Oh, The Glamourous Life!

Dear Constant Reader,

Happy Friday! It’s the first tip of 2019!

Fan dancing is much easier when your fans are right-and left-handed.

It’s quiet right now at BeauTease headquarters and we’re using the downtime for some skill-building. Everyone was eager to learn fan dancing and this tidbit came up while I was teaching. As you can see from the pictures, the staves of my fans open in different directions. This means you can hold the fans comfortably with the top stave closest to you.

Most ready-made fans are right-handed, which makes holding them in your left-hand awkward. It’s best to have the staves reversed for the left-hand fan before the fans are constructed, because it requires removing the support cord and restringing the staves. When ordering fans, specify that you want one right and one left.

At first, it can be hard to remember which one is which. You can discretely label them with an L and R on the back stave where it will be hidden by your hand. Or you could add a distinctive decoration to one fan, so you’ll know that one is, say, the right-hand fan and the one without is the left-hand. If it were a large rhinestone on the back of one fan, you could tell which was which by touch.

Like this tip? There are lots more in Miss Mina Murray’s Little Book of Better Burlesque.

These writings and other creative projects are supported by my Patrons. Thank you so much! To become a Patron, go to my Patreon page.

Dear Constant Reader,

It’s the last Friday tip of 2018! Here’s something to reflect on for the coming year.

Be generous.

Not necessarily with money, although that’s great. You can be generous with your time, your praise, your wisdom, your kindness. Especially kindness.

I hope you have a wonderful 2019!

Like this tip? There are lots more in Miss Mina Murray’s Little Book of Better Burlesque.

These writings and other creative projects are supported by my Patrons. Thank you so much! To become a Patron, go to my Patreon page.

Dear Constant Reader,

Happy Friday! Your tip today is an old seamstress trick:

If you get blood on your fabric, spit on it.

We’ve all done it. You’re sewing along and stab your finger with the needle. Next thing you know there’s a little crimson stain on your sewing project. Quick! Dab some saliva on it. The blood stain will magically dissipate. I have no idea why or how it works, but I’ve saved my work this way. As soon as you can, properly wash the area with cold water and gentle soap to get out the spit and the last remnants of blood.

Like this tip? There are lots more in Miss Mina Murray’s Little Book of Better Burlesque.

These writings and other creative projects are supported by my Patrons. Thank you so much! To become a Patron, go to my Patreon page.

Dear Constant Reader,

Happy Friday! Here’s your tip!

You don’t have to move at the exact same tempo as your music.

Try moving at half time for drama or double time for excitement. Just make sure you’re still using the beat.

Like this tip? There are lots more in Miss Mina Murray’s Little Book of Better Burlesque.

These writings and other creative projects are supported by my Patrons. Thank you so much! To become a Patron, go to my Patreon page.

Dear Constant Reader,

Happy Friday! For those of you who celebrated, I hope you had a happy Thanksgiving and had some quiet time to reflect on the things for which you are grateful. If yesterday wasn’t a holiday for you, I hope you had a pleasant Thursday and you also had some quiet time to reflect on the things for which you are grateful. It’s just something we should do more often. Here’s your tip!

Give your costume a holiday makeover.

It’s a busy time of year for many performers and holiday-themed acts are much in demand. However, it doesn’t always make financial sense to have a costume you only pull out for a few weeks a year. Instead, if you can, give an existing costume a temporary make-over with appropriate trimmings and accessories to fit the bill. Craft stores are full of shiny sparkly things that just scream “winter gift giving occasion and other celebrations” and many of them even clip on or can easily be temporarily attached.

Like this tip? There are lots more in Miss Mina Murray’s Little Book of Better Burlesque.

These writings and other creative projects are supported by my Patrons. Thank you so much! To become a Patron, go to my Patreon page.

Dear Constant Reader,

Happy Friday! We got our first snow here on the East Coast! And then it poured rain, so no Winter Wonderland for us. Here’s your tip!

Learn the basics of audio and video editing.

It will make your life so much easier if you can make simple edits yourself, like trimming a video clip or joining two tracks.

Like this tip? There are lots more in Miss Mina Murray’s Little Book of Better Burlesque.

These writings and other creative projects are supported by my Patrons. Thank you so much! To become a Patron, go to my Patreon page.

Dear Constant Reader,

Well, it’s Friday and I was supposed to be sending you this tip from BurlyCon. Instead, I’m at home. Why? That’s today’s tip.

Sometimes heroic measures are not called for.

In the performing arts we talk a lot about the heroic measures that performers take when they are sick or injured to make sure the show goes on. Sometimes it’s necessary, as anyone who’s ever pushed through on stage with a sore throat or a pulled muscle knows.

Sometimes it’s not heroism, it’s foolishness. Continuing to perform when you are very sick or severely injured can making things worse for you. You’re lengthening your recovery time and, in the case of illness, exposing others. Taking the time to rest and recover is important. And you know what is heroic? Finding a replacement if you have to drop out of a gig.

This is why I’m not at BurlyCon. On Halloween I developed a cough that rapidly got worse. I was determined to fulfill my obligations and go to BurlyCon to teach my classes and distribute my books. We worked so hard to get the new book ready in time.

About 5 hours before I was going to leave for the airport, I realized this was dumb and also selfish. Exposing my already weakened immune system to the stresses of two flights and a hotel full of people was probably going to make me sicker. Not to mention that I just wouldn’t be able to enjoy the event or get much value from it. I can barely go 5 minutes without coughing — how was I supposed to take classes, let alone teach? And despite any precautions I might take, I’d probably pass this charming virus along to some of my fellow burlesquers. Not cool.

So I’m home. I’m not happy about it, but I’ll be spending my “vacation” continuing to try get healthy. And just a reminder, get travel insurance.

Like this tip? There are lots more in Miss Mina Murray’s Little Book of Better Burlesque.

These writings and other creative projects are supported by my Patrons. Thank you so much! To become a Patron, go to my Patreon page.