If you price out the cost of silk, supplies, electricity, listing fees, not to mention the time involved, making veils for a living is not the most profitable venture when they are priced at my normal range of $35 for Avatar and $49 for ombres. Rest assured I keep an eye on the market and I try to find the most affordable silk even if it means buying it in large bulk so that I can pass the savings on to you. True..when I started dancing a very average silk veil was $60. When I started selling veils I calculated a quick guide that would cover my expenses and give me a bit for my time but the most important thing ALWAYS has been to get silk in to the hands of dancers who want it.
Aside from bellydancers who use the silk for performance I have been blessed to supply many different kinds of people with silk..I won’t list them all here but I will say online and to dancers is by far not even close to the exposure or type of audience I get requests from. It’s like magic that certain folks who need the silk find A’Kai..thru images or from a friend, trolling the net..casual shopping..
I have had many non-dancers buy silk from me because for whatever their personal reason they are comforted by its ‘presence’ of something almost angelic. I was reminded of this quality of silk and the wonderful healing properties of not necessarily dancing with silk in a technique way but holding it in one’s fingers and simply letting it dance on a breeze outside. Or even sleeping next to it at night with a prayer for good dreams.
I recently lost a very close friend to a sudden death..I saw this friend almost five days a week because of our apartment proximity and we quickly became friends ..the loss was devastating..I felt almost as if my twin spirit was missing. Coincidentally the same day of his recent death I had made a veil, it was dry but i never opened it up to examine the pattern..it was days later during the grieving process that I discovered one of the veils made that day was very special..it had twin hearts with what appeared to be angel wings under each heart. Of course I kept the veil and feel it is a special link between Tim and me not only for its perhaps accidental intended design but that I had made it the same day he died.
I started sharing the story about the veil on grievance sites and with others who had experienced a loss..they were very intrigued..as you know the veil is often a ‘symbol’ for that thin line we say that exists between life and death. The twin hearts veil is not a performance veil but before hanging it on my bedroom wall i let the wind swirl through it and the movement ..and seeing the wind in the silk..made me feel we are never alone. So inevitably a ‘market’ opened up to supply veils to those who have lost someone and see the veil as a healing tool.
Between that thought..I feel so fortunate to be able to offer the veils if it helps someone. Many of you know I used to work in hospice nursing which is very rewarding..sad but when you can help someone in a grieving process often they will cling to you and giving support to another broken person to help them find their wings again..well it was very rewarding work.
Events like this remind me that I didnt start dyeing veils with the intention of making money..I have always felt like making sure silk is in the hands of those who desire it is the number one reason to do this. it’s a form of priestess-work. I have been told, on numerous occasions, by my Sufi teacher Adnan Sarhan that making sure dancers have silk is my purpose in this lifetime. I take that very seriously.
Obviously I can’t give away veils, but you won’t find any absurd pricing from me. Again I don’t pay for warehouse rental, I don’t pay for assistants to help me with emails..or shipping..etc. It’s from my hands or vision to you. I’m not in the business to make money or be “fairly compensated” from an egotistical artist point of view what I think I deserve for doing something that comes naturally as a gift from the angels and being blessed that others feel drawn to them. Now..this goes for veils obviously clothing garments and skirts are different. But when I look at veils and their many uses and the humbled blessed feeling when someone writes and tells me their personal veil story..it is my MISSION to make sure that as many people get their own A’Kai veil before I leave this Earth.
I know other artists and business vendors may want to beat me up for saying these words but I hope it is understood this was NEVER supposed to be a money maker..yes I can retire the nurse profession and live well right now but I want to remove that pressure of selling for profit and just focus on envisioning a world covered with dancing silk. I’mnot trying to undercut the market or enrage other artists and if you have ‘words of advice’ about my lower than market pricing, honestly I’d rather not hear it. My intentions are different from yours. Please let it be.
So please help me with this..let’s see if a satellite can pick up a strange image of multiple veils all over our globe..and then send some to the moon and other planets as well 
with love and hope for you all
