I’ve always loved the idea of not being what people expect me to be.

When I was a little girl, I watched all old movies. My mother liked old movies, and she loved shopping for antiques, so I was around old things all the time.

I make a point to never, ever point out my physical flaws… this is advice I give to women as often as I can. People don’t notice the things we see in ourselves that we...

As a little girl growing up in a small farming town in Michigan, my idols were women like Marlene Dietrich and Rita Hayworth.

I have been obsessed with seamed stockings my whole life, and I would collect vintage ones that were made in the ’40s and ’50s with the authentic styling of the keyhole, the welt, the reinforced...

Me personally, I want to entertain people above all. When you look back at burlesque in history and the real golden age of burlesque, those entertainers were there to entertain, and there wasn’t usually some...

I really believe that beauty comes from health – sensible eating and exercise.

I started dressing vintage when I was a teenager because I didn’t have money for designer clothes.

Red lips don’t look good on blotchy, uneven skin.

I feel empowered the fact that I can look the way that I do on stage and in photos – I can look that way any time I want. And I feel like it’s important...

When people say I look intimidating, it’s hard for me to relate to. I hear that a lot. I don’t know why.

The new acts’ major influences were movies and their curvy queens Brigitte Bardot and Marilyn Monroe. With their big blonde hair, ample breasts, and highly fertile hips, these bombshells inspired women everywhere to exxagerate their...

I was always intrigued by the idea of bringing things together that are considered taboo or risque and bringing them together with something of high elegance and sophistication.

People who follow all the rules and chase every trend tend to get forgotten – they look great, but they’re not as memorable.

I think the beauty looks I most regret are those I was persuaded into.

I can’t stand wearing the same clothes all day. It makes me insane. I like to dress for the afternoon and for dinner.

The prosecutor uttered the party line that would distinguish revue from burlesque for the next thirty years. “The difference is movement. On Broadway, unadorned female figures are used to artistic advantage in tableaux. They do...

I like styling girls that don’t normally dress in vintage clothes and don’t normally wear red lipstick; I like seeing those kind of girls restyled in a retro way.

I like having my cellphone. I like the Internet. I like being different.

Corsetry is a body modification.

I want to remind people of a different kind of glamour, a different look, and breaking the rules of fashion. I wanna break the rules.

You can be the ripest, juiciest peach in the world, and there’s still going to be somebody who hates peaches.

Thanks to my mother, people tell me I look younger than I am, especially without make-up. And I suppose my father had a part in making me more frugal with my money.

I don’t have long-standing regrets; they pass as I see how things are meant to be.

So I have the green smoothie every day for breakfast, and then sometimes even for lunch too, and then I have a normal dinner.

I was really, really shy when I was a little girl.

Some days are just bad days, that’s all. You have to experience sadness to know happiness, and I remind myself that not every day is going to be a good day, that’s just the way...

When I started performing, there was no Internet; I didn’t really have anything to copy. I kind of had to just make up what I thought burlesque was, based on photographs of Sally Rand or...

I like when people know who they are, know their limitations and what they want to do. It’s the same thing for me.

Well, when I was fifteen years old I worked in a lingerie store and that’s how I feel in love with vintage lingerie because I wanted to know the history of it.

I’m more of an exaggerator than a liar.

Don’t underestimate the cosmetic power of sunglasses. It’s worth spending a bit of money on a quality pair. I usually go for Dior or Louis Vuitton.

I think as someone who collects beautiful things from the past, the thing that I miss the most about modernism and the things I lament about the past are everyday things that you would use...

Physical beauty isn’t so impressive to me.

I’m a designer, producer and I am hands-on for every project I undertake. The creative side of what I do is really something I think people overlooked for a while.

Anyone who says they don’t like to receive a gift is lying.

I don’t work with a stylist, I don’t work with a glam squad to get me together for the red carpet, I really enjoy the time it takes to do it myself, to choose my...

I’m not always in a full face of make-up! That’s actually one of the things I like about make-up – that you can strip it away and show your vulnerability.

I suppose women are attracted to the bad-boy image sometimes because it’s fun to have an adventure. It’s like eating junk food… it’s fun at the time, but ultimately not the best choice.

I don’t feel I have an alter ego.

Every one of my products – my lingerie, my perfume, and everything that I do beauty-related with regard to building my burlesque shows – is just me.

I advocate glamour. Every day. Every minute.

Yes, but more than being a designer, I’m more of a stylist, because I don’t sew and I don’t sketch, but I’m good at putting things together, choosing things that are chic and glossing over...

But I’m not the girl who changes into flats because my feet are tired at the end of the night. I go the distance. I go all the way.

I have a lot of Burberry items at home, including one dress that I loved so much that I had my living room painted to match because the color was so flattering.

I feel better about myself when I look my best. I always find the time to put on my powder and do my chignon.

I love glamour and artificial beauty. I love the idea of artifice and dressing up and makeup and hair.

I really enjoy watching people like Madonna, or Cher, or Barbra Streisand on the red carpet. I want to see people wearing exciting things that are different and to know that they’re not just looking...

My beauty icons are women whose images are self-created.

I prefer the competitive atmosphere of a classroom setting, like yoga or Pilates. That keeps me going. Although performing on stage is great exercise!