It's September - I've moved back in with my parents to save for a house, my possessions are currently occupying two bedrooms, and there are cats everywhere I turn. I also have time again to focus on my blog (hooray!), time previously spent trundling up and down the A3 and sighing at traffic jams. And with London Fashion Week fast approaching, the prospect of sifting through a thousand-plus runway photos doesn't seem quite as daunting.
Another runway I've come to love is the drag show kind. Since my friends and I became obsessed with RuPaul's world-renowned reality show, I've begun exploring drag artistry both within and outside the Drag Race bubble. Because what stuck with me most from my hours glued to Netflix wasn't the
challenges or lipsync battles, it was the often amazing transformations from
man to queen - the fashion, the make-up, and the drag personas.
DragWorld at Olympia London was the perfect occasion to explore drag culture in person. There were numerous meet-and-greet opportunities, panel talks covering all aspects of drag, and back-to-back stage performances. I was especially eager to meet the stunning UK queens (Cheddar Gorgeous, Anna Phylactic and Meth to name just a few), who serve as an important reminder that drag has never been exclusive to America or reality television. And as far as looks went, might I be bold in saying theirs were unequivocally more eccentric than those of their Drag Race counterparts?
Combining inspiration from drag and makeup artists alike with my own personal quandary of gender identity, I had hoped this summer to reveal my very own drag persona. Regrettably however, a private début among close friends highlighted I still had significant "glowing up" to do, therefore many weekends have since been spent practicing make-up techniques, and - perhaps more importantly - finding a style of drag that is comfortable for me. I picked up plenty of new ideas from the queens of DragWorld, so please expect at least one drag-inspired look from my upcoming Fashion Week frolics. Provided, of course, I don't smudge my contour with my camera.
DragWorld at Olympia London was the perfect occasion to explore drag culture in person. There were numerous meet-and-greet opportunities, panel talks covering all aspects of drag, and back-to-back stage performances. I was especially eager to meet the stunning UK queens (Cheddar Gorgeous, Anna Phylactic and Meth to name just a few), who serve as an important reminder that drag has never been exclusive to America or reality television. And as far as looks went, might I be bold in saying theirs were unequivocally more eccentric than those of their Drag Race counterparts?
Combining inspiration from drag and makeup artists alike with my own personal quandary of gender identity, I had hoped this summer to reveal my very own drag persona. Regrettably however, a private début among close friends highlighted I still had significant "glowing up" to do, therefore many weekends have since been spent practicing make-up techniques, and - perhaps more importantly - finding a style of drag that is comfortable for me. I picked up plenty of new ideas from the queens of DragWorld, so please expect at least one drag-inspired look from my upcoming Fashion Week frolics. Provided, of course, I don't smudge my contour with my camera.
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