Posts tagged gogo

2013- the year of rough beginnings but blissful endings. 

You guys, I’m not gonna lie - I was getting a little worried for a second there. I had such high hopes and lofty fantasies about what 2013 would be like, how I’d kick so much ass on my goals, and how I’d be off on unicorn adventures on a daily basis. But the first two months of 2013 were total dream crushers. 

I was legit getting concerned. I was not a happy girl, and that is SO not my jam. My natural state is a rainbow-riding, glitter princess of happiness and magic. I’m a romanticizing romantic. I’m a beam of ridiculous joy, thrilled with even the most mundane things in life. I’m like the Bob Ross of the lesbian world. 

Luckily, 2013 has decided to redeem itself, and I totally approve that message. 

It’s actually been pretty exciting - at the beginning of the year, I wrote down goals for myself, professionally and personally. {What a novel concept! Pretty sure I’m the only person EVER who resolved to do things differently for the new year. haha } And I was at a dead stop on all of them. It was like my entire life had been put on hold, and I was in this unhappy gridlock of stagnation.

But then 2013 was like, “JUST KIDDING! Ha. Ha. Got ya! I’m actually going to be awesome.”

And BAM! The Awesome Bomb detonated. 

First, I’ve been on a booking spree for my burlesque and go-go shows. I’m booked now through July, and I couldn’t be happier about where things are going with that. To be honest, that 19-year-old little lesbian hitting the stage for the first time EVER, dancing like a baby horse, all legs and arms, is still somewhere inside me and is still SHOCKED on a daily basis that I somehow ended up lucky enough to be able to do this for a living. I wake up [at noon haha] every day and just lay there, paralyzed with how amazing my life turned out. I get to hang out with drag queens and kings [true royalty], dance my little white girl whooty off, and perform all across the country. 

I’ve been to all my usual haunts, like my home bar and the gay club version of my soulmate, Revolution Nightclub in Orlando:

Where we CLEARLY have the most fun this side of the Mississippi. ;)

And I’ve hit up InCahoots in Jacksonville:

with some FABULOUS queens, like Mercedes Devereaux! 

And the longest-leading lady of Jax, Nichole Woods!

But I’ve also been performing with the GAWJEOUS gals of Big Bang Boom! Cabaret! [total swoon!]

And doing some nerdlesque with the All-Star Burlesque Revue:

[so much weave! >__<]

[homo-flexible]

Oh, and being SUPER artsy and shaking my tailfeathers [literally] at the Orlando Museum of Art:

Shocking old ladies & giving some old gents the time of their lives! (one lady exclaimed, “Oh, dear!” and left the show, while I was able to pull two old guys out of the audience, put my top hat and feather boa on them, and make them dance with me. Red garters on a dancing girl - now that’s what I call art!)

It’s been a fabulous show season, so far! And I have SO MUCH to look forward to. Like PENSACOLA PRIDE!

GIRLS IN WONDERLAND!

and BOSTON PRIDE!

And what’s even more amazing than getting to work for incredible events and kick ass parties is that I work with some wonderful people.

For example, after our burlyQ show at NV last Thursday, Franki and I went to Pom Pom’s Teahouse with some friends for some noms, love, and catch-up-kisses! [it was absolutely dreamy!]

And cupcakes happened, of course!

[Sad story about this cupcake: moments after this photo was taken, that cupcake fell on the floor. I spent the rest of the night crying.]

Speaking of wonderful people, I’ve been surrounded by a [totally adorable] gang of beautiful friends and family who really love me, and I can’t thank them enough for all the light they bring to my life. 

From sex bomb besties and boob attacks…

to sushi dinners with outstanding couples…

to pool [shark] dates with my forever darlin’…

to slumber parties with platonic life partners…

to hunting for treasures in antique wildernesses with an incomparable inamorata…

to my brother’s birthday lunch with my adorable and wonderful mama, my dashing stepdaddio, and my big bro and his bestie…

to being part of such an awesome group of friends that we are just exhausted by all our amazingness…

I am truly blessed. I work my ass off, love my heart out, and cuddle the shit out of my cats. It’s a damn good life, and I’m not wasting another moment. 

Here’s hoping 2013 is treating YOU right! 

So much love, babydolls…

xxxx

holy whoa.

So the past week and a half has been intense, to say the least. From shows to sushi to sweating to superheroes to sweet baby Jesus in a jam jar, things have just been a big ol’ ball of wow.

Let’s chat.

My personal life has been bananas lately, but my life on the road even more so. I took a little trip to Jacksonville at the beginning of the month to do a show with the incomparable Mary Contrary and the gender-bender Spikey van Dykey. I drove up early to spend time with a few friends (who make Jacksonville extra exciting & awesome), grab some sushi, and hit up a Starbucks [naturally].

nom.

After hang time, I put my face on and headed to the Metro to meet up with the crew. We pranced, we danced, and we played with all the cool kids in Jax. I was surprised by a few faces [that seems to keep happening lately…], and I stared at Mary’s boobs.

Good times. ;)

I got on the road home, and I’m driving my tired little booty down I-95 when I get a 911-emergency text from Vita. Vita DeVoid, Franki Markstone, and Kissa von Addams, all fabulous showgirls, had be been booked {literally} across the street from where I was performing that night. {I tried to sneak across to see the girls do their bump ‘n grind, but I couldn’t get away! Sad trombones}. Even more sad trombones, the girls blew out their tire on their way home (!).

So they called the lesbian. haha I turned my lil’ Honda right around and went off to save some showgirls!

I gave them my spare, and then stole Franki [because she’s mah gurl!], and headed back home to Orlando, finally. 6 a.m. and we made it home! Vita & Kissa took it nice and slow on the road with my lil’ spare, but everyone made it home, safe & sound. yay.

After the Jacksonville insanity, I got to join forces with Spikey AND Franki again to get naughty with the girlies at Rev.

YES, PLEASE!

I love Revolution SO MUCH. A sea of lesbians. What more could a girl ask for, really? ;)

After the weekend was done & dusted, I woke up Monday morning to a text from Charlotte over at Macbeth Photography that said something along the lines of: “How fast can you be a superhero? We need you!”

They were testing out a new concept, and I’m the only person they know who can hop in a phone booth and show up ready to go in just a few minutes. Secret identities and latex. My life.

I love being a test subject/friends with such talented people. We get to play around and silliness ensues. Like my face. ^

After morphing back into just regular ole’ Eveleena, I got ready for what promised to be an incredible night: The xx were in town! I bought tickets THE DAY they went on sale, and I’d been waiting for this show for MONTHS!

The show was amazing, I was with amazing people, and it was an amazing night.

It was also bittersweet. In a really awful way. [But I already wrote about that in my diary, and you guys don’t need to be reading sad stories…]

Anyway, moving on!

I’m a lucky sonofagun and I have the most beautiful, amazing friends in the world. I got to spend some tea time with two of them, Mollie & the Ninja…

[gorgeous girls!!!]

and help Mollie paint her new place, 80s montage style.

These girls are real superheros. I don’t know what I’d do without them. Especially because they make me take the time to stop, rest, be with people who love me, and chill for once. Le sigh!

But that never lasts for too long! This girl is on the go!

Wednesday was another trip to the Mystery Sketch Theater, where I got to pose for some stupid-amazing, ridiculously talented artists!

Who end up doing amazing things with pencil, paper, digital tools, and I’m pretty sure magic.

Thursday I spent the entire day finishing my costumes for our big Les Vixens burlesque debut at NV!

Hello, ass shot! hah

The show was FABULOUS and I can’t wait till next month! Franki & Veronica KILLED IT, and our absolutely lovely stage kitten, Krystina, was all kinds of eye candy as she helped us be our very best, bumpin’ & grindin’. I think it’s just going to get bigger and better and fabulous-er every month. I hope you can check it out sometime!

Last night it was back to Jacksonville, my home away from home, with Franki & Evie for a show at the Norm.

We ended up putting on our show and then hanging out late with all the little kitties. I swear, Jacksonville has a secret lesbian scene full of hot ass girls who are awesome. I’ve decided I want to be besties with all of them. ::writes in planner- “Make friends with [more] hot ass lesbians”::

I love having goals.

So something crazy happened on Tuesday. You guys ready for storytime? Get comfy.

Growing up, I had a best friend named Jill. I’m talking, EPIC best friend. We met before we hit puberty, and spent the next ten years going through EVERYTHING together. The awkward years [I’m still in mine]. Middle school. High school. Family shiz. The Spice Girls. We understood each other in ways that were inexplicable. This girl taught me how to walk in high heels, that eyeliner can be your best friend or worst enemy, and how to embrace femininity. I taught her to not take things so seriously, that there’s more to life than boys & church, and that jogging in heels is probably not a good idea.

I’d show up at her house, covered in dirt from playing outside, and she’d reapply lipgloss and make me take off my shoes. Our conversations were made up entirely of inside jokes, and I have never laughed the same way with anyone else. I always thought she was gorgeous, but she never saw that her curves were a good thing. My family was really dysfunctional [but amazing], and her family was super nuclear [but über strict & conservative]. So she had some serious Christian indoctrination going on, and I was a serious free spirit. We were the original odd couple. Tomboy awkward girl and misguided Marilyn Monroe.

We were inseparable. This girl changed my life, and that’s not hyperbole.

And then I met my first girlfriend, Brittany. Jill was the first person I told. I ran up to her the day after I met Brittany, and said, “I met a girl! I think I’m bisexual! We’re going on a date! Omgahhhh WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?!”

And at first, Jill was super supportive [hooray!]. But then something happened. I don’t know what, exactly, but I’m pretty sure it had to do with the fact that she was raised in a strict Christian home where the idea of homosexuality was cut & dry: it’s WRONG and homosexual love is Satan’s pornography. Or whatever they teach in Sunday school these days…

Jill was moving away to attend a Christian school in Tennessee (doesn’t sound promising, does it?), and about a week after she moved I got a message from her on Myspace [oh, lawd, good old Myspace!] where she told me she doesn’t agree with my “lifestyle” and she’s going to “pray” for me and Brittany. Oh, and to consider this the end of our friendship.

You guys, she totally drank the Kool-Aid.

I died. She was the only person who I lost when I came out of the closet. And it killed me so much more because I KNEW with every fiber in my body that Jill was NOT homophobic. I KNEW she would and could love me no matter what. I knew that her soul and her essence and who she is was NOTHING like that message I got on Myspace.

We ran into each other a few times after that, but I was still dating girls and she was still conflicted as fuck.

Flash-forward, six years later, to this past Tuesday. I’m sitting at Starbucks with Mollie and I get a text. It’s from Jill. My heart stops. And it says,

“Eveleena Danielle!!! I fucking miss you and want to see you perform. I fucking love you so much and am so sorry for being a judgmental prick. I have learned so much about how wrong I was. Love is love and I’m sorry. I’m with a bunch of gays who LOVE you. And I was like omg she and I used to dance to ABBA in 5th grade!!!! I love you and we’re coming to see you at Rev.”

I dropped my phone. We started texting because god dammit, I will always love this girl, and apparently she reads my blog, hangs out with gay peeps who know me, and has thought about me just as much as I have thought about her.

GLORY HALLELUJAH! Baby Jesus be praised, she has seen the light!

So she’s coming to Rev. TONIGHT. And I haven’t seen her in SIX YEARS. And now she’s going to watch me whip my hair and holy shit, you guys.

So I’m off to get ready for a killer night at Rev, a reunion of epic proportions, and maybe to make some new hot ass lezzie friends. Wish me luck!

xx

I’ve been doing burlesque and go-go shows for nearly seven years now. I make a lot of my own costumes, and it’s part of what I love so much about the gig: the creativity and glamour that goes into a look. I taught myself how to sew when I was just a wee one, long before I shook my first tailfeather on stage. I’ve been hooked ever since, and growing up half my wardrobe was homemade, like this dress:

It was only natural for me to take my sewing skillz and add in epic amounts of sequins to make my own shiz when I started performing.

The Bunny, who has an inner gay man named Jeffrey, has killer style and an eye for aesthetics. She has always commended me on my costume-making abilities, and recently, after spending way too much of our time perusing Etsy, asked me point-blank why I don’t have an Etsy store for burlesque and go-go getups. I honestly never thought I could do something that grand.

But really, what better person to make and sell burlesque costumes than someone who lives 50% of her life on a stage? Looking through different Etsy stores, I realized that a lot of the stuff I make for myself looks WAY more rad than what is currently being sold. I also realized that I could make pretty much anything: tutus, burlesque bustles, bras, shimmy skirts, bottoms, etc., in any color, with any embellishment. I’m like my own little sweat shop!

The Bunny convinced me [a.k.a. she pretty much had to throw down & fight me on it] that we should continue my creative expression and start an Etsy store. So we’ve been working our buns off to make enough complete looks to start a store (and we have a few more pieces that are nearly finished!), and here we are today! We couldn’t wait any longer….

So welcome to the Grand Opening of Le Vixen Designs on Etsy!

www.etsy.com/shop/LeVixenDesigns

Le Vixen Designs is the lovechild of a sparkle-obsessed burlesque princess and a London street stylist extraordinaire. Armed with an arsenal of pretty little things and wicked thoughts, this crafting & creating duo is determined to give glamour gals irresistible frocks, costumes, and accessories.

From high burlesque styles to gritty punk rock, Le Vixen Designs fulfill the needs of professional goddesses, rockabilly temptresses, sequin addicts, style queens and fearless, fierce girls obsessed with adventure & looking fabulous (naturally).

And this is just the beginning! We do custom orders, plus have several more costumes almost finished and ready to be photographed, and we’ll be including pasties, bra & bottom sets, shimmy skirts, accessories and more, more, more! I’ll be sure to keep you updated on all the goodies that we’ve been making. And trust me, it’s been A LOT of work. Especially with two cats who think we’re pulling out fabric, feathers, sequins, and hundreds of yards of tulle for their entertainment and tactical training!

meep! slo-mo Banksy haha

xx

p.s. HUGE THANKS to Jim Hobart & Charlotte Nash of Macbeth Photography for the amazing shots! And MUA Nicole Dupre for those perfect red lips. Mad love, yo!

…among other things. ;)

True story.

Well, you guys remember THIS POST, about how I grin like an idiot at other gay or gay-appearing people, to the point where it freaks out everyone involved?

Well, this past Saturday I was at Starbucks with my bestie, J. She was down from NYC to visit with me and to quit being MIA from my life.

Anyway, so we’re just chilling and chatting - J looking like a hipster lesbian from NYC [naturally] and me looking like a nerd with no makeup on and my green tea.

I spot a table of semi-sporty lesbonitas across the Starbucks, and give ‘em the eye a few times. You know, the “I see you over there. I see you being all sporty and cute and gay” eye that means business. And because they were in my neck of the woods, there was a possibility I knew them from Rev or some other gay thing, but I just wasn’t sure. [because sometimes lesbians look the same...]

So then I got nervous. Like, if I DO know them, but don’t say hi or smile, are they going to think I’m a bitch? But if I DON’T know them, then I’m going to make this entire group of ladylovers talk about that weird girl in Starbucks who waved at them like we’re besties.

What’s a girl to do?! Well, I was too late in starting that debate in my head because the girls got up to leave and I had yet to reach a conclusion. As they walked past, I made eye contact with one of the gayelles and she smiled. Instead of smiling back like a normal person, I gave her some weird, cracked out grimace before turning red and looking away. BECAUSE I HAVE NO GAME, PEOPLE. Not that I was trying for game [I only attempt that with the Bunny…and it still fails miserably], but I at least wanted to NOT look like a stroke victim. Fail.

Anywayyyyy, I couldn’t think too much on it because I had to go get ready for an insane night at Rev! It was our door girl Leann’s and Amanda a.k.a. the Beeb’s birthday celebrations, plus the XXX Party [whatever that means…something about a new drink or alcohol or something or other that Rev was promoting so they came up with a random party idea and ran with it…], so I had a feeling the night would be crazy.

Oh, that and I decided to perform to a mix of NIN “Closer” into Ginuine’s “Pony” [90s slow jamz!] and ride out on this:

I’m not even joking. That totally happened.

So I start hosting the show…

And people are going crazy…

I bring on my first Vixen, and then my second, and then start my number. Not even 10 seconds into it this girl steps on stage and starts RAINING MONEY DOWN ON ME.

[Banksy helped me count it later…]

I’m talking, just a wad of dollars that she’s just throwing in the air around me. The stage was littered with dollars within moments, and I couldn’t even finish my number because, well, there was a girl on stage throwing money at me. I wasn’t going to dance away from her because I’m not a total idiot.

But I still had to pull Leann up on stage for some birthday lovin’ and somehow ride around on a unicorn while there’s just money everywhere.

And all I can think is, “Is this real life?!”

After the show, things are still out of control crazy and the group of girls to whom the money machine belonged to called me over to chat for a second. Apparently, that lovely lady lives in Vegas, and came to Orlando TWO YEARS ago and saw me perform once, and just had to come back and see me again. CRAZY!

But what’s more crazy is that they then said…

“We totally saw you at Starbucks today!”

Awkward times in my life, you guys.

So that was my Saturday. I hope yours was as utterly unpredictable and amazing as mine, with maybe a little more game and a little less awkward. ;)

Lots ‘o love [and random pictures of cats!]!

xo