Category: General

I count myself fortunate this holiday 2018 season to participate in two different gift exchanges with friends in dance.  This year, everyone is operating on a tight budget, so for both of these exchanges, each attendee is bringing one gift at the $10 to $15 price point. My gift giving goal is are to share things that I personally love and use. So here is the shortlist of some of the items that I’m considering taking to these events.

Super-Glam Eye Lashes

Red Cherry False Eyelashes are what I think of as the “Lashes of the Stars”  Years ago, Princess Farhana turned me onto this brand and of their myriad styles.  Although there are dozens of different styles, #43 are my personal favorite.  Durable, glamorous, this brand has a comfortable lash band that molds easily to the unique shape of the upper lash line. Best of all, dramatic lashes can be worn on stage and at your next holiday party.

Individual makeup remover wipes. 

These wipes have been a lifesaver in many a backstage fitting room.  Product spill?  Unavoidable smudge?  Quick makeup change between sets?  In a pinch, these makeup wipes will save the day!  Best part, being individually wrapped they won’t dry out and are easy to share with fellow performers in need.

A Journal to track their dance progress

One of the habits of many highly successful dancers is developing a system of setting goals and recording dance milestones.  Why not give a glamorous gift of a beautiful boxed journal that will look and feel luxurious to start the New Year with a splash!

Three Favorite Blue-Red Lipsticks 

As dancers, don’t we love to experiment with new color cosmetics?  I really enjoy picking up a trio of affordable drug-store priced blue-red lipsticks to wrap individually and present in a bag.  I like to pick from three different companies, three different version of red.  However, I always make sure it’s a bluish red that will make teeth appear whiter. I like to include the classic 50’s color “Cherries in the Snow” from Revlon which is a pinky-red. NYX Lip Cream in Amsterdam and Revlon Ultra HD Gel Lip in Adobe.

Statement Necklace

A beautiful rhinestone statement necklace will make for a stunning and glamorous gift.  Recently, the cost of rhinestone jewelry has come dropped.  You can now pick up some simply gorgeous pieces in the under $15 price point.  If the tastes of your group are slanted more coins and chain, try something more like the necklace below right.  If you are crafty, you can make your own custom creations and share your artistic creativity.

Diaper Pins

These old-school pins were essential for dancewear kits when I was starting out as a baby belly dancer back before the turn of the century.  Today, they are just as practical for pinning through a belt, skirt, and undergarments to prevent twisting, turning, or worse, wardrobe malfunctions. You can put them in a fancy pouch or an up-cycled tin to make it more dramatic. Pass on the tip that these can be customized to match costumes with a coat or two of acrylic paint or even nail polish.

A Wrap Around Cover-up  

These wrap-around cover-ups are amazing, fit over any costume, and come in a variety of colors.  They pack super-small, so won’t take up much room in your dance bag and it keeps your hand free.  If you are crafty, you can make one of these out of fabric from your stash and save even more cash.

Water Bottle

Hydration is one of those things we all work on.  As dancers, our class bags have a water bottle or two. A beautiful, yet practical and potentially fun essential piece of dance equipment. Stainless steel is a great way to upgrade from disposable plastic and move to more sustainable, durable and easily recyclable products. 

Stretch-out Strap

One of my favorite piece of dance equipment is a stretch-out strap. Unlike the elastic stretching bands, this is a firm band with loops for your hands and feet.  It allows me to stretch, but without the necessity of having to grip and pull with my hands.  

A Tasty Treat

Most of my friends enjoy a nice chocolate bar or a cup of cocoa.  Because cocoa is more seasonal, and individual packets allow my friends to easily take a taste of the holidays to work or even share and regift into their families holiday stockings.  If you are outside of the San Francisco/Bay Area, have a taste of my favorite local chocolatier.

Happy Holidays!

Celebrating the holidays with family and friends makes this one of the best parts of the year.  I hope that you have so much fun enjoying the festive gatherings that are the hallmark of this season.

Best Wishes and Happy Shopping,
Dawn Devine ~ Davina
Nov. 24, 2018

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PS:  THANK YOU!

I just want to thank you for your continued support in my blogging and other writing adventures. If you clicked through and used any of these Amazon.com affiliate links, thank you so very much for helping me cover the expenses associated with my website.  It adds no cost to your shopping, but helps me out so much!  If you would like to further help my blog, be sure to share the image below on Pinterest.  Happy Holidays!

PPS: Do you like this Pinterest Graphic?  I made it using the free web-based application Canva.  If you are interested in a free class/demo of to use Canva for this and other projects, I posted one at over at the Belly Dance Business Academy.  click here.

 

If you’ve been around my blog or follow me on social media, you know how much fun I have with belly dance makeup.  I’ve taken makeup challenges, recorded step-by-step video demos, and am always happy to share the products that work for me.

When I’m discussing belly dance appearance, makeup represents one of the five essential layers.  Along with hair and skin, makeup fits into layer 2, Grooming. These layers are discussed in my book “Becoming a Belly Dancer, From Student to Stage.” (Also available direct from me here)

However, if you haven’t run across this Five Layer system, it includes:

1. The Body 
2. Grooming
3. Costuming
4. Accessories 
5. Props

Take my free class: 5 Layers of Belly Dance Appearance

5 top Makeup Tips

I’ve recently been asked, “If you could only give five belly dance makeup tips, what would they be?”  I found this question helped me focus on the key essentials that allow me to transform from an ordinary person into a belly dance performer.

1. Use a Primer:  This is something that I recommend to everyone. Although I use a pore-filling, wrinkle smoothing primer by L’Oreal for my over 50 complexion, you should choose a primer suitable for your skin type. A primer will help create the illusion of perfect skin and make your makeup last longer.
2. Create one Look then Practice It: The truth is, you don’t have to be good at doing makeup for everyone, or even every style on your own face.  Instead, focus on mastering one complete look. If you focus on one set of skills to practice and perfect, you will be able to up your makeup game quickly.  For example, if you want to embrace the “smokey eye,” then make that your look until the style becomes effortless.  Then once that’s perfected, perhaps move on to a “cut crease,” or “Arabic eye.”
3. Embrace False Eyelashes: The last technique I added to my repertoire is false eyelashes. Until latex free glues were widely available, I simply couldn’t wear false lashes. Now that there are many more formulas of glue available, I have embraced the lash lifestyle. If you are new to lashes, I recommend reading Poppy Maya’s extensive eyelash tutorial in our book “Becoming a Belly Dancer.”  If you are new to lashes, you might want to start by wearing accent lashes that are easier to apply. They fit on the outer corner of the eye, and you don’t have to wrestle them over the curve of your lash line. I recommend trying this pair or this pair.
4. Layer Eyeliner: One of the things I’ve learned over the years is that dramatic eyeliner is intrinsic to the belly dancer look. I’ve personally found that using a variety of different styles of eyeliner helps me achieve the best results.  I keep a pot of gel liner, a liquid liner in pen form, and several different sharpening pencils in my makeup kit.  I use them all or in various combinations to achieve different eyeliner effects.
5. Choose the Right Red: Bright red lipstick is a classic. However, there are many to different colors and formulas to choose from. They key is to know the undertone of your skin.  Red comes in warm, neutral, and cool variations so you can select the color that works best for your complexion.  Check out the tips in this article on “Lip Cocktails” in Amabella Magazine.

 

Face Paint: The Story of Makeup

My favorite book on the history of makeup is “Face Paint: The Story of Makeup,” by Lisa Eldridge.  She is a London based professional makeup artist who has built an international reputation working in the fashion and cosmetics industries.  She makes highly informative YouTube tutorials, and most recently, has become an author and jewelry designer.

This lavishly illustrated and well-researched coffee table book is filled with intriguing images that inspire and delight.  I love just picking up this book and thumbing through it!  If you are shopping for a gift for the makeup lover in your life.

Beauty In a Jar – Documentary

From Elizabeth Arden to Max Factor, from Revlon to today’s massive makeup industry, this is a great documentary about the birth and development of the cosmetics industry. This video is about an hour and a half long, so grab a snack and beverage and enjoy this fascinating look at the makeup.

Belly Dance Makeup Playlist

Over the past two years, I took on a makeup challenge to help me share my own journey in perfecting my own belly dance makeup application technique. I am no makeup artist!  However, I’ve taken a lot of classes from makeup pros, have had dozens of “makeovers” and have enjoyed playing with cosmetics for many years.  I love the transformative properties of makeup that take nerdy egghead Dawn and turns her into the glamorous belly dance performer Davina.  If you are interested in learning more about how I put on makeup, I recommend checking out my YouTube playlist.  I’m looking forward to tackling this challenge again in 2019.

The holidays are coming up, and now is the time that big makeup brands put out holiday kits, offer deep discounts, and make it more affordable to pick up new cosmetics.

Best of luck in your makeup adventures!
Dawn Devine ~ Davina
November 15, 2018

 

 

 

On a recent research trip to New York City, several people at the library noticed my custom pen quiver on my travel journal book. Earlier in the year, I became frustrated with trying to keep my pen and my journal connected. After losing my pen at the bottom of various bags or leaving it behind in coffee shops, I decided enough was enough! I had seen various different styles of pen quivers available at stationery stores and online. But I knew I could make something of my own using materials I have on hand.

As a writer, I use my journal almost daily.  Having a pen or pencil ready and at hand eliminates the frustration of not being prepared to go.  Not having to look for a writing tool saves time too. This is a small little accessory that has improved the quality of my life.

I’m working on my first novel during November’s NANOWRIMO – Read More

Because I’m in a “use it up” phase of my sewing career, I brainstormed how I could craft something from materials in my stash. I poked around my collection of materials and supplies and decided to use a left-over scrap of 1.5″ wide elastic. I spent about an hour fooling around with various ways of using this single piece of elastic to make a functional pen holder.

Tips: I keep this size elastic in my studio for waistbands and recently I’ve been buying it buy the reel from Amazon.com. I used a ballpoint needle to go through the elastic without breaking the threads. Thank you for supporting this blog by using these Amazon Affiliate links.

YouTube Instructional Video

As you may already know, I’m in the process of learning how to make instructional DIY videos.  Since this was a quick and small project, I decided to give making an instructional video a try.  So I made the video and put it on my YouTube channel.  Although I’m by no means a polished and sophisticated videographer, I think this demo gives you all the information you need to make your own pen quiver.

This simple little tool has changed the quality of my writer’s life. I no longer leave pens behind or lose them in the bottom of bags. These are easy to make, so I now have several on different notebooks.  I’ve even made a few to give as gifts. If you have a friend or family member who uses journals and notebooks, you might find this a quick and easy holiday gift. 

Happy Crafting!
Dawn Devine ~ Davina
November 6, 2018

PS:  Like this idea?  Please share with your friends on your favorite social media sites.

In 2018, I’m taking on the challenge of NaNoWriMo or National Novel Writing Month. Although I’ve written nearly 2 dozen books, hundreds of articles, and thousands of social media posts, until now, I’ve never attempted a work of fiction.

Inspirations

My mum initially challenged me to write a novel. It was a little over a year ago, and my schedule looked too tight to squeeze in yet another project. However, after much mulling about, I realized that perhaps I was just procrastinating. So, on her last visit to my house, we talked about this project again and decided that I would tackle this project during #Nanowrimo.

What is NaNoWriMo?

This challenge began many years ago, back before the turn of the century in 1999. Since then, the hosting organization has become a non-profit and includes events throughout the year. They even have challenges just for youth writers. Each year the pool of novelists grows, helping authors with support History of the NaNoWriMo challenge here.

50,000 Words

The challenge is simple, write a new 50,000-word novel in 30 days. The thought is to finish the month with a rough manuscript ready for editing. To achieve this goal, participants need to write 1, 667 words a day. The difficulty is in resisting the urge to edit as you go. People also need to stoke their creative fire to feel motivated and inspired to achieve a high level of production.

Preptober

Although I came up with the concept for this novel a year ago, it’s only in the past two weeks that I’ve focussed on getting the stage set to tell this story. Although I’ve never written a novel before, my research and organization skills have come in handy when planning this mythical event, describing the locations, and writing character profiles. The official Instagram feed from the @Nanowrimo organization featured the above right October challenge to prep before the novel writing begins.

I also found a great resource in Scotland based novelist Rachael Stephen who has a great set of prep and planning resources on her website. This year she also hosted a #Prep_toberchallenge that has simply stunning autumnal photography and thought-provoking prompts. I started in the second half of the month, but if you are interested in seeing my response to these prompts, you can check me out on Instagram.

The Adventure Begins Nov. 1

Starting on the first, I’ll be re-arranging my schedule to add an extra hour of novel writing to my morning, and another hour in the late afternoon/early evening. My personal goal is to hit 2,000 words a day to build in time off for family visits, weekend business adventures, and Thanksgiving.

If you are interested in tracking my progress on the official Nanowrimo page, my handle there is DavinaDevine. Alternately, I’ll be posting regularly in all the usual social media places. If you’re on FaceBook, you can keep an eye out for a few live feeds throughout the month where I share my experience of tackling this challenge.

Wish me luck!
Dawn Devine ~ Davina
October 23, 2018