Padme Amidala Padme's Naboo Nightgown

As someone who has never worked with velvet, I went to the fabric store and got completely confused. For those who have worked with velvet before, which is the best to use?

 

Velvet is a pesky little fabric. To say which one to use is kinda hard. There are cotton velvets which tend not to have that shiny look to the fibers, there are rayon and silk velvets which are a going to have a richer texture and sheen to them. Silk velvet has a nice drape to it, where some rayon ones are a little more full bodied. There are also velvets for home dec which has a stiffer feel to it and many times a shorter nap.

Two great "name brands" for velvet is Fidelio which is a rayon acetate blend (which is great for stamp embossing). This is a beautiful grade of velvet and is availble in tons of colors including cross dyes. That fabric is around $20 a yard. Lucia is a small step below in grade and quality--but just a *tiny* step. This fabric cannot be embossed. It is very lovely and nice and comes in a lot of colors, too. It is around $17 yd.

Then there is Panne velvet which is usually used for leotards and dance costumes. It is crushed. There are also stretch velvets that are flat. These are around $15 a yard.

It is SO important that you cut all of your pieces with the velvet nap running in the same direction. If you are unsure you can feel down the fabric to see which direction the nap runs. If the nap runs in different directions on different pieces the fabric will look like 2 different colors- due to how the light hits the nap.

Also--if you press your velvet it will crush --so to "press" open your seams Lay your fabric on a seam roll with the wrong side up. Finger press the seam open and holding your iron a few inches away from your fabric let the steam "press" your seam open.

Many times velvet says "Dry Clean Only"--which is often true. However you can "pre-treat" your velvet in the manner you will treat it after it is a garment. Meaning--you can wash it first (or dye it or whatever) Once you have washed it the first time you can always wash it the same way. I just machine washed and dyed silk velvet and it came out just beautifully.

***Important tip** Once you have bought your velvet at the store --make sure you hang it in the sammer manner it is stocked at the store in your closet. Rig up a hanger with safety pins or clothes pins to keep the fabric hanging neatly. If you leave it folded in a bag or on a table the folds with CRUSH into the fabric and you will not be able to get them out. You don't want yards of velvet ruined so take the few minutes to hand it up correctly. This is true with your un sewn pieces as well. Do not fold up or bunch.

Sorry for the length. Hope this helps.
~Ferd

 

Great advice Ferd!

You can get rayon velvet cheaper than $20 bucks a yard if you hit a sale, or if you use those great discount coupons that places like Joanne's and Hancocks will send you if you're on their mailing list.

You can also try the internet, though of course, it is sometimes I gamble with the type of fabric you end up with. The best I've done on velvet is around $10 a yard. It's definitely not a cheap fabric!

And Ferd's right - you have to be careful with how you store it - and even when you're wearing it - try not to be in a position where you're creasing it for a prolonged time! Sometimes, if the creases aren't too bad, you can hang the velvet fabric/garment up in the bathroom and run a hot shower and close the door. The steam will remove wrinkles and it might help with less severe fold marks. I've also heard of using a toothbrush on the nap while it's being steamed to try and lift it.

All these warnings aside, velvet looks beautiful on costumes!

Maggie

 

Thank you guys so much!

 

I was looking up a site for mules mentioned on the rainbow dress thread, and found this pair, which might work out for this noghtgown:

http://www.flipfloptrunkshow.com/rebgenmulbon.html

 

Hi!

Well, I´m new to the board and I only came here for costuming.

I have paused for almost 10 years with sewing, so I feel like a beginner... but I hope I haven´t forgot too much of it.

The first project I want to restart my costume making is Padmes nightgown.

I reallly NEED to make this!

I have visited the Padewan´s gide sites first and then came here, and read what I can about that topic.

Now I want to THANK you for your work, without that I wouldn´t know as much about this robe as I do now, after a few days of research!

My problem is that I live in Germany and a lot of the resorces you mentioned aren´t available for me. So I will have to look for the velvet here in Germany, but hopefully I will find one. I also have great problems with the sewing terms, but I will try.

My question: Has anyone made any progress in the costume? I saw the doll robe. What about the pattern? I think because it is smoked, it may be a kind of poncho (right expression?) but with more length.

Baerbel Born

PS: If you want to see a FEW of my costumes I made years ago... klick http://www.stempelkrempel.de/bbpriv07.htm

only to proove I am really interested... (The pics are horrible, but the costumes not...lol)

 

Hi!

Well, I´m new to the board and I only came here for costuming.

I have paused for almost 10 years with sewing, so I feel like a beginner... but I hope I haven´t forgot too much of it.

The first project I want to restart my costume making is Padmes nightgown.

I reallly NEED to make this!

I have visited the Padewan´s gide sites first and then came here, and read what I can about that topic.

Now I want to THANK you for your work, without that I wouldn´t know as much about this robe as I do now, after a few days of research!

My problem is that I live in Germany and a lot of the resorces you mentioned aren´t available for me. So I will have to look for the velvet here in Germany, but hopefully I will find one. I also have great problems with the sewing terms, but I will try.

My question: Has anyone made any progress in the costume? I saw the doll robe. What about the pattern? I think because it is smoked, it may be a kind of poncho (right expression?) but with more length.

Baerbel Born

PS: If you want to see a FEW of my costumes I made years ago... klick http://www.stempelkrempel.de/bbpriv07.htm

only to proove I am really interested... (The pics are horrible, but the costumes not...lol)

 

Do any of you have pics? I'm very interested in this dress and I want to make it!!

 

Jedilucass: Very beautiful shoes...but alas, wouldn't they be to formal? Maybe if they were flat...

Mutter: Wow...the black and white gown (third costume down) is just gorgeous! May I ask what it was and where you wore it?

 

Thank you for the compliment.

The black and gold robe is a 15th century dress, and I was thinking of the movie film Dune when I made it. You should not look too close, parts are made with artifical fibres, so it´s not authentic, but I didn´t want to be too exact.

Edit: And I wore it on several Star Trek (yes, I´m a trekkie) activities.

Unfortunatley it doens´t fit any more...

But since my obbsession for sewing was reborn, I am working on loosing weight, it´s time to do that before I become a grandmother... lol

I am looking for the nightgown velvet, but couldn´t find it online, so I will go and visit my favourite store in Wuppertal soon.

But I found a lot of onlineshops with farbic in Germany too, so I don´t have to panic that I wont be able to reactivate my sewing machine...

 

Does anyone know how to make the cloak?

I'm going to use a pattern for the dress.

 

I have yet to start on the cloak, spacelady, but, it is made by smocking a dark blue velvet. The smocking type is lattice. Check out the padawansguide.com's section on this gown for tips on how to do it... I still barely understand how to do it, and I've been side tracked by modifications to my pastel lake gown. Good luck!

 

I am making this costume slowly but surely. It is a VERY slow and tedious process--but very worth the work I have worked with Maggie (Padawan's Guide) to try and come up with a tutorial. I will add to it (including pics) as soon as I am able--Delayed with Dragon con costumes right now.

I can say the robe for an average women's size will take at least 12 yards of velvet and it is completely hand stiched with a Lattice smocking design. The smocking is worked in rows working off of dots that are evenly spaced. Floss draws the dots together to give the fabric a sort of braided appearance. The gown is embroidered in a diagonal pattern across the bias as well as the matching mules.

I am happy to answer any questions just let me know!

~Ferd

 

Sorry to ask like that, but after using my dictionary I still can´t find 2 expressions: floss and mules. Floss ist a kind of thread? and my dict. says mule is a mule, a kind of donkey.....

Help!

 

Floss, as in embroidery floss.

And mules are a style of shoe, like the ones in the link jedilucass posted earlier. Generally backless.

 

Yaaayy, Ferd is making this costume!!!! Can't wait to see it!

 

I finally got the hair down I use Solar Warps, They're at Wal~Wart and cheap! I jsut need to get more and the hairstyle will be done for me. Later I am going to buy the pattern for the nightgown.




Edit~What are tortoiseshell hairpins?And where do you find them?

 

Hhhmmm, I´m still thinking the pattern is a simple rectangle. It seems to be larger on the shoulder/arm because it was streched with the golden ribbon (right?) so that the shoulder seam seems to be larger.

Uuhhh, so hard to explain this in a foreign langauge. I´m still working on my lattice smoke.


Edit: Ooops again, you ment the nightdress, not the bathrobe? I never had such difficulties like here, SORRY!

 

In my opinion the trim on the sleeves is sewn down after all of the smocking is completed and the robe is partially constucted. The robe is a simple pattern--but you cannot cut the pieces for construction until after the smocking is done to the velvet. Smocking will litterly cause the fabric to shrink because the stitches draw the fabric together. Just for example say if you start with a fabric 45" wide--once it is smocked it might be only 15" wide. If you were to cut the pattern pieces and then smock them the garment would end up way too small. Most smocking gives the fabric elasticity--but lattice smocking does not. The stitches do not allow for any give at all.

Tortoise shell clips can be either real tortoise shell (which was used a lot in vintage hair clips) and is quite expensive--or faux tortoise shell which can be plastic and can be found in a variety of hair accessories as convieient as your neighborhood Wal-Mart. Tortoise shell looks just like that--a Tortoise (turtle) shell. It can come in a few different shades--but mainly brown with distinct marks.
(**example--In Titanic the Butterfly comb she wears--the comb part is Tortoise shell)

For vintage type clips I would suggest Ebay.

~Ferd

 

@ferdalump: Yes, I realize the fabric must be larger before smocking. (Funny ... in Germany we call it "smoking" what seams to have something to do with an unhealty habit in the US, right? ;-) ) But I still guess that the pattern is very straight, so it should be ok if you calculate the needed size of the fabric and then smock and sew. Hmm, I still haven´t begun with my smoking test, but I will measure the size of the velvet before and after the lattice smoke/smock (?). Well, I have printed the pattern from padawans guide. and with my german A4 sized sheet, the pattern seemed to have the perfect size for puting the marks on the back of the fabric. I´m still thinking about what kind of color I shall use to mark the dots, I don´t want to use chalk because it will dissepear before I´m finished with the whole gown. So I think I use a kind of acryl paint or Sailors white pen (I sell them in my stamp store), but maybe it will riun the fabric. What do you think?

PS: Please excuse all errors in writing and spelling.

 

Marking the dots seems to be the biggest problem I have run into. Normally smocking dots can be transferred with iron on dots--but that will crush the nap of the velvet Chalk will not withstand all of the handling of the material--and most fabric pens use blue or purple ink which is hard to see on blue velvet. I bought a white fabric pen and I didn't like it at all. The ink chipped off like correction ink (white out). I did play around with using a pen or marker and made tiny little marks (on the wrong side) and used them. They will not wash out though--but through the smocking you really cannot see them.

My friend gave me a good tip on marking the spaces evenly and quickly--Use a piece of peg hook board which has evenly spaced dots in a big area. Lay it on your velvet nice and straight and mark away. Voila! Lots of dots in a little time.

~Ferd

 

I don't know if this will help or not, but I've had decent success using white (and other light colors) gel pens (the ones that have gotten so popular in the last few years for writing on dark paper) to mark on the back of dark velvet. Some inks will flow through to the plush side, so it's best to test first, but if you find one that works, it's really a life saver.

-sg

 

I have found already "Smocked" fabric, it was pale green, but the desing's were the SAME as the Smocking method used for the Naboo nightgown, and the desings were enough big for my 16" fashion doll...SO I bought the fabric, sewed my doll's robe and then dyed it !!

you can view pictures here :

http://www.photos.yahoo.com/spitweety


My mom said it is not smocking but kind of lacing..because you could see through the little holes..this is why I doubled the fabric, it makes it VERY heavy !!!

 

I have finished my 16" doll's gown, I am really proud of it here you can find pictures :


http://www.geocities.com/padmeamidaladoll

 

Your doll costume is beautiful, Spitsweet!! The fabric you found for the robe is perfect! I can't wait to see your other finished doll costumes.
-Naboo Girl