Padme Amidala Padme's Naboo Nightgown

Hi Ryder,

My robe was a very simple pattern. 2 long/wide strips of the velvet sewn together halfway.
Like this:

---...............----
\...\.......... /.../*
.\...\........./.../*
..\...\......./.../*
...\...\...../.../
....\...\.../.../
.....\...\./.../
......|...|...|
......|...|...|
......|...|...|
......|...|...|
......|...|...|*
......|...|...|*
......|...|...|*
...... -------

Once it was stitched like this, I smocked it all, going horizontally across. Next I lined the entire unit. Finally, I folded over an stiched seams at the stars on both sides.

If I did it again, I would make mine wider and the smocks closer together. I did enjoy making it though!

ecila

 

Eclia- Thanks again!
[image=http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b81/East_Coast_Ryder/Padme%20costume/nightgown.jpg]

So it was basically like this, with the same colors being sewn together (except the black)? Sorry for bugging you about this, but you seem to be the only one who's done the robe.

~Ryder

 

Yep, that is pretty much it, and the neck was a natural part of the two fabrics, not cut any less wide than the bottom. I do not have any type of clasp in the front either, I just let it hang down by my shoulders. And feel free to pick my brain as much as you need!

Good luck, and definately post pics of your progress!



ecila

 

Thanks muchly! And I will post pictures once I find my camera.

Thought I asked this: How long did your smocking take?

Also thought I said this: BEAUTIFUL job on your costume, eclia!

 

Hi Ryder,

Thanks! I think it took me about 2 months, start to finish to make the robe in time for CIII, with a good month of smocking for a couple hours every day, and I made the nightgown over the course of few days. Its all sort of fuzzy now though. lol
ecila

 

Okay, finished a test swatch (and found camera )...

[image=http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b81/East_Coast_Ryder/Padme%20costume/DCP04069.jpg]

[image=http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b81/East_Coast_Ryder/Padme%20costume/DCP04071.jpg]

Front and back.

Took me... 20 to 30 minutes? And I'm still not totally satisfied with it, but I'm a perfectionist...

No, this is not my actual fabric, it's actually a random shirt I had lying around that no one ever wears.

 

Looks great Ryder!

I found that the thickness and crispness of the fabric has huge impact on the smocking too, so you may want to play around with a few types.



ecila

 

What I'm using is silk velvet, and it's been a pain to work with. But it's so pretty, I can't complain too much. I don't like the fact that it's flowy and light, because although the smocking stretches nicely into V shapes when it's draped, marking the dots is difficult because the fabric moves around and stretches a lot. Even with weights, this happens. I've come to love the little Midori bottle we have - as a weight, of course!

Before that, I'd test-smocked a half yard of triple plush. I think it was mostly rayon. It seems a little too stiff, but probably if I had more and did the actual robe out of it, then it would stretch into a good shape. But the stiffness definitely made it easier to weigh down and mark up on the back.

Okay, now for my progress. Kris helped me try on what I have so far (thank you!). I used ecila's method of sewing the long strips together. It has a nice little train of about 18 inches, but that's going to be hell if I ever wear it to a con. So I'm going to take out approximately that much of the middle seam (down the back), tie up those loose smockings, and that will automatically add 18 inches of finished velvet down the front.

Looks like I've got about a foot or two total of finished smocking, which translates into...some amount of unsmocked velvet. I can't believe I did so much already!

 

JadeSole - sounds like you are making great progress!

Silk velvet is plain lovely and that is what I used too. I remember having a bunch of blue silk fuzziness everywhere too though. I actually wish my robe had a bit more of a train for the effect. My robe drags slighty, but whenever I walk around in dirty areas, I just picked it up. LOL.

We will have to get a Padme robe group shot at the next Con to capture the smocking craziness!

ecila

 

Did sitting with the robe on mess up the smocking?

Sounds like you're doing good, JadeSolo. And you're a fanfic mod? I hang around there a lot.

~Ryder

 

Hi Ryder,
Sitting on the robe did not mess it up, nor did wrapping it up in a plastic bag for traveling.

I did do a single loop knot at each fold though to secure it sizewise. Not sure if I mentioned that before. Before I did that, I had a lot of thread slipping.

ecila

 

I was at Target today and saw a pillow there that had the same smocking as the robe. I was so tempted to buy it and it was even on clearance. I wonder if the people who make the pillows accually smock them all by hand. LOL

 

Thanks, Ecila! Working slowly but surely.

I'm not quite brave enoguh to try the robe yet. I think the idea of smocking that much fabric intimidates me a little. Can't wait to see everyones finished robes, though.

 

I'm done!

The Nightgown:

http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g258/kes8473/Padme%20Naboo%20Nightdress/finishedbodice.jpg

http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g258/kes8473/Padme%20Naboo%20Nightdress/finishedgown.jpg

I made a version of the robe too. It's not smocked and doesn't have the trim and back detail, but I loved the color of the fabric.

http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g258/kes8473/Padme%20Naboo%20Nightdress/naboorobefrontA.jpg

Me wearing them:

http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g258/kes8473/Padme%20Naboo%20Nightdress/me1.jpg

http://i58.photobucket.com/albums/g258/kes8473/Padme%20Naboo%20Nightdress/me2.jpg

The two pictures of me are from my birthday dinner Monday. I did make my goal of having it done for my birthday, though I decided in the end not to add embroidery to the back of the gown. I am working on the trim for the sleeves, but that'll be a long ways off before it's done. I'm considering this one completed since my original plan was the nightgown only!

(Try number 2 on the links....)

 

Wow, Nice, Kasey!! I agree about the color of the robe... WOW that is a gorgeous color!!!
Awesome!!!

 

Kasey - wow it looks great! I love the embroidery!

ecila

 

Thank you ecila and Nidrail. I'm glad you like it!

 

Quik Ques for all those Smocking experts

Do you REALLY use 3x the fabric?? I mean if your making a 1" by 1" square, do you need 3" x 3" of fabric??

Thanks in advance!!
~N

 

Well, I haven't posted for awhile, but thought that since I just took pics of this I'd share. I completed the trim for the robe. Pics can be found here:

Progress

Close-up on robe

On robe 1

On robe 2

 

Looks great Kasey!

ecila

 

Thank you, ecila!

 

Debuted my robe and nightgown at C4. Here it is, from Dingo's collection.

And of course I can find at least five things I'd like to redo.

Kasey, did you make the trim yourself? Wow!

 

It's gorgeous! That smocking was incredible. How long did it take you to do?

 

The curse of the costumer!
You did a super lovely job on it.