomers I would be wearing under the corset, and using the Rub-n-Buff, I made baby silk roses look like varying shades of metal. Leather 'lace' looped trim separates the two sides in the middle, and is continued along the top and bottom of the Velvet. I strapped my gun flask (haha) into a standard belt. The gun was shiny silver, but thanks to the wax paint, it is copper, brass, and black. Still a nicely functioning flask!

My hair would be piled high, one side in 'fresh' red roses, the other in roses I added Gold Leaf and Autumn Gold Rub-n-Buff to to make them look a bit like metal pieces. I attached hair clips to a strip of felt (to protect my hair from catching) and affixed the roses to the clips with hot glue.

The Feather Fans are enormous, fluffy Ivory Ostrich. In order to keep this particular piece from being outrageously expensive, I chose 3 layers of shorter feathers and doubled each layer. This made each stave look very full and gave the fans the illusion of being one layer. The inside and outside of each stave and stem is embellished with the half back pearls I used on the corset, and 20ss Crystal AB Swarovski crystals.

NOW.....the really fun part. Making my left arm and leg look mechanical, while still being able to kick and move around during my dance. I decided on an arm and leg 'corset' idea. Using nice, buttery soft leather, I made gauntlets that attached to top part of the arm (bicep) to the bottom part of the forearm, by small snap-together pieces on the outsides of the pieces. Similar to how a sock garter works, but stronger. I used all the shades of gold Rub-n-Buff to make the soft black leather look like rigid copper metal. A very simple black extra long lace was used through grommets to lace up the back of the arm and leg pieces.

Laying out a pattern: I really had no idea how to do this, so one day I just went out shopping- To JoAnn's and to the Hardware store and bought anything that had the SHAPE of what I wanted for the mechanical features of the arm/leg. At JoAnn's, I found plastic black tubing near the Pinatas, and it became copper hosing. I also used PomPom makers, which weigh almost nothing and when taken apart, have several interesting circular-gear-shapes to them. They also can be fused part way open, and you can see them in the top pic as the base for which everything else is sitting.

Remember that with Rub-n-Buff, you don't need to find just the already metal items. I used a TV-cable Splitter, an actual steam pressure gage, and a whole bunch of things that I have no idea what they are used for. I drilled holes in some of the items that were heavier, and secured them with heavy duty fishing line. I also used a combination of E6000 and Hot Glue for the smaller things. First, I layed out the pieces with the design I though I wanted:

Once I was satisfied with my design, and it afforded me movement, I attached everything. The leg was going to be tricky to keep up, so I needed to find a way to keep it from sliding. I wore a Rago underpinning with garters, and it's substantial, firm fabric ensured that the leg would not get away from me. To keep a bit of femininity, I trimmed the arm/leg pieces in a black leather cord and attached lace trim in deeper ivory. I attached a key to the arm-piece so it would dangle as I spun my feather fans.

The finishing touches:

Black intricate lace stocking on left side, white lade top thigh high on right side

Black SoDanca T-strap shoe on left, Nude and crystal SoDanca T-strap shoe on right (I had previously embellished these:

AND THE END RESULT FOR STEAMSTOCK: (stay tuned, as I am currently making a few changes to perform this as a burlesque strip-tease!)

 PHOTO: ART KOCH STUDIO

PHOTO: THAD GANN

PHOTO: PLAYARAZZI.COM

 PHOTO: ART KOCH

The Making of Cherry Darling from Planet Terror

     I was booking my shows in calendar openings, hoping to take the stage with my favorite - Hubba Hubba Revue- whose focus that month was on Super Action Films. Although my forte is Classic Burlesque, I saw this both as a chance to strengthen my limited "themed" work, and a fantastic costuming challenge that I would otherwise not explore. When Kingfish, Hubba Hubba Revue's producer extraordinaire informed me there was an opening in the Super Action Burlesque show- I jumped! I had about one month to be show ready. I had my heart set on a piece that told the story of Cherry Darling from Quentin Tarantino's Planet Terror. I was thrilled that Jim Sweeney (Kingfish) was onboard and I started my research.........Feeling exhilarated I poured over notes and websites......then the panic set in. If I was going to actually make this real, and convincing, and not just another costume gimmick, I was going to have to enlist talented, reliable, ambitious help. The challenge was making my leg appear to be gone under a small miniskirt.

     I asked Szandora LaVey to play the part of Cherry Darling before she lost her leg. This would require her to dance for more than half the piece, until she was taken offstage and replaced by me, playing the part of Cherry Darling after her leg removal, and with a machine gun prosthetic. We would dress as 'twins' to create a seamless effect for the audience. With the help of my talented seamstress, we created the tops for both roles, and I worked with Olga of Decadent Designs to create the same skirt for both of us, but with very specific instructions and alterations to the skirt that would be worn with my prosthetic. Sight unseen, with a few measurements, Olga made this happen without a hitch, and had it shipped to me extremely fast. I can't say enough good things about working with Decadent Designs.

Photo: Howard Gold

     Next I needed dancers portraying Zombies- hot, beautifully disturbing Zombies. I was very fortunate to have Candy Pie, Roxanne RedMeat, and Trixie Fou Laurant play these roles. Candy Pie did the most gorgeous, gruesome Zombie makeup with wounds of shimmery shades of glitter- horrifying and  stunning. She is also a wonderful costume engineer and Producer- you can find more of her at candypie.me

Photos: Cody Molica

. We all worked to choreograph a background portrait for Szandora to dance in front of.....until the point where we had her lifted off the stage and the Zombies displayed the leg they ripped off her body.
.......enter me, to shoot down the Zombies with my machine gun leg.

So......how did I do it?

Pics are taken from my Instagram: Beaucoupburly

1- Order casting tape. 
 I used about 5 rolls of 4" x 4 yrds Techform Premium Casting Tape

2- I decided to cast my left leg, so I bent my leg back, and secured it with the following, in order:

            -Support hose

            -Black fishnet stockings

            -Ace bandage

            -Compression booty shorts, cut to hide under miniskirt

            -Heavy Duty Black Gorilla Duct Tape

3- Once in place, I found a semi comfortable spot at the edge of a soft couch, wrapped a soft cotton fabric 'sock' that fit over my knee and thigh, and had a friend help cast- Sporting latex gloves, and a large mixing bowl of warm water, he dipped the tape and began rolling the outside of my leg, 4- 5 layers, until I could pull my leg out and wait for the cast to set.

4- While the cast set.....I found an M16 toy machine gun that had lights and sound in the barrel- this is key. I split the gun in half lengthwise to remove the insides, or 'guts' of the gun, and replaced it with an adjustable crutch for Juveniles, that I sawed off to fit the height of my other leg (including the cast) 

5- Now to attach the gun/crutch to the cast...... I used metal strips from Home Depot and snapped them through the cast.....

6- I added one more roll of casting tape over the top of the metal strips

7-  High Gloss Harley Davidson Spray paint in black coated the gun, and was highlighted by silver paint and shards of glitter for stage presence. 

8- Basking in the glory of the first dress rehearsal, post-leg, with my dog playing the part of the audience! You can see the craftsmanship of Decadent Designs....even better in the video below

And now.....video with my amazing Cast and the machine gun leg......

My Resources

Just thought I would share some of my resources for the items I use when creating a burlesque number. These are places I purchase my items from. I do not receive anything from these companies- this list is my own personally tested, tried-and-true, compilation of sites that work for me.

Fishnets: I use Capezio Seamless 3000, and I always cut the waist off first thing. Unlike less expensive fishnets, these will not unravel when they are cut, and will last a good long while. They can also be mended with a needle and thread, like darning a sock. I don't have any one go-to site, as the price will vary, so check Ebay and discountdance.com

Gloves:  For classic numbers, I like the 23" Opera glove in Satin . Finale Gloves has a great color selection and great prices (around $12)

Pasties: I wear, almost exclusively, Gothfox.com pasties. They are reliable, they will make anything custom that you can dream up, and the quality of their fabrics and crystals is incomparable. I still have my first pair, and they look just as gorgeous now as they did the day I received them. In addition, they do custom Merkins, V-strings, and have a nice assortment of accessories, such as Vegan Boas.

Pastie Tape/Glue: I prefer a good Medical Adhesive (and remover) over more traditional applications like Spirit Gum, but my favorite fastener is Indoor/Outdoor Heavy Duty Double-sided Duct Tape, more specifically 'Shurtape' carried at Lowes.com

Boas and Plumes: I have shopped this around, and for my money, I like the quality and customer service of Eskayfeathers.com. Their plumes are always very fluffy, and they are willing to work with you if you have a special request. I have a Wholesale license, but I find their pricing very close to Wholesale. Pair a few flowers from Michael's with some smaller plumes and a few rhinestones, and you have a gorgeous hairpiece.
In addition, Cindy at Fancyfeathers.com is pretty much capable of ANYTHING! Recently she was able to get me the amount of feathers I needed in the custom shade I needed, all while in the midst of BHoF....and still managed to make me feel like I was her only customer- feeling spoiled by that!

Swarovski Crystals: I use therhinestoneshop.com. Very close to Wholesale pricing, and very prompt shipping. If you are in the Phoenix area, you can take your costume pieces to the shop and try different colors right there....which means finding nice complimentary colors for shading, etc
It is perfectly acceptable to use a stone other than Swarovski.  Preciosa is a nice alternative. I usually prefer to use E6000 glue and go with non-hotfix stones. I work with very delicate fabrics at times and the heat needed to place hotfix stones is not something I want to take a chance with.

Shoes: This is a very personal thing, so I'll just list 2 of my favorites, both have quick-releases, and are comfortable enough that I can wear them for an entire evening of social dance without hurting.
Character shoes (great for Troupe pieces)- SoDanca.com
Ballroom Shoes (great for solos) I like VeryFine.com

Glitter and Micas: This is also very personal. For a great lip/body glitter, the main thing you want to look for is size. The finer and more micro the glitter, the nicer it will wear. If you want to test this before investing in bulk glitter buying, a good starter is Martha Stewart's Glitter in extra fine, and it can be found at any Michael's store. It's rarely on sale, so be sure you download a coupon from Michael's before you go and you could save yourself up to 40% off.

Costuming: If you don't sew, the best thing you can do is find a good seamstress. Check with your local Ballet companies or Theatre Houses. You want someone who is familiar with costume work. Most of these seamstresses will be very reasonable, and will save you money in the long run. 

If you are not ready to go that route, you can find some good foundation pieces and make them your own with trims and embellishments.

I have used and like corsetstory.com, although check Ebay because you can find alot of the same corsets at half the price if you're willing to look enough.

As for your foundation pieces (bra and bottoms you are going to build on), I highly recommend getting something that fits you well and that you're comfortable in. It's not a great costume if your bra costs $5, but keeps riding up on you while you perform. You can find something that is from a good, reliable company on sale almost always, and if you are covering it, it doesn't matter what it looks like, just remember to cover the inside as well. When you take it off, if the audience gets a peek at the underside, nobody wants to see something 'unfinished'.
A couple of my personal foundation favorites are Secretsinlace.com and Dottiesdelights.com. I just ordered an underpinning from vintagesuitsbymary.com, so I will update and review once I receive it. (I have since received this item, and i have to say it was worth every penny. Period-perfect, gorgeous fit, lush fabric and movement)

Remember if you are adding trim etc to a bra/bottom- you want a trim with stretch. If it does not stretch and you don't allow for that, you won't be able to get it on your body.

A nice stretch ribbon and some colored tulle simply cut can make a great skirt and you can customize it for your corset. A much more professional look than an off-the-rack mall or costume store purchase.

Lashes: A MUST HAVE or your eyes will not show up onstage. I like Duo clear lash glue. I also prefer Kryolan.com lashes. The lashes that are going to work for you depend on the shape of your eye and face. I usually have to cut the lashes before placing because my eyes are not that wide.

I hope you found this information helpful. If you have additional questions, or would like guidance, please feel free to ask here, or you can message me privately, and I will happily answer.

"By changing nothing, nothing changes"

What an amazing year this has been, and to think it's not over just yet!

I am in love with California! 

In the brief time I have been here, I have encountered one dynamic person after another.....venue owners, producers, and performers. All genuine and obviously following their passion. I find myself drawn in by these individuals. I feel there is an unwritten rule however, and this might just be my rule, but......as lovely as being friendly with everyone is, if I am not delivering great performances, I don't really deserve to be there...and I want to deliver. BIG.

This is something that was taught to me by Lili VonSchtupp, in one swift email when I was starting out in burlesque, and for which I will always be grateful. If not for this realization early on, I would not be performing today. The bonds formed while learning and performing together are irreplaceable, but 'oh darling', 'kisses doll', and 'you're so fabulous' only hold so much weight without the sincerity that comes with solid performance skills, professionalism, and business etiquette. And this is a business.

It has been difficult coming to the decision to leave my Arizona troupe BurlEscapades permanently. It is a troupe I co-founded, and I grew immensely as a dancer and as a person during our time together. They are wonderful performers. Watch for their shows!

Meanwhile, check my website for show dates and event information! www.mercybeaucoupburlesque.com

*Title quote- Tony Robbins

Trick does Treats

Getting ready for all the upcoming Halloween events and shows. This is my favorite time of the year for Burlesque....also the most challenging for me personally. How to turn my strip-tease style into a true piece of burlesque. Enter Lucy Morals, my amazing teacher from the beginning, and a very good reason to take classes from someone who can and does do it all.  Classes: http://phoenixburlesque.webs.com/vavavoomclasses.htm

The work in progress: