You may or may not have noticed that House of the Broken Dragon offers various kimono styles: Long, Short, Jacket, and Hipster. One of our most popular styles has been the Kimono Hipster. The hipster has a few unique features: Falls at the hip No belt Slimmer cut thru body Slimmer cut sleeves The beauty of this unisex style is that it offers the "look and feel" of a kimono but without excess material that may be cumbersome in a more active environment. Great for a lightweight cover-up, day or night, dressed up or down, the Kimono Hipster will certainly add a dash of personality to your outfit, whatever that may be! Don't forget all...
The History of The Ringling Self-made multimillionaire and circus magnate, John Ringling (1866-1936), was one of the early 20th century’s most prolific art collectors. The Ringling is his legacy. In 1905, Ringling married his soul mate, Mable Burton (1875-1929), a woman who shared his love for travel, art and culture. Soon after their marriage in NJ they became fixtures in New York’s art auction scene, buying paintings, furniture and tapestries for their own growing collection. In 1911, John and Mable purchased 60 acres of waterfront property on Sarasota Bay. In the ‘20s, they became active in the community and purchased more than 25 percent of Sarasota, including St. Armand's Circle, Bird Key and Lido...
One of the tactics House of the Broken Dragon continues to employ in our marketing strategies is taking something "ancient" and "formal" (ie: the kimono) and placing it in a "modern" or "casual" setting. This is exactly what happened during our exciting photoshoot in Ybor City -- Tampa's National Landmark Historic District. Ybor was founded in the 1880s by cigar manufacturers and was populated by thousands of immigrants, mainly from Cuba, Spain and Italy. Many of its alleyways are a hodgepodge of quaint architecture and graffitied industrial buildings -- another testament of the "old" commingling with the "new." Executing a fresh feel with an old-world garment couldn't have been accomplished more dramatically without our talented team, including smokin' hot model and cosplayer,...
HOTBD is tickled pink to have their first internationally published article in the stellar UK-based pinup magazine, Tease and Cake! The article, entitled "Chinese Burlesque Queens: Past and Present" is featured in the Spring 2016 issue. Due to popular demand, the hard copies of this issue have since SOLD OUT, however, you can still purchase the digital version, here. Seeking feedback directly from the source, I had the excellent opportunity to interview three well-known women in the burlesque industry today, including: Calamity Chang, the "Asian Sexsation" The Shanghai Pearl Miss Amelia Discover how all of three of these lady bosses (not to mention their mentoring predecessors) overcame tremendous obstacles including race and prejudice yet still managed to succeed in this controversial and historic art...
Modern girls (or "moga") were Japanese women who followed Westernized fashions and lifestyles in the 1920s. Moga were Japan's equivalent of America's flappers. The period was characterized by the emergence of working class young women with access to money and consumer goods. Moga were depicted as living in the cities, being financially and emotionally independent, choosing their own suitors, and apathetic towards politics. By viewing her through a Japanese vs Western lens, the nationalist press could use the modern girl archetype to blame such "failings" as frivolity, sexual promiscuity, and selfishness on foreign influence. Why am I telling you all this? Well, House of the Broken Dragon collaborated with Canadian Burlesque Ambassador Bettina May and Japanese performing artist Masae Satouchi last...
