PEAK INTO OUR CLOSET
¡HOLA!
Thanks for stopping by. Today we will be letting you into the closet at our new location in Pico Rivera, CA. Those of you who follow us know that we used to have a very, very small private rehearsal studio in Alhambra, CA. We were there for two years, but decided to get a bigger location because were outgrew the space and did not have a secure place to store all of our costumes.
In the folklorico and entertainment world in general, costuming and appearance is SOOOOOOO IMPORTANT. Not only because of how expensive it is, but also because it is a reflection of your company as a whole. Most folklorico troupes do not have a budget for costumes and if they do, it usually not very large. When Kareli started our company she did not have a budget for costumes. She soon realized that having the dancers purchase their own costumes was going to be a huge problem. Some dancers didn't have the money to do so, or left the company and took the costumes with them because they bought them. It was a hassle having to wait until a new member bought a costume, especially during a very busy season. Slowly, she began gathering a small budget for costumes when she was working as a social worker and learned how to sew using youtube videos and her grandmother's tips. In a matter of months she had completed 12 Veracruz costumes at about $60 a piece!
Costume care is crucial because of all the hours of hard work that goes into making each and every costume. Here is a a video of what our closet looks like at the moment. The video quality is terrible, but we will post a better one as soon as our electrical problem is fixed. lol
7 HELPFUL FOLKLORICO CLOSET TIPS
1.) THE INFAMOUS GARMENT BAG
This is a picture of our infamous garment bags. When traveling with costumes from place to place our dancers are required to take their costumes in a garment bag to prevent the costume from any damages. The garment bags you see in the picture are good quality, weren't very expensive (IKEA), and have lasted a very long time. We wash them in a regular washer and they come out looking like new. We always embroider our logo on each garment bag so that if a costume is accidentally left behind at a venue, we have a higher chance of recovering it.
2.) THE IMPORTANCE OF A GOOD HANGER
Those of us who have been dancing for a long time know that a good hanger can been a huge blessing. Most of our costumes are VERY HEAVY. Hanging up a heavy skirt or some charro pants with botonadura can easily become a nightmare of not done on a proper hanger. In the picture below you can see the hangers we use to hang our costumes. We also purchased them at IKEA. They're perfect because of how thick they are and also because they were very inexpensive. We love the fact that they sell these hangers in different colors. We were able to assign each set of costumes a different color and now we no longer lose as many hangers and are able to tell which costume is in each garment bag without having to look inside.
3.) CONTAINERS GALORE!
Containers are a must when it comes to storing almost everything in a folklorico closet. We store all of our hairpieces, and accessories in containers. The flowers you see in the green container are the ones we use for Veracruz. Each flower was about 6 dollars and was a great investment because of how realistic each one of them looks and also because they have lasted more than any other set of flowers we've purchased. We always keep they hairpieces in a container because that helps maintain them in great shape. We found these handy containers at COSCO. They come in all different colors so you can assign each region a specific color. We love the fact that they're see through because that way we are able to see what is inside the container. What is inside a container should always be visible.
4.) THE "REBOZO HANGER"
This is a picture of our "rebozo hanger." We turned it into a rebozo hanger even though it was meant for scarfs. This one is very cool because it's strong and can hang up 20 rebozos. Our rebozos are kept wrinkle free on this amazing thing.
5.) THE ACCESSORY HANGER
Our accessory hanger is very awesome! We use it to store a lot of our accessories such as pins, chokers, necklaces, earring, and plenty of other things. This hanger will make your life very easy because it has clear pockets so that you can see exactly what is in each bag.
6.) THE FAKE DONUT BOX
This box gets us every time! When covered it looks just like a donut box....BUT IT'S NOT! This is much cooler than any donut box we've ever seen. It has compartments perfect for storing accessories separately or, in our case, the candles we use to dance La Bruja. This box was also purchased at IKEA a long time ago.
7.) ACCESSORY RINGS
You must be wondering what in the world this thing is. We wondered the same thing when we first encountered these things, but now we love them and put them to use all the time. We use these rings to hang hairpieces and other accessories with our costumes. The ring is put around the top of the hanger so that way you can keep your costume, hairpieces or other accessories together at all times. You can also use them to hang payacates and mascadas with your outfits.
WE HOPE THAT YOU FOUND OUR TIPS HELPFUL. THANKS FOR READING AND PLEASE GIVE US YOUR FEEDBACK!