Miss Mina Murray

Dear Constant Reader,

It’s a celebratory Friday! You’ll see why when you read your tip…

The journey of 500 tips starts with a single post.

I never thought, back in 2011, when I started this blog, that I would get…

Dear Constant Reader,

It’s Friday! I’m spending my day helping The American Burlesque Collection get ready for their reopening tomorrow. In honor of the temporary exhibit The Fantasy of the Fan Dancer, I’ll be teaching fan dance workshops in May!

…

Dear Constant Reader,

It’s Friday! It’s a particularly good one for me as I got my second vaccination this morning. Here’s your tip!

Heat will soften hot glue.

Makes sense, right? This is great because you can fix mistakes by…

Dear Constant Reader,

Last night I got the sad news that Tempest Storm had died at 93*. In some way I thought she’d outlive us all.

She was probably the most famous of our Living Legends and I don’t need…

Dear Constant Reader,

It’s Friday! It’s snowing here in Boston! Of course it is, because this would have been Expo weekend…

Last week we were watching Scratch’s niece perform as a finalist* at the NYC Teen Poetry Slam and one…

Dear Constant Reader,

Like the rest of the burlesque world, I was saddened to hear of the death of Marinka, Queen of the Amazons and grateful that she shared the story of her life.

Marinka: From Havana to Burlesque by…

Dear Constant Reader,

It Friday again! I don’t know about where you are, but here in Boston it is gloriously spring out. I’m writing this in haste so I can go play outside. Here’s your tip!

When costuming a group…

Dear Constant Reader,

It’s Friday! Time for a tip!

Along with my Little Book of Burlesque Costuming, I provide a bookmark which has a list of essential sewing tools and I want to highlight one in particular. I just…

Dear Constant Reader,

One of my friends sent me this mid-century recipe and kind of dared me to make it. So, of course, I did. If you want to see the whole process in living color, become one of my…

Dear Constant Reader,

It’s Friday again! Here’s a tip!

Check out rhinestone brands other than Swarovski.

I know there’s a lot of prestige in the Swarovski name, but the company has decided to get out of the “DIY market” and…

Dear Constant Reader,

It’s Friday again! Here’s your tip!

Spring clean your wardrobe.

It’s almost spring and that’s a great time to go through your costume closet. Air everything out! Check for spots that need cleaning or damage that needs…

Dear Constant Reader,

For many this week marked the start of our quarantine year.

It’s all right to mourn what you’ve lost.

Perhaps you’re grieving for people lost to the pandemic or chances to see friends and family or special…