Exclusive Interview with Blu Hydrangea
Blu Hydrangea, welcome back to Spill the Tea my love, it was less than a month ago since we sat down together, how are you doing?
I'm really good, you must be sick of looking at my beautiful face by now!
Never, never.
No I'm really good, I'm just back from a holiday in France and just chilling, my little toesies are so sore from all the walking I did around Disneyland.
I’m hoping in trainers not heals!
Yes, I did take a few days off the heals.
That's good, so of course last time we spoke you said you hadn't really left the house since you're crowning and you hadn't really gone out, now that you've gone out and done a few gigs has it sunk in yet?
Absolutely I mean there's only so many times I can say Queen of the Mother Tucking World in one night but I do try and say it more. You know, it's been amazing honestly, I've been to Surrey, I've been to London, I've been recognized in Disneyland, it's been crazy and I can't wait for DragCon LA which is coming up which I feel like that will be the moment where I will feel like a queen.
I was devastated I wasn't there for Surrey, I was so upset I was on holiday.
Oh are you close?
Yeah like 10 minutes away from the venue.
Oh my goodness, it was so cute I really had an amazing time honestly.
Now we're not here to talk about Drag Race Crownings because you've been a part of another competition series called ‘Stitch Please’ tell me all about it what's the show about?
Oh my goodness well it's about two stitches per episode and I give them a 100 point budget and 12 hours to create an outfit based on a thing that I've given them, for example there's Hunger Games, Met Gala, Clueless which is a very camp episode and it's people who have used their art form to get through things or to make themselves happy, they love and have a passion for it and if you love Glow Up, if you love Drag Race it's very on that kind of vibe, it has its moments where it's fun, it has those moments where it's heartfelt too. These people have great stories and they're like my kids, I get to be the RuPaul though and the worst thing is always choosing a winner, I'm sure for Ru it's almost easy, like oh yeah just let that person win but for me it was emotional turmoil to try and figure out who was the best that week because they're all good.
Dream crusher!
That's what I felt like.
Well I mean you should be used to that * Coughs * PANGINA * Coughs *
That actually should have been introduction into that because we filmed UK Vs the World in between the pilot episode and then the rest of the series. The pilot episode is probably the most heart-breaking decision I've ever had to make then, Pangina not so bad and then the rest of these episodes you know, it got a bit easier as it went along.
I can imagine, what was it like hosting, being on the other side?
It was so fun, I just got to sit in my dressing room, eat pringles, grapes and crap and then I got to just put on my drag and then… they call it sharking, where you look and just walk around people and give them evil looks and judge what they are doing. Then I got to go back up and watch Drag Race and Netflix whilst they worked away, it was great, I imagine that's what RuPaul's like except I didn't get to wear my tracksuit bottoms. But yeah, very fun very exciting and it really does feel like you're creating like a little family because you're just watching them suffer but also giving them time to create and do what they love.
Did you find yourself wanting to help anybody having been on the other side as a competitor? Did you find yourself being like nudge nudge?
Absolutely yes, because I know what time constraints are like on a tv show and I’ve been in those kind of situations where if you're too ambitious then you'll get nothing done, you won't be successful in what you're trying to create at all, so I tried to you know nudge as RuPaul would, give little nuggets, I think Mo Heart (who competed with Blu on Drag Race Vs the World) called them, nuggets of information and some of them took my advice, sometimes I even have to get hands-on I think there's an episode about pop culture, it was the pilot episode that we filmed and at one point I was hot gluing rhinestones onto things and everything but yeah it's fun. You really do see the car crashes before it happens, it's almost like Final Destination, you're like oh that's not gonna work.
You can see it coming, why did you want to be involved with Stitch Please?
Well first of all it's a Northern Irish production company, which obviously support your home talent and then just the idea of it is fabulous! It's so in touch with drag and what we do and it's just great, it's very Glow Up as I've said and I love that show and I definitely see how this can be as big. It's filled with talent and personalities and… Me! So why wouldn't you want to watch?
Of course! If you were taking part in the show which week's theme would you have liked to have done?
Probably the Met Gala because you can go crazy with that, you could take inspiration from everywhere and anything and you could have reveals and it would just be very camp. Very Lady GaGa when she just takes off more and more outfits.
Very nice, I'd have 100% done the Hunger Games, I'm a massive fan.
That one was probably one of my favourites if I’m honest, those queens turned it out, they made like cosplay armour it was really impressive.
Outside of the show when you create your looks, which you're very known for on your socials and on Drag Race, how do you go about the process or how involved you like to be?
When it comes to my fashions my garments I can't sew as well as someone else could so I normally try to outsource that but I will always have such a creative say in what I want, I will normally draw up little crappy sketches on my iPad and send them over and then say do this but better! When it comes to my makeup that is very hands-on, that is 100% me. Sometimes the inspiration comes from someone else or an artist or something I find like a pair of earrings that just inspired me to create a whole look and that is all 100% me. Obviously give credit if there is a inspiration source.
When you do create looks would you prefer to have a blank canvas or do you like to have a theme like on Drag Race for example?
Oh that's hard, it’s kind of fun creating stuff for a brief for Drag Race, it also adds pressure and closes you in a little bit because although you can think , well maybe I could take this and go mad with it, if you hit that runway on Drag Race and the judges don't get it then you're in trouble. But, it's nice to have a blank canvas sometimes, I will always try and do the most so I'll have things coming out of the hair, I'll have lots of jewellery, so sometimes it's almost nice for someone to go okay just hold back a little bit. Maybe some of my looks on Drag Race were a little marmite and I think that's going to be where it could have turned people off them a little bit, where I try and do too much.
100%, I've done cosplay before and sometimes when you're doing it you have to really hold back and make sure that you don't go too far, there's that fine line.
I would very much love to see that but yes, I always find that I do too much and Shea and Raja were the two that did fashion photo review for our season and they were looking for fashion and I was not ready to give them fashion pieces, I was giving art. If you stand in a gallery besides someone who's doing fashion you will want to come and see me, that's what I want.
Exactly and you have to be careful depending where you're going because that's what I found at my first Comic-Con, I was stupid and I had the biggest gun I made out of foam and I was just smacking people, I was like bam, bam, I'm sorry, I'm sorry! So I spent the whole day apologizing because I had stupid accessories.
Did you make it yourself?
Yeah, I went as Rocket from Guardians of the Galaxy, so I had a full wetsuit fur mask and I built a massive gun because of course I'm small anyway but it had to be massive for me to seem like a racoon, it was cool.
Michael for season two of Stitch Please!
Yeah. well actually I mean I just wore it, my partner did most of the work, I just took the credit at the end.
That's very me and that is a common issue, my first Drag-Con I wore this big hula hoop as a skirt and it fell off and then I thought I need to get rid of this because another queen will come and trip over it, so I flung it into the crowd and this girl got smacked up the face with it! There's standing in heals, being too hot, there's so many things to think about when you go to leave the house in Drag.
You have to you have to plan your day! I don't know if you remember last time but we played a little game called Piping Hot Tea where it was quick fire questions that need quick fire answers back. I just thought we'd do another little fun round if that's okay with you?
Let's do it
Would you rather sew a look or pay someone to do it?
Pay someone! That is so bad.
How well do you think you would have done on Stitch Please if you competed?
I think I would have won, absolutely.
Do you hope it comes back for another season?
Yes, many!
What would you hope that your drag tombstone would say about you?
Innocent face but a venomous tongue
Looking back at your design challenges on Drag Race, do you cringe or do you stan?
I stan, I STAN!
What's your best sewing tip?
Just pick nice fabric, if it looks like crap at least the fabric's nice.
And finally if you could create a look for anyone dead or alive who would you create one for?
Oh my goodness, you know what, I would love to do a proper full-on makeup look on Lady GaGa, I feel like she could pull it off or maybe Bjork, I could see her in one of my makeup looks, especially because Is She Hungry on Instagram has done Bjork's makeup and it's incredible. I'd love to see her in a Blu creation.
I'd like to end the interview with a little shout out to another King, Queen or queer performer did you have anyone else? Last time you gave it to Yshee Black.
I did and she messaged me because my quote is like she's always drunk or in drag!
I think because Stitch Please is an Irish production company we'll keep it Northern Irish, I'm gonna give it to my good sister Electra La C*nt, she is an advocate for anyone in the queer community and works really hard to ensure that everyone feels comfortable at their shows and is someone I always looked up to. There was one year and there was this massive thing in politics where people were talking about people with HIV so she wore a crown with HIV blood on it because obviously once it touches the air, you can no longer transmit the disease and she wore that for the whole pride parade. It was such a statement, it was so important, it was her best friend's blood as well. She’s just such an incredible performer artist and advocate and I feel like she deserves the platform.
Awesome!
Thank you so much Michael.
Thanks sitting down with me again, I've seen the pilot episode but I can't wait to see the rest.
I can't wait for you to see it. You can be on the second season.
Sure, only if you help me, give me all the tips when the camera's off! As I said, I can't wait to watch the rest of the season and I’m sure we'll catch up again soon at some point.
Speak soon, lots of love.
You can catch Stitch, Please! on BBC Three, Monday 18th April at 8.30pm and BBC One Northern Ireland on Wednesday 20th April at 10.45pm and the show will also be available on BBC iPlayer.
Note: Some of this interview has been edited from the original transcript to help with readability.