Melbourne Drag Queen’s Woolworths Shopping Bags Dress Goes Viral

Melbourne-based drag performer Onda Spectrum’s new three-piece dress with boots, which she created using 99c green reusable Woolworths shopping bags, has gone viral.

Onda, a PhD student who works at Woolworths, posted photos and videos of her new creation on her Instagram page last month. It soon went viral with over a million views. The dress had multiple reveals – the sleeveless dress gives way to a corset skirt, which then reveals a one-piece skin-tight leotard inside – all made with green shopping bags. 

“Serving body hunty xx,” Onda posted on Instagram along with videos of her new dress. “Is that a Service 60 or are you just happy to see me?” In another post she tagged Woolworths. “Let me know if you need a new pride ambassador,” said Onda.

Onda Used Over 50 Shopping Bags For The Dress

 

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A post shared by Ondä Spectrum (@onda.spectrum)

Onda is in the final months of submitting her PhD thesis. “It was ostensibly exciting, but mostly what’s getting me through now is adding post-nominals to my drag name,” Onda tells Star Observer. The Woolies dress was meant to be a joke for her friends, but the overwhelming response to it surprised her. 

“I work at Woolies so I just thought it would be a funny joke for my friends. I really wanted to play on something being well constructed but out of a ‘joke’ material. And I enjoyed the challenge of creating something within narrow confines,” says Onda.

Working with unconventional materials posed some challenges. “It wasn’t difficult per se, but it was very labour-intensive. I think I used around 50 or so bags, plus the lining fabrics in the jacket and corset,” says Onda. 

And if you are wondering if the dress was hot-glued, Onda reveals, “I sewed most of it and used hot glue for the boots.”

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

Over a million people have seen her dress on social media, with many praising her for recycling and repurposing the shopping bags. 

“I have really appreciated that a lot of people have aligned the dress with the “reduce, reuse, recycle” mindset. However it was not my intention at all, I really just thought it was a funny joke that my friends would see,” she says, adding “Had I known it was going to be seen by over a million people, I most definitely would have cleaned my apartment a little better.”

While fans might bump into her around Smith Street in inner north Melbourne, you can catch Onda in her viral outfit at one of her gigs.

For her upcoming shows, follow Onda on her Instagram page.