First Worn: Pride & Prejudice Ball 2013
I bought a sheer saree online, and the picture was this darker green and I had in mind to overlay it on a nice dark blue and do this nice elegant evening dress… then it came in and it was waaaay lighter and I had to totally change my game plan. I took a swatch to a fabric store and just held it over things until I found a colour I liked, and it ended up being a light pink with a tinge of yellow… that was way too expensive for my blood. So instead I bought some unbleached muslin and some RIT dye in light pink. I used 1/4 the recommended amount hoping it’d turn out suuuuuper light pink, but it turned out just like the bottle. But with the new colours, it felt very “spring” to me, so that guided my design.
For the pattern, I saw this dress bodice on pinterest, an 1820 dress from Kent State, and I really liked it, so I kept it in my mind but… forgot to actually look at the reference, so it ended up being very much “inspired by.” I modified the Bagatelle crossover variant for this, and drafted the sleeves and reticule. I made soooo much piping for this, but that’s my favourite part!
For more WIP details, here are my blog posts on this costume.