Her dress is child a like with very soft colors of yellow to symbolize her innocence. The brother and her (christine) where from a rich important family, but like many other family's in that time they lost there fortune.
The dress is therefor inspirered from the fashion two years before the year of the movie, it has the look of they wanted to look rich, but they had no more money for rich fabrics like silks and stuff. But found a tailor that they could pay for a dress well made. So the dress it self has little details of aging, button repairs, ruffle fraying, fabric that look at it self a little bit old. But not to extreme to look like a poor women.
So here is my drawing for her. Child fashion of 1906 had little poof in the upper sleeve, but because we wanted that she looked like she was treaten as al little child I made some aspects a little bit more extreme, so there for the sleeves look more 1890's than more 1900's. It has to lean forwart almost like she is a doll, but not quite. For the same reason I made her skirt height a little bit higher that was acceptable for that time. The volume is there for than more wider that was seen in that time. But I wanted to hold on the S-line of that time. So her blouse has some volume in de front part and het skirt has a little bit more volume in de buttocks part.
The patterns I drafted partly myself and some I used from more commercial patterns, it has a nice balance and you have to search wich patterns I used. I had to remodel every commercial pattern I used for this dress to look like the design. So for after all, I used 3 commerical patterns, wich are al remodelt because they dind't had from natural the right look. Only the belt is mostly original, I only had to shorten the size. The pattern of the skirt is a draft from my hand. and for the blouse I used 2 different patterns and drafted a new piece extra.
So I used:
Truly Victorian TV491 a 1893 blouse waist, I used the bodice and sleeve, redrafted the sleeve and draften an extra pattern piece for the front
simplicity 1772 a steampunk pattern, but I only used the pattern piece for the under sleeve what I extended and the sleeve is with a real button closure and not a fake one.
butterick B5970 a 1900's patterns but I used only the patterns for the belt, what I shorten for the girl I made it.
So I began with the skirt, I first drafted the pattern and made it before I began on the patterns for the blouse and belt.
Sorry for the terrible light, there is no better light in my work space for this moment.
So the pieces go like very smooth in each other, the skirt is here a little bit to long, so after that I shorten it a bit. The skirt has a innerlining, so it is a skirt with 2 layers of fabric.
The back is pleated, but the skirt has a very round, almost a 1950's sort of volume and the side panels and back panels are like 1/4 of a cirkel. The pleats ensure that the back has a little more space for a little bump.
You see that I alraidy used my undergarments. There is a puffer under it, a simple petticoat and even a little bumppad.
So after I made the skirt I began to put together the patterns for the belt. It was not very difficult.
I dind't make photo's of the progress of the belt, because it was only follow the instructions of the pattern.
After the belt I began with the blouse, the basics for the bodice where to big for the girl I was sewing for. So I had to remodel the pieces, and made a total new front panel.
You can see the differents between the left and right picture. The left photo is taken before I altered the bodice to more fitting propotions for the girl. It was less poofy and sloby after the alterations.
So here are the differents between the fronts. You see the bodice is not yet finished, but it take slowly his form. So when I was sure of the fitting I worked on the front panel, the bright yellow stroke was not yet finished and because I had to alter the shoulder fitting it was something I had to do later.
When the bodice fitting was ready I sewed the buttons, and because the character was a girl with not a lot money, I gave it some history to use three different buttons. Sometimes people lose buttons and not every time you find the right buttons back.
The sleeves where something horrible to put together. And because it was the last thing I did for the costume put it off a little bit. It was something I never had seen clear in my mind how I wanted to make it.
Here you see also a detail off the belt, I like the shape of it, I'm going to make for myself once if I have the time.
The total result after I figured out with the sleeves.
The upper part of the sleeve is a new draft after the the mutton sleeve what was part of the TV pattern. But because I used two different patterns it was little bit off a gues off it would work. It did fortunate. But still...
The under part off the sleeve is a alterned version of a simplicity pattern what I lenghted and made a real button closure off it.
So here are the front, back and side of the total result.
It was fun to make, I learned very much. But extra time was sometimes I wished for. Five days off intensive sewing twelve to fourteen houres a day.
I like the result and I hope for myself that I can make the skirt once for me, with maybe purple and yellow?
I have some photo's of the dress when it was worn. So you can see it on more than only a manequin.
She wa a must to see, I liked it very much to see her play the role of Christine.
There were some little details we had in mint, such as buttons that weren't closed, because her character was not used to dress her self, same rule was for her hair.
It was such fun to see the dress came to live and made his own history. I love the dress, I love the character, I loved to see the live it represented. Such a pleasure.
