Thread: Fringe Monsters--how much is too much fringe?

I bought a really neat fringe monster a while ago but am wondering if I need to modify it some way. How do you determine when a fringe monster is actually scary rather than fringalicious? Has anyone ever modified one and do you have an example you can show me?

(I tried searching to see if there was a previous thread on this, but I must not have put in the right terms.)

There is never 'too much fringe'. Unless, possibly, you are really short and you can't actually move. Or someone mistakes you for a blingy Cousin It. Or the sun reflecting the sparkle starts a small fire.

Judging too much fringe doesn't happen for me, guess I perceive that as a personal decision. Over time Anala has posted a number of fringe monsters. Maybe you could search her posts. I adore fringe monsters but I am not a small person.

Another personal judgment call - I do not have an appreciation for minimal fringe, nor do I like costumes with clear straps or floating cups. The GP tend to focus on the lack of visible straps and not the dancer.

Originally Posted by BELLA_BELLA

There is never 'too much fringe'. Unless, possibly, you are really short and you can't actually move. Or someone mistakes you for a blingy Cousin It. Or the sun reflecting the sparkle starts a small fire.

..l;,..l;,..l;,..l;,..l;,

Originally Posted by BELLA_BELLA

There is never 'too much fringe'. Unless, possibly, you are really short and you can't actually move. Or someone mistakes you for a blingy Cousin It. Or the sun reflecting the sparkle starts a small fire.

All the above! Honestly, I've yet to see one that I thought was too much fringe for me.

Ditto on the "never too much". It depends on how it looks on you. Despite being a big person I can't handle too much fringe, but some people love it and can rock the lot.

Also how it works for dancing. You need to be able to move in it and some that have lots of random extra bits can be impeding.

There is no such thing as too much as long as it is arranged in a flattering way!

on me an Egyptian Icicle is pushing it and is almost too much. on a friend of mine the same set looks practically minimal. your body proportions and personality will have so much to do with it that there is no hard rule. basically, when you stop wearing the costume and it starts wearing you, then it's too much. that goes for anything, not just fringe.
for fringe costumes, i think the question to ask yourself is "if this was in green, would i look like the jolly-green-giant?" (the smaller you are the more likely the answer will be "yes" ^_~)

Never too much fringe as long as it is arranged in a flattering way. Can you post pics?

Sure, I'll probably be able to post pics on Tuesday. I love fringe and am relieved so many of you do, too. This one bedlah, though, when it arrived--was a lot heavier than I expected.

It's too much fringe if:

The proportions of the costume overwhelm you. The costume shouldn't be wearing you.

You aren't used to dancing in one, and haven't quite adjusted the timing of your dance to account for the way that pounds of beads change the look of your movements.

It doesn't go with the style of dance you are doing. Heavily-fringed costumes are a retro look (although eventually I suspect they'll come back into style), so they don't always look right with a modern piece. One of those heavily decorated Turkish numbers (with the stomach-covering wall of fringe and the strands connecting the bra to the belt and the epaulets and the attached necklace and the knee-long V belt...) would probably look weird for a contemporary Egyptian piece, if you're performing for dancers who recognize those styles.

You're dancing for an audience that expects a performer in a more contemporary-looking costume. I don't live in one of them, but others report that areas with sophisticated ME communities sometimes frown upon dancers whom they perceive as wearing out-of-date clothes. Certainly if someone specifically requests a different style of costume, showing up in a fringe monster isn't usually a wise choice.

Otherwise, I don't have a problem with heavily fringed costumes. They're a classic style, and if it looks good on you, you feel comfortable in it, and it's reasonably consistent with the style you dance, rock it proudly. I personally hate to hear when people opt to remodel costumes, especially the collectible ones like Ablas. Eventually you or someone you sell the costume to will be sorry you felt the need to redo it. It doesn't bother me so much if it's a no-name contemporary costume made by someone with a poor eye for design (hack away on those), but those older costumes are historic treasures. They can be copied, but not truly replaced.

Anyone have pics of a friengemonster that would not make a large bust look huge?

Originally Posted by Bellissima

Anyone have pics of a friengemonster that would not make a large bust look huge?

Which size do you think of when you say large??

Originally Posted by BELLA_BELLA

There is never 'too much fringe'. Unless, possibly, you are really short and you can't actually move. Or someone mistakes you for a blingy Cousin It. Or the sun reflecting the sparkle starts a small fire.

Haha, I am 4'10" and I never think there is too much fringe although sometimes if the bra has so much long fringe all the way across, it is a bit much for me. Other than that, I could wear enough fringe and be rolled out in a wheel barrow due to the weight.

Of course I can't resist posting pics of two of my ultimate fringe monster costumes. The first one (raspberry) made in the late 80's and the first time I wore it, it was the first time long fringe had been seen in the Detroit area. The second costume was a show stopper and almost stopped me the first time I tried to spin in it!

http://people.tribe.net/c3bd303f-511...e-9989309cd2d5

http://people.tribe.net/c3bd303f-511...8-34451a73429d

Bella Bella, I almost snorted my coffee out over "blingy Cousin It." I recently owned a costume that, pre-alterations, resembled a sparkly version of a sniper's ghillee suit

As a born-again fringe lover, I agree with Tourbeau and Norma's points. As with any costume, keep your musical presentation and your audience's tastes in mind. Plus, make sure you're confident with both the look and the feel of the extra weight.

Occasionally, as with my notorious green "ghillee suit," too much fringe poses not just an aesthetic problem, but a functional problem, as well. The costume's second owner said she weighed the belt one time and it was around 40 lbs. When I bought my crazy monster costume, with its row of knee-length "hula skirt" fringe and swags of 13" fringe that looped all the way down the thighs, I'd originally intended to keep the fringe intact in case I ever did some sort of bad-ass old-school character piece. I wanted to cry just THINKING about reversing the hard work some dancer must have put into this costume years ago.

Then, I took the costume out for a couple of quick test photos the next day. After 5 minutes of leisurely strolling and posing, I began to feel a dull pain in my low back, and the costume actually left bruises on my hip when I took the belt off. After futzing around in costume at home, I actually found that this much fringe limited my range of motion and was too heavy to accent most moves, except big swooshy ones.

Finally, after a couple of my friends convinced me to remove the fringe, I did. It still has 2 layers of fringe on the belt, about 12" and 8" respectively. It's still a "monster," but a tamed one. The new look is far more flattering (in that 80's Abla excess kind of way), and it accents my hip bumps, twists and shimmies like a dream.

But for the love of all things sparkly - just because you CAN make a costume with 100 lbs. of fringe, doesn't mean you SHOULD!

Also, a great way to lose weight when you dance carrying all that weight around...lol

Originally Posted by norma

Of course I can't resist posting pics of two of my ultimate fringe monster costumes. The first one (raspberry) made in the late 80's and the first time I wore it, it was the first time long fringe had been seen in the Detroit area. The second costume was a show stopper and almost stopped me the first time I tried to spin in it!

http://people.tribe.net/c3bd303f-511...e-9989309cd2d5

http://people.tribe.net/c3bd303f-511...8-34451a73429d

Man I love these particularly the teal one. I love all your stuff.

Originally Posted by petitefifidance

Also, a great way to lose weight when you dance carrying all that weight around...lol

Plus, the wonderful liberating feeling when you take your belt off. How else can you lose 10 lbs. in 2 seconds flat? ..l;,

norma has the best fringe cosumes! I love fringe!!!!

Originally Posted by SatinWorship19

But for the love of all things sparkly - just because you CAN make a costume with 100 lbs. of fringe, doesn't mean you SHOULD!

it's like that line in Jurassic park "your scientists were so caught up in whether or not they COULD that they never stopped to think about whether or not they SHOULD"
and in both cases you end up with someone getting eaten!

Originally Posted by raqFariha

and in both cases you end up with someone getting eaten!

Yeah, pretty much! Plus, a costume should enhance movement, not inhibit it. Unless, of course, you're doing some sort of "living statue" artistic character piece. LOL.

For those who aren't a Facebook friend and didn't follow my fringemonster debacle, here's a "before" picture. (PLEASE don't post this on any "Can You Believe She Wore That?" blogs without my permission, or I will personally send Buddha the Pug of Justice out to poop in your dance studio!)

http://www.flickr.com/photos/carraranour/4740597637/

And here's the New and Improved "after," much cursing and a bag full of dismembered green fringe later:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/carraranour/5108100585/

And Buddha the Unicorn Pug of Justice. He iz in ur studio, doing terrible things:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/carraranour/4986604537/

that is a stunning costume Satin!! darling pug as well

Thanks! I feel so much better now that the costume is more wearable (and yet, still wild and monster-y!)

Maybe with all that left over fringe, I could make a matching costume for the Buddster, too!

Originally Posted by norma

Of course I can't resist posting pics of two of my ultimate fringe monster costumes. The first one (raspberry) made in the late 80's and the first time I wore it, it was the first time long fringe had been seen in the Detroit area. The second costume was a show stopper and almost stopped me the first time I tried to spin in it!

http://people.tribe.net/c3bd303f-511...e-9989309cd2d5

http://people.tribe.net/c3bd303f-511...8-34451a73429d

Wow Norma, the teal (2nd pic) is amazing!!! Definitely a true fringe monster.

Originally Posted by indigoapricot

Which size do you think of when you say large??

32H...Is that a no go for something fringy?

Thanks for the compliments! But truly, I was in pretty darn good shape back in those days. The teal costume must have weighed around 40 lbs. At least. After a while though, it became too much to lug around. At the time I was traveling a lot and it took up a whole suitcase!

I had cut off the epauletes and added them to the base of the belt to give my bottom more coverage. I considered cutting off all the long fringe and just wearing it as a basic bra and belt set but I just couldn't do it. I ended up selling that one to a dancer who was a lot taller and thinner than me. It looked much better on her than on me.

Originally Posted by SatinWorship19

Yeah, pretty much! Plus, a costume should enhance movement, not inhibit it. Unless, of course, you're doing some sort of "living statue" artistic character piece. LOL.

For those who aren't a Facebook friend and didn't follow my fringemonster debacle, here's a "before" picture. (PLEASE don't post this on any "Can You Believe She Wore That?" blogs without my permission, or I will personally send Buddha the Pug of Justice out to poop in your dance studio!)

http://www.flickr.com/photos/carraranour/4740597637/

And here's the New and Improved "after," much cursing and a bag full of dismembered green fringe later:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/carraranour/5108100585/

And Buddha the Unicorn Pug of Justice. He iz in ur studio, doing terrible things:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/carraranour/4986604537/

I think you look fabulous in both versions.

Originally Posted by norma

Of course I can't resist posting pics of two of my ultimate fringe monster costumes. The first one (raspberry) made in the late 80's and the first time I wore it, it was the first time long fringe had been seen in the Detroit area. The second costume was a show stopper and almost stopped me the first time I tried to spin in it!

http://people.tribe.net/c3bd303f-511...e-9989309cd2d5

http://people.tribe.net/c3bd303f-511...8-34451a73429d

I love seeing your photos and clips, Norma. Amazing costumes! Did the super long fringe on the second costume come from Egypt?

Originally Posted by Bellissima

32H...Is that a no go for something fringy?

Trying one on is really the only way you'll be able to tell. Sometimes fringe in the places everyone tells you is a no-no for a full bust is actually quite flattering.

I am a 36DD-E and I have an Egyptian Icicle bra which is like a giant waterfall down my chest. I can get away with it, just. But you'd be surprised how good fringing on the cups can look.