Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras 2015 ~ The Retro Equality Project ~ Pinups for Equality!

Hello all!

The Saturday just passed, here in Aussieland was the Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras! Its an annual event that is a chance for the gay community here in Australia to spread their wings, encourage same love acceptance and to wear not a lot of clothing! 

In January of this year I talked about the Retro Equality Project, one I was fortunate enough to be a participant in! The project, as per my original post has the aim of promoting equal marriage rights through the medium of pin up photography! The project started as an idea by incredible Miss Cherry Button as her community project for Pin Up Doll Australia and flourished into something much bigger! Now boasting a photo book and a calendar (get yours at the next Rock n Roll Markets!!) it reached its highest point with the Mardi Gras on Saturday night. It was a blast to be involved not only the project and to work/meet some amazingly passionate women (will talk more about this in a moment!) but also to be apart of a project promoting something I strongly believe in: marriage equality for all!

Before I start, I want take a note to mention two very special people!

This is the brains behind the project, Miss Cherry Button & her fiance. This is the woman who made the Retro Equality Project happen, who made Fair Day and Mardi Gras happen and who is one of the most driven and inspiring young woman I know. Her partner is one of the nicest, none judgmental women I have ever met as well and I truly admire both of these strong women. They embody Retro Equality and what it stands for, which is where I believe Cherry's tenacious drive to make this project a reality comes from.

So when Cherry told me that she wanted to have Retro Equality in Mardi Gras, I put my hand up to help make numbers and it was very exciting that everything was all approved and the day grew closer. To help with number's my mum got an invite (and she came along for the ride too!) and it was so exciting to wake up on Saturday and know that Mardi Gras was today!

After spending the early afternoon getting my petite mother dressed in pinup pride, we headed in to meet the other ladies in the group at the hotel! And it all began!

Walking to the lockout area

We were such a vast collection of ladies! So many different strengths, styles and personalities rolled into one group, all with the one common cause: to show that Pinups Support Equality! We got to the gate for the lockout and our unique style of dress meant we got SWAMPED be photographers! Literally swamped, to the point the police came over and told people they have to move to the other side of the path!

Penelope Quinn, Belle's Be Ringing, Naomi and Steph getting SWAMPED by photographers at the entry gate to the holding area of Mardi Gras

Waiting to go in: Eden L'Amour, Naomi and Penelope Quinn

Once in, we got to hang around and watch all the other participants having fun, getting ready and generally having a chat. We all had SO many photos taken during the wait time, it was honestly a blast!

Lin,  Jewel, Ruby, Cherry, Steph, Belles Be Ringing, My mum, me, Penelope Quinn, Eden L'Amour, Naomi and Kayleigh! All pinups for equality! 

I had the pleasure of meeting Kayleigh and Jewel on the set of the Retro Equality Project shoot (they volunteered their house for part of the shoot!) and they are two incredibly wonderful people! And of course, the same can be said for Cherry and her Lin. Two couples who are Retro Equality!

Our Gorgeous photographer Siobhan Ford and Miss Ruby!

Me with my mum, all dressed in pinup, never thought I'd see the day!

Me and my mum

Some of the boy's walking around

One of the costumes from Mardi Gras. A hibiscus flower!

Waiting for things to start! Belles be ringing, Penelope Quinn, Steph, my mum, Kayleigh, Jewel and Lin!

Ruby with one of the Drag Queens

Naomi with one of the other parade boys!

Then, very quickly it was time to get moving and the excitement really set in for all of us! It was nearly time to strut our stuff and spread our message! You could feel and see the excitement as everyone prepped to begin! Everyone started dancing and there was music everywhere! The atmosphere was intense!

Cherry Button excited to begin!

Role reversal! I picked up my mum!

Pinups for equality all ready to go!

We're all ready to go!

And then finally, it was our turn to start walking!! The entire experience was incredible! SO many people waving, screaming, reaching, wishing each other Happy Mardi Gras! I felt so truly privileged to be part of something so incredible!

High-fives for crowd goers

Pinup's for equality!

Parasol Princess'

More waving!

Jewel and Kayleigh! <3

The incredible Miss Cherry Button

Ruby, Penelope Quinn, Belle's be ringing, Steph, Eden L'Amour and my mum

Pinups for Equality!

Lots of swishing and twirling!

More waving!

Overall the entire experience was incredible and I'm so grateful to Cherry for giving me (and my mum) the opportunity to march in Mardi Gras this year and I know it meant a lot to the people who participated in the march with me as well! Marriage Equality needs to happen. Love does not discriminate, so why should others. Let those in love be in love. Your judgement and your beliefs don't define other people!

I'm going to finish this post with this amazing picture, which I feel embodies everything that is this project and why its important! If you'd like to show your support for the project and/or Cherry Button just click the links! 

Cherry Button will be sharing a stall with me at the next Sydney Rock n Roll Markets for Retro Equality! So if you have any questions or would like to buy any of the products associated with Retro Equality, come and say hello!

All photographs are courtesy of Siobhan Ford Designs who you can find on facebook and Instagram!! 

I'm going to leave that here. Thank you all for reading!

Til tomorrow 

The Retro Equality Project ~ By the lovely Miss Cherry Button!

So mid last year, a call was put out by the amazing Miss Cherry Button, a pinup/alternative model and Burlesque dancer in Sydney for models/photographers/MUAH to volunteer to be involved in a project aimed at raising awareness of same sex marriage equality through the medium of pinups. This was a project that blossomed from her 'community project' for her participation in the Pinup Doll Australia comp, which she took out the winning title for!

And the Retro Equality Project was born!

 I immediately raised my hand and sent an email to be involved! I am an avid believer in equal rights to marriage for all couples, regardless of sexual orientation and the chance to be involved in something to help bring that to the public eye to make people more aware that there are STILL couples in this country that cannot marry their loved one was something I felt very drawn to! I heard back from the lovely Cherry and planning began to setting up models together and shoots with photographers!

How the project worked was the lovely Cherry selected scenes around normal things that couples normally do together such as: go to the beach, shopping, going on a date, spending time in the kitchen because same sex couples do the same things heterosexual couples are characterized at doing! The twist being all of these were done with a pinup feel with 1950's styling! I was paired with my partner for the shoots, fellow Australian pinup model and burlesque dancer Emma Jean Jackson who is a shining example (like the lovely Cherry) of what this project is all about!

The first shoot day was the group shoot! Which involved a picnic between couples and friends in the park! It was a great shoot day which resulted a lot of laughs between us all and I can give you the first sneak peak of that shoot and others today with the project's first photo release!

The picnic scene!

Models: 

Lady Medusa 

Charlotte White 

Miss Osiria Rose

 Emma-Jean Jackson

Photographer: Exkyu Photography

Models: 

Lady Medusa 

Charlotte White

 Miss Osiria Rose

 Emma-Jean Jackson 

Cherry Button

Photographer: Exkyu Photography

There were 3 couples involved in the shoots! The lovely ladies Lady Medusa and Charlotte White were the first couple, depicting adorable scenes of shopping together, sharing a bite of ice cream and a day at the beach!

Models: Lady Medusa and Charlotte White 

Photographer: Exkyu Photography

Models: Lady Medusa and Charlotte White

Photographer: Exkyu Photography

Models: Lady Medusa and Charlotte White

Photographer: Exkyu Photography

Models: Lady Medusa and Charlotte White

Photographer: Exkyu Photography

The second couple....

Who so far we've only been given a teaser of is the amazing founder of Retro Equality Miss Cherry Button and Naomi Hibberd! I'm excited to see more of these two in future picture releases!

Models: Cherry Button and Naomi Hibberd

Photographer: Shane Van Laar

And lastly...

The couple I was involved in! We had a great day shooting, there was a lot of good times and laughter, some of which involved needing a few minutes to compose ourselves! The first sneak peak I can share is one of the scenes we had the most fun in! Cooking!

Models: Miss Osiria Rose and Emma-Jean Jackson

Photographer: What A Big Camera

With this project GROWING as it grew momentum as images slowly begin to be released in the lead up to Mardi Gras, a calendar featuring scenes from this shoot now available for purchase and a photobook on the way as well as possible involvement in Mardi Gras, you'll be sure to see more posts here about this incredible project!

I am so incredibly happy I got the opportunity to be involved in such an amazing project for such a truly amazing cause!

To support this cause you can do the following:

• Follow the page on facebook for future releases and information on things such as the photobook release
• Purchase a Retro Equality calendar ~ $20 plus postage
• Get yourself a copy of Alterlife Magazine issue 4 which has the first feature of Retro Equality for 2015!
• And share the recent post of the images shared here on your own facebook, to help raise awareness of the cause!

I will ask to please not repost any of these images without applying to proper credit to the project, the models and the photographers involved.

More to come as more about this amazing project is released!

Missi aka Miss Osiria Rose