Padme Amidala Episode 1 Kimono Pre-Senate Dress

Hey kreleia - are you planning on wearing this at Dragon Con? Can't wait to see it!

 

I'm still interested not only in this thread but making this kimono ever sicne I'd seen it in the Phantom Meneace.

I've only been quiet b/c of the research bit, it's ahrd fidnignt he right looking fabrics. I'd like to stick with natural fibers because it's SO humid and HOT down here. I'll need the garment to breathe. :-D I've always enjoyed the lines, color and workmanship of her grey kimono. So ANYTHING anyone can find is most neded and appreciated.
All the fabrics showen are SO close. I always though the undermost dress was some sort of wine colored item, or is that merely the lightening?

 

Hi everyone! This is my first time posting [ though I do like to lurk in this costuming section and see what everyone is talking about ]. Anyway I recently returned from San Diego Comic Con and I finally have pictures to share of my costume!

Group Picture

My friends and I did a small group together of prequel costumes You can also see the rest of our pictures here.

I wish I had a close-up shot of the headpiece [ maybe I will take one later if I have time ] - I created my own design for it and beaded it by hand with size 11/0 off-white seed beads and 4mm round gold beads. I owe a big thank you to PadawansGuide for all of the amazing photos she sent me that helped out tremendously with the details and also to surliegurlie who I e-mailed several times [ though I'm not sure she remembers me or not ] about the headpiece. Your tutorial on your website helped -so- much [ I altered what I did slightly but I used your tutorial as the `base` for constructing mine ]. Anyway this was my first time making one of Amidala's gowns and boy was it a challenge! But I had fun making it - hopefully I'll get to make another soon [ after my wallet recooperates ].

 

I think the dupioni is a good choice, because the original is almost certainly a ribbed silk* like bengaline:
http://www.threaddesign.com/collections/pages/c27.php
http://www.antiquedress.com/item3762.htm

The ribs are very fine but give a distinct soft yet still lustrous sheen.

I think faille might be a bit too subtle for this fabric. Unless it's a heavy guage like this skirt here:
http://www.antique-fashion.com/188.htm
http://www.antique-fashion.com/2624.htm (photo size reduction has created the moire effect)
http://www.antique-fashion.com/2374.htm

As for colour... I can;t thell My monito makes everyhting greyer than it actually is. I think there is not enough blue actually....

*dupioni isn't ribbed but does usually have thicker weft fibers than warp, and does have a definite horizontal direction.

 

YAY!! I'm glad to see that my research is not falling upon deaf ears... as it were... or blind eyes, I guess.

Oh, heavens no!! I WISH!! I'm no where NEAR being ready for actually wearing it. At this point, I'm still just beading away on the headpiece. I've had to put it aside for a couple of weeks because - similar to Nacchi - I'm using 11/0 glass seed beads, and it lead me to discovering that I really do need glasses, and that my eyes aren't just blurry at night. Seriously, the first few strands gave me intense headaches. So, now just waiting for the glasses to come in. They should help a lot! But, as far as a time deadline goes, I've given myself at least a year to get this one right. I just LOVE this costume!

Nacchi, your costume is GORGEOUS!!! You did fantastic work on the headpiece - I hope my beading turns out just as beautiful! It looks like you had a blast at Comic-Con too! What fun having all the Padmé's walking around together!

Oh, and just for kicks, I found some GREAT fabric for the obi on eBay today. It's not the Boggio Casero fabric that I'm probably going to lust after forever, but it's really close and VERY nice looking:

S_S edit: removed link.

Neimhaille, thanks for the great fabric suggestions too! I've read that Biggars used grey silk taffeta for the main outer kimono, but I have yet to find a silk taffeta that looks like THAT, or is the right grey color (I'm convinced there's a blue-ish tone to it, too). So, for me, dupioni is the way to go - and you're right, it's got that "ribbed" look to it due to the rougher, uneven fibers. I think the blue/very-pale-pink cross-dye dupioni (dammit! - I had to come back and edit that after typing and posting "taffeta" - jee, taffeta on the brain, anyone?) that I found will work out really well. After seeing a swatch of it up close and personal, it really is a very pretty lighter grey in natural light, and has a blue-ish sheen. And, um, thanks - now I'm lusting over those gorgeous antique gowns - especially the dark plum one. **drools**

 

Sorry kreleia, I had to remove the link to eBay.

We can only post links to eBay auctions if:

1 - it's your own auction
2 - you have the express permission of the seller to post it
3 - you suspect the auction of being a scam.

In other news, Nacchi your costume looks spectacular! Great job!

 

Oh, oops. It figures. I've been inactive on this forum for long enough that I was bound to forget some of the rules. Sorry.

 

finally got my glasses back!! beading can re-commence!

 

The costume looks great, Nacchi - glad the C2 photos helped you!!

 

OH!! I forgot to ask - Nacchi, the girl that did the Ep. 3 Peacock Gown - where did she find her taffeta skirt fabric? It's GORGEOUS! Also, did she have a burn-out velvet? Or did she just use a darker reddish velvet for the overcoat? (I lust over this gown too, but I'm actually looking for the fabric for another friend. )

 

I'm so sorry to be replying this so late! I've been so busy the past couple of months - mainly with moving and starting classes again this semester. [ also I had no internet access for a long time Thanks so much for the compliments everyone It was definitely awesome to just walk around and have fun at the con!

Anyway I'm not 100% sure where she got the fabric although I will be sure to call her and ask her specifically. I remember she told me that she got most of her fabric from the LA Fashion District area [ lots of shops basically all selling tons of different types of fabrics and other crafting things ]. I do know that for the velvet she used for the overcoat was not burn-out - I think she stenciled or free-handed the design with some kind of paint.

 

Do you know where you read it? The texture is nothing like taffeta you see. In fact last night I found an antique suit online that was made of silk pongee that looked closer to the Kimono fabric than taffeta

Unless it's a ribbed taffeta. I have heard of that... though technically it's then another fabric
http://www.famousneckwear.com/body_glossary.htm


http://www.corsetsandcrinolines.com/timelineitem.php?index=190013
Though I think the ribs are a little too large for the kimono fabric. Still you can see the softer highlights it has.

 

Nacci, your queen is gorgeous! Makes me look at my miserable pile of unfinshed things...military reserve life stinks

I don't know if this can help anyone, but I found a nice fabric for the puckered first layer (?) at Hancock Fabrics called Late Night Rose. It has the look, but the store only carried black, darker grey, and a pretty blue. The lady did say it could be ordered in other colors. My camera phone is evil and won't download my pic.

The headdress strands... what size seed beads is anyone using? I had 8's but I think they are too big. I need to light a fire under my rear and get something finished... people like pics!

Jen

 

Nacchi,

Those head pieces are incredible. I'm really intereseted in more details on how they were made. Do you have any in progress photos?

Are you member of the Rebel Legion ? Would love it if you would stop by this thread and share any info on your costumes http://www.rebellegion.com/forum/display_topic_threads.asp?ForumID=23&TopicID=3355

FYI: I have lots of detail photos of Pre-Senate from the FIDM exhibit linked below. (It's a costume that is near and dear to my heart

 

Well considering I've been working on this costume for a few months, I figured I'd chime in

I started my costume as a project for graduation, doing research on costume design and this costume specifically. I'm a proud self-taught sewer, and it was a blast getting to put my skills to use. I based my patterns for all of the layers of the costume off of Kwik Sew 3097 which I happened to have lying around from another project. The yardage in the pattern along with the stiffness of the fabrics gave me the fullness I wanted.

You can see a few pictures of my progress here

I'm currently working on the hand embroidering/beading the sleeves (I learned to embroider just for this project) but I still have a longs ways to go. I'm using ivory thread and ivory colored peal beads.

I've done some research into Obi fabrics, and so far these two are the best I've been able to find:
fabric one
fabric two

Both have the right feel to them, but I like the second one more because of the texture. Still, I'm a bit reluctant to shell out seventy dollars for Obi fabric right now.

To those who have finished your costumes, how do you get the headdress to stay on your head? I was thinking of using an old pair of headphone as a base, but the band that goes over the top of the head seems too flexible to support the weight of the fan.

Also, Nacchi, did you realized that you're in the latest issue of insider (page 8)?

Thanks to everyone who has posted tips/opinions/advice in this thread! Happy costuming.

edit:spelling

 

Hi, Jedi-Jaina! You look like you're off to a very good start! Such a pretty berry color for your inner layer. What are you using for your grey kimono fabric?

I'm like Kreleia, beading away. I appreciate the pics everyone has taken of the costume. Maybe I can get this done before dragon con 06

Jen

 

jadedknights: I kind of cheated on the kimono fabric . After searching through all (and I mean all) the fabric stores within a reasonable distance, I failed to find anything close to the right color/texture within my price range. In the end I kind of cheated. I bought light grey polyester shantung at jo-anns and dyed it grey/blue/purple with an insane amount of RIT dye. One side looks like satin and one side looks like dupioni silk. I used the dupioni silk side as the "right side" to give it texture and avoid the shine.

edit:spelling

 

Jedi-Jaina, that's not cheating, that is being creative I know what you mean about not finding anything. I have to go about 2 hours away to find fabric, and hobby lobby doesn't have much. I really like your color, and your embroidery's looking beautiful. I'm still doing strands.

I think I will experiment on my daughters 18" doll and see where it goes. At least I don't have to have a billion yards of fabric At least not yet.

Jen

 

Thanks so much for the compliment about my headpiece! I'm planning to set up a website eventually for costumes that I've made but I've been so busy with classes lately I don't know when I'll ever have time

Anyway, I don't have very many progress photos unfortunately But I can tell you the process I went in making it though. (the only pictures I have that are in progress are below)

I took a scrap piece of fabric ( I think I used chiffon or another similar lightweight scrap fabric ) and kind of did a "trial and error" measurement on how big I wanted the beaded part of the headpiece to be. I had originally intended to make the beaded part larger and cover a bigger portion of my head so the "fan" part could sit on top but in the end I decided against it ( for my sanity's sake ) and cropped it off to the measurements in the picture. I drew in my own design on what I thought the top would kind of look like based on the pictures that I had at the time and traced it onto a piece of organza. I tried using pencil to trace it on but I couldn't see the pattern after I removed my paper so I used pen ( fortunately the beading covered up the pen marks on the fabric and the ink didn't bleed or anything ) I picked organza to bead on because it was stiffer and I was worried that if I used something that was more lightweight, the fibers of the fabric might not be able to hold together. I used size 11/0 seed beads in an off white color that I ordered from this site: http://www.7beads.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Category_Code=SB111 and I got size 4mm gold round beads (these I bought at the LA Fashion District). I also got only a small handful of the gold "cone" shaped beads too but in the end I wound up not putting them on the strands of beads that hang down because (1) I ran out of time and (2) it was already getting kind of heavy as it was

After I attached all the long strands of beads to the main part of the headpiece I made a few ribbon "loops" and sewed them by hand on the underside of the headpiece so I could stick bobbypins in and attach it to my head. I also sewed on two long pieces of ribbon at each corner of the "triangle" of the headpiece so that it could tie under my ponytail at the back of my neck. ( side note: I was really paranoid about losing beads so I put on a dab of glue at the end of each strand of beads to make sure it wouldn't come undone )

For the fan of hair I used the method that Surliegurlie has listed on her site The only change that I made was that instead of making a "box" to fit inside of the arcs, I decided instead to cut out foamboard out in huge arcs and then gluing hair to the very ends of the arcs on both sides of the foamboard so that you can't see that it's foam board. Two of the pieces have hair that are glued from the very bottom of the arc all the way to the top ( the hair extends out from the arc about 1-2 inches or so). Then I glued the whole thing together - kind of like a foamboard sandwich - and then I stuck the whole thing into the two small silver arcs and glued it all together. The reason why I did this was because I was paranoid about the fan staying on my head and it was easier for me to keep the hair neat this way and not get tangled too much. Oh - and it's also very important to not layer on thick or get too close with the hairspray as I painfully discovered it makes the hair all clumpy and there's really no way to fix it.

I wish I had thought to look for the large plas

 

Nacchi, thanks so much for sharing all that information! You outdid yourself with all those beads! I like those gold beads you used in your headdress. They show so well. Please post more of your creations here on the board; everyone can use inspiration

Jen

 

It's not taffeta

Yay! I'm not crazy!

It's not a faille or a corded silk though, the slubs are uneven when you see them close to.

http://www.padawansguide.com/fidm2_kd.shtml
You can definitely see speckles of colour and uneven slubs in the hi res images KayDee so wonderfully snapped, and Maggie is so graciously hosting. And most especially in the image kd11. You can also see the weave of the obi-wannabe.

You can aslo see the strands of beads end in a loop of three beads then back up into the strand.

You need to look at the high res for the weave detail of the kimono fabric.

 

If it's not taffita, then what is it?

 

Well what makes people think it's a taffeta?

I don't know exactly what it is, possibly a shantung. It looks like it uses raw silk (ie with the gum still on it, hense the speckles.) Anyone get a sniff of it ? Silk with gum has an identifying scent. The scent would most likely be too faint to smell by now though.

Raw silk items:
http://www.baronboutique.com/raw.htm
http://www.dharmatrading.com/fabric/silk/rawsilk.html
http://www.answers.com/topic/raw-silk
http://www.kyotokimono.com/WhatsForSale/WomensHaori4Sale.htm
Scroll down to "Blue Moon"

Silk shantung
http://www.leander.co.uk/shop/proddetail.asp?prod=shantung_silk_scarf
http://www.silkxpress.com/silkshantung.html
http://www.denverfabrics.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Category_Code=SI-sh
(polyester shantung)
http://www.r-and-z.com/products/crepe-faille-shantung/baroness.html

(very odd saying it looks like taffeta... no wonder there is confusion!)
http://www.fabric.com/home-decor-fabric-drapery-fabric-silk-shantung.aspx

definitions:
http://www.apparelsearch.com/glossary_s_2.htm (doesn't mention the Chinese province it's probably named after though....)

Taffeta
http://www.apparelsearch.com/glossary_t.htm
(The definition has typing errors. It also has a bit of a confusion as to just which taffeta it means. Weighting of silk was very common in the 19thC which has lead to a lot of shattering but it's not so common now.)
http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9070897


I prefer the definition in my dictionary, it's not so confusing:
1.a. A thin crisp lustrous plain weave fabric of silk, rayon etc., used esp.for women's clothes. b. (as modifier): a taffeta petticoat. 2. any of various similar fabrics. [C14: from medieval Latin taffata, from Persian Taftah spun, from taftan to spin]
I guess this is why some people have translated taftan as twisted. Which is totatally confusing as there is no twist in the warp or weft of taffeta

 

http://www.starwars.com/ is featuring nice Pre-Senate costume artwork on their main page don't know how long it will be up. http://www.starwars.com/img/amidala/beautyimg.jpg

 

I thought it was taffeta because the person who put the dress on the dress dummy at the exhibit said that's what the fabric was. Unless she didn't know what fabrics were.