At Milk Makeup, we’re proud to support the LGBTQIA+ community and the immense creative cultures within it. That’s why for Pride Month 2023, we’re celebrating ballroom culture. Ballroom has long been the site of creativity. But even as the spotlight on ballroom and its community gets brighter, the story of the people behind it, particularly the Black trans femmes who have an outsize influence on ballroom culture, don’t always get the recognition they deserve. We’re here to give them their flowers.
Stay tuned throughout the month as we share the stories of four Black trans femmes from The Artistic Haus of Telfar and their thoughts on ballroom, beauty, and beyond.
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Symone Telfar is beautiful. That is a fact that no one can deny. But to count her out as just a (trophy-winning) face would be a mistake. As the reigning Overall Mother of the Haus of Telfar, she’s stepped into her strategic era. And it’s with this family that she’s finding a newfound respect she didn’t experience at other houses she’s been in. Before, she felt as if she was seen as someone who could just bring home trophies. Now, the fullness of what she has to offer is loudly celebrated. “Telfar saw me as an asset to the house,” she says. And that she is. Between storming categories herself and providing the type of advice and foresight that only comes from an experienced mother, she’s helping to usher in a new era of the still-young Haus of Telfar. Read on for Symone Telfar’s first experiences with makeup, the category she is dying to walk, and to learn all about the type of mother she is. How did you first come to the ballroom or kiki scene?I came to the kiki scene first. I was introduced through my older cousin. It was my birthday, I had nothing to do, and he was going to an event. I asked if I could go and it ended up being my first ball. I was 17. It was the HMI Awards Ball. I remember going into that room, and we were walking through an empty building until we went through this one door. From there, it was a whole different world. People were voguing, mixing, and mingling—I really just fell in love. From there, I met my ex-gay mom and she introduced me to the scene. |
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Break down an awards ball.
It’s like the Grammys for ballroom. It’s like the BET Awards. It’s multiple different accolades and accomplishments that people get recognized for. If you get recognized for your category at an awards ball, it’s kind of like elevating your social status, lowkey. They are saying you’re the best of the best in that category and everybody is going to know you now. It’s fab.
What’s a category you always wanted to walk but haven’t walked?Voguing. I can do a little, but I’m so scared to throw myself on the ground. I’m too precious to fall and bump my head. But I’ve walked most of the other categories. What’s your favorite category?Face. I love face. That’s the category I dominate in the kiki scene. The glamour of getting dolled up and putting on a show—I love all of that. It’s really me stepping on the floor and showing the best person I can put forward. I love the push and pull moment of “Oh, I want to know what she’s going to do next,” because every time I come out it’s a different person. What is the role that beauty plays in your life and your ballroom career?I was a freelance makeup artist for five years. So when I’m learning new tips and tricks in my makeup, it just adds on to what I can do in ballroom. If the category is calling for Winter Galactic Face and I need prosthetics and all that, I can do that. Nine times out of 10, I do my own makeup all the time because I don’t really trust other people when I have to walk and I want to win. |
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What’s your earliest memory with makeup?
I remember while I was in middle school, my mother had this MAC compact. I didn’t really know what it was, but I remember taking the sponge and dabbing it on my face. It didn’t really make a difference, but I felt like I did something. I felt like my mom. I think she also had mascara, a pink tube that was either MAC or Maybelline. I remember trying to put that on.
How has your makeup style changed over time?
It’s changed as I’ve transitioned. When I first started, I was in my past life and was a little more androgynous with makeup. Sometimes, even over the top. Now I tone it down. I do have my days where I tap into that, but the evolution from 2017 to now…it’s just different. It’s not blocky brows any more or that harsh contour. It’s calm now.
Break down one of those looks you did for a ball. How did it go from inspiration to execution?One moment I can remember is a ball that was calling for us to bring it as The Little Mermaid. I’m a bigger girl, so I didn’t know how I was going to do it. I didn’t know how it would come across. I didn’t want to do what everyone else was going to do, which was a mermaid tail or a sort of fish out of water look. I wanted to do Little Mermaid with her legs. Really, this stunning beauty. I saw this dress that had this dripping water effect, sent it to my designer, and had him recreate it with all these seashells on it. For my hair, I did this red slick-back moment with my makeup fully blown. In ballroom, there are different types of mothers—trophy mothers, working mothers. What kind of mother are you?
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That’s what I’m working on is creating a format to get the girls where they want to be. I really like working with them because I’ve been there and I didn’t have anybody who knew how hard it is for a trans girl. I take pride in doing that behind-the-scenes stuff of helping to plan out looks or helping outside of ballroom, just checking up on them with school or daily life.
What do you want to be remembered for?
I want to be remembered for being me, being unapologetically me. Original. Organic. A sweetheart, but also stern. I ain’t taking no BS.
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