Thread: Has anyone seen in person any of these costumes?

The troupe I dance in is looking to purchase a troupe bedlah and we're trying to keep the costs down as low as possible. The following costumes from Dahlal are some of the options we're looking at. I was hoping some of you may have seen them in person or even better own(ed) one. They're all pretty basic designs, but I'm hoping they don't qualify as cheap in quality. What I want to know is how sturdy are they, how well do they fit, has the costume held up to many wearings, etc. A red flag for me is when you buy a costume and pull it out of the box and find beads in the bottom of the box. Is the belt shaped like a "tuna can"? In other words, do they gap at the curves or are there darts or curves built in. Are the bras pointy madona like or are they nicely shaped?

Here's what we're looking at:

https://www.dahlal.com/default.aspx?...1&s1=1151&s2=0

On page three, Debut II
On page three, Beyond the Basics II
On page four, American Icon
On page four, Beyond the basics

Any feedback on these would be most helpful. Thanks ladies.

There is a huge American Icon following here. many people find it to be a good, basic work horse which has a very classic belly dance feel to it.

Some one else was touting Beyond the Basics II recently. . .

{{{HUGS}}}

I have tried on these three:

On page three, Beyond the Basics II
On page four, American Icon
On page four, Beyond the basics

Disclaimer: This is just my opinion.

I like Beyond the Basics II, but not Beyond the Basics. I just personally don't like the way the fringe is draped on the bra of the Beyond the Basics...I think it has a bit of an "upscale airport special" look to it, but that's just my opinion. I think having the separate, longer swag in the middle of the bra like the Beyond the Basics II has is a more flattering and professional look.

I also didn't like American Icon, if only because it's pretty bulky. The coins don't lie flat, they stick out and poke out. Because my hips have several more inches on them than my bust, I don't like to add much more width to them because it starts to look unbalanced. I do love the sound that this bedlah makes when it moves, though....a nice soft jingly sound.

Nimah, was there any curve built into the belts or darts? Was there any gapping between you and the belt?

This is all helpful information ladies, keep it coming....