In a recent interview with Buzzfeed's Anna North, former sex worker Melissa Gira Grant explains the beauty of freelance tax deductions

"If you are working in the sex trade as an independent contractor, like other freelancers, you can claim some work-related expenses as write-offs," Grant says.

"Usually this just serves as a kind of chuckle-chuckle for dude econ writers who think it's absolutely hilarious that strippers could write-off heels and hair extensions. Tools of the trade, though."

Grant's right: So long as you can prove to the IRS that your wig or stilettos are necessary for your line of work (assuming it's a legal line of work), you're in the clear, says my father, a tax attorney based in Houston. "Keeping a log of what she's doing, hopes to get out of it and (how it was used) would help. It's not just enough to keep a receipt; you need to explain how it relates to your profession."

For more information on what self-employed workers can and cannot deduct from their taxes, read this article

Now see 9 ways to avoid a shady tax preparer >