tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-42651721452176647542024-03-08T07:41:11.245-08:00Voodoo FortunaMama Fortunahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11034802154731242130noreply@blogger.comBlogger40125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4265172145217664754.post-75036016728949364792015-02-22T19:51:00.001-08:002015-02-22T19:51:11.071-08:00Stripped Scared and Sacred Episode 14: Women in HorrorTo help celebrate Women in Horror Month the dynamic duo is joined by
good friend and rising scream queen Little Miss Risk, aka Tristan Risk
of American Mary fame. Much wine is consumed as the three dicuss the
different female horror tropes as well as famous female horror
characters that are good examples of strong females.<br />
<br />
Listen here: http://voodoofortuna.podbean.com/e/episode-14-women-in-horror/<br />
<br />
Or download us on Itunes, just search voodoo fortuna! Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4265172145217664754.post-32886724295573236912014-07-12T20:22:00.003-07:002014-07-12T20:22:43.202-07:00ice age<i>The Capricorn full moon can mark the end of a long run or dry spell.
Perhaps you’ll feel it as the end of a personal, social, or professional
era and the crystallizing of a new reality...</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<a href="http://mama-fortuna.blogspot.ca/2014/07/ice-age.html">Read more at Walk Softly, Witch!</a>Mama Fortunahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11034802154731242130noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4265172145217664754.post-26233848122930618292014-03-30T22:17:00.001-07:002014-03-30T22:17:20.598-07:00Scars and Secrets Part 2Warning! These photos are NSFW and might be gross to some people.<br />
<br />
Want to know something interesting? <br />
It's been almost a month since I had surgery on my breast and only now am I starting to feel like myself again.<br />
Strange isn't it?<br />
Then again maybe not.<br />
<br />
The surgery itself was...okay. I mean, it's never going to be fun but I seem to remember that this one was more difficult compared to my ear surgery. I wasn't allowed to eat or drink anything past midnight the night before and I didn't go in for my surgery till about 2pm so I was STARVING. Not to mention extremely anxious and scared, I cried a lot before they finally took me in. Luckily I have the best mother in the world who drove into town and stayed with me as well as took me to the hospital.<br />
She also kept me calm by being silly with me.<br />
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If you're wondering why I'm wearing a mask it's because I'm THAT mysterious! No, really, it's because I didn't get a flu shot this year so I had to wear it.<br /><br />
When they finally took me in I struggled to not have a panic attack, laying on the stretcher with all these strangers around you, strapping you down and marking you with pens.They actually gave me the option to not be put under, to just have heavy sedation and freezing but when I asked my surgeon if there was a chance I could wake up in the middle she said yes.<br />
<br />
"Knock me out then. I don't want to go through that."<br />
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And so they started the IV and about 4 seconds later my eyelids felt heavy, I'm an idiot and almost started to try and fight it because I was scared but then I gave in and.......<br />
woke up in the recovery ward.<br />
<br />
And this is where everything in the world got groggy and disconnected for me, I can remember laying there just focusing on breathing and trying to swallow. Every time I go under for surgery I wake up and my throat feels BONE dry, it's because of that damn tube they shove down there. Ow.<br />
After about 45 mins in the recovery ward they moved me down to the day time surgery ward where they let my mom sit by me, which was comforting. I can remember her holding my hand, kissing my forehead and of course talking to all the nurses. I tried to talk but couldn't, the best I could manage was a croak.<br />
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Eventually, and like always, the need to pee got me out of bed.<br />
I managed to sit up and then very slowly shuffle down the hallway to the bathroom, I have to say that it's always awkward peeing with the IV attached to you. I shuffled back to my little area to find the nurses there with my stuff, the time had come for me to leave and let someone else have my spot. I got dressed and they gently put me in my mom's car.<br />
<br />
And here is where my anxiety waves started.<br />
<br />
I'm not sure why but once we had picked up my sister from work and started off towards home I started to have these weird waves of anxiety that would break through my drug fuzzed brain. The worst was probably when my mom and sister had to leave my alone for a while to go find parking for my mom, I can remember laying in my sisters bed (she's on the first floor of our building so it was just easier to leave me there) shifting around restlessly about every five seconds in an effort to distract myself from freaking out. Eventually they both returned but this weird anxiety didn't fully go away.<br />
In fact, it kept me from resting after my surgery for at least four hours. I would lay there, trying to let myself fall asleep only to wake myself back up from feeling so weird and out of it. Which scared me which then made my anxiety worse.<br />
<br />
Finally I had some soup and then bam, fell asleep. I slept solidly till about 11pm and when I woke up I felt like I had my brain back. Thank god.<br />
<br />
I took the next five days off from everything and just concentrated on resting and healing, all in all the physical pain wasn't bad at all. I didn't take any of the pain killers the hospital gave me, just some regular Tylenol the first two days and that was it.<br />
<br />
What took me longer to get over was the emotional backlash that I got from this surgery. I don't remember having it with my ear surgery which could be because I was younger or more likely, the fact that when I had that surgery it was in/behind my head and ear so I couldn't see it.<br />
Couldn't be reminded of it.<br />
With this surgery though I have gone through many different emotions. From a false sense of things being back to normal, to suddenly thinking about death and reality every hour of the day, to feeling disconnected from everyone, to being scared and having unreasonable crying jags and panic attacks.<br />
<br />
I've talked to a few different people and I am happy to report that it seems like this is a fairly normal response to this kind of surgery, so I'm happy that I'm not totally insane or something. I've been told that even though in the grand scheme of things this surgery was rather minor and the lump turned out to just be dense breast tissue after all, it was still an invasion of a very private and important body part to me.<br />
The other thing that I found out was that after such a prolonged "is it or isn't it" kind of situation and so many trips to the hospital and doctors that it is also normal to go into panic mode about everything else in your body. All this month I've been worried about any and all other bumps/bruises/headaches/pains.<br />
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However since I've become aware of all of this, and that it's normal, I'm now taking steps to work through it. This includes getting a massage and learning how to re-connect with my body. I've been doing more stretching and breathing exercises, not to mention working with some stones and candle spell work. I've found that since starting this my connection with other people has begun to balance back out and I am finally starting to feel like myself again.<br />
<br />
But enough about all this emotional stuff! It's time to see pictures!<br />
Because I'm a weirdo I documented the entire healing process of my breast surgery, so here it is:<br />
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Directly after the surgery, you can see all the fun scribbles the doctors made on me.<br />
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This was about two days after when I finally got to shower and take off that huge bandage. It felt SO good to shower after being so stinky and gross for that long.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Probably about a week after surgery, you can see that some of the steri-strips have fallen off and that the bruising is still pretty bad. Pale people and bruises don't go well together.<br />
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This was right after the last strip came off in the shower, behold the actual wound! Not too bad right?<br />
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And the last one was taken a full two weeks after the surgery, the day I went in for my check up and got the news that the lump was dense tissue and everything was totally fine. The scar has faded even more now and in probably about another month or so you won't even see it.<br />
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The story and experience will always be with me though and I have learned a lot about myself from it, parts of it have sucked a fat one but other parts were good and have made me stronger. After all, no one stays the same all their life.<br />
I'm just happy to still be living mine, happy and healthy.<br />
<3 Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4265172145217664754.post-17282004961119324722014-03-23T20:55:00.001-07:002014-03-23T20:55:27.362-07:00Sewing Stuff - Summer Hawaiian DressThe other weekend I was cleaning my apartment and going through my costumes, getting rid of the smelly and old ones, when I came across a pile of fabric that I had totally forgotten about. It was this black and cream Hawaiian pattern that I had originally bought for my sister so that she could get our friend Melody to make her a swishy dress. That never happened and its just been sitting there waiting for me to find it.<br />
All 5 meters of it....<br />
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I think we bought so much of it at the time was because a.) it was on sale and b.) my sister is VERY chesty so we wanted to make sure there was enough to go around. On reflection we totally bought waaaaay too much. Oh well.<br />
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<a name='more'></a><br />So when I found all this random free fabric I decided what better way to spend my morning that sewing a totally random summer dress! I didn't have a real pattern but after cruising around on the Internet I decided to try and make a funky high waisted circle skirt with a sort of retro bra top.<br />
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The skirt was easy enough for me to do, I just slapped down my black circle skirt as my base pattern and then added a long strip at the top to make it high waisted. Sewing the zipper into the back was a little tricky because I'm an idiot and don't have a zipper foot for my sewing machine but in the end I managed to get it all working.<br />
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Next up was the top, which I found on<a href="http://www.sewingadicta.com/2014/02/30s-inspired-bra-for-cover-girl.html" target="_blank"> this website</a>. The original pattern is for a retro bra but I thought that it might work just as well for a regular top with a few adjustments. So I sketched the pattern out loosely and cut it all out.<br />
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Looks kind of weird right? While I was cutting it out I was a little mystified by where things were supposed to go but after looking at the blog again and moving things around like a jig saw puzzle I figured it out.<br />
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See? Not too difficult once you see the placement of things!<br />
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I sewed everything together, and then wound up going back to change a few parts to make it into a halter top instead of bra-top and then voila it was all done!<br />
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Looks pretty cute right? I liked the idea of having just a little bit of my stomach showing, modest but still having it be kind of flirty. The bra top works well but I might get a halter bra to wear underneath it as it's pretty low cut and I don't want my tits popping out if I dance in it during the summer time.<br />
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Summertime here I come!<br />
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Total Time to Make: 4 hours<br />
Total Cost: Free<br />
Things I learned while making this item: I really need to get a sewing foot for zippers and snap tape, it will make my life easier and will make me hate using zippers in things a lot less. You can't always live and work with spandex Voodoo.....Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4265172145217664754.post-40234594989136791332014-03-09T21:12:00.001-07:002014-03-09T21:12:04.151-07:00Sewing Stuff - 1960s Jumpsuit A few months ago my friend Diva asked me and a bunch of other friends to come visit her after hours at her work, which normally wouldn't be that much fun except that Diva works at the fabulous Watts Costume store. It seems that the website doesn't have a lot of photos that actually show what a HUGE amount of awesome costumes they have there and she had taken it upon herself to remedy that.<br />
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What this meant of course was that I got to play dress up for like 4 hours straight while drunk on pink wine.<br />
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While we were there Diva presented me with a costume that I fell in love with and didn't want to take off, like....EVER. It was a silver 1960s disco jumpsuit. Sounds awful right?<br />
WRONG.<br />
It was amazing, comfortable and looked fantastic on my ass.<br />
See?<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-EcMBzUtHGxg/Ux0lh3U-JTI/AAAAAAAAATQ/Olwn9r-AfoQ/s1600/jumpsuitinspir.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-EcMBzUtHGxg/Ux0lh3U-JTI/AAAAAAAAATQ/Olwn9r-AfoQ/s1600/jumpsuitinspir.jpg" height="320" width="194" /></a></div>
Yeaaaaaaaaaaaaah! The best part about that jumpsuit was how wide the legs were, it was so swishy and so fun. So of course I decided that for my second sewing project I should make my own.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>I still had money on my dressew gift card so I went and purchased 3 meters of black stretchy fabric, a zipper, and an actual pattern this time. I mainly bought the pattern because I haven't had a lot of experience in making pants and the one I found was almost exactly what I was looking for.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Kir06uZnxBE/Ux0yPXl4oCI/AAAAAAAAATg/9LsVUWCG2Mc/s1600/jump01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Kir06uZnxBE/Ux0yPXl4oCI/AAAAAAAAATg/9LsVUWCG2Mc/s1600/jump01.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
Plus the artwork was super cute. ;)<br />
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It took me a while to actually start this project due to my work schedule getting crazy busy but after I had surgery on my breast I suddenly found myself with a lot of free time and I needed something to distract myself so this was almost perfect timing.<br />
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So Step 1: was to cut out my pattern (I used pattern A over B because the legs were wider), slap it onto my doubled over black fabric, pin and and cut it all out.<br />
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Step 2: I slapped the front and back parts together and sewed up the two length sides of them.<br />
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Step 3: The semi tricky part was mashing the two legs together and sewing up the crotch/ass area. But I managed to do and then slipped the pants on only to find that they were HUGE.<br />
Like....you could have fit 2 of me in there.<br />
So I took them off, re-measured my hips and what not and took it in about 3 inches on either side until they would up like this:<br />
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Step 4: To make the top I basically took a t-shirt that I liked the look of and laid it out on the black fabric and drew what the basic shape was, then I cut it, sewed up the sides and tried it on. It was too big at first but with some little fixes it fit how I wanted. The final bit that added a bit of jazz to it was a bit of rushing that I added to the neckline.<br />
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Step 5: It was time for the actual tricky part, sewing the top to the bottom pants. I had to maneuver things around to get it to be seamless but it all worked out and voila! I was all done! I also wound up not even needing to use the zipper because the fabric was so stretchy I can just wiggle into it. Bonus!<br />
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The end result was this:<br />
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Total Time to Make: 4 hoursTotal Cost: 40$<br />
Things I learned while making this Item: I need to trust patterns more, if it says I'm a certain size then that means that I am. And I shouldn't over estimate because that just means I will need to take stuff in later on in the process.<br />
Also? Jumpsuits are so comfortable and rad.<br />
<3Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4265172145217664754.post-38748100129210223412014-03-05T14:38:00.000-08:002014-03-05T14:38:04.553-08:00Stripped Scared and Sacred Episode 13: Listener QuestionsUpdated the podcast, this time it's just me and Mama but we discuss questions that were sent in by regular listeners to the podcast.<br />
<a href="http://voodoofortuna.podbean.com/2014/03/05/episode-13-listener-questions/" target="_blank">Check it out!</a>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4265172145217664754.post-26829862787745444362014-02-11T22:05:00.001-08:002014-02-11T22:13:36.694-08:00Sewing Stuff - Blues Skirt Part 2So because Monday was a holiday I actually had spare time to sit down and start my sewing project, something that I've been looking forward to ever since I made the first post about it. I put some fun swing music on and decided to get started. So here we go, step by step the construction of The Blues Skirt.<br />
(Complete with hipster camera filter!)<br />
<br />
Step 1: I laid out my fabric and folded it over, wanting to cheat a little and use the fold part as the bottom section so that I wouldn't have to hem it. I figured it would look cleaner this way and would probably lay straighter.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-1_tm3Np-Oxs/UvsJ1tSl0aI/AAAAAAAAARg/fTzGnmM92SU/s1600/skirt01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-1_tm3Np-Oxs/UvsJ1tSl0aI/AAAAAAAAARg/fTzGnmM92SU/s1600/skirt01.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a name='more'></a>Step 2: I folded the fabric again, this time the opposite way and pinned down the sides. Creating a tube shape.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-c95lCBu5gB4/UvsKG0d_8BI/AAAAAAAAARo/YPcm90kI3tM/s1600/skirt02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-c95lCBu5gB4/UvsKG0d_8BI/AAAAAAAAARo/YPcm90kI3tM/s1600/skirt02.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></div>
Step 3: I sewed up that line, being careful to pull the fabric as I sewed it since it was a semi spandex material. You can also see from the below picture a better view of the bottom fold/hem.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-QrxRp-ytkDw/UvsKab4axqI/AAAAAAAAARw/pHD7w6niyPU/s1600/skirt03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-QrxRp-ytkDw/UvsKab4axqI/AAAAAAAAARw/pHD7w6niyPU/s1600/skirt03.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></div>
Step 4: I slipped it on to make sure I hadn't made it to small, so far so good but boy does that top look sloppy.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lOxY4Zjn3Uk/UvsKnkXUwdI/AAAAAAAAAR4/P5dppH9opuU/s1600/skirt04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lOxY4Zjn3Uk/UvsKnkXUwdI/AAAAAAAAAR4/P5dppH9opuU/s1600/skirt04.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></div>
Step 5: Next up was to put the elastic top into the skirt, there are a few different ways that you can do this. I know my friend Melody sews it directly on and into the area but I always find that I fuck it up more when I do it that way. So my way, is a way my aunt taught me when I was little. You fold the fabric over and sew it, then you attach a safety pin to your elastic (which has already been measured to fit your waist/hips) and feed it through the loop. Like below.<br />
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Step 6: Once the elastic has been fed through the loop you sew it together and un-scrunch the fabric. So far so good!<br />
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Step 7: See? Looks much cleaner! I was tempted to leave it as is since god knows I love a good pencil skirt but I already have a blue one and the idea was to replicate the one I saw in the video so it was time to create the slit. I debated if I should put the slit on the same side as the sewing line but though it would look weird with the buttons so I marked where I wanted the slit to go with a bit of chalk and then pinned it so the fabric wouldn't slide around.<br />
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Step 8: I cut up that line and then out a little, creating a bit of a triangle shape. I tried it first with just the line cut up and hemmed but it started to bunch up so I cut out the triangle and it worked much better. It sat nicer on my thigh and looked intentional and not just like a sewing mistake. I then marked out where the buttons should go and sewed them on.<br />
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Step 9: It was right around this time that I forgot that I had been doing laundry while all of this and had to run downstairs to make sure no one was stealing my underthings.<br />
But when I came back I slipped on my creation and took a look see at my handiwork.<br />
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Looks pretty good to me! But I wanted to test it out with something other than my slum 'hanging around the house' clothes.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-949l0GEGE-4/UvsN2JG36jI/AAAAAAAAAS8/s1qZcFHn1iQ/s1600/skirt11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-949l0GEGE-4/UvsN2JG36jI/AAAAAAAAAS8/s1qZcFHn1iQ/s1600/skirt11.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></div>
And voila! A more appropriate hair style and white tank top and I think it is ready to be worn out on the town.<br />
<br />
Total time to make: 2 hours <br />
Total cost: 15$<br />
Things I learned while making this item: using a zig zag stich on semi spandex fabric is better than a straight stitch, when making slits do a triangle and not straight line, and finally don't do laundry at the same time as sewing projects because you WILL forget and look like an asshole for leaving your stuff in the washing machine for over an hour.....Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4265172145217664754.post-73543176301942183342014-02-06T19:25:00.002-08:002014-02-06T19:25:55.589-08:00Scars and Secrets"Scars are just stories in sexy places"<br />
<br />This is what a friend of mine said to me recently and I have to say that it has really stuck in my brain for a few reasons.<br />
<br />
<a name='more'></a>Let me explain.<br /><br />
About two or three months ago I went to my doctor for a routine check up and PAP, while there she did a breast exam and found a lump in my right breast.<br />
<br />"It's probably nothing but I'm going to send you in for an ultra sound just to make sure." Is what she told me, and I agreed, secretly happy that I have a good doctor who is so thorough and not one to just let it go un-noticed.<br /><br />
Fast forward to January, where I got up much earlier than I was used to (I wasn't working at the time and was used to sleeping in) and went to Mount St.Joseph's hospital with my boyfriend to get the ultrasound done. It was kind of weird, laying there with goop all over my boob and having this weird machine sliding around on me. But it was okay, soon it would tell me everything was fine.<br /><br />
Right?<br />Wrong.<br /><br />
"I'm not happy with these results." The very nice and very pregnant doctor told me, frowning. "They show a dark area but I can't tell what it is, so I'm going to sneak you in to get a mammogram today."<br /><br />
Part of me was thankful for such prompt service, not really wanting to have to come back another day for it but the other part of me suddenly nervous.<br /><br />
"Not happy with the results."<br />"I can't tell what it is."<br /><br />
These are the words that clanged around in my head as I sat there in the hospital waiting room, naked from the waist up save one of those super stylish gowns. After a while I went into the testing room where my poor boobs were squashed and smooshed in all sorts of horrible ways. Heads up to those of you who haven't ever gone, mammograms fucking HURT, anyone who says they don't is lying or has a very high pain threshold.<br /><br />
Afterwards I sat out in the hallway again with my boyfriend, trying to take my mind off it all by doing crosswords and reading the news. At last the doctor arrived and she was still frowning.<br /><br />
"The mammogram wasn't able to tell us anything else, the results are still inconclusive. I'd like you to come back tomorrow for a biopsy."<br /><br />
My stomach fell somewhere around my shoes and I felt dizzy and on the verge of hysterical tears.<br />This wasn't supposed to be how it went. I know how stupid and childish that sounds but I felt betrayed by my body, I was supposed to go into the hospital and get the ultrasound and get the all clear, or maybe a 'oh it's just fibre tissue or a swollen gland'.<br />I don't remember much else for that day except that my boyfriend drove me home and as soon as I knocked on my sister's door I started to cry. She opened the door and I literally fell into her arms crying.<br /><br />
I didn't sleep at all that night.<br /><br />
I got up early the next morning and went back to the hospital, this time with my sister. The bus ride there was hard on us both, I felt sick to my stomach and I could tell she was nervous too. Our eyes met many times and I'm sure she could see the desperate plea in mine of "please, let me be okay."<br /><br />
Once again I was stripped from the waist up and forced to wait in the hallway in a hospital gown that no matter what, always makes you feel vulnerable and scared. Finally the nurse brought us into a small room where I lay down and the biopsy happened.<br /><br />
I have to say now that it wasn't the worst thing I've ever had done to me, it didn't hurt thankfully to the freezing, but it was probably one of the scariest moments I've had so far. I was fully awake when they stuck the needle into my breast to extract the test tissue and I started to cry after a while because I felt helpless. There wasn't anything I could do but lay there as they poked around in my body, the best way I can explain it was some sort of unwilling entry.<br /><br />
But it wasn't the worst part.<br /><br />
The absolute worst part was waiting for the test results. For over a week I broke down crying at any given moment, it didn't matter where I was or who I was with because I was just so scared.<br />I can't even begin to explain how terrified I was, it was crippling and yet I also felt ashamed in a weird way. Like it was my fault somehow, like I didn't take good enough care of my body. It makes no rational sense but I couldn't help it, I remember sitting on my kitchen floor one night crying until my eyes were sore because I couldn't do anything else.<br /><br />
I couldn't think of a way to change the fact that I might have breast cancer.<br /><br />
Finally I was called in to talk the doctor about the results.<br /><br />
"Your results from the biopsy came back and it's not cancer."<br /><br />
My heart rose and I felt a huge weight slip off my shoulders, finally I had an answer, finally I was okay and...<br /><br />
"But-"<br /><br />
But?!!<br /><br />
"But we still don't know what the lump is and we are recommending that you get it removed."<br /><br />
I was stunned into silence and as my sister asked the doctor all the relative and important questions about it and the results I just sat there.<br /><br />
"Shawna, you've been very quiet about all this."<br /><br />
I couldn't help it, I started to cry again. Not because I wasn't happy to learn I don't have breast cancer, I was VERY relieved. I was crying because in some weird way I felt still somewhat cheated. It was like having a crappy consolation prize after you've been shown something amazing.<br />I had to have surgery again, something that is frightening and painful.<br />I was going to have another scar on my body.<br /><br />
But after a good cry and a bit of time with my sister I have accepted these things. I am very happy to learn that I don't have breast cancer (although part of me won't FULLY believe that till they take out the lump and have it fully tested) and after talking to the surgeon today about the procedure and recovery I am feeling positive and confident about it.<br /><br />
Through these past few weeks I have learned that not only am I strong but that I am surrounded by people who are willing to help me. To help me be strong, or to let me be scared, angry, or upset.<br /><br />
And for that I am eternally grateful.<br />
<br />And as for the scars?<br />Well, like a friend of mine said: "Scars are just stories in sexy places."<br />
;) Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4265172145217664754.post-47120951219036998182014-01-30T15:09:00.001-08:002014-01-30T15:09:40.659-08:00Sewing Stuff - Blues Skirt Part 1One of the things that I've noticed that comes with doing Burlesque is that you tend to only use your sewing skills for costumes and the occasion hemming of pants/skirts. This Christmas though my trusty sidekick (aka my boyfriend) bought me a sewing dress form and a gift card to dressew and while the tempation to use it for show stuff was there (wooo totally free fancy costumes!!) I decided to ONLY use it for/on myself.<br />
<br />
By this I mean I want to use it on things that I want to either learn how to sew or things I will wear in my day to day life. Some examples are:<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wOz8dcmuLJc/UurMTrZAIOI/AAAAAAAAAPE/8dxZfwa7DRc/s1600/navy_pants2_300x750.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wOz8dcmuLJc/UurMTrZAIOI/AAAAAAAAAPE/8dxZfwa7DRc/s1600/navy_pants2_300x750.jpg" height="320" width="226" /></a></div>
swing trousers<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-HNMkMNEBUxs/UurMzipItyI/AAAAAAAAAPM/LjtcM4g8B_s/s1600/Lion%27s+Roar+dress.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-HNMkMNEBUxs/UurMzipItyI/AAAAAAAAAPM/LjtcM4g8B_s/s1600/Lion's+Roar+dress.jpg" height="320" width="142" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-efc9-b8Pw88/UurYUdFTcoI/AAAAAAAAAPc/hNjAXjNS7sU/s1600/original.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-efc9-b8Pw88/UurYUdFTcoI/AAAAAAAAAPc/hNjAXjNS7sU/s1600/original.jpg" height="320" width="187" /></a></div>
<br />
these adorable dresses (I don't want a moose pattern but I love the style of the collar and the bust line of the second one)<br />
and of course the one I've chosen for my first project:<br />
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The Blues Skirt.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6Bcw0LmRUCI/UurZ5XrEMKI/AAAAAAAAAPk/9Xi2V1YduXI/s1600/blueskirtsewing.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6Bcw0LmRUCI/UurZ5XrEMKI/AAAAAAAAAPk/9Xi2V1YduXI/s1600/blueskirtsewing.jpg" height="320" width="256" /></a></div>
A few weeks back a friend of mine sent me a video of a blues/swing dance competition, and while the first thing I did was get inspired from the amazing dance moves I also found myself loving the outfit that the one lady was wearing. I re-watched the video and took screen caps and decided that was not only a very cute style (the buttons are adorable!), looked easy, but most of all the skirt looked super comfortable to dance in.<br />
Which is something I like to keep in mind when buying/making clothes for myself, I do a lot of swing and blues dancing and nothing looks more hilarious than doing the 'i need to adjust my hemline or bra' dance while you're out and about.<br />
<br />
So off I went to dressew and bought myself some fabric and buttons, originally I wanted to get a nice dark blue jean material but none of it was stretchy enough for my liking. And if I plan on dancing in this skirt it's going to need some give to it, the 'adjusting hem' dance is bad but the 'I split open my skirt' dance is even worse. So instead of getting jean material I wound up with a nice true blue stretch material that I think will work just as well, I also got some white buttons.<br />
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In total the materials cost me a whopping 15$. Woaaaah big spender right?<br />
<br />
Next up will be the actual construction of the skirt which I hope to do either this weekend or next. So stay tuned to see what the results are!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4265172145217664754.post-87709223971085180112013-12-23T18:08:00.003-08:002013-12-23T18:08:28.121-08:00Podcast UpdateNewest podcast up: <a href="http://voodoofortuna.podbean.com/2013/12/19/episode-12-winter-stories/">Winter Stories</a>. Guest starring David Quast and Andrew Harron!<br />
<br />
(Don't forget that for more updates you can look for Voodoo Pixie on Facebook, or follow Mama Fortuna on her overly esoteric <a href="http://mama-fortuna.blogspot.ca/">blog</a>.)Mama Fortunahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11034802154731242130noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4265172145217664754.post-5302602249109810052013-07-18T22:26:00.001-07:002013-07-18T22:26:09.281-07:00Stripped, Scared and Sacred: Ep.11 - Risky Business!Updated the podcast once again, and noticed that I haven't been numbering them. Ooooops.<br />
<br />
So! <a href="http://voodoofortuna.podbean.com/2013/07/19/episode-11-risky-business/" target="_blank">We're on episode 11 people and this time we are joined by the beautiful, talented and fellow spooky gal, Little Miss Risk! </a><br />
We discuss such things as growing up as the spooky girls in the neighbourhood, cat videos, horror movies, david bowie's penis puppet and much much more!<br />
<br />
If you'd like to know more about Miss Risk please visit her blog which can be found <a href="http://www.littlemissrisk.ca/" target="_blank">here</a>.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4265172145217664754.post-54020525885872409942013-07-13T15:10:00.004-07:002013-07-15T14:55:10.822-07:00The ValiantSo I have a friend who is a fantastic photographer but is also a little strange, a few weeks ago he sent me a text message that just said "leave the 30th open for me".<br />
Why?<br />
"photoshoot."<br />
Nothing else was said, not the idea or the costumes or the location. This is one of the strange but fun things about doing photoshoots with this man, it certainly keeps you on your toes and forces you to adopt a somewhat carefree attitude because you have no idea where or what you will be doing or what you're going to look like.<br />
<br />
In this case I wound up being naked and body painted in a sort of Ziggy Stardust style in a vintage Valiant car.<br />
<br />
......have I mentioned lately that I love my life and friends?<br />
:)<br />
<br />
Warning, some photos NSFW<br />
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<a name='more'></a><br />
Photos by kwn!<br />
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Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4265172145217664754.post-20530312273265569242013-06-24T21:37:00.001-07:002013-06-24T21:37:27.506-07:00Love that Lovecraft Part 2<a href="http://voodoofortuna.podbean.com/2013/06/24/love-that-lovecraft-part-2/" target="_blank">Part 2 of our discussion on Lovecraft</a>!<br />
<br />
This time we are joined by Andrew Harron (aka co-writer/producer and star of 'An Evening with Professor Byron Price') as well as Spectral Theatre alumni and all round Lovecraft know it all, David Quast.<br />
<br />
Warning: Lots of foul language and spikes of loud laughter Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4265172145217664754.post-89761672508794265992013-06-15T12:49:00.001-07:002013-06-15T12:52:25.062-07:00A tale told through photos [Warning some photos NSFW]There is a place where the membrane is thin, where worlds collide and reality begins to shift and over lap.<br />
It was in such a place that I found myself a while back.<br />
Was it years ago? Months? Days?<br />
I can no longer tell.<read contains="" material="" more="" nsfw="" warning=""></read><br />
<read contains="" material="" more="" nsfw="" warning=""></read><br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
The first indication that this was a place like no other was the song of the crickets, unusually loud and enticing. They were tucked far away in the back corner and I found myself drawn to them like sailors drawn to a siren on the rocks.<br />
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Perhaps it was the crickets lullaby that eased and opened my mind for what was to come, lulling me into a state of readiness.<br />
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Things began to shift and change, slowly at first as to almost not startle me but then must faster. I looked around, shocked to find that things had become a cross over between time past and times to come.<br />
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Everything aged around me and I became surrounded by the words of the dead, was this some kind of trial communication? Or was I being warned?<br />
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Time lost all meaning and I began to live two lives, my own and that of the person who used to work in this strange place. How many hours had she spent here? Locked away from everyone else, toiling away among the stacks of paper and the oily machinery.<br />
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Had she enjoyed her work? Or was she trapped here, alone?<br />
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A moment of brief contact and then the world swam again, shifting and changing and becoming something far darker. I found myself pulled upstairs to where the sound of singing could be heard. A soft lullaby that seemed to echo that of the crickets that had first led me here.<br />
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At first I couldn't focus properly, the song filling my head and making it impossible to concentrate on the spectre in front of me. But soon after it had washed over me she became still, never speaking but still saying so much.<br />
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What passed between us is something I will never forget, nor will I ever say, for it was meant just for me. Time shivered and she was gone, her presence lingering in the air though.<br />
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She is still there, they all are.<br />
Locked away in a time that can not be still nor can never move past.<br />
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***<br />
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Photographer: kwn!<br />
http://www.flickr.com/photos/veggiedog/sets/ <br />
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Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4265172145217664754.post-9436270847952113972013-06-09T22:41:00.001-07:002013-06-09T22:41:02.590-07:00Love that Lovecraft!The podcast is back and updated with part one of our Lovecraft episode. In this first instalment we discuss the history of Lovecraft and some of our random thoughts on him, plus we have a new microphone and bad ukulele music!<br />
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<a href="http://voodoofortuna.podbean.com/2013/06/10/love-that-lovecraft-part-1/" target="_blank">Lovecraft Part 1</a>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4265172145217664754.post-45524287728970444582012-12-28T17:19:00.004-08:002012-12-28T17:19:54.095-08:00Mad Men StyleSo I've recently gone back to work which means I've been watching a lot of Mad Men which might seem a little strange but I watch it for both style ideas and as a way to get myself back into 'work' mode. I don't work in the advertising business but I do work in a male dominated industry which is obviously not as bad since it's 2012 and not the 60s, but I can still emphasize with the female characters in that show as well as see some similarities when it comes to office dynamics.<br />
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It's also fairly obvious which character I connect with:<br />
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It's the guy on the far right. Can't you see the similarities between us?!!<br />
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I'm kidding of course, it's Joan. Duh.<br />
She's strong, independent, professional, and not afraid to be harsh when she needs to be. She also always looks fucking gorgeous, I mean....wowza.<br />
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So who better to take inspiration from when I found myself going out for an evening of cocktails and live music? I based the hairstyle on some of her more recent looks in season 4/5 ala this kind of look:<br />
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First step of course was to wash my disgustingly greasy hair, blow dry it and then slap some hot rollers in it. As a general rule I don't use hot rollers since the curl falls out far too quickly for it look good for long but since this was going to be a semi-up do I thought it would work.<br />
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If you're curious as to the pattern it's basically everything rolled towards the back, using small rollers for the sides and medium ones for the crown.<br />Step two was to let the rollers sit for about 2 hours, long enough to be totally cool and then I hairsprayed the shit out of it before taking them out.<br />
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That's the initial result, look at all those soft curls!<br />
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This is after running my hands through it a few times, see what I mean about my hair not holding a curl unless it has been wet set? Damn you hair, DAMN YOU. Ah well.....<br />
Next up I teased the crown, rolled up the back in a series of soft pin curls, and then teased and swept over my bangs.<br />
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The back view<br />
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All that was needed next was a Joan-esque dress which was exactly what my sister gave me for Christmas, talk about your bizarre coincidences!!<br />
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I was pretty happy with the end result, it lasted pretty much all night and didn't need a lot of fussing with. So I'm considering it a win in my books.<br />
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I will now leave you with one of my <a href="http://youtu.be/b93d782eOMQ" target="_blank">favourite Joan clips</a>.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4265172145217664754.post-19967230738525729762012-12-01T01:16:00.000-08:002012-12-01T01:16:35.455-08:00Gross to GogoDita Von Teese once said “I advocate glamour. Every day. Every minute."<br />
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And when you look at the woman you can really only nod your head and agree, she always looks <i>perfect</i>. Be it on the red carpet, getting off a plane, or running everyday errands. Every hair is in place and her make-up is flawless. It's strange to think but as a burlesque performer there is a certain amount of expectation when it comes to being seen 'out and about', not on the level of Dita of course but there are times when I've felt a little bit of pressure to dress up should I go to a show/club where there could be potential clients or connections.<br />
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However, being glamorous "every day, every minute" is fucking exhausting. Hell I could barely do it every day at BHOF, plus part of me doesn't <i>want</i> to do it every day. That isn't to say that I like looking like shit every day because I don't, although I will say that the people at Starbucks and the guy at the 7-11 have seen me at my worst on more than one occasion. We're talking no make-up, freaky hair and bad clothing choices here people...but really, I'm only human right? Besides those random crap days though where I just really want a london fog and a ding dong I take a lot of pride in my appearance at work and in life, but I'm certainly not going to do show level of make-up every day for a few reasons.<br />
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One: My skin would hate me and probably explode.<br />
Two: My co-workers would think I'm even weirder than they already do.<br />
And three which is the most important reason: It would take something away from when I get to do show make-up. There's a certain amount of work and creativity that goes into my show look that not only makes me feel more prepared but is enjoyable. I enjoy the <i>ritual</i> of it, it's creation and glamour mixed together on my vanity. I have certain things that I like to do while I'm doing hair and make-up for a show, certain things that allow me to get into the right mind set for the night and if I were to do that every day it would become less special.<br />
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And again, it's a lot of work to look so polished and perfect. Don't believe me? I didn't think you would so I decided to document my make-up and hair process tonight so that you can see just how much work goes into all this glamour stuff.<br />
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OHMYGODITSAHIDEOUSMONSTERKILLITWITHFIREWUAGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGH!!!!!<br />
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Oh wait, that's just me without make-up on and my hair super greasy. Phew. I thought it was a Deep One or something....<br />
So first we need to cover up that blotchy skin and adjust those eyebrows, so on goes a layer of foundation, powder and orange eye-shadow on my brows.<br />
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Okay so that's a little bit better, holy fuck my flash makes me look pale but at least the redness is gone now and my eyebrows match my hair. Woohoo! Okay next up, time to add eye-shadow, liner, mascara, blush and fake lashes.<br />
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Ka-Blam! Starting to look a little more human now....<br />
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Ooookay maybe not! Check out what three days of not washing your hair when its been pin curled will do!<br />
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Lots of back-combing will help right? RIGHT?!!!<br />
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Yes, so long as you smooth it out and curl it into something fancier than a fucked up mess. All right, hair and make-up all done.<br />
It's amazing isn't it? We went from THIS:<br />
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<br />To THIS:<br />
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<br />
And all it took was a little make-up, hairspray, and invoking the Dark Lord and sacrificing twenty virgins to him. Wait....I didn't take a picture of that part did I?<br />
Shit.<br />
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Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4265172145217664754.post-85657064521413386772012-11-19T00:43:00.001-08:002012-11-19T00:43:13.544-08:00Braaaaain Cupcakes V1This year for Halloween we did another baking adventure in which we made 'Brain Cupcakes'. The recipe was a little more complicated than our Pillsbury Pumpkin cookies so thus it is both a longer adventure as well as a much more drunken adventure.<br />
<br />
Enjoy!<br />
<br />
<a href="https://vimeo.com/53567574" target="_blank">Part 1</a><br />
<a href="https://vimeo.com/53570372" target="_blank">Part 2</a><br />
<a href="https://vimeo.com/53570371" target="_blank">Part 3</a><br />
<br />
Parts 4 and 5 to come next week! Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4265172145217664754.post-54803091429477766762012-10-19T11:47:00.001-07:002012-10-19T11:47:34.698-07:00Stripped, Scared and Sacred - Episode 7<a href="http://voodoofortuna.podbean.com/2012/10/19/episode-7-abra-cadaver-promo/" target="_blank">Abra-Cadaver Promo with myself, Mama Fortuna, Melody Mangler and Aleister Crane</a>!<br />
<br />
That's right, this time we have guests over who are getting drunk and podcasting with us! Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4265172145217664754.post-41787676767254147012012-10-06T23:06:00.002-07:002012-10-06T23:06:13.937-07:00Behind the ScenesIt's that time again boys and ghouls, yes, it's October so that means the Abra-Cadaver Cabaret is coming October 19th!!! Get your tickets now!<br />
Event Listing: https://www.facebook.com/events/547970265218646/?fref=ts<br />
<br />
Here are some very special behind the scenes footage to get you all jittery and excited for the show. It's of us during the photoshoot for the poster which was done by the fabulous <a href="http://anathemaphotography.com/" target="_blank">Anathema Photography</a> and <a href="https://www.facebook.com/DeadlyNightshadeSPFX" target="_blank">Deadly Nightshade Makeup.</a><br />
<a data-hovercard="/ajax/hovercard/page.php?id=179224494489" href="https://www.facebook.com/AnathemaPhoto"></a><br />
<span class="fbPhotosPhotoCaption" id="fbPhotoPageCaption" tabindex="0"><span class="hasCaption"></span></span><br />
<a href="https://vimeo.com/50911289" target="_blank">Melody and I getting beautiful</a><br />
<a href="https://vimeo.com/50911291" target="_blank">Mama and Crane discusses our choice of beverages</a><br />
<a href="https://vimeo.com/50911290" target="_blank">I feel pretty, oh so pretty!</a><br />
<br />
All that blood, gore and beauty paid off, because here is the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10151196078309490&set=a.386038304489.165308.179224494489&type=1&relevant_count=1" target="_blank">final shot</a>.<br />
<br />
Isn't it beautiful? I'm in love with it.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4265172145217664754.post-45248250755057873432012-09-14T15:32:00.004-07:002012-09-14T16:41:14.285-07:00Such a BastardYou know, looking back at it, I've realized there are a lot of things that happen to you while you are at an event like the Burlesque Hall of Fame. Alcohol tolerance doubles, your sleep schedule completely re-wires itself (I went from someone who was in bed by 11pm to someone who now stays up till 4am regularly), and you start to wonder why you don't wear fake eyelashes and head to toe glitter every day. However, there are also a few things that happen to you <i>after</i> BHoF. One of which is that you get slightly obsessed with your favourite performers from that weekend, you come home tired and hung over and yet you still log onto your computer and hunt down every interview and video footage you can find on them.<br />
<br />
Such was the case with me in regards to Bastard Keith.<br />
<br />
Bastard Keith was the host of the Sunday night closing ceremonies at BHoF this year and within the first five seconds of him being on stage I was his. It didn't hurt that he started the night out by<a href="http://youtu.be/gSm1lFrQujM" target="_blank"> performing 'Try a Little Tenderness</a>', which is one of my favourite songs, but then he proceeded to be one of the most energetic and charming hosts I've ever seen.<br />
<br />
When I returned home to Vancouver I promptly looked up everything I could on him and eventually found his blog '<a href="http://darlinghouse.net/beta/bastardkeith/" target="_blank">Polo is My Life</a>', and after reading every post I sent him an email requesting permission to link him off this site as well as the idea of doing an interview with me. He graciously agreed and after a lot of back and forth I am pleased to bring you my interview with Bastard Keith.<br />
<br />
*** <br />
<br />
<u>Voodoo</u>: You're known as a quadruple threat: singer, host, performer, and writer.
(Not to
mention very snazzy dresser!) The first and
most obvious question I have for you is how did you get into
burlesque? Was being an emcee your goal, or did you just fall into it
naturally over time?<br />
<br />
<div>
<u>Bastard Keith</u>: <i>First of all, your
words are far too kind. I'd never intended to be involved in burlesque
at all, let alone emcee it. I started because in 2005, Jonny Porkpie
wound up at a closing party for a play I was in. He saw me singing
karaoke after several drinks, liked my voice and asked me to do a bit as
his bastard half-brother, Keith. So I spent about a year and a quarter
doing second banana bits for Jonny in Sweet and Nasty and Pinchbottom,
which was where the persona started to develop. I was asked to do some
emceeing in 2006 but a bout of tonsillitis put paid to that notion. </i><br />
</div>
<div>
</div>
<div>
<i>At
the beginning of 2007, though, I got a couple of hosting offers and took
to it rather naturally. I'm a VERY different emcee now than I was
then, of course. I used to be much more aggressively weird and
confrontational. More vulgar, edgier. It took me a long time to find
the line and walk it rather than stomp all over it. Now I take the
craft more seriously and the rest of it much more lightly.</i></div>
<div>
</div>
<div>
<br />
<i>Emceeing is
an incredibly gratifying and difficult job, and, like burlesque, not
just anyone can step on a stage and do it. Look, for instance, at the
sheer iconic madness of Scotty the Blue Bunny; that's cultivated,
curated and WORKED. But I think lots of people imagine they could step
up there, make some dirty jokes and do it just as well. Scotty's
developed his persona through a lot of hard work and road-testing, and
his mind is a steel trap. He understands how much fun it is to watch
someone think on their feet and triumph. The best emcees mix scripted
material, a unique persona and the ability to process and react to
nearly anything while keeping the wheels on the bus. They also need to
know that the show is not about them.</i></div>
<div>
</div>
<div>
<br />
<i>Miss Astrid (another magically
gifted emcee) put it best; in the cake, emcees are the eggs. We give
structure and shape to an evening. Without structure, 90 minutes can
feel like 3 hours. With great structure, 3 hours can feel like 10
minutes.</i></div>
<div>
<br />
<u>Voodoo</u>: After seeing you perform at BHoF I was blown away by your vocal
talents; your rendition of 'Try a Little Tenderness' has got to be one
of the best I've heard so far. There are also a few other video clips of
your singing performances floating around online. I was wondering
what have been some of your favourite songs to perform so far? What
songs are you looking forward to bringing to the stage in the future? </div>
<div>
<br />
<u>Bastard Keith</u>: <i>Well,
I used to sing much more rock and pop. I loved singing Bowie's Ziggy
Stardust and Golden Years. Revealed Burlesque (which Gigi LaFemme and
Doc Wasabassco started up in 2007) started me on a path to old big band
and jazz, which is the meat of my repertoire. My favorite FAVORITE is
I'm Your Man, the Buble arrangement. Now I'm starting to love singing
great Black soul, which is where the Otis thing came from. I see the
old Atlantic R and B vocalists as the reigning gods of popular music,
and I want to pay my respects.</i></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<u>Voodoo</u>: Speaking of the stage, would you say that you have a specific
hosting style? I've heard from some emcees that as a general rule it's good
to have your hosting acts half scripted and then improvise the other
half. Do you agree? Also, how do you deal with hecklers if/when
they pop up?</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<u>Bastard Keith</u>: <i>I'd say I have about 5, maybe 10 minutes of
scripted material. Also about 5 audience participation bits. I mean,
at all. Not that I use in a single show. The rest is a tightrope
walk. I did a bit more scripting for BHoF, because there you're not
interacting as much with the audience (though humping Dee Milo's leg was
rather felicitous).</i></div>
<div>
<br />
<div>
<i>It's a good idea to script, probably far more than I do. As far as
style, I'm most interested in the British music hall tradition. The
suavely vulgar compere. The song and dance man. I'm a firm believer
that if you're going to host, you have to show up from minute one with a
talent. Since I can sing okay, I fixed on that.</i></div>
<div>
<i><br /></i></div>
<div>
<i>The important thing is that you welcome an audience
into an understanding, a contract. They need to know what the
boundaries are and how to respect them. It's very easy for an audience
to be bored, so do something exciting at the top. It's easy for them to
get out of hand, so set your rules up at the beginning. It's easy for
them to act disrespectful of the artists, so be hard-nosed about what
you will and won't put up with.</i></div>
<div>
<i><br /></i></div>
<div>
<i>Which brings us to hecklers. Personally, I tend to
shut them down with a put-down and then ignore them. If they persist to
the extent that it's harming the show, the audience is usually on my
side, so I enlist them to tell whoever it is to "SHUT THE FUCK UP,"
often in unison. That does the trick.</i></div>
<div>
<i><br /></i></div>
<div>
<i>I believe that Master of Ceremonies is a serious
title with a lot of meaning behind it. You must master the audience and
put them in service of a good time. It's two-way service: they serve
the night, and we serve them.</i></div>
<br />
<u>Voodoo</u>: I was greatly impressed with your blog entry, ' <a href="http://darlinghouse.net/beta/bastardkeith/2011/04/05/my-adventures-in-the-world-of-women-being-a-feminist-smut-peddler/" target="_blank">My Adventures in the World of Women: Being a Feminist Smut Peddler</a>'. Can you talk a little
bit about how that entry came into being? </div>
<div>
</div>
<div>
<br />
<u>Bastard Keith</u>: <i>Nothing
mind-blowing; I just think men owe it to the world to be always growing
and thinking and learning. Because holy shit, nearly every big
problem in the world is the result of a privileged class (usually white
heteronormative men) not examining and understanding their privilege.
That piece was my attempt to explain and contextualize my growing
understanding of my place in the world and my responsibilities. It's so
EASY to just be a guy. We get paid more, we're at less risk socially,
we're just cut a FUCKload of slack. Anyone who says otherwise is being
deliberately ignorant, and they're part of the problem. Conservative
thinkers like to imagine that all things are equal in this world, that
we're all born with the same opportunities, that America is a
straight-up meritocracy, that any advantage or disadvantage is born of
the actions of the individual. This is foolishness. I'm delighted the
blog resonated with people. I'm still learning every day, and I hope I
never stop</i>.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<u>Voodoo</u>: "Backstage with a
bunch of changing burlesque performers, I’m the one with the immediate
potential to be an asshole. This is their safe place. Not mine."</div>
<div>
<br />
This quote in particular is brilliant, and with more and more men
getting into boylesque and sharing backstage areas with the ladies I
think it serves as a good reminder of backstage etiquette. As a
performer, host, intelligent feminist, and man involved with burlesque
can you give some of the new guys a few tips on how they should be
conducting themselves should they want to stay in the scene?
</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<u>Bastard Keith</u>: <i>Just be cool. Be obliging, be
helpful, be unobtrusive. Read the room and know when they need you
out. If, as I have, you date performers, BE FUCKING NICE. Poison the
well and you'll reap the whirlwind (also, never mix metaphors). Most of
all, just understand exactly how lucky you are to be allowed to be a
part of the scene.</i></div>
<div>
</div>
<div>
<br />
<u>Voodoo</u>: I found a clip online of you <a href="http://youtu.be/5F_48gXlx4U" target="_blank">doing a straight up striptease</a> at the
New York Boylesque Festival. Can you talk a little bit about the
experience of going from host to striptease artist? Were you more
nervous about your performance than usual? </div>
<div>
<br />
<u>Bastard Keith</u>: <i>It
was terrifying. People tell me they don't know how I can go out in
front of hundreds of people and wing it, confident that I'll get the
laugh. But striptease artists are a thousand times braver than I am.
My partner, Madame Rosebud, coached me up and made much of the costume.
After watching the other performers tech their numbers, I thought I
might find a reason to drop out. I seriously considered it. Or I
considered coming up with an entirely new routine that played to my
strengths. Like, right there, on the spot. I'm glad I didn't. But
man, going after Mod Carousel was not easy. Those boys are cut. And
they can DANCE. I'm only delighted I didn't totally degrade the night
with my work.</i></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<u>Voodoo</u>: And finally, a question that I find I ask everyone, what has been the worst thing you've ever smelled backstage?</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<u>Bastard Keith</u>: <i>Ego</i>.<br />
<br />
*** <br />
Thank you so much Keith for putting up with my insistent emails about this interview, you're a patient and sweet man!<br />
<br />
If you would like to be kept up to date about where and when Bastard Keith is performing I recommend his <a href="http://www.facebook.com/BastardKeith" target="_blank">facebook page</a>, or visiting his <a href="http://bastardkeith.com/" target="_blank">website</a> where you can check out the Gig Calendar as well as see some great pictures and listen to a song track or two.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4265172145217664754.post-23927819554251132822012-09-04T18:29:00.001-07:002012-09-04T18:29:33.337-07:00Stripped, Scared and Sacred: Episode 6<a href="http://voodoofortuna.podbean.com/2012/09/04/episode-6-johnny-i-want-your-liver/" target="_blank">Johnny I want your Liver!!</a><br />
<br />
Start your fall season off right! In this episode we discuss some of the worst and best ghost movies, how people seem to like giving Voodoo free food, the joy of pumpkin spice lattes, and ghost stories we heard as children.<br />
Plus lots of other random rambling bullshit.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4265172145217664754.post-3978224357641656072012-08-28T12:18:00.000-07:002012-08-28T12:18:31.014-07:00Photo PostJust a few photos from the Zombie After Walk Party at the Cellar to tide you over for a while, there will be a special update/interview as well as a new podcast coming soon. Soon my lovelies! So till then, pictures of me as a Voodoo Priestess and Mandy as my bloated swamp zombie. And if you're wondering why the photos look so odd and blurry its because they were taken with my Polaroid and then scanned in.<br />
Yes, I broke down and bought a Polaroid....call me a hipster, or artsty fartsy but I don't care. They're fun and make me look super pale so shush.<br />
<br />
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Because Polaroids wash everything out the make-up looks way lighter than it actually was, Mama was full on green and slimey looking and my skull was way darker but I still like these. Especially Mama's because she's doing a great drunk face next to the beer taps.....<br />
<br />
-VoodooAnonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4265172145217664754.post-19061246313098460562012-07-01T01:49:00.000-07:002012-07-01T01:49:26.540-07:00Steam and SewingWhen you start doing a lot of Burlesque you find that you usually have a costume/outfit or at least enough random pieces to throw something together for a party/club night/costume event. This Sunday is the 'Lust in Space, Fetish Fashion Show' and I decided last week that I since I am unemployed I was actually going to sit down and make myself a new outfit, not for a number but just to wear out and dance in.<br />
<br />
So after some consideration about what kind of space person I wanted to be (last year I did Leeloo from 'the 5th Element') and a lot of links and babbling to a friend of mine I decided to do a sort of steam-punk look. My main inspiration was this girl, <a href="http://www.thesteampunkempire.com/photo/photo/listForContributor?screenName=0h1izyce4xx3f" target="_blank">Kato</a>, who was brought to my attention by a friend of mine (Hear that Graham? I blame you!) as well as some tribal bellydance looks that I saw at the event I helped host for my mother.<br />
<br />
The basic idea was to do a tomboyish type of aviator chick so that I would be a good contrast to Mama's neo-Nazi Lady Gaga costume. We kept joking that if we were in a show together she would be the evil empire and I would be one of the rebels, which I think is a good little comparison.<br />
<br />
<br />
<a name='more'></a>The first thing I did was make a little skirt/bustle, which was pretty simple actually.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-e_sqtXChMX8/T_AJ-4pnG3I/AAAAAAAAAB4/Pn1u1LtkCyc/s1600/steam01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-e_sqtXChMX8/T_AJ-4pnG3I/AAAAAAAAAB4/Pn1u1LtkCyc/s320/steam01.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
I cut my fabric in a long line, long enough to wrap around me almost twice. Then I hemmed it and sewed the top over about an inch so I could thread the elastic band through.<br />
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Next up I added some nice cream lace to the bottom.<br />
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I then shoved the elastic through the folded bits using a safety pin on the end to help anchor and pull it through, because the elastic is shorter than the length of the fabric you get the nice ruffled gathers.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Ta-daaa! I now have a cute little ruffle bum skirt/bustle type thing.<br /><br />
Next up was the striped pants that I've been wanting to try for a while, I did a test pattern before I used my real striped fabric (the test pair of pants are the red tights you see in the photo above) because I didn't want to waste any of my good fabric. To get the actual pattern I just ripped up a pair of old blue cotton tights that I had and slapped them down on my fabric.<br />
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Like so!<br />
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I then cut around the pattern leaving generous amounts of 'fuck up room', especially at the top and bottom because those are spots I always seem to mess up.<br />
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I sewed the crotch and ass of the pants first because when I did the test red pair I found I made them slightly off centre and while it still works it didn't look as good. Then I sewed the legs up and added the elastic waist band.<br />
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The finished result! I like the high waist of them because then I don't have to worry about them sagging and showing my ass crack while I'm dancing.<br />
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Pants, skirt and boots! The only thing I sort of fucked up was the back lower legs, for some reason they got kind of twisty when they were supposed to run straight down....Grrrr. Oh well! Not bad for my first real attempt working with stripes.<br />
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I then hot glued up some accessories to stick in my hair, still don't know which I'll go with for tomorrow night. Either the top hat (which was made for me minus the lace by the lovely Melody Mangler) or the neat goggle clock but I think it will depend on how my hair goes.<br />
So there you have it, my first little trip into the world of steam-punk fashion stuff, I will post pictures from the actual night so you can see the finished result which will hopefully look as good as I think it will.<br />
Cheers!<br />
<br />
-VoodooAnonymousnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4265172145217664754.post-41623060433338669152012-06-10T18:53:00.001-07:002012-06-10T18:53:30.290-07:00Stripped, Scared, and Sacred: Episode 5<a href="http://voodoofortuna.podbean.com/2012/06/10/episode-5-viva-las-fear-street/" target="_blank">Viva Las Fear Street!</a><br />
In which we discuss such random topics as BHoF, degrassi high, bad 90s fashion, and spooky books we used to read when we were young.<br />
<br />
Also, a super huge shout out to the ever wonderful <a href="http://itunes.apple.com/ca/podcast/steve-john-power-hour-steve/id507919782" target="_blank">Steve and John Power Hour!</a> This podcast is hilarious and you should all listen to it after you're done listening to ours.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com6