Time Lapse: 40 hrs of work in 3 mins – Pink & Navy Floral Belly Dance Costume

 

A few months ago, I treated myself to a new phone – Samsung Galaxy S7.

 

I wasn’t even going to get the latest & greatest (I was using Galaxy S2 at the time), but the store (and my fiance) convinced me into getting this smartphone.

 

I must say, I’m so happy they did!

 

The phone comes with a camera that takes great pictures which is awesome for capturing costume making processes and sharing them with you!

 

And I noticed it has a time lapse feature.

 

Ooo…..fancy…! 😀

 

And my fiance Navid suggested I do a time lapse video of me creating a costume from beginning to end.

 

Ooo…..sounds fun…! 😀

 

So here’s my first try! See how I changed the designs over and over again 😉

 

 

Want to make the same circle skirt? Here’s the tutorial.

 

Want to learn how to make a belly dance bra and belt that fit perfectly? Check out my workshop.

 

 

If you like this time lapse video, let me know and I’ll keep making these videos. 🙂

 

It’s a great way to keep track of how many hours I’m spending on each project.

 

 

 

Does this number surprise you?

 

This project took about 40 hours.

 

I was actually surprised to see the number, but this project felt quicker than usual because it didn’t require intense beading for decoration.

 

It really makes me appreciate costume makers’ work, because for this to make any business sense,

 

(hourly wage x 40 hours) + material cost + other costs (shipping, other supplies, tools, advertisement, websites etc) = price of costume

 

Let’s say the costume was sold for $800.

 

The material cost for this project was about $160.

 

And let’s assume the “other costs” is about $50.

 

(hourly wage x 40 hours) + $160 + $50 = $800

 

This makes the hourly wage = $14.75.

 

Is this fair? I don’t know.

 

This calculation doesn’t even include any profit.

 

It doesn’t include things like time spent researching for inspiration and coming up with the design either.

 

Plus the number of production hours can easily increase. Same for the material cost.

 

Considering the special skills and knowledge required to create dance costumes, I feel the costume maker should be paid more.

 

The topic of getting a fair payment is always a popular topic of discussion for dancers. I feel costume makers should be paid a fair amount too. After all, there’s no belly dancing without the beautiful costumes that make the dancer a belly dancer 🙂

 

If you are a costume maker yourself, what do you think about my calculation? Am I off? I probably underestimated “other costs”. Please comment below 🙂

 

 

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