Flo Foxworthy - Showgirl Costumier: October 2013

The last five weeks have been unbelievably busy, and i'm looking forward to a couple of nice slow weeks so i can catch up on emails and paperwork.

Beginning with bikinis for the NZIFBB (New Zealand International Federation of Bodybuilding) regionals (as mentioned in my August Bikini Mayhem post) and finishing with the New Zealand Burlesque Festival, it was a non-stop whirlwind of sewing & rhinestoning!

Once the NZIFBB bikinis for the regional comp were out the way, it was time to create a rhinestone-covered Cstring and matching wire-frame showgirl style bra for Australian performer Silla Black.
The matching set was completely smothered in Swarovski rhinestones in shades of orange, yellow and blue.

These pieces were worn under a navy blue sheer robe made by Cathy Tree Harris, it was great collaborating with my costuming friend on an ensemble like this!
We finished the full outfit just in time to send it to Silla Black for rehearsals before she flew to New Zealand to feature at the NZ Burlesque Festival.

Next up was a white sheer full-length gown covered with Swarovski rhinestones (and matching rhinestone G strings, of course), to be worn by NZ adult performer Lisa Lewis at the opening of the new Penthouse Club in Auckland. I was short on time, so I brought my lovely assistant Stacey back to help me rhinestone the gown.

With Lisa's gown safely on a plane to Auckland, it was time to make a mermaid-inspired skirt for burlesque songstress Gracie Hart.

Gracie already had a beautiful silk corset made for her by Jemma @ Purdy Corsetry so all i had to do was make a floor-length, high waisted skirt with a flamboyant fishtail. The skirt was made from heavy satin in a lovely shade of aqua, and the fishtail was bolstered with layers of tulle and organza in shades of mint, aqua and turquoise.

I finished the skirt with a scattering of Swarovski rhinestones in pretty oceanic colours.

Swarovski rhinestones on aqua satin

I had a few website orders to catch up on by now, so the next day was full of G strings and bikinis, ready to be shipped all over the world.
Next on the list was a custom-made underbust corset in the most beautiful shade of sapphire blue silk. I made the corset for a lovely client who received it as a gift from a friend, and she wanted to wear it to one of the events at the NZBF.


Work in progress - silk underbust corset

While i was making this corset, i received an urgent order from the non-stop ball of energy, Lisa Lewis. She was attending a high profile boxing match the following week, and needed something amazing to wear.
Lisa sent me pics of the exact outfit she wanted, and i raced around gathering supplies and ordering rhinestones. With such a tight deadline and so much other work to be finished, i called the always wonderful Stacey in and gave her the task of covering a pair of boxing gloves in thousands of rhinestones.

It takes a LOT of Swarovski rhinestones to cover a pair of boxing gloves!

While Stacey worked on the gloves, I prepared for my booth at the NZ Burlesque Festival expo. I needed something pretty to showcase my work at the booth, so the beautiful Leda Petit sent her navy lace costume back to me to display. It's easily one of my favourite costumes, and it was lovely to see it again!

Lace corset with Swarovski crystal detail by Flo Foxworthy

I was running short on time, so i decided to just make a few pieces for people to look at, rather than making lots of items to sell. My previous post showed pictures of the rhinestone pasties i made, and in addition to them i also had some of my new Costume Spritz available for people to try.

Flo Foxworthy's booth st the NZ Burlesque Festival

The NZBF expo was fun, there were lots of great booths and plenty of people came through to have a look.
The 4-day event included shows, workshops, expo and a party to close the festivities. I was so busy that I could only make it to one of the shows unfortunately, but i've heard wonderful reviews of all the other events!

On the Saturday night, after the expo, the 1st annual Golden Garter awards were held as part of the festival. I was nominated for two awards, and on the night i received the award for Favourite Costumier!


NZ Burlesque Festival

On Sunday, after the fun of the Golden Garters, it was time to finish Lisa's boxing outfit - a full-length satin robe with flame applique, satin boxing shorts with matching flame applique and a rhinestone-covered bra. I also rhinestoned a pair of hand wraps.