Fire on the dance floor!

...or at least thats what I want to be when I dance latin, but have not yet achieved. This is my first official latin dress however, after long deliberations with my coaches about color and design I finally chose one. When I chose the fabric, the crepe back satin was a bit heavier than what I was looking for but it was the perfect color: looks red but in the light gives off a orangy fire tint. It actually turned out to work better than I expected. The best part about it is the wide skirt combined with the heavier fabric that makes the spin quality of this dress a 10. Fabric bought, this was my first open style dress so I wanted to rhinestone it, ordered expensive Swarovski stones, no sense doing the cheap way if you are going to put so much effort in it in the first place. I wanted the sides to be see through lace but the store did not have the right kind or color that I wanted. (About a year later I did find the lace I wanted in a different store and still have plans to replace the sheer material the dress has now, because it is beginning to tear.

My inspiration for the dress: Karina Smirnoff and Slavik Kryklyvyy Rumba

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ftQCOBh4SI

I need a standard dress: Take #2

After realizing that dark purple is not really my shade or color nor a very vibrant exciting color for ballroom dancing I decided it was time for a new standard dress. The reason I focused on standard designs throughout college is because latin outfits and dresses are easier to come by and put together. I went to the fabric store and picked out a light breezy delicate pink fabric, that I though would suit my needs. Slightly altering a pattern by widening the panels near the bottom to a final diameter of about 10 meters and creating a lower back, I soon encountered problems with the light weave of the fabric and the non-stretchiness of it. It required me to put in a double under layer for the bust since the fabric was slightly see through, and also to install boob cups for support which I had never done before in any of my projects. I also had to put in the straps across the back to hold the dress on. At the end I created white shiny disattachable floats for versatility and attached white pearlescent appliques. Since this dress was supposed to be a transitional dress between syllabus and open levels and also between Smooth and Standard styles I did not stone it but made do with non sparkly elements and made it very versatile. It lasted me maybe a year of competition before I moved on to my next project due again to the lack of color brilliance in this piece, and progression to upper level dancing. I still really like the softness of the dress and the extremely flared skirt. These pictures show only one option of float attachment. There are two, and one can position them whatever the preference.