Studio Davina

What is a “Dina-Styled Bra?”

You might find yourself in a situation where you’ve bought a used costume, take out the lining and discover there’s something missing underneath. 

You take out the lining, take out the padding, and you’re left with a a pair of thick round dome-shaped or bowl-like buckram cups. Transforming, redesigning or even refitting a Dina bra is difficult and daunting project. 

One of my long-time costume collaborators Azura, sent me this photo and I thought this would be a straightforward “alter and fit” project.

What I could see from the photo is that the band and straps were too stretchy to offer good support for her bust.  The straps and band were also an odd and clashing color choice that didn’t flatter her skin or match the costume.

However, from this angle, I couldn’t see the full cup shape. This was, in fact, a dreaded Dina Bra style base.  Dina style bras have distinctive circular-shaped cups with a very thin connector, low on the bra. 

Dina Bras are designed for enhanced bustlines that require less structural support.  This style is not designed to carry the weight and provide security for dancers with large natural bustlines. It provides coverage for a large bustline but without the shaping of a traditional bra.

Altering a Dina Style bra

After tackling several bras of this style, I find the easiest approach is to use a good-fitting and supportive strapless style bra as a base support and apply the Dina Bra to the top of it.

This new bra base should roughly follow the contours of the Dina bra. Just keep in mind that a commercial lingerie bra base might require a thicker center gore.  If your center gore needs to be thicker, go with what you need for support and use surface embellishments to mask any differences.

 

Note: Bra prices vary radically. You might already have a strapless in your collection that you can repurpose.  Put out a call to your friends in dance and your local community to see if you can source a pre-loved bra to save some cash.  These three examples are for illustrative purposes, but if you choose to use one of my Amazon links, thank you!

But how do you sew a Dina Bra?

I tend to use a hand-sewing technique with a heavy-duty needle, a metal thimble, and a pair of pliers.  It’s helpful to have a clamp to hold the bra in place while I work with both hands. 

If I have a bra with no embellishments at the outer edges, I will use my sewing machine.  This is my preferred method, but one that is out of reach for this particular project.  

Once the collaborator has acquired a new bra base, I will resume work on this tricky project.  Watch for an update later in the year.

Now off to have another costuming adventure!
Dawn Devine ~ Davina
March 2026

 

Sahary-Djeli: the Marvelous Hindu Dancer c. 1908

Sahary-Djeli is one of the most fascinating performers of the Salomania era between 1906 and 1915.  During this decade, she appeared on stages across Europe from London to Prague.

In 1908, at the height of Salomania, dancers used inventive ways to differentiate themselves from other similarly styled “Oriental” performers.

In Paris, legendary Hungarian dancer, Sahary-Djeli, who adopted the title Hindou Dancer. She competed not only with the flood of Salomés but head-to-head with the more infamous Mata Hari.

“La Vie Illustreé,” a popular weekly illustrated newspaper.  The August 26, 1908, cover featured Sahary-Djeli, but she was featured in a short, multi-image article.  Less of a critique, and more of a love letter.  This is a translation made by me with the assistance of Google:

“If she danced like all the other opera dancers, she would be their equal. But she prefers to be something else.  She is Sahary-Djeli, the mysterious Hindu dancer, and no one can approach the grandeur of her artistry.  She is unique, inimitable, rare, and extremely precious.  She commands only admiration.”  

Previous Articles about Sahary-Djeli here and here.

Parisian residents could see Sahary’s smiling out from the newsstands throughout the city, giving her celebrity-level exposure.  Amplifying her cache and reach!

There’s more primary source material hiding out in the archives of Europe. My source for more information about Sahary-Djeli continues.

Want to read the article yourself?
Visit the Gallica Website. Read the article here.

Dawn Devine ~ Davina
March 2026

 

Happy New Year!
Let’s Finish This Book!

It’s the first week of February 2026 as I write this brief note for my friends, family, and readers worldwide. My prime mission for the year is to finish the rewrite of “Costuming From the Hip.”  

2025 was a productive year on this project, and I’ve got a pile of content to edit.  The text needs both a machete and a fine-tooth comb. The “past” photos need to be printed out and put on the wall.  We will then stand back to see if they visually work together and are of the same quality, even though some of the images are quite old.

Along with the text, photos, and illustrations, we also need to create a new set of diagrams using modern illustration tools to ensure a consistent line weight throughout all the images. When we made the first book, the diagrams were a combo of hand drawings and very early computer graphics software.

Watch the video for more info, and be sure to sign up for our newsletter.  

Belly Dance Mini-Magazine

Magazines offered curated content, without the kerfuffle of hunting down quality information on the internet. In 2026, I’m looking forward to presenting 10 issues of the Mini-Mag for you to enjoy when you want to immerse yourself in the world of belly dance and costume history.

Thank you for your support and for continuing this journey with me!
Dawn Devine ~ Davina
Feb 2026

Ready for more about costuming?  Check out last year’s “Blue Mermaid” project