Bellydance Costumes

A professional bellydancer’s costumes are one of the tools of her trade….


Simple and Accessible costume items:
A simple hip scarf or coin belt will do, it accentuates your hip movements and adds an audible element to your shimmy.
If you only buy one thing… buy a hip scarf or coin belt.
You can wear simple workout wear like I wore earlier and dress it up with a hip scarf or coin belt.

More Elaborate Costumes:
For those of you who have a fascination with the more elaborate costumes, here’s a head to toe look at what you should look for in making or buying a costume. There are many styles of bellydance and the costume should reflect your style.
Should be Beautiful as well as functional.

Bra
Usually extremely ornate and reinforced to support the weight of the decorative beads and coins. If you are making a costume – begin with a strong, supportive bra, the design of the bra should match your belt.

Belt
Fits snuggly around the hips, leaving the belly free to perform figure eights, shimmies. The belt can weigh up to 8lbs. The beads, in addition to being decorative, swing and glisten with the dancer and make subtle steps visible from a distance. Egyptian style has long beaded fringe – while ATS have coins – which originally derived from the dancer sewing the coin onto her costume to show her wealth.

Skirt
For cabaret style bellydance, the dancer wears one or more circle skirts, made of 6-10 yards of fabric that create a circle when the dancer spins. There are many other skirt designs that complement the style of dance performed. For instance Egyptian dancers often wear the mermaid skirt which is form-fitting from the hips to the knee, then flares out – which highlight the feet – which is performed on the feet.

Accessories
Belly Jewel
Eye Jewels
Flower for Hair
Arm Bands

My costumes
All have names
Barbarella Warrior Goddess
Champagne Toast
From Russia with Love
Sea Shells

Sometimes I Make my own – and sometimes I have a Seamstress make them.

Its time to go make yours and send me pics of yours - I love costumes!!