This Is Our Life Thursday: Graduation!

Oh I have been dying to write about this.

This is what I saw as I gazed at the computer a couple of months ago. It was a sign. I had asked for a closer burlesque opportunity and here it was staring back at me. Immediately I saw there was a class and signed up the very next morning. A lot of people said I was crazy to drive to Dallas every Sunday for six weeks. It was too far, gas costs too much, blah, blah, blah. I knew I was in the right place. The first moment I knew that was when I met my teacher Dirty Blonde.

(Here she is!)

Seriously best woman alive, ever. I was nervous at first because I really didn't think I was learning anything. But after the second class things seemed to click. At one point we had to perform our routines for the classes and get feedback from her and the other students. When it was my turn she gave me some good advice on where on how to the use the stage to my advantage and the best piece was to just have fun. 

"You're a natural. You have this infectious smile and I already know they are going to LOVE you"

And so it came. It was Friday, July 17th, and I had already my make up on from the show. We did a brief run through of the show to make sure all of our tech stuff was taken care off and we headed up to the dressing room and waited for our names to be called. 

I was nervous. Terrified, really. Not about performing or being on stage, but of what the audience was going to think. Would they like it? Would they think it was stupid? Would anyone cheer? I took a breath and squeezed my potion bottle that I got from Veronica and focused. I felt better and then I was at the bottom of the stairs behind the curtain that led to the stage. Waiting for my cue to walk up steps to the stage. My heart was pounding in my chest.

"Give it up for the male harlot, Mr. Jay Scarlet!"

The crowd erupted into cheers and I glided up to the stage. A long crimson cloak covered me and hid my face. The music started off slow and haunting and it picked up to a faster a beat. I slid off the cloak and turned around and the screams got louder. 

(The first reveal)

And I owned that stage. I heard nothing but screams and laughs and whoops. It was so amazing. I felt that spark again. I was exactly where I wanted and needed to be. And then it was over. I tilted my head and blew a kiss to the audience before walking off the steps and then running up the stairs laughing like a little kid. I went downstairs, in a borrowed bathrobe, and watched the second half of the show and loved every second of it. The guys I got to work with I feel like we're going to be friends for a very long time. 

So after the show I was told to go to a small 24-hour diner that was just a block and a half away from the theater and have "stripper breakfast". To better initiate myself to the fabulous world of burlesque. Although I was just starving from eating all day and I really wanted pancakes. So the crew and I went to the diner and ate and soon everyone showed up in tow. Unfortunately I had to open at work the next day (always take the next day off people, just my piece of advice) so we had to leave.

Right before I left I took Dirty's hand and said thank you again and again. Thank you for starting a school in Dallas, thank you for helping me on my first real burlesque routine, thank you for the opportunity, and thank for everything else. Her reply was: "Thank you for coming, thank you for performing, I am so glad that I got to meet you, you're a natural"

I love her I really do. She is fantastic, fabulous, and fierce. And she invited me to come back in September to do another boylesque show. Of course I'm going to do it. I have to see all my brothers and sisters again.

 (The first being Chess Shires)

(Eros Jones)

(Ida Bubbestein)

(MT Molotov)

(Lyric Laveau)

(Mitch Kitsch)

(G.I. Jim)

(Vincent Vermuth, brother to Vivienne Vermuth who did my kick ass make up)

And the last but certainly not least is Stephan the Southern Fried King of Burlesque. This guy was so amazing and so great to work. He's very talented and I would really kill for his fantastic legs.

So yeah that's it. I'm sorry I didn't post yesterday the photographer who came to the show is still uploading pictures so when I get more trust me I'll be posting them. So you'll guys will just have to be satisfied with the one on top and one of whore face.

Also a huge thank you to everyone that participated in the art contest. It's going to be very tough to choose but I will let you know by next Thursday. 

I love you all and I hope you have a magical weekend.

Icing Kisses,

J.S.

Wayward Mermaid Confessions And Nervous Feelings

So what do you guys think about the new look? To be honest I just got tired of staring at nothing but darkness so I wanted to add some color and life to the blog. I like it this new look a lot better than the last one and I hope you guys do too.

So this week I have two things I wanted to talk about. The first one is something that I've actually wanted to talk about for a little while now. When I first started blogging when I was 17 I wanted to have a place where I could put all my thoughts and feelings and not be judged or criticized for it. But every time I started I always kept back something.

I can't say that.

People will think I'm weird.

No one would want to read that. 

I never really felt like I had a safe space, other than my journal. Then a few weeks ago May-May and I were working on music and he asked if I wanted to go swimming. I love the water so of course I jumped at the offer. We changed into our trunks and swam around and around and just talked. It was very open and freeing just to talk to a friend about crazy ideas for the future, thoughts on romance and love, and small fears that we were both hoping to get over.

"So what do we call this?" he asked me as he swam over to the other side of the pool.

"I don't know....I always kind of felt like a mermaid in this pool ever since you made those tails."

"Hmm...Mermaid Confessions?"

"Wayward Mermaid Confessions!"

And whenever we want a to have a magical discussion we say "Wayward Mermaid Confession?" and then grab our trunks and our tails and head to the pool where the moon and the stars are our only light.

(a picture of Selene my mermaid goddess)

But I wanted to extend that magic to all of you. I want the blog to be a place where people can say something that they are afraid to say elsewhere, or to ask questions that they are too afraid to ask. This is a safe place for everyone. Here we are all family and there is nothing but love and acceptance.

The second thing is this. 

Tomorrow I perform at the Dallas Academy of Burlesque and I'm already starting to get butterflies. The thought of being on stage thrills me to no end. I can't wait for that but still something in me shaking and partially freaking out. This was something that I confessed to May-May and he told me that maybe the reason why I'm nervous is because I just jumped into the class. There was some thought before I signed up but it was more a snap-decision. Part of me agreed with this but another part had a different reason. I am a firm believer that you shouldn't care about what strangers think of you but we all have insecurities and to say that I don't have any would be a lie. I am worried about messing up on stage or people thinking my routine is stupid or any number of things that could go wrong. I know I can't listen to these thoughts though. Thinking something bad will happen will actually cause something bad to happen. Positive thoughts will make positive things happen. So tonight after I get back from work I'm going to take a nice hot bath and light some candles and relax. 

(drawn by the amazing Colours07)

So that's what I have for you all this week. Also if you haven't checked out my art contest you really should. And one more thing, I'm adding two new segments to the blog. Memory Lane Mondays, done at the first of monday each month, and Tell Me About It Tuesdays where I'll give you guys insights on what May and I like to do when we're not doing C.C. business. Also if you guys want to email us any thoughts or questions (casanovacupcake@hotmail.com) we are more than happy to listen and/or answer.

Til next time,

Icing kisses,

J.S. 

The Many Sides Of Who We Are Part 1: Burlesque

(Some of the videos in the links are not age appropriate. Please do not click on them if you are not 18 years old or older)

So this thought came to me earlier today. I was thinking of the blog and the other times I had blogged before and how in the past I totally crashed and burned. Nobody wanted to read it, no one ever commented on it, and I just felt like I was talking to an empty black void and the only person I was hearing was myself. And then I thought about the blog now and then I thought why am I doing this again? Why am I doing a blog again when before I just got burned out? What did I want to get out of this?

And the answer to that is I wanted to connect to people more through this blog and I also wanted to something different. I wanted to talk about positive things, for once, and I wanted to show all the sides of who we are. So I'm going to be doing a series of posts and sprinkle them throughout the weeks showing all of you the many sides of us.

So, what side am I going to show you first? I figure we probably should start with the obvious. The side that many of you already know.

If you were to ask me a few years ago if I would ever want to do burlesque I would have told you straight up no. I would have been too insecure to ever do anything like that. And this was an amazing, beautiful, magical surprise that came to me in the form of an amazing performer known as Veronica Varlow.

I consider Veronica my gatekeeper that opened the door to this magical world for me. I remember watching videos of  Veronica online (because at the time EA only toured in Europe and New York) and I was mesmerized by her. Instantly I was in love and when I love something I have to know more about it. So I went into research mode and I found the Danger Dame Diary. There I got to hear Veronica's story and see all these amazing things that she was doing like  working on her movie Revolver  or being an international burlesque bombshell . 

So what was burlesque? The best description I have ever heard was "burlesque is where a person goes out on stage, magic happens, and then the performer leaves with less clothes than before". More research lead me to different performers like Vivienne Vavoom, Miss Indigo Blue, or Dinah Mite. I'm a sucker for fan dancers, sue me. But as I went on I kept finding female performers but I didn't find a lot of men. So I turned my research to boylesque (but if you ask me personally I believe that burlesque and boylesque are the same thing). And I did find a lot of guys who do an amazing job and the guys that I really look up to are The Stagedoor Johnnies.

(From left to right Jett Adore, Bazuka Joe, and Ray Gunn)

These guys are a dancing burlesque group and God do I love them. Each of them have their own solo acts along with performing as a group. These men are fantastic and they gave me plenty of inspiration for ideas routines of my own. 

Another thing that really helped with my journey in burlesque was A Wink And A Smile which can be found on the movie's website or Netflix. It's an indie documentary of burlesque and a class of women from the Academy of Burlesque in Seattle and their journey to graduation. It shows burlesque, boylesque, drag queens, drag kings, androgyny, and a lot more. I recently rewatched this because of a little adventure I'll be starting in less than two weeks.

(Movie website)

Now a couple of months ago I was feeling depressed. May-May and I were discussing the future, which isn't really a favorite topic of mine, and what each of us would do when we were older and not doing C.C. I never worry about May. He is very talented and lovable and I know that he will always find work as performer. Me on the other hand? Yeah I do worry. I love burlesque but there just isn't any place in a small town that one can do it. So we Googled Texas Burlesque and found the Austin Burlesque Festival but there wasn't any way that we could attend or afford it. And then another thing caught my eye. Dallas was about to open an Academy of Burlesque. Not only that but it was offering a six week boylesque course. I was freaking out. 

This was a sign. 

I had to do this. 

So I did. 

I paid my money for the course and on the 26th of May I'll be starting my classes. I am very excited because I really hope that I improve on what I already know, make new friends, and own that stage when I graduate. 

Well this was just one of the many sides that is Jay Scarlet. I hope you enjoyed it. 

Till next week,

Icing kisses and love,

J.S. 

I Believe In Fairies

As you all know I believe in magic. I always have and I've always have believed in all magical creatures, especially fairies. 

Now while we were at Anime Matsuril I found this amazing woman selling charms and necklaces. I stopped by her and asked her about a pretty fabric flower. She began to tell me about how back in the day people in Japan would take scrap kimono materials and fold them into flowers for necklaces. Instantly I fell in love with it but then something else caught my eye. Little porcelain cut outs and I asked her about the pieces. She told me that she took pieces of porcelain and then took ink stamps and pressed them over the pieces. The one I saw was a little fairy girl smelling flowers. I asked her about it and she told me her seven year old daughter helped her make that charm and that it was her daughter's favorite. I told that I had to have it and the fabric flower. She put them on a ring for me and told me that she was happy that the charms were going to a good home. The rest of that day I had nothing but good luck and met amazing people. I then dubbed it the Magical Fairy Necklace.

(Here is said necklace)

Now fairies can be very helpful creatures. They can bring life to your garden, bless you with good luck, but what they love more than anything is to play tricks on people.

(Courtesy of Jeph Jacques from Questionable Content)

Click the link to see the full size strip

I got tricked by some fairies earlier this week. I had come home from hanging out with May-May and I folded up my clothes before going to bed. The next day I went to go to town and I couldn't find my wallet. I knew that I had left them in my pant's pocket from the night before but my pants were nowhere to be found. Thus began the search. I ripped my house about, as well as my car, trying to find my missing wallet. I only had  about a day or two's worth of gas, plus I had groceries that I needed to buy and Mother's Day and birthday presents. I spent yesterday and today digging through the same places over and over again. At that point I knew something was amiss. I knew I had left my clothes in the house. So when I eliminated all possible places for my wallet to be I turned to the only explanation left. Fairies. Fairies love to take things and hide them. Its one of the easiest ways to trick humans. They were just playing a little joke on me but enough was enough. I chanted a little lost and found spell over and over and over as I continued my search. Finally after I checked underneath a chair in the living room for the billionth time I looked up and there they were. My missing clothes sat there all nice and neat. Quickly I grabbed my pants and I pulled out my wallet. I said thank you to the fairies for returning my things and I swear I heard laughter.

(from angelajordan)

Another thing is I've always wanted to be a fairy. I've always wanted to fly, dance on water, and play with all  kinds of animals. And finally I've decided to do something that I've always promised myself but have never done. Unfortunately I won't be able to attend A-Kon this year due to previous engagements but I am going to go to A-Fest. And on one day while I'm there I am going to dress like a fairy. I already have the materials to make my costume and even my very own fairy wings. It's going to be amazing I already know and I can't wait.

(Twig The Fairy)

So tell me what magical things do you believe in?

Love,

J.S.

Anime Matsuri

I want to apologize for this post being so late. I’ve been having some internet issues at my house but thankfully that problem has been fixed. But anyway this post is all about mine and May-May’s trip to Houston where we went to Anime Matsuri.

Starting the trip off right we went to bed early, for us that is, and woke up around seven. We ended up leaving the house around ten and began our five hour road trip. Now I love road trips but the only thing I hate about them is that I see so much beautiful scenery. If I had my way we would have stopped at least fifty thousand times to take a picture of flowers, trees, puppies, hills, or roll down said hills, etc, etc. At one point in time our GPS, named Slagathor, took us on a random detour but it was still nice, very scenic. And it no time we were in Houston. After roaming around for a few minutes we found parking and then we lugged all of our bags and boxes to get signed in.

(I told him I was going to post this picture)

After unloading we went to Registration. Now at this point I thought I would have to buy a whole new pass. May-May was telling me that I was supposed to print off my conformation email which of course I didn’t do. So the entire way down the stairs (which is my only complaint about the Con but we’ll get to that later) I was a little depressed. $45 wasted on nothing. But then we get to the line, which was super fast, and I ask the lady if I needed the email and she smiled and said no before handing my badge. At that point I knew this trip was going to be golden.

So we began to set up for the show. As we’re getting ready May decides to tell me that I’ll be doing the majority of my own hair and make up. Instantly I began to panic. I had done only minor, and I do mean minor, make up before. But, according to May, I did a good job for my first time.

(What do you think?)

 He did help my eyes. I’ve always had an issue with eye make up but with the help of my Fairy Ho’ Mother we were off to perform a show!

(“We gonna make you look like a ho’”)

The turn out was smaller than we had hoped but due to the fact we had to change times at the last minute we were just happy to have people in our commandeered hotel room. And it was fun. There were plenty of laughs and we attempted the longest awkward silence ever. I’ll tell May to hurry up with that video because it was just perfect. Another thing that really made was finally getting to meet a very special Sprinkle in person.

I’m pretty sure it was it was Anime Matsuri 2010 when May-May met Alyssa and she fell in love with C.C. She was always so sweet to us and she emailed me a few times asking if I was going to go to AM and the past couple of times I just wasn't unable to. But finally I was and I am so glad I did. She enjoyed the show very much. Especially when May sang her favorite song The Raven.

With the show over and after we made promises to see everyone again the next day, May-May and I went to go see our first Rocky Horror Picture Shadowcast. Unfortunately we missed cast picking out all the virgins

Virgin-Noun-1^st definition. Someone who has never partaken in sexual activity. 2^nd definition a person who has never been to a Rocky Horror Picture Show Shadowcast

But we watched and laughed and then the show began. So much yelling, so much cursing, so much toilet paper being thrown everywhere. Oh it was magical. I loved dancing the Time Warp and even more doing Columbia’s tap dance routine with another girl. The show was spectacular. As we got up to go to the rave upstairs a lady with incredibly long fingernails pulled us aside. Her name was Claws.

“So what shadowcast are you two from?” she asked us.

“We’re not.” We told her.

“But you know all the words to the audience participation.”

“We’re Rocky Horror enthusiasts.”

And from there we began to tell her about our band and how we too wanted to perform a Rocky Horror Shadowcast. She gave us some good tips and told us that she wanted to see us at more conventions. For more on these amazing people click here and like them on Facebook here.

So we went upstairs to the rave. May-May danced some but I laid down with a few friends from previous conventions.

And so around 2 or 3 am I went upstairs to shower, shave, and get some sleep for the next day. Then around 10 am I got up and started my rounds around Artist Alley and then the Dealer Room.

Then May and I stopped for a quick bite to eat before I went back upstairs to take a short nap. Funny thing happened though, I slept for six hours. It just hits you sometimes I guess. May and I got ready for the rave and I had a lot of fun getting ready. Honestly I thought I looked pretty kick ass.

And we danced and danced till we couldn’t dance anymore. I had to sit down for a bit but watched all the lights and that was just as good.

Again we crashed at a late time but we got up before check out, loaded up the car, and did one last trip around the con. We made 30 bucks off of what we sold the whole weekend and gave out at least half of our business cards. Plenty of people were asking us about future cons. I know I can’t do A-Kon because I have previous engagements but I know A-Fest is extremely possible.

Overall this trip was incredible and I can’t believe I missed out on this for three years. I can’t wait to go back.

(My badge and my gift from Alyssa. Anime Matsuri, I'll be dreaming about you)

Icing kisses,

J.S.

P.S. we also have a new video up!

Dealing With Depression

So for the past two weeks I’ve neglected the blog and I’m sorry for that. The reason why is I was really tired and depressed. The week of Anime Matsuri May-May and I spent most of the time packing and finishing things up for the weekend. The following week I woke up and I didn’t want to do anything. Pure laziness and felt like I really let myself and you Sprinkles down. There are times in life where you have to pick yourself up and run the extra mile. So this week I want to talk about ways to deal with depression and get you out of a funk.

1.) Music- I had a pretty tough day at work today. I opened at 7:30 am and worked until 6 pm and it was a pretty busy day. I had to deal with some really rude people also and it was really trying my patience. As soon as I get off work and I turned on my Ipod and hit I shuffle. The first song that came up was Always look on the Brightside of Life. I smiled and laughed because it was really what I needed to hear after today. Music can instantly change the atmosphere in any situation. If you put on some good tunes it’ll easily lift your spirits.

2.) Write It Out-Whenever I have a lot on my mind I write it out in my journal. It’s like the emotions escape onto the page and my mind is clear. Now my journal is really special because I draw and paste or glue things in it as well. It’s almost like a scrapbook. So for you people that journal find some pictures, flowers, material, clips from magazines or newspapers, and start putting them in the pages. Incorporate your words and drawings with your own findings and make it your own. And for those of you who don’t journal trying doing this instead. Try writing out your emotions in a poem. It really helps me out.

3.) Connect With Nature-Sometimes the best thing you can do is go outside for a walk. There’s a nice little park that’s about ten minutes away from my house. I love to go there and read or walk. Also there is a pretty tree that I always hug when I go by it. That’s right. I’m a tree hugger. Sitting outside on a pretty day and watching and listening to your surrounding is a great way to reconnect. And it’s a great way to clear off the negative vibes.

4.) Retail Therapy-Sometimes a little splurge is good. Buying something for yourself can be a good thing and it’s even better if you can find a deal. When we went to Anime Matsuri I had saved up some cash to splurge on myself. I bought books, some movies, jewelry, and a couples pieces of clothes. But there have been times when I’ve gone to the clearance bin at my local bookstore, Hobby Lobby, or Hot Topic and I’ve scored big time. So spend, either a lot or a little, on yourself and it could really turn your entire day around.

5.) Pamper Yourself-One of my favorite things to do is to take a bath. My amazing boyfriend bought me some great soaps for Christmas. I love soaps and all the smells that come with them. Another thing that instantly breaks my depression is using a bath bomb. A bath bomb is fizzy bubble bath and aromatherapy all in one. Check out LUSH or Etsy for bath bombs. Trust me on this they are fucking fantastic. Lights some candles and wash away all your troubles.

Well that’s all for this week you guys and you’ll hear all about our trip to Houston next week.

Love 

J.S.

VIP with OED

Currently I am in a very nice hotel room with the love of my life after driving for a good three and a half hours to Little Rock, AR. Oh the adventures we have together but that is going to have to be a story for another week, Sprinkles…

This week is all about One-Eyed Doll. Now May-May met OED at Ikki-kon 2011. Thanks to our car wreck we actually missed the show. However, when we got to the con we were able to meet Kimberly. We told her about our wreck and missing the show and she hugged us both and autographed some stickers for us. We asked her if she would promote our album, FVITD, and she happily agreed. That video can be seen here. Well one night I was on the computer and I got an email from the One-Eyed Doll mailing list saying that OED would be coming to our hometown. Of course I booked our tickets and told May, who then immediately got us VIP passes.

So on St. Patty’s Day we headed to one of the local bars where the show was going to start. There we met Melinda, One-Eyed Doll’s Merch Monkey. She was really sweet to both of us and later in the evening we found out she was a Sprinkle! We had nice chat with her but then the show was starting.

Now the first band that played I didn’t catch their name. I knew they were from Italy but I, and the venue, had no idea why they were playing in the first place. Not to say that they weren’t good but they weren’t on the posters. But after they gave a wonderful show, Picture Me Broken began and holy fucking fuck they were spectacular. I loved watching them and I was really sad that I had already spent all of my money on OED merch but I made sure to remember their name because I was definitely going to get some of their music later.

 And then the band that we had been waiting for had arrived.  

I had forgotten how cute this woman is. Seriously if you have never seen a One-Eyed Doll show I implore you all to go to one. Expect Kimberly to jump out into the audience, also except costume changes, and props being thrown at you as well. Words cannot give Kimberly or Jr. justice. I loved singing Plumes of Death (as heard on the Titanic soundtrack, My Little Pony, and The Passion of the Christ 3-D) and having Kimberly step on my shoulder for support as she sang to the crowd. I thoroughly enjoy yelling “Hail Satan!” during Be My Friend. I really wish that they had been head-lining because they give a good show every single time.

But after that was over we got in line for merch. We were at the end of it and when got to Kimberly (after touching her finger and getting hugged) she said that we looked familiar. We reminded her of our story to Austin and she grabbed Jr. and said “Hey it’s the guy’s from Ikki-kon”.

“Wait…you remember us?”

“Yeah you guys were the most memorable part of that trip.”

Then she noticed that we had VIP passes and started freaking out as did we. Jr. went out for something and Kimberly kept signing autographs. While that was going on May-May and I watched OTEP’s show. Wow. That is all I will say on the matter. Wow. My face and everything was rocked so hard.

Following that everyone started packing up their stuff and May and I helped Melinda and Jr. load up the van. Afterwards we all loaded up and cruised around town for a little bit.

We gave Kimberly her C.C. CD that we had promised two years ago and she loved it. We have another video of her endorsing it so watch out for that one. Besides that we just hung out and chilled and listened to music in the van. It was really peaceful and nice. We talked about growing up in small towns where people really don’t understand you and I feel like we all really connected. We drove back to the bar and then we had cupcakes. Which I would love to make it a rule that we should end every visit like this whether it be with friends or VIPs or whatever. Cupcakes make everything better.  And what made it even better was that our cupcakes came with little bow rings. So now May-May, Kimberly, Melinda, and I are all engaged. We haven’t set a date yet but I already know that the bridal shower is going to be kick-ass.

And then we said our goodbyes to everyone. Melinda promised to mention us on her blog and we promised to mention her in ours. I really hope we all see each other again soon. And maybe, if the fates allow, we’ll play with One-Eyed Doll.

P.S. Kimberly I went to the Arkansas Music Hall today and I found the OED sticker on the wall. They said they can’t wait to see you guys again.

Till next Thursday,

Love

Jay