Auralynne's guide to buying Quality Cabaret CostumesThere are two grades of Cabaret Costumes that can be bought - the mass produced kind, and designer. If you are buying it on ebay, it is mass produced. If you are spending less than $600, it is most likely mass produced. Since I've never had $600 to spend on a costume, I know nothing about designer costumes. I am covering mass produced styles below. The main thing to be concerned about with cabaret costumes is the fringe. Look at the beads used to make it. Are they smooth and round? Do any of them have sharp edges? Sharp edges will cut through the thread, so unless you think it would be a neat effect to shower your audience with beads while shimmy-ing, try to avoid fringe made with bugle beads.
And here they are, beautiful but deadly to thread; the above sketch shows fringe made entirely of bugle beads. Avoid at all costs!
This is better - 30% chance evening showers. Should hold just fine through several dances if the person making it was intelligent enough to use good quality thread.
This is your best option for seed bead fringe. None of the beads have sharp edges, so now the only possibility of thread breakage is the thousands of sharp edged sequins lining the belt or a completely random breakage, which all dancers know does happen! The bottom line is, you can't really plan on a mass-produced cabaret costume lasting very long. Maybe that's why some people fork out the money for the designer ones. I, however, will never know. Even if I had $600, I could never allow myself to spend that much on a costume when I could make a designer costume for about $100 plus several months of sweat, tears and aggravation. I currently have two designer cabaret costumes in progress. I have been working on one for more than two years. Maybe if I am lucky I will finish them before I am too old to dance and arthritis takes over. Hmmmmmm...
There is another option if you aren't deadset on a authentic middle eastern cabaret costume. There are costumes on the market with big bead fringe which lasts incredibly well. The ones I sell (or intend to sell soon) I import from Brazil. You can get a similar style costume from Neckelmann's (in my links) for a bit more. On my store page for these you can read the story of the costume my sister has owned for over two years now. Only a really strong costume would stand up to her level of abuse!
Guide to buying Hipscarfs |
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