2012 Challenge: January, Share What You've Made!

Can you believe that January is already at an end? How are those challenges coming? I'd love to see what you've completed! Feel free to share a link to your blog post of your finished project(s)! I know my challenge is  to complete a costume each month, but if you're doing a different challenge still feel free to share! I think it will be inspiring to see whatever you're working on!
Participants for January:

~Veronica
~Marguerite

 ♥ Anna Kristine

The Mystery of Edwin Drood

Another Dickens film is coming out, The Mystery of Edwin Drood. Here are a few photos! I recognize Tamzin Merchant (Georgiana Darcy in the 2005 Pride and Prejudice) and Alun Armstrong (Flintwinch in Little Dorrit) but otherwise I not too many familiar faces to me.

The costumes look pretty!

This will be interesting as it is based on an unfinished novel of Dickens. I haven't ever read it, have any of you?

Snow White and the Huntsman

It seems shortly after the Snow White inspired 'Mirror Mirror' hits theaters, another darker retelling will hit theaters. Snow White and the Huntsman is a version in which, instead of killing her as the queen orders, the huntsman trains snow white to fight the evil queen. This version stars Kristen Stewart as Snow White and Charlize Theron as the evil queen.

 The movie is from the same producer of Alice in Wonderland and you can see similarities such as her armor is similar to Alice's and the mushrooms in the poster above remind me a lot of the Alice in Wonderland poster.

 It does look as though the costumes are really well done though. Colleen Atwood (also known for Alice in Wonderland, Sweeny Todd, A Series of Unfortunate Events) designed the costumes.

 It will be interesting to see how this version turns out. I'm hoping it's not too dark. I read somewhere it would be somewhere along the lines of The Lord of the Rings. But I have a feeling I will prefer the more light version with Julia Roberts. However the costumes in this do look neat.
I love what they've done with her sleeves to give her the Snow White look in a more authentic historical way:

I'm interested to see if she wears any other dresses in the film. It all looks beautifully done so far!

2012 Costume Challenge: ~January~ Georgiana Darcy Regency Gown

I finished my first month of costuming for my 2012 Challenge! This is a costume that has been in my project box for a very long time. Mainly because I outgrew it so I had no motivation to finish it. But I decided I would go ahead and finish it, one day soon it will go into my Etsy shop.

As I was working on this Regency dress, I thought about who it reminded me of...and I kept coming back to Georgiana Darcy. Although I'm sure if it really was her dress it wouldn't be made of cotton and would probably be much more grand. But something about the soft cream color made me think of her. 

So...here are the photos...I am in great need of a better camera...and some skill! So, sorry for the not so great photos. :P

 The sleeves on this dress are detachable so it's perfect for winter or summer!

Back View:

  I used shell buttons for the back closure and the sleeves.

On to February's costume...maybe I can get a bit of a head start! :)
How are some of your challenges coming?

Treasure Island

There is a new Treasure Island airing on television this year starring several familiar faces! And it looks like lots of fun pirate costumes!

 Elijah Wood plays Ben Gunn, you can watch an interview with him here about playing his character. Love these plaids!

 The movie also stars Rupert Penry-Jones (Captain Wentworth in the 2007 Persuasion) as Squire Trelawney.

 The costumes look very detailed and incredible.

 Donald Sutherland plays Flint.

And Keith Allen (the Sheriff in BBC Robin Hood) is playing Pew.
I'm excited to see it! I'm not sure when it's coming out, I think it may be playing on television in England or already have played there. I hope it comes to the US soon!
Also here is the trailer.
Makes me want to read the book again! I do love a good pirate movie!

Academy Award Nominees for Best Achievement in Costume Design

'Anonymous' 

Costumes Designed by Lisy Christl

'The Artist'

Costumes Designed by Mark Bridges

'Hugo'

Costumes Designed by Sandy Powell

'Jane Eyre'

 Costumes Designed by Michael O'Connor

'W. E.'

Costumes Designed by Arianne Phillips

Which do you think should win? Vote on the poll in the side bar!

Project: The Holiday Fireside Sweater

I've always loved this sweater Cameron Diaz wears in the movie The Holiday and for my birthday my friend bought me the Fireside Sweater pattern based on this sweater!

 I love the look of this sweater....it's so cozy and has so many cables!

My husband ordered yarn for me to make it (his birthday present to me) so here it is so far:

 Don't look too close...I've already made a couple mistakes with cables overlapping the wrong way in a couple places. But I can't bring myself to rip it out and start over. It's not that noticeable to me to maybe no one else will notice either? And it is my first sweater...so it will have some imperfections I'm sure.

Can't wait to finish this and snuggle up and wear it! Hopefully I can finish it before the weather turns warm!
Off to knit I go...
Keep warm!
~Anna Kristine

Great Expectations: Herbert Pocket

I was able to watch the new Great Expectations and although it was really well done and the costumes and sets were beautiful, it wasn't my favorite, a little too creepy and depressing for me. But...I am a sensitive movie watcher. I get easily creeped out! I would still like to read the book one day and maybe see the other version coming out with Helena Bonham Carter. (Thanks Kiri for telling me about this one!) 

 However, the redeeming point for me was getting to see Harry Lloyd (the beloved Will Scarlett in BBC Robin Hood) play a role that, in my opinion, suited him perfectly! His character, Herbert Pocket, is the brightest part of the movie and made it worth everything else. Not to mention, he's a direct descendant of Charles Dickens himself which just makes him all the more deserving of the role. He should be in more period drama, it suits him.

2012 Challenge

I have always wanted to do a challenge of some kind on my blog to hopefully have a support group behind me helping me reach some of my goals. When I set challenges with other people I'm more likely to reach them. 

My goal for 2012 is to finish twelve costumes! One a month, for 12 months. It is the year of twelve! I have a pile of fabric that is all intended for costumes and I need to finally make myself sit down and make them as well as a few unfinished costumes I hope to finish.

I already feel as though I am going to fail at this...but I'm going to give it all I've got and even if I finish the year off only having made half that many, I'm way ahead of where I was last year.
So what do you think? Do you have a similar goal? Maybe yours isn't costumes but quilts, or something knitted and so on. But even a knitted projects could work as a costume...depending what it is. :)
I'm not sure what costumes I will make yet but the collage here is an inspiration board for things I've always wanted to make. I have already been working on my first costume which you will see here soon!
If you want to join this particular challenge then leave a comment and every month post photos of your finished costume and share the link!
Look forward to seeing what you all will make in the new year!

Hugo

I really want to see this movie! I've never read the book so I don't know much about it but the movie trailer looked interesting and the costumes and the whole look of the movie just looks wonderful.

Have any of you seen it? What did you think?

Diary of a Wedding Dress: Part 2

The last post I did on my wedding dress progress wasn't anywhere near where I ended up. I didn't use any of the motifs I made. My original plan was to create a netting overlay to give my dress that dreamy floating look, but once I got there I thought it was too much and went back to the basics of the dress. In the end all I ended up doing was adding straps and a sash and taking up the hem. I think it had enough detail already and I liked the simplicity of it.

Here is a front view of the dress before I added the sash and straps. It's in the process of being hemmed here.

Back view: the buttons down the back and the way the back splits open are what made me fall in love with this dress! I don't think I got any pictures of it bustled up but it looks amazing bustled. It reminds me of a ball gown from the late 1800's when it's bustled.

 While sewing a wedding dress one must watch Disney princess movies! While hemming we watched Tangled. I adore this movie!

The hem had all these beautiful beaded lace motifs...which had to be carefully taken off and hand sewn back on.

 But I am a very lucky princess...I have fairies you see...they helped me. :)

 Here is the strap and sash mock up out of muslin:

 And now on to pictures of the finished dress on my wedding day! All pictures from here on are by Marina Koslow.

 The sash and straps were made out of a piece of vintage satin a lady gave me awhile ago. Upon furthur inspection the the scrap of fabric I realized it was a panel from a vintage wedding dress...it still had the button loops on it and everything! So that is my something old. :)

And there is is! I loved how it turned out which I am so glad...there was a point I was afraid I wouldn't and you can't have that when it's your own wedding dress! In case any of you are curious about the designer it's an Alfred Angelo dress, and yes that's the same company that makes the Disney princess wedding dresses. :)
Looking back, as fun as it would have been to make my dress starting from scratch, I'm so glad I didn't. Planning a wedding is stressful enough and I also made 6 of the 9 bridesmaid dresses so it would have been overload! And besides...this dress was perfect. :)
More on the bridesmaid dresses later this week!