Wednesday, December 28, 2011

1912 Ensembles

After two months of constantly watching ebay for vintage saris, I managed to score two perfect ones in the last week.  Now, I can move onto designing an evening gown and an aesthetic outfit (with harem pants of course!).  I'm trying to use the Ballet Russes as a basis for my color schemes, particularly Scheherazade.
Peach is one of those colors that looks really good on me, but doesn't often get used.  I love their combination of it with the green tones.  So, I kept on a look out for anything in that range.  I found these two saris:


They're both silk net (nearly impossible to find in yardage!).  I'm going to use the less embroidered portion of the green for the harem outfit, the heavier part will eventually be a 1920s gown I think.  The peach is going to be an evening gown.  I'm thinking about carefully removing some of the gold work and placing it elsewhere to vary it up.

The hardest part is the design itself.  I still haven't settled, but I think knowing what fabric I'll have will help tremendously.  In terms of using the heavily encrusted goldwork, these styles pop out at me the most (from La Bibliotheque des Arts Décoratifs):



For the harem outfit I'm fond of these:


Paul Poiret design


Above all else, know this: there will be tassles.

10 comments:

Time Traveling in Costume said...

I will love to see how you make these up. They always seem a mystery to me.
The one photo of the harem pants remind me of the ones worn by Lady Sybill in Downton Abbey which I just loved!
Val

lahbluebonnet said...

Looks like a FUN project!
Laurie

lahbluebonnet said...

ps...I'd love to watch the process of how you do this!
Laurie

Samantha said...

this is going to be stunning! i can't wait to see!

Janet Fortino said...

Where did you find your sari's?
Please answer on facebook.

Isabella said...

Ebay is wonderful, isn't it? I'm expecting another sari this week that I'm considering for either the 18th C Turkish or maybe 19th c bustle. We'll see when it gets here.

Can't wait to see how your outfits turn out!

The Dreamstress said...

Yum yum yum! Both the saris and the photos! I can't wait to see your design and the finished product

The Lady Ship said...

This is going to look fantastic! Those saris are beautiful!

Jo said...

Silk net! I'm envious! They're going to be gorgeous!

pattym said...

If you're ever in Minneapolis, be sure to check out SR Harris. They have the most incredible selection of fabrics -- including embroidered/beaded net or chiffon perfect for 1912 overskirts.