ANOTHER BELLYDANCER'S BRA BEADED AND COMPLETED!

So besides the papercrafting and cardmaking passion I have, I also love to design make and bead costumes for bellydancers.  

My friend and owner of The Belly Button Studio, Gwenyth, asked me to bead another turquoise bra for her bellydancing costume.  It's finally finished and perhaps if she decides to go to Cape Town to the International Oriental Dance Festival to dance, she'll get the chance to wear it.and here it is:

 

Here's a closer look at the beading (now do you see where I get my 'signature' of sewing sequins and beads onto my cards)  :

There is NO gluing involved here, each sequin and bead is stitched on INDIVIDUALLY.  The cups are lined so that the stitching (using invisible nylon thread) causes no irritation, and the back elastic is also beaded so that it retains its FULL elasticity.

I can almost hear you ask ... now long does it take to bead a bra?

ANSWER : The number of hours depends on how much beading is to be done,  the size of the bra cup and how much the dancer is prepared to spend.

I spent about 110 - 120  hours beading this particular bra, (that's 14 days working  hours a day).  and the monetary reward .... about 5 South African Rand  per hour ... very much less than the unskilled street sweepers employed by the city managers ! LOL!

So why do I do it .. Simple!  I LOVE the craft.  I never have any idea of what the finished bra will look like.  The dancer will tell me how much she wants to spend, the colours she wants, and I usually ask her about the style of dangly bits she wants - but that is all.  

A true labour of passion and love.

I would like to add this card to the following challenges:
INSPIRE ME FRIDAYS, #81, 'ANYTHNG GOES' 
CRAFTROOM CHALLENGE,  'GOING ORIENTAL'
CRAFT MY LIFE, 'ALL CRAFTS CHALLENGE'  
MAKE IT MONDAY, 112, 'ANYTHING GOES'
ONE STOP CRAFT CHALLENGE, #201, 'ANYTHING GOES'
TOTALLY GORJUSS, #154, 'BLING IT ON'
ANYTHING BUT A CARD, #4

 

luv'n huggz

Jen Leeflang

Durban

South Africa