Alexa Chung: Style Goddess

If I ever become a master thief, the first thing I will steal will be Alexa Chung's wardrobe. For those of you who don't know who this is, let me introduce you.

She was born in Hampshire, England, and is apparently 1/4 Chinese (on her father's side). As far as I know, she's a pretty well known celebrity in the UK, but less known here in the US. She is a smart English student, turned model, turned reality star and TV host, turned magazine editor and major columnist. It's your basic Cinderella story.

This dress is unique and beautiful, and I kind of think that the shoes make the outfit!

Too bad I just chopped all of my hair off, because I want her hairdo!

She maintains that girlish quality here, and is still elegant too! Again, I love the shoe choice!

I first started noticing her on random TV spots solely because her clothes are amazing! I love that she has her own signature style, which somehow manages to be cute and classy at the same time, with perhaps a little bit of rock-n-roll thrown in. So, here are some great pictures I've found of her. I hope you enjoy!

I love how unexpected this shirt and skirt combo is!

Yes! I want this dress!

Although a bit crazy, there is nothing about this outfit that I don't like.

I love how even her sweat shirt has flair!

A little more rock-n-roll than the others. I likey!

I can't believe I'm saying this, but I love these Daisy Dukes in this outfit! I would never think of this combo, but I am 100% sold!!!

I just found a really great clip of her talking about fashion and New York. Now I really want to go hang out in Williamsburg! Alexa Chung on fashion

1830 here we come!

The cast from "Wives & Daughters". Don't they look lovely?

I'm not sure if I've always loved 1830s fashion. I remember as a child my mother telling me about Tasha Tudor and how she loved the 1830s and felt that she had lived in the 1830s before. Hmmm...I think it wasn't until I saw "Wives & Daughters" did I really fall for the 1830s (and I'd say that "Wives & Daughters" is late 1820s early 1830s). But I have fallen, and hard.

It has been a lifelong goal of mine to recreate dresses from my favourite periods in costume history. I hope that this is the first step in realising that goal. I mentioned last year to the missionary couple that was currently serving in Glasgow that I wanted to learn how to sew, but that I didn't really want to learn on something modern, because I didn't want to wear modern clothes, I wanted to wear historical clothes. Sister Hicks assured me that she could teach me how to sew. So somehow it happened that my sister Heather discovered that she had started sewing a circa 1830 dress years ago and wasn't liable to finish it any time soon, so she sent it to me in the post, and Sister Hicks and I set to work.

Working hard with Sister Hicks

Or rather, Sister Hicks set to work. Apparently the bodice was wrong. The lining was supposed to be sewn separately, but it had been sewn directly to the bodice. Sister Hicks said we must unpick it. It was touch and go for quite awhile, but miraculously it was saved. When the Hicks transferred to Ireland the dress was still not finished. The bodice was complete - sleeves and all, but the skirt needed to be pleated and sewn on. And it took a long time, but at last it is complete!

Since it has been such an interesting journey for me, I am sharing that journey with you, and I hope you will enjoy it as much as I did.

Pinning in the skirt, before hemming and before sewing down the waist-band.

 Of course, I had to make sleeve puffs as well, as the loose sleeves of the 1830s needed support. Luckily I found a pattern online (Many thanks to Emily: http://zeitverweil.blogspot.co.uk/2012/12/tutorial-1830s-sleeve-puffs1830er.html )

Sleeve puffs from the Victoria & Albert

Sewing up the sleeve-puffs.

A completed sleeve-puff!

 I wanted to get the hem right, and talked to Heather about it, and she reminded me that they sewed the hem high up on the skirt. She also told me that her dress (she has a replica of a gorgeous 1840s dress) had muslin sewn inside the hem to give the skirt a bit of extra body.

This is a good example of how high up the hem was sewn. And isn't it a lovely 1830s dress?

The inside of the hem.

The stitches on the hem that would show I did by hand.

The dress completed!

My underclothes (gasp!) My sleeve puffs kept slipping (I'll have to fix that), and my petticoat that I bought at the charity shop - it was made for use in the opening ceremonies of the  London Olympics. It has an official tag and evereything!

My hair is in curlers because not only did I want to wear an authentic dress, I wanted to have authentic hair as well. My hair didn't cooperate exactly as I wanted it to, but I think I did pretty well in the end.

This gives you an idea of the becurled, befeathered beribboned hairstyles popular in the 1830s. 

The complete ensemble! I even found a shawl that works as a sort-of pellerine. 

The back. See how my lovely underdress has come in handy!

My hair just did NOT want to go in ringlets this morning!

Church cat! Uncannily like the cat that used to hang out at the church building in New York.

Taking pictures in the Botanic Gardens on the way home was too big a temptation!

Can you see the difference wearing stays (corset) makes?! You have that authentic figure. When they don't have proper underclothing in films, you can always tell, and it is SO maddening.

What do you think - would I fit in with the ladies of Cranford?
For a link to the pattern for my dress, by-the-way, go here:
http://www.pastpatterns.com/806.html

Once Upon a Costume

I have been watching the TV show Once Upon a Time pretty regularly since it began. There are a lot of things I enjoy about it, but the costuming is not one of them. I hate to be negative about costuming that I know has taken countless hours of blood, sweat and tears on the designer's part. But the truth is, with a few exceptions, I usually range from being underwhelmed to being slightly nauseated.

Just because she is the evil queen doesn't mean you have to make her look like Elvira!

Everything about this was wrong! The color, fabric and especially the feathers! SO MUCH BLING!

Even the "pretty" dresses are too on-the-nose "princess." Most of them remind me of something my daughter would design. And I just can't get over the fabric choices.

This is, by far, my least favorite design. Who on earth thought it was a good idea to make the fairy's look like jelly fish hookers?

If that wasn't enough for you, it also comes in blood orange.

I think the overall problem for me is that Eduardo Castro, the designer, is way too literal when it comes to designing for a "fairy tale" setting. I can, of course, understand where he's coming from; we're dealing with fairy tale characters, so why not take the designs to the extreme? But, in my opinion, designing for fantasy doesn't mean going over the top. I personally believe that subtlety is much better than the "more is more" approach.

A Fairy Godmother? Or an old prom dress from the 80's?

I know she's evil. You don't have to give her huge shoulders, 80's hair, a crazy hat and a completely confused outfit to prove it!

Two words: Vegas Showgirl. 

I am aware that I may be alone in this assessment, as I'm sure a lot of people love the costuming in this show. So let me give you another great example where the costume designer makes this same mistake in a different way. In the movie Mirror Mirror, the craftsmanship on the costumes is absolutely amazing! But the designer, Eiko Ishioka, goes so over-the-top, that they are completely distracting to the viewer! (Or at least they were to me.) I was especially disturbed by the abundance of bright colors and overall lavishness (even in the lesser costumes).

Even though, at first glance, this is lovely. There is way too much going on. The crazy orange, giant bow, extra ruffles, detailed bodice. It's just too much to look at.

The bright red, huge winged sleeves, voluminous skirt and feather tail would each be statement enough on their own.

With people like this constantly in the background, there is nowhere for your eye to rest.

Now, I believe it is possible to maintain creativity and even do crazy things while keeping the costume subtle enough that it flows with the movie and it's setting and surroundings. A wonderful example of this is in the movie Snow White and the Huntsman. Designer Colleen Atwood does amazing, fantastical things with the costuming, while grounding her ideas in reality just enough to make the costumes flow!

Totally intense, bringing to mind Joan of Arc. Whether you like Kristen Stewart or not, she looks really awesome!

The details on this dress are amazing! Apparently, those undulating details were made by manipulating chains so that they resembled writing snakes. And look at those bird skulls! Completely brilliant design!

I love the chain-mail feeling of this gown! It is beautiful and strong, just like the queen!

I don't know how she came up with these bone-like shoulder details, but it is lovely and stunning!

Feathers done right!

The other example that came to my mind was also, to my surprise, designed by Colleen Atwood. (Apparently I'm a huge fan and I didn't even know it. She has won 3 Oscars and has worked with Tim Burton on 9 films, so far!) You would think that the costumes in Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland would be the most over-the-top of them all. But, just as with Snow White and the Huntsman, they are subtle and spectacular, all at the same time. As the overall mood of Mirror, Mirror was quirky and funny, I feel that the custom designer should have gone in a direction more like Alice in Wonderland.

If you look closely, even the crazy character's costumes aren't actually that far out. And I love how the pops of color are carefully chosen as opposed to the Mirror Mirror designs that have everything in vibrant colors.

Some more great armor, and I love the two costumes in the background! They tell each character's story without shouting it at you.

So, the moral of this very long post is, costumes should help the actor tell the character's story. They should not be a distraction or a novelty. They should be able to hold their own without interrupting the flow of the movie or television show.