Entry #19: Professional

Entrant Category: Professional

Please don't vote until all of the entries are available and 

we have announced the voting start on The Doll Wardrobe Blog. :-)

Voting for the 2014 Summer FDC...

Starts On Sept 1st, 2014.

Voting Ends on Sept 20th.

Please vote for this entry by commenting below or 

emailing us at nora.demington@gmail.com.

Vote for Entry #19, by writing -- "I vote for Entry #19."

We recommend voting for one newbie entry, 

one intermediate, and one pro, at least.

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Lucy Pevensie from the movie Prince Caspian

The moment I saw what the theme was for 2014’s summer contest, I knew I had to make this outfit.  A while back I’d been thinking about how much fun it would be to make, but had shelved the idea, having other projects to work on.  This contest gave me the excuse to pull it out again!

  

Lucy wears this school uniform at the beginning of the movie, as she and her siblings are about to take a train to boarding school.  However, their plans change as strange things begin to happen around them in the underground train station, and they suddenly find themselves on an empty beach.  They had been magically drawn back into Narnia at just the right time!  

Inspiration:

So, for my inspiration, I found some pictures of the scene in the train station and on the beach.  Her outfit consists of a white oxford-style blouse, gray gym-slip dress with box pleats, a red v-neck sweater, blue and yellow striped tie, burgundy blazer, gray socks and black shoes.  Her hair is braided and tied with light blue or gray ribbons.  So I went on a hunt for patterns for the shirt, tie, and blazer, being confident I could figure out the dress pretty easily.  I found the three patterns I needed at Liberty Jane.

Because I didn’t feel up to knitting a sweater, I decided to search at the local Goodwill to find something I could cut up.  I decided to make it a v-neck vest rather than sweater to reduce the amount of bulk under the blazer.  The rest of the materials I got from Joann’s: a thin white muslin for the shirt, gray and burgundy suiting fabric, and lining to match.  Because I couldn’t locate a navy blue and yellow striped fabric, I bought them separately and planned to sew the stripes for the tie.  Add buttons and thread and I was ready to go!  

Process:

I decided to work from the inside out, so I started with the blouse first.  I put only snaps down the front; no buttons, because them plus the snaps would have been too bulky.

Next came the tie.  I cut two piles of 1 inch strips, then sewed them together, alternating the colors, and pressing the seams open.  It worked great, although the thickness of the finished product was a bit hard to work with.  I made sure as I cut out the pieces that the stripes would go the same way they do in the original outfit.  A piece of elastic makes the tie easy to put on. 

The dress was next.  It took a bit longer, because I had to create the patterns.  To make the pattern for the box pleats, I took a piece of paper the right length and then folded it like I wanted the pleats to be.  Then I used that to cut out the pieces and mark the pleats.  The bodice of the dress took a bit of drawing and redrawing before I got it right.  The buttonholes on the shoulders are real, but I also added velcro to the back of the dress to make it easier to put on.  For the sash I simply cut a thin strip of the dress fabric, serged the edges, and fringed the edge by removing the vertical threads.  Perfect!

I had to create patterns for the vest as well.  I worked with reshaping some basic patterns I had until they were the right shape and would work with the ribbing.  Then I had fun cutting up the sweater!  I cut off the ribbing around the neckline and the base of the sweater and used it on the neckline, sleeves, and base of my mini sweater.  I serged all the seams because I was nervous about them unraveling.  Overall, I am really excited by how well it turned out!  

The blazer was a bit more work than the other pieces, but still fun and pretty easy to make.  

The last parts of the outfit, the shoes and socks, I purchased off of Ebay.  

They really complete the outfit!   

Outfit Complete:

I had a lot of fun taking these pictures.  I took the opportunity to get some beach pictures at a family reunion at the beach, and I got some good shots despite the wind and blowing sand!  

Waiting at the train station for their train to come in.

Where’s that strong wind coming from?  Wait, what’s happening?

“Where are we?  Oh, Peter, can it be?”

“It is!  We’re in Narnia!”

“Quick, get this coat and sweater off, and my shoes!”

“That’s better!”

Carrying her stuff up to the castle ruins on the hill above the beach.

When Lucy opens her chest inside the old treasure chamber of Cair Paravel, she finds the gifts Father Christmas had given her the last time she was in Narnia.  

Remembering when Father Christmas gave her this magic cordial.  

This outfit is for sale in my Etsy shop: https://www.etsy.com/shop/RainbowLilyDesigns.  

Also, I’m offering an exclusive sale to readers of this blog!  Use the coupon code: DOLLWARDROBE2014 to get 10% off from now through December!  

More Narnia costumes, plus medieval, renaissance, and regency dresses, are in the works, and I will be listing them over the next couple months, so check back often to see what new outfits I’ve created!  

Thanks for voting!

______________

Please don't vote until all of the entries are available and 

we have announced the voting start on The Doll Wardrobe Blog. :-)

Voting for the 2014 Summer FDC...

Starts On Sept 1st, 2014.

Voting Ends on Sept 20th.

Please vote for this entry by commenting below or 

emailing us at nora.demington@gmail.com.

Vote for Entry #19, by writing -- "I vote for Entry #19."

We recommend voting for one newbie entry, 

one intermediate, and one pro, at least.

Thank you!