Dita Von Teese 'fears exposure'

Dita Von Teese has revealed that she fears exposing too much flesh while performing.

The 36-year-old burlesque dancer has admitted that she worries about losing her crystal-decorated nipple tassels, which she protects with waterproof glue, reports Contactmusic.

Von Teese said: "I use serious waterproof glue, because I'm in a martini glass. Crystals are heavy and there's a lot going on.

"I've got a shower of water going down from the olive, so I've got to have something serious. I can't afford to lose a nipple tassel during my show."

As for why she selected such an erotic career path, Von Teese, who recently announced that she was writing a beauty book, has insisted that her love of lingerie as a teenager sparked the interest.

She said: "My obsession with underwear is how I ended up becoming a burlesque performer and a pin-up model.

"I worked in a lingerie store when I was a teenager. I wanted to know the history of lingerie, so I started looking at '30s and '40s lingerie and that's how I discovered the pin-ups from that era. I wanted to be photographed like a pin-up."

She added: "I started working in a strip club at the same time as working in the lingerie store, and I thought this was like another opportunity for me to wear my lingerie, and have fun playing dress-up."