Lacey Costume Review

The Sophistique Noir monthly theme for October is lace, and I realized I don't have much in my everyday wardrobe with lace. A bit of trim here and there, nothing dramatic or terribly interesting. However, I love to use lace in my costumes. Also, on October 1, I'll be away from the computer at a costume event, so it seems appropriate to post about a few lace-decked costumes!

One of my favorite uses of lace was in this stripey 18th-century polonaise with a decidedly goth flair. I trimmed the neckline with a deep lace flounce (edged in velvet ribbon) and gave the sleeves lace ruffles. More photos are here and you can follow the complete dress diary by scrolling back thru here.

This era really lends itself to lace. Here's an 18th-century anglaise made of embroidered silk, made by my dear friend Sarah, which I trimmed in coordinating silk ruches, velvet ribbon, and huge black lace sleeve flounces. More photos here.

Those sleeve ruffles used scraps from another project -- they were leftover from the layered lace skirt over a purple silk hoopskirt I made to portray the Marquise de la Tour-Maubourg in the Franz Xavier Winterhalter portrait of "Empress Eugenie Surrounded by her Maids of Honor" with a group of friends. Here's the portrait gown...

 

 And here's my recreation. Our group won "Best in Show" for our costumes and presentation at Costume-Con 26 in 2008 (which is kinda like winning an Emmy or an Oscar for costume hobbyists!).

More photos, including ones of the whole group, are here.  The dress diary, con write-up, and a video of our performance are here.

I also like to use lace on accessories. For my 16th-century garb, lace is the crowning touch on ruffs, like this heavily starched 1590s ruff. The dress diary his here.

Finally, a photo of some lace in my fabric stash! I hope to use this on a really extravagant ruff in the future. I bought 10 yards in the L.A. garment district.

Can't wait to see the rest of this month's lace extravaganzas!