Honestly, I miss it.
It’s pageant season in the drag world and Facebook is ripe with constant updates on evening wear, talents and interviews. Across the country kings and queens are preparing to compete in prelims and finals, looking for sponsors, packing suitcases and truck beds with costumes and props and dragging backup dancers across country.
Honestly, I miss it.
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Kings are catching a lot of flack for the amount of bling on their costumes lately. At least here they are. It’s a running joke about the amount of stones one has on an outfit. Stones, glitter, anything else that’s shiny and sparkles. I know that whenever I put on my outfit that has large, uber-sparkly flames on it, I get endless “Flaming Freddy” comments. Jerks. Freddy isn’t flaming. He’s fabulous! Ha! At any rate, there’s a constant debate about the shinies and the sparklies. How much is too much? Where do you draw the line? Where does it stop looking sharp and start looking like a day care project? Because we’re expected to keep raising the bar, both in performance and costumes, I think it’s all too easy to go overboard.
My outfit with the flames is probably the most sparkly one I have. And it took a shit ton of glitter and sealant stuff to get it to look the way it does. I even have shoes to match! But generally, I don’t like going the glitter route. Too often it ends up just looking cheesy and kind of juvenile. Sequins are a good substitute if you can’t afford the good Swarovski crystals, but again, try not to go overboard. Oh! I forgot about that outfit. Oops. I do, in fact, have an outfit that has gold sequins covering most of it, but it went with the number it was designed for, so shut it. Will I ever use it again? Not sure. It’s hard to find a song that goes well with a dark blue outfit covered in gold sequins. But that’s ok. I digress. Sequins are an easy, cheap way to bling out any costume. It’s finding the balance that can be tricky. You don’t want to look like an 8 year old’s dance recital costume. You’d be surprised what even a few scattered SINGLE sequins can do for an old jacket or pants. I mean, ideally, most kings will try to get the crystals. Everyone likes the way they sparkle, so why wouldn’t you? Cuz they can be damn expensive, that’s why! I have a job, I work full time, but rarely do I have the funds to be able to really splurge on my costumes. But let me tell you, I am the KING of thrift store shopping! I can’t tell you how many tail coats and such I’ve found for next to nothing. We also have here in Phoenix a store called SAS Fabrics By The Pound, which has all sorts of cool accessories, ribbons, D rings, chain, leather scraps, etc that can be purchased for super cheap and used on pretty much any costume. Yet, I still end up spending more than planned on outfits. The key, I’ve found, is buy in bulk if you can. If you see a good deal on something, get it, because I can guarantee you’ll find a use for it. But back to the bling issue. I try really hard to not have 100 costumes that all look alike. But there are kings and queens who don’t really care. So you see them in essentially the same outfit for every number, but with slight variations in, say, colour. I mean, everyone has their signature look, but it’s always good to think outside the box. Freddy has a thing for tail coats, I admit it. I own no fewer than 6, probably more, but the ones that are all costumed out are all different. And if I’ve used the same one in a couple different numbers, then I try to do something new to it to change it up. I’m actually in the process of doing just that with the tail coat I used for my Mr Brightside number. By the time I’m done with it, it won’t even be recognizable as the same jacket! I also try to keep my stuff uncluttered. Sometimes more is NOT more. Sometimes less is DEFINITELY more. The key is knowing when to stop and put down the E6000. You don’t always have to use bling, be it sequins, crystals or glitter. There are other ways to dress up a costume, without being a walking disco ball. And I don’t mean taking a sharpie and writing your name all over everything you wear. (Laugh if you want… I’ve seen kings who pretty much wear nothing unless it has their name on it.) I’ve used everything from chain, to leather, to zippers, to feathers, to this funky lanyard stuff, to pasties (seriously!), to random pieces of material and fabric paint. I’ve tried to grow in terms of costuming, because in my opinion, there’s nothing worse than becoming stagnant, whether it be in performance or costumes. Which is why it’s kind of nice not to be performing as much as before. It gives me the chance to really work on things. Of course, I usually end up doing everything last minute anyway because that’s just how I roll, but still. (Case in point: performing at Modesto Pride, we got there Friday evening, worked on costumes til about midnight. Saturday, I was supposed to check in at the venue by 11:45am. We were still working on costumes at 10:30am.) But at least it gives me the chance to THINK about what I want to do. Having time to plan is always nice. Basically, there’s a time and a place for bling, be it of the crystal, sequin or glitter variety. Though sometimes, bling is definitely the way to go. After all, “everything in moderation, including moderation,” n’est pas? |