Carrara Nour
Belly Dancer for Weddings and Events in Orlando

King Louis XIV once said that fashion itself is a mirror to history. Though I live in jeans and Polos when I’m not collecting exotic dance couture, I love to follow the whimsical world of fashion because it can be so revealing.

As with mainstream fashion, belly dance costuming is not immune to cultural macro- and micro-trends, either. For any “civilian” audiences reading this (and for any dancer who’s been living under a rock for the past 10 years), belly dance fashion has been stuck in a minimalist phase for quite some time now, thanks to the recent popularity of the simplistic Egyptian style. As Cairo is considered the Hollywood of the Middle East, Western belly dancers have slowly backed …

This is not a review, per se. It’s more like a rave!

Lend me your ears, O’ gentle readers! And allow me to regale you with a tale of struggle, success and sparkles.

I was planning a cultural presentation for a huge upcoming corporate event.  My collaborator suggested that we perform a beledi/saidi number. This all sounded great – until I opened my closet door and saw nothing but flashy cabaret costumes. Egads! I had sold all of my beledi gear and had to procure something appropriately folk-y, stat! I looked high and low and saw nothing but tacky, ill-fitting (and pricey!) options. Then, several of my friends from Bhuz suggested that I order my beledi dress from L.Rose Designs…

I know, I know. One of these days, I’ll get off my lazy tuckus and make a couple of tutorials of my own! ‘Til then, I wanted to share an awesome channel I found on YouTube. Tons of Arabic looks, inspired by Haifa, Elissa and other Lebanese pop divas:

http://www.youtube.com/user/MakeupAdikt#play/user/390A09C6A1034089

Notice how most of the Arabic looks involve an ultra-dark eye paired with a soft nude lip. This is such a refreshing alternative to the common (yet not always flattering) dark eyes/dark lip combo so many of us dancers wear for shows.

Enjoy!…

Pharaonics addicts know exactly where I’m going with this. You drop $700 on an exquisite Egyptian costume. The color, fit and rhinestones are to die for. But for some ungodly reason, the designer uses cheap painted plastic beads that chip after the slightest wear.

Fed up with my white Pharaonics – and in no mood to re-string every tassel – I reached for the medicine cabinet and refinished those suckers with nail polish.

Hallelujah, it worked!

All you need is a pearlescent nail polish in a color that matches the finish of your beads. Apply one coat, let it dry. Repeat until your beads look shiny and new. (And don’t forget to crack a window open!)

Curiously, I’m not the …

I’ve been blogging about such heavy topics lately. Rates, professionalism….blah. So I figured it might be fun to talk about a lighter topic that’s near and dear to my heart. Yes, that’s right: new costumes. It’s time to show off a shiny, snake-y new acquisition from my friend Sonja!

In celebrating the Belly Dance Circle of Life, I sold off my orange iridescent “Creamsicle” bedlah to make room for something that would suit me better. It was love at first sight when I saw this Bella. Animal print? Check. Tons of crystals? Check. The right amount of fringe? Check. And cutouts? Heck yes! And I love the sexy crisscrossed lines of the gauntlets!

Happily, my new …