Welcome to Rita's Website.  I love the dance and I love sewing and making things.  One seems to breed the other and thus I have a house full of stuff I need to share - this is a place I can do that.   

I offer a number of services: teaching, dressmaking and costume refurbishment and I have a number of costume and craft items for sale.  Follow the products or services link to find out more.  Have a browse - window shopping is free!

Rita

Who is Rita?

Rita Williamson is an Essex girl who moved north to the Cumbria fells in 1995.

I started belly dance classes in Penrith with Tine Valois in 1998 and have been dancing and listening to Middle Eastern music ever since.  I live with my husband (Mark, a Space Technology Consultant) and two boys (11 and 8) in the Eden Valley in an old house with a huge garden in sight of the Pennine Hills.

I am (and have been for 18 years) self-employed as a dressmaker and writer.  What do I sew?  Bridal wear and belly dance wear.  What do I write?  Romantic fiction and stuff on belly dancing.

In 2007, I changed direction in my dance, partly because Tine moved to Denmark, but also because you can’t be a student all your life!  I took the JWAAD Teacher Training Foundation Course and now teach beginners' and improvers' classes at the local Adult Education Centres in Cumbria.  I also continue to dance with our old class and share the administration and planning that goes hand in hand with running a dance group.

When not working, gardening or ignoring the housework, I dabble in a variety of crafts from salt dough modelling to silk painting.  I am a regular speaker at local WI’s and women’s groups, talking on a variety of subjects which include wedding superstitions and belly dancing.

Rita’s views on life:

Life’s too short to iron.  Kids are worse than bosses.  No sequin is too large.  Mills & Boon don’t know what they’re missing. 

Contact Information

If you have any questions or queries, just email and I'll answer as soon as I can.  If you want to speak directly to me, please phone after 6pm when you can usually get hold of me.  I respect  'snail mail' and love the thump of letter on doormat - so don't be afraid to put pen to paper.