Thread: Looky what I made

I made this zebra themed costume for a dancer friend of mine here in Maine. The fabric base is an irridescent white velvet. I drew the bead pattern on with a fabric marker and filled in between the lines with black sequins. The black sequins are outlined with silver beads. I carried the black, white and silver theme down through the fringe. To add a little sparkle, I added a nice big swarovski crystal in the center of the bra. I would have added rhinestones on the outside of the silver lines, but she specifically didn't want it "too sparkly". Gasp! I didn't know there was such a thing!

Now, that is wild! I used to shy nervously away from the 'animal' stuff, but these days I find myself drawn to it. This one is just perfect - naughty, but nice!! actually, STYLISH!! The more I look at it, the more I love it - I WANT ONE!!! You are very clever.

Gorgeous!! That is great.

Awesome! How long did it take you?

Well done! I don't know what she was thinking re: sparklies- animal print is it's own kind of daring... Why not go all out?

Thanks for all the compliments ladies. I think it took me about a month to get it done.

I'm not really into animal prints either. Although I think I'm going to make myself a leopard themed one after seeing a costume TanyaLV had for sale on the swap page. LOL. I had the zebra idea one night trying to fall asleep. I wrote it down and tucked it away. When the dancer I made it for came asking for a costume, I knew her well enough to know that it would be right for her. If you notice, the stripes on the bra run on one diagonal and the belt on the other. The dancer I made it for is in her words "shaped like a rectangle". I thought the opposing diagonals would create some curve. It looks great on her.

Personally, I don't think there's such a thing as too sparkly, but, that is the beauty of commissioning a custom costume. You get exactly what you want. ..g.:

Actually, now that I think about it, a VERY long time ago I did have a costume that had a snidgeon of animal print. It was an african themed show, and the girl and I that danced had gold bra's and belts with torn looking raggedy skirts with animal print here and there. Not particularly 'classy'!! but right for that occaision!
Now I am really thinking hard about how I could make an animal print costume and keep it muted enough for me..... hmmmmm..... big fun!!
What did your friend say when she saw the zebra??

I love animal prints but up until recently I haven't been too crazy about using them in belly dance costumes. But I'm beginning to soften up on that. Doing the zebra pattern in beads and sequins is a really cool idea!

My friend loved it. She came over for a fitting last weekend and it really looked great on her and fit her like a glove. I can't wait to see her dance in it.

Stand back, Eman.... !!!

I think that's absolutely fabulous!! Just out of curiosity -- how much do you charge for such a unique and work-intensive costume? I've made a couple and when people ask me, I am always at a loss... If I charged by the hour, no one could afford it!!!!

That's great! It has really nice details. You should have a designer business, if you don't already!

that is a FUN bedleh! I love the way the fringe continues the zebra stripes. Be sure to post pictures of her in it!

Any chance we could see a picture of your friend in it? It's so beautiful... and the idea of having two different diagonals to create curves is just brilliant!

i really like it! the opposing diagonals are cool.
what an enormous amount of beading work. your poor eyes.

too sparkly? what's that? :)

Well done you. The first of many.

Zot Buffalo, the whole what to charge thing is difficult. I have found you absolutely can't charge by the hour on these things. If someone is going to spend that kind of money, they're going to buy a designer costume. When I first started making cabaret costumes about 4 years ago, I started with a $100 fee for labor plus materials. Right now I'm up to $150 and considering another increase. My costumes are worth far more than what I charge for labor, but if I increase too much, I'll price myself right out the limited market here in Maine. I already have a full time job, so I'm not really looking to make any money at this, it's really just a hobby. I do it for the love, not the money.

I'll try to post of photo of my friend wearing the costume, when I can get one.

Here's a shameless plug for myself. One of the costumes I've made myself is on sale over on the swap meet. Here's a link to the thread:

http://www.bhuz.com/forum/bellydance...-me-offer.html

I still think that's awesome shahla!

LOVE it. Carrying the color down into the fringe really made the whole thing work. Great job!

White iridescent velvet??!!!

That's excatly what I'm looking for but can't find anywhere...is it actually iridescent...like has an AB effect?

Yes, it has an AB affect. It's rather subtle, but it is there. I got it on Ebay from the seller syfabrics. Very reasonably priced and a good seller. I think she called it White Plush Velvet or something to that effect.

Absolutely stunning!

You have a wonderful eye for design. I have looked at your set you are selling too.

I have been working on a black and silver set for ages...sigh..just have not finished it.

BTW syfabrics has a website and reasonable prices
Sy Fabrics

did you do all the beaded fringe yourself??

No, I buy pre-made fringe. In this case, I made the little silver strands that run in between the black and white.

Wow! That is really well done & your idea about the figure flattering opposing diagonals was very keen! Excellent work!

BEAUTIFUL!!!! Love the detail of the black and silver...and the fringe is gorgeous.

Growl!

nice! I'm still impressed that you got it done in a month.... good luck with the next project! I'll be sure to share mine if I ever finish it... it seems I'm always cleaning my space or purchasing new parts for it...never working on it!

I have seen this costume up close. The beading and sequins are amazing! Shahla, you have done an impeccable job! The owner of this lovely was positively *sparkling* when she showed it to me. I am very sorry to have missed it's debut at the hafli!

My god - the absolute perfect simplicity of it. I am inspired. If it wasn't midnight here, I'd be down at the shops buying more sequins.