Pavlova Paradise

Happy Easter!! This evening we have family and friends coming for dinner - in New Zealand Easter dinner is traditionally roast lamb and a mighty leg of some poor wee fluff ball is roasting in the oven as I type, with sprigs of rosemary and slivers of garlic inserted into its flesh.
It is also an excuse to make a pavlova! Long term readers will know that I love making pavs. They are a teeny bit show offy, and very cheap to make so that's got to be a good combo.

 Here's an action shot of the Kenwood making light work of whipping up the pav mix.

 This is it just out of the oven. I must say it is one of my best - kept its height even after cooling.

 Here's the omega plums just out of the oven. Cut into eight slices each, sprinkled generously with coconut sugar and roasted. The delicious, thick jus I drained into some poached rhubarb to serve on the side.

And here it is! Cream on just over half of it, the plum slices now chilled, and blueberries. I love red and purple together as we all know, and in food as in life. ;-)
A smoked warehou pate for starters and we're all ready to go. Just waiting for the guests to arrive.
Happy Easter!

Je Suis une Rockstar

More show photos!  I am actually making a real dress for me and have several other projects on the sideline but it may be a couple of weeks before there's anything to show you. So, in the meantime, sequins it is.
At the March Burlesque Baby show, I was emcee again (did the March show last year) and I decided to get down with the cool kids and be a bit of a pop diva.
I love this look - hot pink fall and strapless dress - but the song really wasn't me (Get the party started). This show is a bit like an open mike though and the place to try new things. So, good choice eh!

 This dress is RTW!!! I stuck rhinestones all over the bodice to give it some more glitz. I love it though - the same cut as the LBD. 

 A Dusty Springfield moment.

 The skirt is draped at the sides and comes in at the bottom. This shape does wonders for me.

 Also wearing the black sequin bolero, because I like the line.

 Also breaking out the long gloves for a bit of audience participation

 Peeling gloves like a big ham to the delight of the audience.

 In the second half, I wore the dress that won the internet. And different hair.

 The curtain call - me, Miss Phoenix Rising, Courtney l'Amour our producer, Visha Vulpe, Penny Scott our stage momma, Amber de Luze, Victor Victorious and Kapi.
All photos were by Paradox Photography

Celebrating 30 years

In 1986, the Homosexual Law Reform Act was voted into law with a majority of five. Thirty years later, NZ is celebrating that victory, plus all the necessary changes to the law to acknowledge gay relationships, marriage and legal rights. We have come a long way in 30 years.
Celebrations opened at The Beehive,  NZ's seat of Parliament. Here are some photos I nicked from Amanduh's Facebook feed - to be honest I went to the Martinborough Fair super early in the morning and fell asleep in the afternoon, and only woke up 40 minutes before we had to leave to get to the event so I had no time to get the camera, or even put on my false eyelashes!

Amanduh La, Kevin and me. Amanduh told me to wear this outfit. We are both in love with it! Plus we were so bad, we were up rather late the night before drinking tea and putting the world to rights. I love her dress - I didn't make this one but I wish I had. We are in front of an enormous rainbow flag.

 Fran Wilde, the Labour MP who sponsored the Bill. She is an extraordinary woman and I have immense respect for her, even though she wants to change our flag to the hidjus teatowel proposed in the referendum (If you are not a Kiwi and don't know about our tragic flag change debacle, I just Can't Even....)

 Grant Robertson our gay (Labour) MP for Wellington Central. People can we just take a minute to think about this. Wellington is the seat of government -Wellington Central is heavily populated by civil servants. It is always Labour. This is because those who work in the machinery of Government know which party provides the most stable, rational governance. Because civil servants see everything. Really.

 A Kapa Haka group opens the evening in the Ballroom.

 My darling friend LaQuisha St Redfern. 

So this afternoon LaQuisha aka Conrad and I sat on his deck in the sun and planned an appearance we are making together late in May. A drag queen who is a woman and a drag queen with a beard and a hairy chest -we are the odd balls of the city, so it stands to reason we should do a show together.

Should be jolly!

Anyway, I for one am proud to have done my bit to support the HLRA back in 1985/1986, and it was a happy day when the Law was passed. I had many gay friends then as I do now and the very idea that their love should be illegal was absolutely intolerable to me.