Padme Amidala Padme's Naboo Nightgown

ecila, I can't wait to see your results!

FERD! It's good to see you around. Your smocking is gorgeous.

 

That's great, ecila! I can't wait to see how it comes out!

 

Ooooh, ecila! Please keep us posted on your progress!

I know I, for one, would love to see the test piece, too.

 

I can't wait to see your's look in the blue velvet, Ecila!

wraith13

 

Pictures coming soon, I promise ladies!

I received my test velvet swatches from Sy Fabrics, and the Royal Blue silk velvet is a dead ringer! (It is not at all bright like in the online photo). I took a break from the velvet smocking while I waited for the swatches, and I started a mock up of the under gown dress. I am using a Butterick Pattern, blending two different views, and I am about 2/3 of the way complete with it. The mock up is short and red, but you get the idea. I just focused on getting the top correct and fitted on me. Has anyone seen any close ups of the snowflake design on the gown or want to venture a design or drawing? I am getting the Singer embroidery machine with the autopunch software, so hopefully I can replicate it pretty closely!

Now - back to finishing up the red dress and more smocking fun!


ecila

 

Ecila here ya go
[image=http://photos.imageevent.com/benaequee/miscpics/large/nightgown%20star.jpg]
http://photos.imageevent.com/benaequee/miscpics/nightgown%20star.jpg
After blowing it up in PS and inverting the colors, you can make out the design a little better

Yet another costume to spy the Naboo Royal Symbol It's between each spoke of the star and the little decorations under the star (towards the side a bit)

 

ecila - I can't wait to see your progress. What an ambitious project! I know I'd never have the patience to smock all that velvet.

This is going to be a gorgeous costume! Keep us posted please

- Kay Dee

 

That so great about the Sy velvet stuff!, ecila! I was thinking about using it for my Arwen BR gown but wasn't sure it'd be dark enough. How much were swatches?

Benae Quee - I think you're right about the stylized Naboo symbol!

Maggie

 

Interesting find about the symbol.

Can't wait to see some pictures ecila. Are you planning to go to C3 with this costume? *hopes*

(Maggie, I just read your 'Spot the Symbol' page and I think it's really neat.)

 

Hi everyone!

Thank you Benae! That photo will definitely help! I ordered an embroidery machine with autopunch software so I hypothetically should be able to use this pic for the embroidery on the gown.

Heehee. Kay Dee, I know I am crazy!

Maggie, the swatches are a dollar each, and the fabric is definitely very different in person. The navy blue silk velvet is very dark, and I ordered one of the other types of velvet that was really dark too (but the silk feels much nicer). I think the navy silk velvet would work great great for the Arwen gown. The royal blue is medium to dark, and it does look to have similar shading as the robe.

Dawn, yes I will be coming to CIII with this costume! Its going to be great to finally meet you and everyone else in person.

I finally have a few pictures of stuff I am working on.
Here is my first attempt at smocking. I used 2 inch seperations for the lines.

I finished a mock up of the robe and now I am working on smocking about a yard of velvet, both of which will help me determine how much blue silk velvet I need to order! From my first estimate, I need 16 yds. Ouch!

Here are all of the photos.

cheers,
ecila

 

ecila - I ordered swatches too and I really like the navy velvet, so I bought some on ebay!

The robe beginnings look good!

 

Great work so far Ecila! And what an adorable kitty .

wraith13

 

Your test smocking looks great, Ecila, and I love your kitty! He's so adorable!

 

Oooooh, ecila, that smocking looks most excellent!

And of course, we all know that I love black kitties.

 

Ooooo, that looks pretty Can't wait to see the finished product at C3

 

ecila, your smocking test is fantastic!

 

The smocking is looking great! Good job! *sends encouragment vibes*


~Laura

 

Okay, I'm going to try this one. Oddly enough, it's not the robe that has me confused or worried - there's so much information here on how to do it. I'm worried about the actual nightgown. Then again, the last thing I sewed was a pair of pajamas more than a year ago.

I'm actually on my way out right now to pick up the Simplicity pattern, since my mom doesn't have it, and look at some fabrics, since I can't find anything amongst my mom's scraps (or maybe she just organises them in a really weird way, or I'm just lazy...LOL).

A couple of people mentioned the nightgown having more than one layer? It kind of looks like that at the bottom, but not so much the top. I wasn't sure about that. Anyone have ideas?

-Anu

P.S. Hi Kris.

 

I've been looking at the costume a lot now - really pretty When i was looking at the bodice area, it looks like there is another layer on top. It looks like a sheer overlay with a white underlayer (on the whole dress). I think silks would be the best choice, but a poly would work too.
Anu, it took you long enough to post here LOL. At least you have your mother to help you out in IL

 

DUDE, Anu...seriously?? Of all costumes?


I am like, teh woah.

 

Hey!

I just bought half a yard of royal blue/purple velvet to practive smocking. Good thing is, it was on clearance, so it was only 4 bucks. Bad thing is, I don't think they have enough there, and since it's clearance, they can't order anymore. At least not in that color (the navy looks too dark). And it's such a pretty color. Oh well.

So for the nightgown, the embroidery would go on the sheer layer? Or on the underlayer, and the sheer layer would be sheer enough to see through? And what's a good sheer fabric - chiffon, georgette? I'm dumb and don't know these things.

They closed our main fabric shop a while ago, so I have to make do with Hobby Lobby being the closest. They had poly satin which was pretty nice, but I'm going to try the stores in another town, see what they have.

edit: And look for more velvet, because comparing the piece I have to Padme's, mine looks more purple than the blue in the pictures.

 

I've been having some trouble finding the right shade of blue for the yarn. At first I was thinking sapphire but some are more purple than blue. It doesn't help that the bro has a yarn he's using that has the exact shade and sheen I want. Too bad its furry yarn. I'm going to the yarn shop today and try to look for something similar.

wraith13

 

Ecilia-- Your smocking process looks fabulous!! Excellent job. The robe mock up looks great, too. I think you've captured the shape really well.

Can't wait to see more!!

~Ferd

 

Thank you all!

Wraith - good luck with the yarn search. I will keep my eyes peeled!

Anu - my new smocking buddy! Heehee, you must be a little crazy like me to try this. If you can find $4 velvet, that is great. I now think I am going to need 13 yards of velvet for the robe, and I am going to use the royal blue silk velvet from Syfabrics. Once I finish my large mock up, I will confirm this number and order the fabric.

For the gown, I modified a Butterick pattern (will have to check for the number). I did a half body muslim mock up to modify it, and I am getting close to completing a short red satin full mock up. (Lol I am a sucker for the Joann remenants, so I have to put them to good use!) Basically, i just need to do the bust gathers, attach the top and bottom, put on a zipper and add straps. I think the gown is 2 layers, with a sheer heavy chiffon or light georgette on top with the colorful embroidery and a light satin like charmeuse is underneath. I have a bunch of off white chiffon I bought a long time ago for my wedding that I never used. Need to look if I have enough. I have not really searched too hard for gown fabrics yet, just focusing on the robe for now.

Also, has anyone seen any good gold ribbon for the robe? Also, does anyone have any suggestions on how to mark my dots or lines on the back of the velvet? I was using chalk and a ruler (see pic above), but that is a pain!


ecila

 

ecila The best suggestion I have for marking the dots is to use a piece of Peg board (you know the stuff you hang in a garage or whatever and the little hooks go into the holes) It's available in large pieces, and I think the holes are 1" or 1/2" evenly spaced. You basically would lay the piece on top of the wrong side of the velvet and then put a dot into each of the holes that are exposed.

One of the major problems I had with this project was finding something to mark the velvet with that I could see well and not have it come off, fade or whatever with all the handling you do while you're smocking the velvet. Since the velvet is dark a lot of the good marking pens don't show up. Chalk comes off really easily (You will be handling the fabric a lot!!) They do have a white marking pen with liquid ink--but I tried it and found it cracked off sort of like white out. It was also sort of difficult to see. I tried on a scrap of velvet a shaprie marker and just made a teeny tiny dot--but found that it showed through to the right side of the velvet

If you are doing this type of smocking on any other type of fabric besides velvet you can use the fusible quilt grid--which is available in different size squares. It's just like interfacing but has the square grid marked on it. You just iron it on. Of course with velvet it will crush the nap You possibly could try to fuse it to the backside of the velvet using a spray adhesive or something--however the interfacing will be smocked into the piece so you can't take it off later. Possibly if you tried this approach you could line the robe to hide the back "ugly" side and the interfacing.

Finally--I found it incredibly helpful that once you have your grid or dots marked--to then do slashes to help you with the direction of that row. Since you alternate the direction row by row--When you get into the piece it is easy to lose your place--and if you go the wrong direction on a row you will not achieve the "braided look".

In regards to trim--It's supposedly an anitque--and it looks like a large greek key design to me. I found a black and gold trim at Joann's that's nice and wide--but not exact. I'll see if I can dig it out and give you a picture--More than likely you can find it still at Joann's.


Sorry for the length of this post...Hope it's helpful!

~Ferd