22 May 2010

(Almost) The Last Word on Belly Dancing Costumes (For Now)

Well, the people have spoken, and it looks like I'll be going with the most favouritest/most expensivest costume, the red and gold. Want to know why? Well:
  1. The ability to pair this bra-and-belt set with veils and skirts of other colours makes it way, way more useful in the long-term than either of the super-cheap options.
  2. I spoke to the company and was informed that the belts on the red/gold and the black/gold are actually the same; they'd just had the model wear the belt backwards in the black/gold to show what the back looks like. (Great idea, but maybe they should have mentioned that on the site....) The black/gold immediately lost a lot of its appeal: before I had liked it almost as much as the red/gold because it was cheaper and the belt was better, but now it was just cheaper.
  3. The price difference between the two ($26) wouldn't have covered the cost of getting another veil/skirt set, and I wouldn't have wanted to perform in the black/gold with the troupe. When you're dancing for tips (as I will be at our first confirmed paid gig, and am likely to be at others), you want to stand out and be shiny and eye-catching, and the black/gold would fade into black backgrounds and look kind of... dark. Like, not welcoming.
  4. I think the flower pattern of the sequins works better on the red/gold than on the black/gold, where it takes on Greek Yaya overtones. Also, while I do want a black veil/skirt set for a choreography I have in mind for some undetermined time down the road, the flower pattern wouldn't suit that choreo at all.
  5. Most people I talked to (including your lovely selves) seemed to feel that if I was going to buy something that frivolous and outside my budget, I might as well get the one I really, really want.
  6. It's the one I really, really want.
So, Trace, I think the legendary Justification of the Black Pants has been trumped. I have managed to talk myself into dropping $175 + shipping, while earning little more than that each week, on an outfit that I will wear maybe 15 minutes a month - AND I've made it seem like a reasonable decision. That's a fair effort.

I'm going to check the hafli I'm dancing at tomorrow for other costumes, just to be sure - sometimes vendors at these things give really good discounts, especially on second-hand stuff - but barring any major developments I'll be placing my order tomorrow. Yay! I promise I'll share photos.


XOXO

Quote of the Week: 'It didn't get ridiculous until you said "body-tipping".' - Liz

15 May 2010

And this is how I ended up spending $128 on a pair of pants.

(That one's for you, Trace.)

I've been looking at other costumes, and the thing I was most worried about has happened: I've fallen in love with a costume that's just outside my price range.

Wanna see? Have a look.

Beautiful, right? I just... I want it. So much. SO. MUCH.

And the thing that's killing me is, I could get it. I have that much money, and it's still a good price for what I'd be getting. Problem is, I shouldn't spend that much of my meagre funds on something as frivolous as a BD costume. Because yes, I have the money, and yes, I am working. But I'm working 30 hours/week for $10/hour, so with shipping that costume would run me most of a week's wages. And I'm going to finish at this job in a couple of weeks and still don't have anything lined up for after [shudder], so it's not like I have that kind of money to spare.

So clearly, I understand the need to curb my impulses. But here's the logic on the other side: if I'm going to drop some cash on something as frivolous as a BD costume, it should be one that I really like and will be able to maintain for a long time. This new costume falls more into that category than the other two do, for reasons of fabric and style. Furthermore...

OK. Get comfortable.

There is a black-and-gold version of the new costume (slightly different belt, but otherwise the same), which I also very much like, and which is $30 cheaper than the red. And it's only $30 more than the Shiny costume from my original post, so for only $30 more I could get something really awesome, rather than just so-so. And that seems kind of sensible, to me: $30 isn't going to make a difference to me in the long run, so I might as well drop $30 more and get what I really want.

But clearly, it's not that simple. Because what I really want is the red one, and the red one is $30 more again. And it's very easy to apply that same logic and talk myself into spending almost twice as much as my best-price option (the Amreekiya) on a costume that I'm not sure I'll even have cause to wear all that often: we only wear the pro costumes for paid gigs, I think, and most of our gigs won't be paid. And it's not like paid gigs are going to rake in the cash: for the one in August we'll be getting $60 each plus tips. Unless I get the Amreekiya I have no chance of making the cost back. It really doesn't make sense to spend any more than I absolutely have to.

Then again, the new costume would be a good investment in the long run because the pieces are interchangeable: the plain gold bra and belt can be matched with other skirts and veils, and that site sells all of the pieces separately as well. This means that I could get the black and gold costume, then go back later and get the red and gold veil and skirt set for $80. I'd therefore have two full, excellent costumes (that look surprisingly different from each other, as you'd see in the photos) for just over $200, which is quite good. I couldn't do that with the Amreekiya because the bra and belt both have coloured fabric behind them; I could match the Shiny top with any gold-and-colour belt, but as has been previously noted, the Shiny top is... fine, but hardly awesome. No match for the new costume's pieces, for sure. And I'd need additional belts as well as skirts and veils.

But I could save myself $50-80 and a lot of debating by just going with the Amreekiya, and that's not nothing.

What do you think? Hit me in the comments.


XOXO

12 May 2010

Update: Poll regs

Hi again,

Turns out you have to be 'signed in' to vote. I know you can sign in with a Google account, and I think you can with a Facebook account as well. If you can't sign in (or can't be bothered), feel free to reply in the comments instead. Thanks!


Baby's First Blog Poll!

This belly dancing thing is getting serious.

I had my first troupe rehearsal last week, at which - because of a couple of recent dropouts - I was 'asked' to perform at three shows in the next few months. The first is Sunday week. Doing a choreo I started learning *last week* and have *one* more rehearsal on before we perform.

So. Yes. I am slightly terrified and overwhelmed, while also trying to feel all good about trying new things etc. But shelving the self-helpetry for the moment, I need input on an important decision: one of the shows, in August, will be a paid gig for which I will need a 'professional' costume (e.g., shiny and spangled). These can be quite pricey, but there's a website that has some decent, affordable options.

And here's the poll: I want to know what you-all think would suit me best. There are two styles I'm looking at (translation: that I could afford): the Amreekiya and... well, it has no name, so I'll call it the Shiny. It's a bit tricky because I prefer the top on the Shiny but the skirt on the Amreekiya. (Check the close-up photo of the top of the Amreekiya... it's kind of creepy in a way I can't quantify.)

The troupe colours are black and red, and I prefer gold accents (coins, etc.) to silver on BD costumes. So on the Amreekiya, it'd be either red or black where it's navy in the photo, and on the Shiny it'd be either black as in the photo or red where the black is. My teacher has okayed all of these, so it's just down to my preference.

I'll set up the poll to the right of the post. I'd really appreciate your input on this, so please vote - and additional info is always welcome in the comments section!


XOXO

03 May 2010

Stray Thoughts Strut

1) Hockey Talky: The Bruins won the first game of their Division Semi-final against the Philadelphia Flyers. We were playing the Flyers and not the scarier Pittsburgh Steelers because the Montreal Canadiens - the Bruins' sworn enemies, also known as Les Habitants for Frenchy reasons - won their last series, which means that they have to play the Steelers. The nervousness around playing the Steelers led to what Caitlin described as 'all of Boston cheering awkwardly for the Habs'. Very smooth. We're currently up 2-1 in the second game of the series. I'm thinking of you, Tim.

2) Paging Dr Kat!: Hey Massachusetts, how's your awesome infrastructure? And of course it happened on the first truly hot weekend we've had this year. Who needs drinking water in 90˚ weather, right? It looks like we'll be sorted by the middle of the week, but for now we're still boiling water for drinking, hand-washing, and cooking. I feel so old-school.

3) Shake, rattle, and roll: As of Thursday, I'll be joining my belly dancing teacher's troupe! For an idea of what I'll be getting up to, watch this. (You'll also get to see my teacher, Zehara, snake dancing. She is that cool.) The plan is for me to perform for the first time with them in June at a fundraiser Zehara's put together. Guys, I am stupidly excited about this. Belly dancing makes me happier than anything else in my life right now, and the idea that she reckons I'm good enough to perform is startling and touching. I promise to provide photos/links, as long as I don't do anything really stupid.



XOXO