A BURLESQUE performer and founder of a Coleford-based vintage makeover and photography studio has been named runner-up in the Miss Pin-up UK competition.

Thw owner of Betty Noir Photography, who uses the stage name Tallulah Von Wilde, took part in the competition in Bristol on October 22.

She said: “It all started with my love for vintage. From a very young age, I remember admiring my granddad’s 1950s kitchen units and falling in love with my nan’s old costume jewellery. 

“I was determined that once I was old enough to have my own home, I would have a 50s kitchen of my very own.

“I spent the first 28 years of my life struggling with extreme shyness and social anxiety, so dressing the way I wanted to was not an option for me. 

“After years of battling with depression after the sudden and unexpected loss of my dad when I was 21, I finally started to push myself outside of my comfort zone, in pursuit of a life of happiness.

“The change was quick and even more incredible than I could have hoped for. I entered and won a local photography competition, which gave me the confidence to take the plunge and create Betty Noir Photography – the business and career I’d always dreamed of.

“It’s a combination of everything I’m passionate about, photography, vintage and pin-up styling and making other women feel good about themselves. 

“I’ve been met with nothing but positivity from friends, family and perfect strangers passing on the street.

“I have a lot of older gentlemen tell me how they remember their wife used to do their hair like mine, or wear a dress like mine. It’s so heartwarming to see them reminisce and hear their stories.

“I found myself wanting to push out of my comfort zone more and more. I started attending some local burlesque classes for fun and fitness. Then I decided to approach a fabulous burlesque artiste and friend of mine Kitty Ribbons, to help me take my burlesque a step further. I signed up for her classes and have never looked back.

“With Kitty’s encouragement, I decided to enter Miss Pin-up UK 2017.

At the semi-finals I performed one of my favourite acts “Hula Tallulah”, where I’m a hula girl on the dashboard of a car. As my driver works through the radio stations in search of a rockin’ tune, the temperature soon heats up. 

“I made it through to the finals, I made it through along with 10 other fabulous pin-ups, and my act was a fun and cheeky feather fan dance, using Carmen Miranda as my inspiration. I’m over the moon that I placed as runner-up.”

More information on Tallulah Von Wilde and Betty Noir Photography can be found on Facebook.