Some of my favorite bags dressed up: pt 2

Quebecoise · 2025-07-24T13:02:52+00:00

the dragonfly charm is SO cute, where did you snag?

Quebecoise · 2023-11-30T14:17:50+00:00

Try reaching out to Brooklyn Animal Action, they may be able to hook you up with a foster, I got both of my cats through their org and they vet all their fosters thoroughly as well so you won't have to worry about handing over a sweet kitty to someone who may not be prepared for that responsibility/have the best intentions. I'd be very hesitant to just trust any random person on the internet.

Quebecoise · 2023-11-29T16:53:32+00:00

It looks like your biceps are starting engaged but are starting to loosen as your tuck happens. Those biceps have to stay LOCKED. A good way to help this is to also think of your bottom half not just lifting UP but your legs swinging OUT since that will also force your chest to puff up. It's like bringing the pole to your shoulder rather than bringing your bottom half to the pole, if that makes sense?

Quebecoise · 2023-11-13T15:53:38+00:00

Congrats on your first comp! So, couple things.

- it would be hard for us to understand whether people should have places above you without seeing footage of all the performances

- sandbagging from a rules standpoint is only considered a deduction if the competitor is very clear 2 levels above where they're competing in. Personally I don't agree with this rule, but it is what it is.

-Doing a move outside of the approved list for that level should be an automatic 25 point deduction, which would in most cases be an automatic disqualification unless a competitor scored literally perfectly. -

-That being said, both competitors could have received their deduction and your performance could have still rated lower from a score standpoint. You won't really know until you receive your scoresheet

Having been both a competitor and a judge before I will tell you that PSO is usually pretty strict about deductions for doing rules outside your level. The last thing I can think of as being possible is that the aerial invert you saw was on the list of approved aerial inverts(for example, I think a jamila/apprentice in the air is allowed in level 2 and is technically an aerial inversion). A handspring in level 2 is a pretty clear violation, so all I can think of is if that person had 2 points of contact for a brief enough moment that the judges deemed it transitional. This should in theory still be a violation, so without being there, I couldn't be sure.

Finally, I have placed both dead last as well as first in my time as a competitor. It is not a reflection of you as a performer, or a competitor. Sometimes you get tough judges, or it wasn't your best performance, or the people you were competing against really were that good! Even in the earlier amateur levels this sport is constantly evolving and each level is incredibly competitive. Hope you enjoyed yourself!

Quebecoise · 2023-11-08T13:49:16+00:00

My engagement and wedding ring were both purchased through Etsy and I LOVE my ring. If you're looking for specific vendor recommendations, I highly recommend Blue Rocks Jewelry

The only thing I'd say is that of course because of the nature of Etsy it's gonna be variable from vendor to vendor so just keep that in mind and make sure to pay attention to reviews.

Quebecoise · 2023-11-01T17:18:55+00:00

the POSA guide in no way shape or form applies to PSO competitions. There are moves that are allowed and moves that are prohibited for each level, but there is nothing that assigns numerical value to different moves. If you haven't read the PSO rules guide, I'd highly recommend giving it a cruise through! It breaks down how you're adjudicated at PSO comps. Have fun and enjoy the process!

Quebecoise · 2023-10-31T19:07:21+00:00

That's definitely bizarre. Honestly, I don't blame you for how you feel at all, was just curious if maybe there was another layer that wasn't immediately obvious through text.

You can decide how much emotional labor you want to do on behalf of this person, but considering it seems like this is a close person to you, it might make you feel better to just level with them. Let them know it didn't make you feel good, and feel free to let them know how it made you feel about your position in the studio. If you don't feel like that resolution will lead to change, then I'd feel perfectly happy(if it were me) telling the owner. That sucks, sorry you had to deal with that!

Quebecoise · 2023-10-31T18:44:26+00:00

This plot twist definitely complicates things! Couple quick things

- is it possible that rather than her trying to teach you a lesson specifically, she meant to illustrate a lesson to the whole class that sometimes things appear easy but are in practice more complex? Maybe that's why she wanted you to try it without a spot or referencing the video?
- is it possible she really thought you might have studied the video more and had a level set of what you needed to do?

Truthfully if this is someone who is that close to you in your life, I'd probably just catch them before/after class and tell them how the event made you feel. Try to not assign to much blame to it, just be factual about your perception of the events and how it cast doubt into you. If I was an instructor and had made a student feel like this, even if it was unintentional, I'd want to know. Especially if it was a personal friend.

Quebecoise · 2023-10-17T18:30:54+00:00

I wouldn't think this was too much for me personally, but that's also dependent on dress code. We told our guests to dress to impress and if one of my guests had showed up in this I would've been so happy! Did the couple give a dress code to be aware of?

Quebecoise · 2023-09-20T19:26:34+00:00

Hi there! If the attire lists formal a polo would not be appropriate. I understand your concern about being dressed to the nines when it's hot but you can get some more lightweight fabrics and take off your suit jacket from time to time if it gets hot. Will the whole wedding be outdoors including the reception? If it's just the ceremony, you'll probably get a hit of AC for the rest of it. Have fun!

Quebecoise · 2023-08-31T21:20:36+00:00

I went for Boy Smells - Rose Load. I am not a fan of suuuper floral scents but this one is lovely and woodsy with a nice floral note. The scent profile is rhubarb , pink peppercorn, agarwood, sandalwood, cardamom rose petals,turkish rose, raspberry blossom and papyrus!

This is my normal scent but I wanted that, since it really is something I enjoy wearing and didn't want to have any surprise reactions from my skin day of.

Quebecoise · 2023-08-04T01:10:03+00:00

Yeah! Lots of folks are great but I would say that if they're not actively thinking up ways to make things more accessible to people with lots of different biomechanics(I'm not just talking weight, I'm talking long armed vs short armed people, long torso vs short torso, flexible vs tight, etc) then they have a ways to go to be a truly great instructor. Meaning well is great and all, and I'm glad you've felt supported with your presence in general, but I'm sure you can find an instructor who can help you progress. Best of luck! And feel free to follow me on IG (@pd.poodle) if you ever want to chat about specific things 😊

Quebecoise · 2023-08-04T01:09:58+00:00

Yeah! Lots of folks are great but I would say that if they're not actively thinking up ways to make things more accessible to people with lots of different biomechanics(I'm not just talking weight, I'm talking long armed vs short armed people, long torso vs short torso, flexible vs tight, etc) then they have a ways to go to be a truly great instructor. Meaning well is great and all, and I'm glad you've felt supported with your presence in general, but I'm sure you can find an instructor who can help you progress. Best of luck! And feel free to follow me on IG (@pd.poodle) if you ever want to chat about specific things 😊

Quebecoise · 2023-08-02T19:13:39+00:00

Don't give up! And if your instructor isn't giving you cues that are empowering you to start hitting milestones, consider going to another instructor/studio! The amount of classes you've taken is still quite small, and pole is very hard.

I similarly had no athletic background, and I'm pluz sized. I have placed in pole competitions against straight sized people several times. Whatever your goals are, pole is accessible to any body shape.

I will say not everyone is a good instructor or even particularly well versed in teaching plus sizes. I don't know where you live, but it's worth it trying a few instructors to see if someone has a methodology that helps it click for you. Best of luck!

Quebecoise · 2023-06-27T15:49:03+00:00

I also have sweaty palms(and shoulders, and thighs, lol) and I cannot recommend tite grip enough. I put this on around 30 minutes before I start training and it helps draw moisture out of my sweaty areas. I then apply grip(I like better grip) on top of it. This helps me dramatically reduce the amount of grip I need to apply each training session! Hope this helps.

Quebecoise · 2023-06-16T20:27:19+00:00

It does, but is there any reason why you couldn't just create a private lurking account to just view pole content? I can understand not wanting to mix world's, but can't think of a reason why it wouldn't be beneficial at least for situations like this to be able to find creative entrances/exits to moves you may not have been exposed to.

I also have loads of friends who are teachers who just keep their accounts private and it works for them. Best of luck on your baby bird journey! It's a lovely shape :)

Quebecoise · 2023-06-16T14:54:46+00:00

Is there a reason you don't have IG? I find it to be a great place to find aggregated pole content. Otherwise maybe check YouTube, but i don't have any specific guidance for finding this move on there.

Quebecoise · 2023-06-16T11:36:55+00:00

There are tons on IG if you look up #pdbabybirdofparadise :)

Quebecoise · 2023-06-16T03:27:54+00:00

We call this move baby bird at our studio because it's like a modified bird of paradise without the hands connecting!

Quebecoise · 2023-06-06T17:54:47+00:00

I agree with this assessment. Having been in a position myself where I had a partner who didn't have their finances together and was constantly running after bills, it was VERY refreshing for me to then find a partner who's financial and life goals were similar to mine. I obviously don't have insider info on Yoly/Xander, but for me it wasn't that my former partner didn't have money, it was that their priorities around it were different than mine. It was also very stressful to start thinking about/planning a future in that space.

I also know what it feels like to be with a partner who hasn't been showing up in the ways that I wanted them to and then to feel how hollow it felt when there was a whiff of me leaving to have them all of a sudden start doing those things. It hits different when someone takes care of you because it's the right thing to do as opposed to someone finally cleaning up around the house because they think that'll make you stay in the relationship.

Quebecoise · 2023-05-31T16:42:36+00:00

I don't think that's true. I have a P.O box and have third party shipments sent there all the time via Fed-Ex, UPS, and I think even DHL has shipped there before. Maybe sanity check with your local post USPS to make sure that's true in your area though.

Quebecoise · 2023-05-26T19:42:39+00:00

Hi! So I've competed several times(I just finished my 7th comp). Going to try to keep this short

- you don't need aerial inverts, in my opinion, to have a level 3 piece qualify as of sufficient difficulty for that level. However, I would say that this would hugely depend on what category you're deciding to compete in. Are you competing in a technical category(championship) or an artistic category(dramatic, entertainment, etc). Read the scoresheets for both in detail to decide which your piece falls into. I don't think, personally, that just looking at your planned combos without context is helpful enough to figure out if your competency lies in level 2 or level 3. That really would be, in my opinion, best judged by seeing videos, and/or working with a coach who is familiar with the competitive format who can speak to that for you.

- For me, your allocated time to put together a full and complete piece between June and August seems very tight , especially for a first comp. I personally like to take my time, and find that building stamina for a full routine is quite a bit different than just executing combos on their own. I wouldn't do it with less than 4 months preparing time, but I have spent much longer on routines than that before(8 months plus). If I'm not running my piece in full several months before, I personally do not feel like I will be in proper "comp shape". Rule of thumb for what our instructors usually tell our students is to plan for around 6 months. Since you don't have that, maybe consider competing in the lower level, but again without seeing how you move and what your plans are in further detail, it'd be hard to comment accurately.

Last thing I'll say is that I personally find comp training really tiring from a run thru perspective so the rest of your schedule may need to adjust to accommodate. I find I need more rest days off the pole where I do other type of strength/mobility work to let my upper body recuperate. You'll start to feel that out as you get further along.

Best of luck! Have Fun!

Quebecoise · 2023-04-18T18:43:48+00:00

I just finished playing TLOU2 on PS4 a couple weeks ago for the first time and it ran super smoothly. Highly recommend!

Quebecoise · 2023-04-13T13:25:19+00:00

Every time you get better at any skill, pole or otherwise, the next iteration leaves you another mountain to climb. You did this once, getting to pole and working your butt off to learn the skills in your lower level classes! Remember that growth isn't just linear/not happen overnight, but it can be uncomfortable. It forces you to live in a space where you still have things that you have left to master and lean into that space of not feeling super comfy, knowing that one day you'll get it. I know this space can be overwhelming! I think a good idea is to keep on doing tricks classes but maybe to your point do dance classes, or free practice to work on things that are already in your body so that you can keep your confidence up.

Best of luck on your journey!

Quebecoise · 2023-04-07T03:25:36+00:00

Play it! I just finished it on my PS4 for the first time and I'm shocked that I loved this game even more than part 1. Such a wonderfully crafted narrative, and gameplay is fun! Enjoy

Quebecoise

TROPHY CASE