Michelle’s love for dance started at the age of six when she began participation in ballet and tap classes. She became interested in bellydance when her mother enrolled in a bellydance class in the 70’s and with her background in anthropology, the study of ethnic dance was a natural progression.

Michelle has studied the art of bellydance since early 2002, including Suhaila Salimpour technique (currently working towards her Level 2 Certification), Jamila Salimpour Format (Level 2 certified), various forms of Tribal Bellydance, and Raqs Sharqi. She has also supplemented her knowledge of dance and movement by taking Bharata Natyam, classic burlesque, and yoga classes.

She also enjoys performing at tattoo conventions, where she developed her signature style of incorporating the poses and facial expressions of the pin-up girls of the 40’s and 50’s into her dancing. In 2008, Michelle's life was changed when she had the honor of debuting her ’Pin-up Bellydance’ workshop at Tribal Fest 8. Since then, she has traveled to teach her unique stylization of bellydance at festivals and seminars associated with Tribal and alternative bellydance. In addition, she accepted the position of the producer of Tribal Dance Camp in Texas in association with Bahaia and HOT Seminars.

Whenever Michelle’s not bellydancing or producing bellydance events, she enjoys participating in pin-up photography photo shoots. She has modeled for some of her favorite designers, such as Poison Candy Fashion and Geisha Moth. In 2010, one of her photos was included in Gayla Partridge’s photography book: "666 Photography: Of Virgin Queens and High Camp Divas." She can be contacted at
info@pin-upbellydance.com.