Paulette Rees-Denis's Blog, page 58
September 6, 2011
Deathstock, and then some…
ok, writing, blogging, it comes and goes, more gone now these days, but with many new ideas for a new blog and website in my head! plus some new photos of my dance wear still for sale…oh my…
farm life, work life, dance life, music life, it's my life (sings Willie) and it's a fun life…but can be soooo complicated sometimes. ah well…
but first, I"m off to San Francisco for a big 2 day music festival, reunion of my early 80's band-Fade To Black, with some Gypsy Caravan thrown in the mix, and some acoustic guitar!
what a funny thing, but have been enjoying playing my keyboards and guitar with Jeff, and looking forward to seeing friends from 30 years ago, kind of like a school reunion, but better!
plus we will have a new CD out too…
paulette in fade to black, circa 1983
plus bringing a little tribal inspired dance to the event, and jeff with not only his bass, but his middle eastern horns to blow me a tune or three…will keep you posted!
August 2, 2011
Birthday Book Bash–Tribal Vision on sale for you…
Come on, celebrate with me….
Hey, my 54th birthday is coming up (august 15th), and that means it has been 4 years since I got my Master's in Writing and Publishing, and the publication of my book followed the next year! So in honor of all celebrations, dreams, and visions, you can get my book, Tribal Vision: A Celebration of Life Through Tribal Belly Dance, for 1/2 price! Woot woot….
A good reason to celebrate, both my birthday and my book, with history/herstory, and dance and art, and life and community, and song and more dance!
oh yea, the years of dance!
Got a few more reasons to celebrate? Share them with us…
soooooo, get THE book about tribal bellydance, the Gypsy Caravan Dance Company, the evolution and revolution of this amazing dance, and my journey taking it with me around the globe, making our collective tribe of beauty and art and us stronger and powerful and stunningly gorgeous! oh my…
paypal $12.50 (normal price $25.00) plus S&H $5.50 (US only) to
dance@gypsycaravan.us
out of the US, please double the shipping rates….
this offer good until my day, august 15th, so act now, and get inspired and motivated and get your groove on…
love you…
July 25, 2011
my friends, more costume bits for you!
Going through my piles and boxes of jewels, cloth, yarns, taking photos (which do not do the pieces justice for sure). Figuring out what to keep, sell, pass on, keep…think I'll sell it, but no, must keep that one… it is funny and sometimes hard, and sometimes emotional!
but here we go, a few more baubles for you!
once a collar that I used as a belt, very flattering on the hips, my size about a 5 or so... blue velvet with metal embroidery and silver metal tiny fringe...$16 plus $5.50 S&H
ok, crazy, eh? but hair! loooonnng braids, mixed colors... great for wearing under your turbans! platinum, blnd and brown mixed, and dark! with a silly strand thrown in... all for $15.00 plus $5.50 S&H!
2 sweet colorful tassles, put one on each hip, or add to your head wrap, or/??? both for $6.00 plus $4.00 S&H
I"m making you turn your head both ways to view these photos! Email me to see which ones are still available, and don't forget to peruse earlier posts to see if anything strikes your fancy! A few things are still waiting for you!
dance@ gypsycaravan.us
if available, you can paypal the funds and I will ship them out pronto! That is US shipping only, we will add onappropriate shipping for other countries!
many thanks and enjoy…
July 17, 2011
alrighty then… costume bits still for sale!
Hello my friends!
so fun to be sending out my bits and baubles to other tribal dancers who will wear and love them like I have! and many thanks for your desires!
here are some pieces that are still for sale, before I add new items!
A. 2 (two) white Moroccan style belts-leather and silver metal- with fringe, 28" on the belt, fringe is abou t 20 " each side, very cool, both for $20 plus $5.50 S&H
4 beaded beauties for your belt or headwrap (or wherever!)
B. cool wooden earring from indonesia, with wooden posts, for regular pierced ears (not ear stretches), but so dang sweet! I got these on a buying trip to a gem show in tucson... for you $7.00 a pair, (plus $5.50 S&H)
beautiful full on tassle belt, hand made...$30.00 plus $5.50 S&H
ok, have fun perusing, dreaming up costume ideas!
email me to see if what you want is still available, then you can paypal $$ to
dance@gypsycaravan.us
with your shipping address, and bingo, yours!
July 10, 2011
another day of costuming
more goods of the costume sale: tribal gear, tribal heads, tribal fantasy, all in the name of troupe adornment!
my dance life through the years…small bits and larger pieces, all in a day's dance life…more tales to follow…
A. 4 beaded beauties for your belt or headwrap (or wherever!)
I have a fabulous belt made with pieces like these (with fringe, and shells and lots of good heavy ornamentation, so very cool…
B. cool wooden earring from indonesia, with wooden posts, for regular pierced ears (not ear stretches), but so dang sweet! I got these on a buying trip to a gem show in tucson... for you $10.00 a pair, (plus $5.50 S&H)
C. thai fingers... a little worn but beautiful! the set of 10 for only $18.00 (plus $5.50 S&H)
I loved dancing with these on my fingers, so deliberate and awesome….slow, mesmerizing, movement with total awareness…try it!
same as before…I accept Paypal, but since these are the only ones, please email me first to see if they are still available, and then I will get them shipped to you ASAP!
dance@gypsycaravan.us
Many thanks…and enjoy…
July 2, 2011
belts and tassles!
what fun costuming is and was over the years…my troupe has gone from the big tassles and full skirts, to the slinky tulip skirts and metal hip belts, to the full pants with the turkish tassles or mirror belts, some from Morocco, some hand made, some from India… different colors and textures, but always a together look, like we were most definitely a troupe with a conforming appearance. Important to be individuals within the troupe but still with that tribal style, or should I say, our Gypsy Caravan style!
so today is belt and tassle day… pieces from the past….what do you want? let me know…email me first to make sure it has not been sold!
dance@gypsycaravan.us
A. 2 (two) white Moroccan style belts-leather and silver metal- with fringe, very cool, both for $20 plus $5.50 S&H
B. going back to the early days of Gypsy Caravan, what a great tassle belt! (one tassle missing), blues, greens, burgundies, hand-made tassles by a former caravan dancer…I wore this so many times and loved it! puts a great swing in your shimmy!
beautiful full on tassle belt, hand made...$30.00 plus $5.50 S&H
C. and now, some old camel tassles, fantastic find… make your own belt with them, 14 total, #3.00 each=$42.00 plus $5.0 S&H
great old hand made and dyed camel tassles (burgundies, greens, reds, blues, rusts)
so, that is the sale for this week… remember to email me first, some of these go quickly! then you can paypal me so I can ship them off to you!
peace, love, and happy dancing! may my old costume pieces bring you much joy and delicious ornamentation…
July 1, 2011
new Tattoo Road Trip article!
http://tattooroadtrip.com/newlook/road-trippers/
Pretty excited about my 2nd article in Tattoo Road Trip!
below are more photos and the whole story!
Glamping on the Road
By Paulette Rees-Denis
I've been on many adventures this last month, in my little T@B camper, and also in my new/old '63 Shasta trailer—glamping is the appropriate term here, glamour camping! And what wonderful and colorful people I am honored to meet while traveling.
Since last month's article for Tattoo Road Trip, I had my first solo maiden voyage (meaning no husband Jeff) pulling the T@B driving from Clatskanie, OR to Spokane, WA, a long trip of about 8 hours. Driving a small trailer like this, only 1000 pounds, is not too difficult, but in super windy conditions like in the gorge, going slower is a must, and no quick lane changes! With only a little white knuckle driving on a steep cliff or two, yes, there was a few moments of panic as I don't like driving on the edge, but dang it, I did it! Cheers to me for that. And after hitting Prosser, hooked up with other gals and their trailers, so we were able to caravan and what a sight driving along on the freeway!
Absolutely gorgeous country western Washington is—rolling wheat fields, open sky, curving hills—with the sun shining brightly, I was a happy camper driving on this route to my first glampout with Sisters on the Fly, the main purpose of this journey. SOTF is a crazy group of women who have trailers, mostly vintage, and fixed up to the nth degree, wow. Trailers like Aladdins, Airstreams, a Scotty, with cowboy/girl and fishing themes prevailing, and we are talking some mighty fine girly campers and trailers—pinks, lace, aprons, cowboy boots, fishing rods, flower pots, crinolines and tuttus, hats, jewelry, and lots of wine! These women know how to camp. And I am proud to say I am Sister #1757. There are almost 2000 of us now, is that wild?
Checkout their website
http://www.sistersonthefly.com
One of my camping mates, Jennel, drove an old pickup pulling her cowgirl themed Aladdin trailer, also her maiden voyage. She had her two small pups which made the whole camp happy because they were so happy to be with all of us. Jennel was a hoot, and awfully damn cute in her red crinoline with her cowboy hat and tatts showing.
I also had the pleasure of meeting my other camping mate, Rene's, parents when they came to visit the campground early Saturday morning—Sarah and John, of Cherokee descent. I immediately felt the love from these two magnificent people, and the wisdom of their spirituality. Out from John's sleeve peeked a small and faded tattoo, a symbol of sorts, of which I had to find out more about. It was tattooed in the colors of the four directions. John told me that in their belief, there are four great supernaturals, and the magic number four being the most sacred. In the Lakota way it stands for Tatuye Topa, the four quarters of the earth. One of the Lakota's chief symbols is Umane, and John gladly told me the story of this Lakota symbol. Umane represents the power that we all have, as the part of the force left over, or the unused force, after the Maker has made all other things upon Mother Earth—both animate and inanimate—the rocks, trees, grass, 4-leggeds, and 2-leggeds.
The configuration of John's tattoo was his desire to use the Uname symbol plus the four directional colors. He told me that there remain about five different variations of the colors. The scheme he used is red for east, yellow for south, black for west, and white for north.
I could have listened to John talk for hours, but we had campers to visit and trailers to check out, as well as the gigantic and crazy Farm Chicks vintage sale going on at the Spokane Fairgrounds, another reason for the Sisters campout.
The whole weekend was a blast, I laughed til I cried, played a little guitar, cooked vegetarian delights for my camping mates, drank wine, and was completely relaxed and inspired through the whole weekend. I made it home safely and with more courage and skill at pulling my trailer, but avoided the roads with cliffs!
You could say that Jeff and I have gotten a little trailer obsessed. After that weekend we drove down to Klamath Falls, about six hours south of us in south eastern Oregon, to pick up our new/old '63 turquoise and white Shasta, refurbished, and with wings! Heaven…just what we had been looking for- a bit of history, and a classic. We drove through the mountains and enjoyed the ever changing scenery, which included rain, hail, snow, sun, wind, high desert, tall mountains, big lakes—stunning. A short and sweet visit with the talented Wendy Durighello, from the Tin Inn, who refurbished our trailer (www.tininntraveltrailers.com/), and we were on our way home, towing our new beauty.
The obsession took us on our next journey to the beautiful hills and mountains of Rosyln, Washington. Yep, that is where the fabulous TV show, Northern Exposure, was filmed. We drove that distance this time for the 2nd Annual Vintage Trailer Rally. But first, we had to make a pit stop at Dick's Brewery in Centralia, WA, to do some taste testing, as we carry their beers in our shop, Cultivator General Store. A sunny and hot afternoon, we sat outside talking with the brew masters sipping on a cold Dick's Danger Ale. Parker and his partner had good beer info to share and a tattoo to show. Score…And the beer was mighty fine too. We could have stayed and chatted and drank more beer, but only one beer allowed and time to hit the road again.
Up and over the Snowqualmie mountain pass over highway 90, we pulled into Roslyn later than expected, but it was still light out, and lordy, we looked at the trailers already lined up! Adrenalin pumping as we made our way into the park and found a site to rest our Shasta, before tearing up the turf to meet everyone and see all the trailers before darkness won out. And wow, let me tell you, about 30 of the coolest vintage trailers and cars were set up already, with more pulling in continuously over the weekend.
roslyn park and our shasta
A 30's shiny silver Bowlus,
a 1966 Chrysler pulling a small Airstream
about eight 50's and 60's Aloha's, several Shasta's similar to ours, an Oasis, some Aladdin's, a Silver Streak, Fireball, and more, oh my… some stock, some fixed up, some Sisters on the Fly gals were there too. Jeff and I were drooling over these beauties as we made the rounds, meeting new friends, chatting up each other for trailer info and advice, while sipping wines, and hanging out with our two camping corgis!
No matter the dark of night, generators buzzed, candles were lit, and firepits were fired up as campers milled about. And after a few rounds, we headed into the little town for some eats, starting at the Brick (again, the bar from Northern Exposure, where is Holling and Chris in the Morning?).
Roslyn is the cutest little town, and the town next to it also, Cle Elum, both with some nice cafes, a brewery, restaurants, art galleries, lots of horses in the rolling fields, gorgeous open land.
And what about this wheelbarrow art? How many high can you go? We slammed to a halt passing this site, and I had to get out, have a good laugh, and take some shots.
On Saturday, we were wind whipped and everyone wore layers of clothes so it was hard to see any ink. But Sunday morning, the sun was shining, the field of trailers was glorious in it's multi colored metal collections! Our trailer neighbors, Margie and Terry Buckendorf, were in their sweet little Airstream, and yes, there was a tattoo on her wrist—a lotus blossom—which to her represents transformation, and growth, as in "roots in the muck, blossom in the light". I think that is a lovely expression, one to keep you grounded, yet growing, stable and creative. Gotta love it.
Stanley and Jeff talked incessantly about Shastas, as Stanley had a similar trailer!
Inspired, ready to decorate and ready to roll, chatting it up with other trailer travelers, it was an amazing weekend.
Roslyn also has a sweet farmer's market on Sunday morning and I had to hit up the local cheesemakers as I'm always on the lookout for good cheeses for the shop. Bought one of my favorite cheeses, Halloumi, from Tieton Farm and Creamery (Yakima, WA). Have you ever grilled Halloumi, and then sprinkled it with capers and lemon juice? That is exactly what we did when we got home, and their cheese was so fresh and delectable.
And it is always great to get back home to my other 2 dogs, Bella and Amboy, big Maremmas (Italian sheep dogs) who guard the goats and the chickens on our farm. Can you imagine them in our little camper? Not going to happen.
And now time to get my hair done by the amazingly talented Molly at Visions of Hair.
What happens when you get a bunch of gals in crinolines? They have to kick up their heels
and shake their booties a bit!
Ok, gotta go…let's see what's next for this tattooed tribal farmgal!
June 28, 2011
Collective Soul and Teacher Training certification in Oregon!
New dates just added for Collective Soul and Teacher Training Tribal certification in Oregon!
** April 2012
Collective Soul Level One–April 20, 21, 22,
Training One–April 23, 24, 25
(Breitenbsush Tribal Dance Retreat!)
Collective Soul Two–May 1, 2, 3
Teacher Training Two- May 4,5,6
Collective Soul Three-May 8,9,10
Collective Soul Four–May 12, 13, 14
these are tentative dates, please email me ASAP to let me know your interest!
June 26, 2011
what a week, sorting through jewelry, used bits and piece...
what a week, sorting through jewelry, used bits and pieces of my costumes,
and with my harddrive crashing and burning, I've lost lots of photos…
so looking at the jewelry helps with some memories. silly me, with no computer backup of late… (there's a lesson in that one!)
but here you go…
remember to email me to see if the single pieces are still available before you send money, via Paypal
to dance@gypsycaravan.us
those shipping prices are US only, if you live elsewhere we will need to add on, but if you buy more than one item we can consolidate on the shipping fees!
now, have at it, and enjoy, may my pieces bring you as much joy in your dance as they did me 
1. long and large silver earrings--wow! $10.00 plus $5.50 S&H
2. large old ethnic silver hoop, looks great on a headpiece--$12.00 plus $5.50 S&H
3. an old heavy, large silver pendant with glass stones, and a linked chain--$22 plus $5.50 S&H
4. 2 strands of very cool stone beads, just ready for some great neckace or head piece or your brilliance!--$20.00 plus $5.50 S&H
next week, belts and tassles!
June 17, 2011
on the road again…
getting ready to take the new/old '63 shasta on the road to the vintage trailer rally in roslyn, WA (yep, where they filmed Northern Exposure!). It is road ready, but not much else, this beautiful 17 ft. trailer, meaning no water, no heat, no propane yet, barely a bed, but it is all coming. We'll take the corgi's, some coolers full of good eats and wines, and open eyes to see all the other trailers and get some pointers!
woo hoo…
