Ladies have their day in Betoota

The ghost town of Betoota, in Queensland's far west, went from population 0 to 150 on Friday afternoon as women travelled hundreds of kilometres from South Australia and New South Wales as well as a large catchment of western Queensland, to be part of the annual event.

"Helping me feel good about my body", "giving us positivity through all the ups and downs" and "a child and husband-free weekend" were some of the glowing comments from attendees.

Everywhere one turned there was another presenter with international standing - sex therapist Dr Rosie King, world champion body painter Tim Gratton - along with homegrown talents such as business branding solutions company director Karen Brook, talented photographer Lorraine Kath, and artistic sisters Joyce Crombie and Jean Barr-Crombie, to pass on strong take-home messages.

Art and the female form intersected when burlesque dancers Kerry X, Sarina Del Fuego, Lola the Vamp and Delores Daquiri travelled from Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane's Samford Valley along with thousands of dollars worth of costumes to share their art in a very iconic Australian setting.

"It's about celebrating women in all their shapes and sizes, ages and colours, and helping give women confidence," Delores said. "We're just breaking it down and celebrating the female form."

It was a presentation appreciated by many, including Quilpie's Penny Langfield, who said it had been incredibly empowering to see fuller-figured women having so much confidence.

"It's all about how you shake it," she said.

The sessions as varied as cooking master classes and self-portraiture photography workshops were complemented by plenty of opportunities for pampering and shopping with massage and beauty services all laid on.

The value of the day, now in its third year, was recognised this week by the announcement of $21,650 from the federal government's Regional Arts Fund.

Member for Maranoa Bruce Scott said the Channel Country Ladies Day bridged the gap in isolation and the money would help the committee engage acclaimed industry professions to work on a number of projects at the 2015 event.