Progress images

I've been radio silent for a while, but that's because nothing much has happened. But now I'm on vacation for two weeks and trying to catch up with everything.

So, here's fitting the petticoat and bustle on Fluttershy:

Nothing much has happened with this cosplay. I still need to fit the corset properly, but I have a growing fear that I might have to make it again. I'm not happy with the quality of it and it does not fit properly around the bust. I'm still trying to save it, but I'm not sure if I can. Le sigh...... Oh, and feather's arrived for the train. These might cover 1/4th so I need to order more, but I'm happy about their quality so I know where to find more.

Today the lovely Elena came to fit her Rainbow Dash dress and she's utterly gorgeus in it. The fit of the chiton does not need alterations, but I need to make the himation a tad bit longer.

Rarity has progressed more in these past two days than the other two. I have managed to make the corset and the bustle and today I made her a petticoat.

Funnily enough, I didn't take pictures of the finished petticoat....

Until next time!

Rainbow Dash's himation fabric arrived!

And of course I had to make a test try.

Mostly I'm happy with the fabric. Only things that bother me are a) the red is not very bright, but rather dull brick red and b) I ordered too little. So when my pay comes next month, I need to order a few more yards to actually get it trailing.

Finally, Rarity's Grand Galloping Gala gown

I found this one rather hard to pinpoint the style I wanted. I wanted a bustle dress, but how big a bustle?

I found this cuirass dress in one of my fashion history books and the pleated back reminded the pleating on Rarity's dress, so that sealed it. I wanted a fishtailed dress with a little to medium bustle. Also the apron front works for Rarity.

I also like the shoulder revealing look of Empress Elizabeth of Austria's style.

Also the use of jewels and pearls fits and the hairstyle is something I can use for Rarity.

At first I drew the dress with sleeves, but lately I've been feeling wether or not to include them. Even thought they are in the dress Rarity wears in the show. But I will be the hostess, and I need to use my hands, so I need to figure out how to involve sleeves without losing the movement of my arms. Because that was fitted sleeves do, they restrict movement. But I will figure out something.

Here is the final plan. It's a little rought on the details, but it involves beadery and lace on the bodice and I thought about sitting cabochon settings on the skirt to get those big jewels. I'm also thinking of getting velvet for the details, so I get a nice textured look in the fishtail in the same way as in the blue on the first image. I have already gotten bright blue linen for the petticoat and the bustle and lovely purple for the dress. I first thought I thought about making the whole dress in velvet, but that proved to be a little too pricy. Silk was also too pricy. But I found a lovely cotton polyester that has a sating weave that makes it shine. There will be velvet in there, but in smaller quantities.

Fluttershy's petticoat and petit bustle

I got around drafting and making Fluttershy's petticoat to a point where I need to try it on the cosplayer and make necessary arrangements for it to fit nicely. Since I have no plans to giving this cosplay away, I also need to make sure that it also fits me.

I used a pattern I found in Period Costume for Stage and Screen: 1800-1909 by Jean Hunnisett. I got a few copies out of it because my copy is from the library, so I cannot make markings on it. I had to insert more room for the waist as the pattern was designed for someone very tall and built like a stick.

I used the same book for the petit bustle. I'm doing everything in the wrong order, because I haven't made her corset yet, but I plan on drafting that this evening and trying to piece it together tomorrow. Then I can finish the petticoat.

Petticoat without bustle on the left and petticoat with bustle on the right. The bustle is small and  about and inch thick, but it gives the petticoat such a nice lift. If you look carefully, you can see how much fabric I had to insert into the side seam to make it fit. Material for the petticoat is cotton.

Finished plan: Fluttershy

So I finally drew the Fluttershy plans. It's not strictly one period as I couldn't find a style we were comfortable with, so it's made from two time periods.

I feel that I made the yellow in the plan a little too prominent. The underskirt I planned as two layers of tulle to get that soft look on it.  The overskirt will be covered in peacock feathers. I'm regretting this plan already, but it will look magnificent for our birthday girl. The bodice will be lightly boned. I just need to make a petticoat, corset and an undershirt to go under the corset. And of course the wings, as Fluttershy is a pegasus pony.

Here's the inspiration I used for the design. The skirt is from early 1900's and the bodice is around 1909-10. Both are from Janet Arnold's Patterns of Fashion. Time for material hunting again! Allons-y!

Shoes for Fluttershy are the Astoria's from American Duchess. I'm waiting for them to arrive (and hope to God I got the right size).

Astoria shoe from American Duchess.

The one that was discarded (for now atleast): Pinkie Pie Grand Galloping Gala gown

At first Pinkie Pie was among the cosplays instead of Fluttershy, but changes happened when we couldn't find an agreement in the design of her costume. This is the doodle the cosplayer made for me:

At first I thought the crinoline era of Victorian Period would be the one for Pinkie Pie. I mean, look at that floof on that dress and the bell shape. So I did some image search.

Yup, there's the bell shape alright and the layering is quite there, but I just didn't get the Pinkie Pie feel. I mean Pinkie's parties are wild, colorful, full of cakes and generally just, par-teys. Somehow the image I got from Victorian era just didn't seem to fit. Frustrated, I flipped through my book when I saw the light in form of a Queen.

Marie Antoinette! 18th century France! The parties of the Versailles! "Let them have cake!" (yes, I know Marie Antoinette never actually said it). I mean even that huge poof of hair is just perfect for Pinkie Pie. So I dug myself into the section of robe á la francaise, and lo and behold Marie Antoinette had another answer for me:

I literally screetched out of delight when I turned the page to find this. I mean, this is exatly how I see Pinkies gown, it nearly even has the correct coloration. Too bad the cosplayer was not delighted about the fact that she'd stuff herself into a robe á la francaise, so when I proposed the Edwardian gown and Fluttershy, it was more to her taste than the pink floofy froufrou. Well, these things happen. I'd love to make this gown one day when I have time.

Early plans; Rainbow Dash Grand Galloping Gala gown

I thought I'd get this done nice and easy. The period for Rainbow Dash is ancient Greece/Rome, so my first thought was to make it easy as hell. Just a plain white chiton undershirt and rainbow colored himation.

But this plan didn't meet the acceptance of the cosplayer. She wanted something more in the lines of an actual dress. So I did a test try for an victorian bustle dress, because the drapery looked like a pony's tail.

It was a good plan, I just was not happy with it nor was the cosplayer. It was not the correct timeline for Rainbow Dash and it just didn't feel right. So our friend doodled a dress that was more on the lines of what Dash's dress would be.

And since I wanted these gowns to have an actual existing garment to base on, I was happy to stumble onto this dress while doing research. It's along the general lines of the accepted doodle and more-or-less period accurate. So I made more doodles on this design.

I'm still waiting confirmation on wether she wants the long rainbow train or the short.

Early plans; Fluttershy's Grand Galloping Gala gown

Fluttershy caused my quite a lot of grief, because I had no idea to which time period I'd tie her costume. There was thought of Middle Age, Byzantine inspiration, but I wasn't sure and it didn't just feel right. Then I happened to come by this image:

And something just clicked to place. The soft floofy look, the embroidery, the lace, the floofy trail... This was it. This is how I saw Fluttershy's gown. So I pitched the idea to the cosplayer who, after gentle persuasion, was exited about the idea.

I collected together images as an inspirational map, while I got myself a book about Edwardian fashion.

We both adore Alphonse Mucha's art and I'm hoping that once we get the early design chosen and I can start the detailed design plans, I get to incorporate some of that adoration into this cosplay gown. If nothing else, the hair and the accessory jewelry could be from Mucha's art.

Here's the first drafts of the gown. I'm still waiting for the feedback from the cosplayer on which kind of design she wants for the dress. After that I can start adding details, get the shape fixed, sampling materials and just getting the general planning together.