Our best of Spring 2011 Issue featuring Coco Lectric celebrates it’s Issue Release at the third annual  Hot Rods and Heels May 21st at the Lakewood Theater in Dallas!

We are so proud of this issue!  See cover girl Coco Lectric do a full reveal in our  exclusive photos of Queen of Burlesque & Texas Performer of the Year Inside! Printed in full color from cover to cover, this full sized magazine is 44 pages of your favorite Pin Curl online features and articles as well as exclusive print only material you can only find here. Featuring cover girl Coco Lectric, and including exclusive interviews with Cora Vette, Midnite Martini, Red Hot Annie, Katherine Lashe, Ursula Undress, Courtney Crave, and many more! In addition to feature interviews, you’ll also find great articles including the coveted Tips for Building a Successful Portfolio & Shooting Successful Promo Images Guide, our exclusive Burlesque Haunts series, Herstory of Legends like Georgia Sothern and Mae West, and DIY projects including prop making, vintage beauty secrets and cocktail recipes.

Not going to make it down to Texas?  Buy the new issue online. (Ships out after May 21st).

Hot Rods and Heels 2011 Schedule:

1-6pm Workshops!  Take classes with the pros on pin-up modeling, make-up, and burlesque! Workshops must be purchased in advance.

6pm Doors open to the public!

6-8pm Vintage Shopping with tons of amazing  pin-up vendors indoors, and a classic car show (pre-1964 American hot rods) show outdoors. Mix and mingle over food & drinks.

8pm- Midnight Pin-Up Model Fashion show hosted by the amazing Jayme Foxx!

Awards ceremony that crowns the winners of the Texas [model, performer, make-up artist] of the Year titles.

Burlesque Show featuring some of the best performers from all over Texas! MC: The iconic and hilarious Cora Vette of Denver!

Live Music by rockabilly great Johnny Hootrock on Austin.

Meet Coco Lectric, Texas Performer of the Year 2010, at one of two meet and greets to be held at event: one during the day, and one in the evening.  Grab the new issue and get an autograph!

For more details, please visit HotRodsandHeels.com

Notorious Model and Performer Angela Ryan graces the very first Best Of Pin Curl print edition, and sits down with editor Shoshana to discuss fashion, kindergarten, modeling mistakes, and a world without MySpace. Angela Ryan will be signing copies of our inaugural print issue at our Issue Release Party at Gifts and Garters on Dec 5th.

Interview & Photographs: Shoshana of Through the Looking Glass Studio

Q: What’s on your Christmas list this year?

Designer shoes and lingerie will always make me squeal with delight, but on the practical side I would love a new laptop and some new photo editing programs though.

Q: You began modeling before MySpace. How did you get you start?

I started back in 2001 working with a photographer friend and when I got enough photos I started a Yahoo Group. My fan base there grew and I started planning trips to other cities to shoot with well known photographers when I could. I was a cocktail waitress and worked retail and was miserable so I decided that I needed a change. I quit my jobs and started modeling full time in 2004. Luckily, it was the right decision! I love my job now!

Q: How have MySpace/FaceBook/Twitter changed the industry?

I credit MySpace with the real launch of my career. I signed up in 2003 and I don’t know where I would be without it! Social networking sites have changed the way you can promote yourself and make you accessible to millions of people. It’s much easier to make a name for yourself these days. On the down side, since anyone can make a profile claiming to be a “model” it saturates the industry with people who might not take it as a seriously as someone who solely models for a living. You still have to be creative in the way you market yourself to make sure you stand out. Since new sites pop up all the time you really have to be on top of the networking trends.

Q: You refer to yourself as a fetish and pin-up model. There seems there is a lot of crossover between the two in the industry. Are fetish and pin-up completely separate beasts, or do they go hand in hand?

I think for the most part they are separate but they definitely have some common interests. Traditional wardrobe pieces like fully fashioned stockings, garter belts, girdles, and high heels are staples in both
worlds. Many of the top fetish designers now recreate retro looks in latex that many pinup models wear. Bettie Page paved the way to make being both pinup AND fetish more acceptable. I have a love for both and I’m glad I don’t have to choose one above the other!

Q: Who are your favorite fashion designers right now?

For high fashion it’s Alexander McQueen, latex by House of Bias, corsets by Jupiter Moon, and lingerie by Agent Provocateur.

Q: You recently got into the design business yourself, with the Angela Ryan Signature Necklace by Heart Sized Crush. How did this come about. Tell us a little of the design process?

Heart Sized Crush made an adorable necklace for my good friend Devil Doll to sell on her tour. I fell in love with it and she suggested I contact them about making one for me. Since this was my first time designing anything it took a few drafts to come up with the perfect necklace but they were super easy to work with and very patient with me!

Q: In addition to the ton of modeling work, you are also an accomplished performer. How would you categorize your shows?

Burlesque with a fetish twist! I try to blend traditional with modern and always keep it sassy and unexpected! My choreographer Eric Hall works diligently with me on challenging myself technically and creatively and pushing boundaries!

Q: What are the top three mistakes young models and burlesque performers make?

Being unprofessional, caring too much what other people think, and working for less than they are worth. You have to use your mistakes as learning experiences.

Q: What did you want to be when you were in kindergarten?

Madonna. Seriously. That’s who I was every year for Halloween as a kid. I wanted to be a rock star. I still pretend I am sometimes. lol.

For more of the Angela Ryan Interview with tons of unseen photos, grab the Best of Pin Curl 2009 edition. You can purchase in our shop or even better-get an autographed copy at the Issue Release Party on Dec 5th!

Corset designer Jennifer Gonzalez of Jupiter Moon 3 talks shop discussing corsets, time management, Aqua Teen Hunger Force, and evolution.

Q: What’s the story behind the name- Jupiter Moon 3?

It’s a long story.  When I was starting out part time, as a hobbyist, I went through several company names.  Nothing ever felt right, and nothing stuck.  But all of the names I came up with had something to do with planets, I’m not sure why.  I was “Triptych Moon” for a short while, then “Eight Thirty and Earth” after an exciting Burning Man experience in 1999.  Then one night, in 2002, I had a dream that I was on Jupiter with my family.  I looked out at the horizon, as the sun was setting behind me, and in the sky I saw nine of Jupiter’s moons cascading in each others partial eclipse, one behind the other, in a sort of orange-yellow spiral.  It’s the most beautiful thing I have ever dreamed up!  I need to paint that some day!  Why I chose to add the “3″ is a mystery to me.  It’s my lucky number, maybe that’s why.  However, I may drop the 3 eventually, people rarely know it’s part of the name.

Q: Tell us about the early days of Jupiter Moon 3, how did you get your start?

My mom taught me to sew at an early age.  But when it came to corsets, I had to start almost from scratch.  I think it was fate; I was a poor starving artist!  I couldn’t afford to buy a corset.   I was going to college at the time in the Bay Area in California when I got started, in 1997.  I fell in love with Romantasy corsets in San Francisco, and couldn’t afford to indulge.  But I was determined to have a corset, so I started creating my own patterns for simple waist cinchers, it was more affordable.  Gradually I moved on to more intricate underbusts and overbusts.  It was a difficult process, and it took me many years to perfect.  I’m still perfecting my designs, it’s a never ending process.

Q: How did you take your corset making business from a hobby to your full time job?

When I started making corsets and costumes, my designs caught the eye of my friends.  A few of them placed orders with me, then friends of friends, then people who heard of me through word of mouth.  After I moved to Texas in 2000, I started selling as a very part time income, just for fun.  I never thought I could make a career out of it.  After I started selling online in early 2004, my designs were selling like hotcakes, and I was able to make Jupiter Moon 3 my full time career.  I was almost forced to; I was receiving so many orders, I didn’t have time for a “regular” job anymore!

Q: The rewards are often obvious, but what are some of the biggest challenges you face as a small business owner?

I do everything for my business.  Designing, sewing, secretarial work, web design, promotions, everything.  I do this so I can keep my costs down for my clients by not paying someone else to do all of these things for me.  But it creates problems at the same time.  One of my biggest challenges is keeping up with all of those tasks and still finding time to actually sew.  I work about 60 hours a week on average.  Sometimes a lot less, sometimes more.  A 14 hour shift is quite normal for me.  I try to keep my clients happy, and not let them feel neglected, but answering the plethora of emails I receive is increasingly difficult with more and more orders being placed.  It’s something I’m still adjusting to after all this time!  I do find my balance, it just means more hours.  I have to turn down orders occasionally, otherwise I would get too backed up, and orders would just take too long.  But the positives greatly outweigh the negatives, I work at home, I make my own hours, and I don’t have to ask the boss if I can go on vacation, so I don’t complain too often!

Q: What are the have been the biggest evolutions or revelations in your work?

Every day is an evolution.  Every corset brings new challenges, new ideas, new revelations, and my work is constantly evolving, improving, and changing.  I look at corsets I made several years ago, and I can pinpoint every little detail that I have worked through, changed, and improved on with more recent corsets.  I am always adding new details, new support methods, anything to help my corsets and my skills improve.  I will never plateau with my work, it’s a constant challenge to make them better and better.

Q: You have done custom corset and costume creations for some of the biggest names in the industry including Masuimi Max and Angela Ryan. What has been your funniest custom order? Which has been your most challenging?

My funniest costume order has nothing to do with corsets.  When we were dating, my husband asked me to make him a Master Shake costume for Halloween, from Aqua Teen Hunger Force.  It turned out so much better than I could have imagined, and it was hilarious!  He has worn it on three different Halloweens now.   I joined him two years ago as Frylock, with high heels, black hose and garters, since I couldn’t float or make my legs invisible!  It was my first un-corseted costume in more years than I can remember.

My most challenging piece was a costume I recently completed for Masuimi Max.  She wanted a circus costume, and putting together all of my ideas was like putting together a puzzle with no picture to refer to!  I had all of the components in my head, five pieces, but no idea if they would look good together when it was completed.  I challenged myself and went for it anyway.  The skirt in itself was a challenge, the finished edge was over 65 yards of organza with a rolled hem.  It was also the most crystals I have ever added to a piece.  The costume turned out to be my favorite creation yet!  A close second is the Snow Queen costume for Angela Ryan!

Q: Without giving away any trade secrets, can you take us through your creative process? What makes your work so unique & of such high quality?

My creative process is an assembly line.  Most people would probably work on one corset at a time to avoid the monotony.  Not me!  I work on four or five corsets at a time.  On day one, I will iron and interface all of the fabric, then pattern and cut out each one.  On day two or three, I will sew all of the pieces together, including bone accents, making a sort of corset shell.  Then I will cut and tip all of the bones.  I will sew in trims and other accessories.  After that, I will sew each shell to it’s lining and finish the fabric part.  Then I sew on lace, glue crystals, sew on bead work, and whatever else my client wants, those are my crafty days!  On the last day, I will grommet all of the corsets.  This whole process can take days or weeks, depending on the intricacy of the orders, and how many corsets I am working on at the time.

My corsets are quality because I try to pay attention to every stitch.  My corsets are original, and will remain so, because I design my own patterns, and because I taught myself how to make them.  No other designer sews corsets the way I do.  I have a very different process than other corset makers.  All of these details keep my work unique, and I pride myself on quality and dedication to my work.

Q: What should women look for in a quality corset?

The most important factor in a corset is having it made custom.  It’s very difficult for a woman to find an off the rack corset that fits her perfectly.  It does happen, but custom is perfection.  If her grommets are closed at the bottom and open at the top, or vice versa, or even closed in the middle and open at the top and bottom, it’s a bad fit.  She would be so much happier in a custom corset.

Another important thing to look for are the supplies.  Steel boning is a must.  Plastic boned corsets shouldn’t even be considered corsets, in my corset-snob opinion!

Pin Curl Magazine’s Best of 2009 Issue Release Party- Dec 5th during Gifts and Garters! Come on out and get your very own full-sized, full color, glossy copy & have the fabulous cover girl Miss Angela Ryan autograph it for you! This first ever best of issue features all of your favorite entertainers, models, and articles from the online version of the magazine. You won’t wanna miss the opportunity! Tickets for Gifts and Garters available at www.giftsandgarters.eventbrite.com If you miss the party, issues will be available for purchase online starting Dec 10.