Mehiras Jewels

Visit my shop at http://www.mehirajewel.webs.com

Selling Namaste fair trade clothing and gifts, and clothing and gifts hand made by myself and Desert Jewels. In our bid to be greener we use old scraps of material and beads etc that have fallen off things to make new items such as bags, cushion covers, jewellery, purses and revamp old costumes. The site is new and making things takes time so check frequently to see what new creations are on offer! There is also a section for second hand dance items, if you have an item you would like to sell contact me to arrange.

Welcome to Diana Mehiras bellydance site. Here you will find information on my current classes, performances and shows. As well as lists of other good websites to visit, interesting facts and details about bellydance. New to the site is the souk, where you can request information re items for sale. I will either bring items to class on request or the souk will travel to your event.

I began bellydancing about 9 years ago now, first attending an evening class on a weekly basis, then gradually attending workshops around the country and going on dance holidays learning more and more. I also began buying or borrowing videos of famous dancers and teaching videos to watch, this i believe is where i learnt the most from. Gradually i developed my style and began to perform at restaurants, weddings and parties. I now run regular dance courses in Derby, and perform at events around the country. Bellydance is a wonderfully empowering dance, when you decide to join a class you will find that it opens up a whole new world to you and you'll wonder why you didnt take it up years ago!

Bellydance has mysterious origins, no one is really sure exactly where it came from. Some say it came out of India with the original Gypsys, some say it began with the temple dancers of ancient Egypt and Persia. The moves have been linked to fertility dances, birthing aids, ritual and sexual. The modern image of a belly dancer in the sexy two piece costume is an image created by Hollywood in the early 1930's onwards. Most middle eastern dancers who performed in public were well covered up until the popularity and romance of the dance spread across Europe and America. Whatever its origins, today bellydance has spread across the world, and is now evolving into new forms- Tribal, fusion, Gothic, Cyberfusion... The old preconceptions of bellydancers being wonton seductresses and/or prostitutes, are being replaced with bellydance gradually becoming a mainstream dance suitable for theatrical shows and morning tv! Thank goodness, only a few years ago, when i told people i was a bellydancer, their response was usually one of raised eyebrows and a 'Oh ai!' with a wink (if male) images of erotic dancing racing through their minds. Or a simple 'Oh' said in a very superior way, (by women). Now people tend to be a lot less shocked or offended, most women i say that too now say -'oh id love to have a go at that'. And even some men!..

If you would like to contact me to discuss performing at your event, just visit the contacts page. Note i do not perform for all male parties! Visit the classes page for details of current classes and workshops.