The Elvira Project

“Sometimes you can learn the best lessons in life wearing a low cut black dress, some high heels, and an awesome beehive wig.” – Tracie Dee

My favorite holiday is Halloween. Ever since childhood, there has just always been an attraction for me to have one day a year where you can dress up and transform yourself into anyone or anything you wanted to be….for just a day…. yet have the ability to safely to return to your usual self the day after. I think of it as the safety net of holidays where you can let your freak flag fly free for awhile, yet roll it back up safely and tuck it away when your done.

Oh the possibilities!!!!

I always dressed up for Halloween as a child, and revisited this tradition again as an adult about 10 years ago, to hand out candy to the trick or treaters. (Hey, why should kids have all the fun!)  I usually start to think of Halloween and my costume ideas around August (I guess seeing jack ‘o lanterns and scarecrows mixed in among sunscreen and flip flops on the store shelves can really start to inspire a girl to start thinking of things that go bump in the night). This year, my inspiration actually came from a witch’s costume that I bought half price last year but didn’t use. I decided to go out on a limb and go farther with my Halloween costume and character than I EVER have before….I decided that I was going to go all out and try my hand at being…..ELVIRA, THE MISTRESS OF THE DARK!

Now Elvira is larger than life in a lot of ways, and I’m NOT just talking about her bra size…although I’m sure that is quite impressive, too! I knew if I was going to try and portray her in a way truly deserving of a character like Elvira, it was going to take some work. I wasn’t about to just toss on a wig and low cut black dress and hope for the best! So for two months I did my best to learn and soak in (if you will) all that is Elvira. I watched her videos and interviews on YouTube. I read about her online. I researched how to do her make-up the right way. I worked hard on transforming that ordinary witch’s costume into something “Elvira-worthy”.  I did my best to learn how to act and be Elvira in a way that I felt would do her justice.

Along my journey of what I refer to as “The Elvira Project”, I’ve also learned more about this iconic character then I ever thought I would, beyond just straight up facts and details. I have had the pleasure of getting to know her (in a way, at least) and discovering just why her popularity with her loyal fans has endured for all of these years.

She has an appeal that’s attractive on many levels, besides just her physical beauty. She is funny. She is sweet yet sassy and as down to earth as can be. She makes you feel comfortable and just happy to be around her. In many ways, she is the like the girl next door…..if you happen to live next door to a haunted house that is owned by a family heavily into goth, that is. I can imagine if you just moved to her neighborhood that Elvira would bring you over a cake to welcome you, while apologizing for the boob marks in the icing which occurred while she was reaching across the table.

(Hey, it can happen….and please don’t ask how I know this.)

Elvira proves that we don’t need to take life or ourselves too seriously ALL of the time. She is brave enough to just be herself, regardless of what others might think. She is proud to stand out from the crowd and makes no apologies for being different.

Once you get to know Elvira….you just can’t help but love her.

You know something? I think I want to be Elvira when I grow up! But even if I can’t (Oh, gosh darn it!) I am honored and proud to at least get to be her for a day or two…..or maybe even three (but who’s counting). I think we all might have a little Elvira inside of us…..but we just have to find the courage within ourselves to let her out every once in awhile.

Life lessons learned from a low cut black dress, a pair of high heels and an awesome beehive wig. Who would have ever thought!

“The Elvira Project” has sure been an interesting journey, I tell ya!  For me, half of the fun came from the process it took to take myself from “regular redhead” to “vivacious vamp”. I kept a video diary over the two months that it took to complete the whole process. If you would like to check it out, here it is!

Until next time! Happy haunting! Ta ta and toodles!

Bucket Lists

"Its never too late to be what you might have been" – George Eliot

I’ve been a late bloomer in pretty much every aspect of my life. Some of it was out of my control (I mean I really couldn’t help if Mother Nature has a twisted sense of humor and exercised it heavily on me during my teens and twenties) but I can’t put all of the blame for it on her, either. Some of it was also by my personal choice. And by that, I mean I used to be very shy and afraid of “what was out there” in the big, scary world so I would rarely try anything new or took any chances of any kind. I chose instead to do my best to hide away from life, tucking myself away from it safely like a tight little rosebud that had not yet bloomed.

But there is a quote that says “And the time came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom.” This was the case for me. As time went on, my rosebud shell grew more and more uncomfortable for me. So one day I just took a chance and pushed aside a petal or two to take a peek at what was going on outside of my safe little bud. When I did, I was amazed at what I saw and how I felt. At last I had found the courage I needed to take a risk on myself and that big scary world outside and started to take on the task of blooming.

It’s been awhile now since I took that first step to leave that ol’ bud of mine behind me but even so, I still strive to blossom and grow in other ways whenever the opportunity presents itself. I’ve created a bucket list of sorts for myself , made up of challenges to meet, both big and small. I’ve included everything from simply trying new foods to trying new experiences. In my ongoing quest towards “Blossomville”, I’ve learned that most stuff you try even just once wont kill ya…… but then again that also depends on what you want to try. I mean if you attempt to become the king or queen of multitasking and try to make yourself some toast and dry your hair while relaxing in your bathtub loaded up with Mr. Bubbles….. that might be a problem. 

(Although it still might not actually kill ya, it might put a bit of damper on accomplishing the rest of your list, yanno?)

I’m proud and happy to say that the accomplished challenges section of my bucket list is coming along quite nicely so far, but I have much more to go…..and isn’t that what makes for a really good bucket list anyway? Just as you cross of some of your met goals...start adding some new ones ASAP!  I can think of only one thing sadder than an empty bucket list….. and that would be a full one that goes unattempted.

Regret is hard to live with. When we take the time to look back over our lives, what we often regret the most are the things we never tried as opposed to the things we have. We learn through experience and every new one (whether good or bad) helps us to grow emotionally, in knowledge, and in our overall confidence level. Sometimes experience really IS the best teacher. So give yourself permission to go out on a limb once in awhile. Give yourself the chance to one day look back on your life with a smile and a sense of pride and say “OMG…I actually DID that??”  If you haven’t already, why not start scratching some things off of your bucket list today? Take some advice from George Eliot. It’s never too late. And there is no time like the present to start.

My most recent bucket list challenge that I met was walking in the annual Easter Parade on 5^thavenue in Manhattan for the very first time this past Easter. (I gotta get to work on my next challenge. I think I'm a bit overdue.) It was so much fun and I’m so glad I tried it. If you would like to join me in my experience, please check out my video below.

Ladies and Gentlemen....

Normally, right about now, I would feel inclined to continue with “and children of all ages” (guess I’ve been to the circus just one time too many) but this time instead of introducing some dancing bears or the Flying Wallendas, I’m simply here to introduce myself.

My name is Tracie Dee. I’ve been writing for about 4 years now and got my start blogging on MySpace. I love writing but these days, I’m also finding enjoyment with vlogging. I have found that videos are a nice way to share what words alone might not give justice to and also for people to really get to know the person behind the words and the keyboard.

Overall, I consider myself to be a pretty down to earth and upbeat person, whose sense of humor can be a bit wacky at times. Hey, life can be rough and sometimes laughter and levity can be our only saving grace to help us get through it all. I consider it to be our very own little light at the end of the tunnel that serves to remind us that even during the very worst of times…..yes…..life IS still good and can be again for us if we can just find a way to hold on and see our way through it all. Laughter and humor can, indeed, act as our lifelines. Each of us needs kindness and comfort sometimes and we also need moments that take our minds away from our problems, at least for a little while. That is what I hope I can help do in some small way. 

So…..are you ready for some fun? I suggest you hold onto your hats and fasten your seatbelts…..cause it’s gonna be a BUMPY…… but REALLY FUN…. ride! Stay tuned! Here is just a sample of what you're in for!