Costume help! by SpacemanSpiff

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Costume help!

POSTED BY: SPACEMANSPIFF
UPDATED: Sunday, January 29, 2006 20:15
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Friday, January 27, 2006 7:25 PM

My brother is getting married in April, and he and his soon-to-be-wife are having a costume party for their rehersal party. My girlfriend and I are narrowing down our ideas, and of course Mal and Inara's outfits from the party in Shindig are an option. The problem is, making or somehow cobbling together those outfits would be very difficult and time consuming.

So, who knows where Mal and Inara's outfits (or pieces of the outfits, or near-enough outfits, or patterns, or anything even close!) from the party in Shindig can be found?

I'm counting on the network of Browncoats out there to help me do this. I'll post pictures if we pull it off!

Thanks in advance.

Curse your sudden but inevitable betrayal!

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Friday, January 27, 2006 9:03 PM

FLORALBUNNY

Spaceman, the Inara costume is a genuine cobble, to hear Shawna Trpcic tell it. The middle part is a chunk of her own wedding dress, which was accidentally sewn on upside down (hence the problem with closing the back) and there are yards and yards of chiffon dyed to match.
Your best bet is to start looking at patterns ASAP and try to find sections which can be put together. I've done a lot of that -- just takes time and an eye.
Mal's suit pattern can probably be found in period costume patterns.
Best of luck, and please put up some photos if you can get this act together!
(Then you'll have something to wear to a Con, too...)

bun
-- bastards singed my turtle --

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Saturday, January 28, 2006 5:44 AM

NYWOE

I have seen (and bought) some civil-war era costume patterns from JoAnn's. I think it was in the Halloween section of the "Simplicity" book.

Also, Browncoats.com is a good costuming resource:

http://www.browncoats.com/index.php?ContentID=42ea91a36257b

http://www.browncoats.com/index.php?ContentID=431e5884d356e

_____________________________________
If you're an Arizonan and a Browncoat, come join us:

www.azbrowncoats.com
http://tv.groups.yahoo.com/group/AZ_Browncoats/

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Saturday, January 28, 2006 7:16 AM

SPACEMANSPIFF

Thank you both. This weekkend is going to be a "fact-finding mission", so I'll look at the sites and check out JoAnnes, and then decide if this is a reasonable undertaking for people working full time.

I managed a pretty good Mal costume (his standard Firefly look), so I might be able to pull this off.

Curse your sudden but inevitable betrayal!

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Saturday, January 28, 2006 9:05 AM

RYCE

Another great site is http://www.costumersguide.com/firefly2.shtml. She has some good insights into the Inara costume, including some pics from Shawna

. I used this site when making my Kaylee Halloween costume.

No power in the 'verse can stop me!

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Saturday, January 28, 2006 11:31 AM

SERYN

Hi, Mals costume is actually a pretty basic mid-late 19th century black frock coat, collarles shirt gold coloured waist coat and deep red/gold patterned cravat, albeit with a 'frontier' style (english clothes at the time where a bit more 'waisted')with his standard trousers (i'd have to watch the episode again to make sure)

With that in mind, I remembered a site selling collarless shirts, light and heavy weight frock coats (both the right colours, but you'd need to replace the buttons on the coat) and the right style of waist coats (though unfortunetly not in Mals gold)

The good news is that Butterick do a great pattern, and waistcoast are the absolute easiest thing in the world to sew, with the possible exception of cravats.

The link to the site with the shirts and the frock coats (take a deep breath they're expensive)is http://www.amazon.com/gp/search/104-3365429-5389550?%5Fencoding=UTF8&s
earch-alias=apparel&field-brandtextbin=Renton%20Western%20Wear

and to the pattern http://store.sewingtoday.com/cgi-bin/butterick/shop.cgi?s.item.B3721=x
&TI=10013&page=7

looking at it, the pattern might do you for the coat as well, but unless you have loads of experience in sewing I'd buy your coat, its the thing that can make or break a costume and they are AN ABSOLUTE B**** to make.

Same with shirts, all the pin tucking on tuxedo shirts is soul destroying, but a very basic collarless shirt might do, there are in structions for it at http://www.vertetsable.com/demos_shirt.htm (obviously with out all the frippery and with a shop bought collar.

If you wanted anymore links and stuff, feel fre to post on http://www.fireflyfans.net/thread.asp?b=11&t=17107 - Ilurk regularly, so in between waffling about fabric I may be able to help out.

Hope this helps

-------------------------------------------
"She's a mite whimsical in the brainpan."
Xander: "Hi, for those of you who just tuned in, everyone here is a crazy person." *grin*

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Saturday, January 28, 2006 11:23 PM

SERYN

also, really really good photo's of Inaras ball dress at http://www.shawnatrpcic.com/costumes/inara-shindig-ballgown/

Really good close ups of the skirt fabric and everything.

-------------------------------------------
"She's a mite whimsical in the brainpan."
Xander: "Hi, for those of you who just tuned in, everyone here is a crazy person." *grin*

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Sunday, January 29, 2006 6:36 AM

NYWOE

Thanks for the link, those dresses are neat. And the jewelry! I'm not ususally a jewelry person, but I'd sure love to have some Firefly accessories! Especially that one necklace that was worn by both Inara and Banning Miller. (Hmmm... Did Inara steal it from Banning at the party? LOL)

_____________________________________
If you're an Arizonan and a Browncoat, come join us:

www.azbrowncoats.com
http://tv.groups.yahoo.com/group/AZ_Browncoats/

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Sunday, January 29, 2006 7:04 AM

SERYN

I don't know if they have a large Asian community anywhere where you live, but most of inara's jewellry is stuff that you can buy in indian jewellers and Sari shops.

You could always make friends with a Mancunian Browncoat - Rusholme Street in Manchester has loads of shops selling it, or as ever, theres good old ebay http://stores.ebay.co.uk/sjewels-India.

This one caught my eye, looks a bit like it, but hope you have a valentines with a big budget.. http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/India-wedding-Bridal-all-matching-Choker-Necklac
e-set_W0QQitemZ5062170377QQcategoryZ284QQtcZphotoQQcmdZViewItem

-------------------------------------------
"She's a mite whimsical in the brainpan."
Xander: "Hi, for those of you who just tuned in, everyone here is a crazy person." *grin*

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Sunday, January 29, 2006 8:21 AM

UNREGISTEREDCOMPANION

For Jewelry, check JC Penney. They have some pretty wild stuff in their accessory section. I have actually bought some of it for my belly dance costume.

As for the dresses, you may want to check local thrift stores. They often have wedding dresses, prom dresses, etc... that, with some creativity, could be VERY Shiny!

~~~~~
"Funny and sexy. You have no idea. And you never will."

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Sunday, January 29, 2006 10:06 AM

NINAH148

Did you realize that Inara's "Shindig" costume is up for auction soon? :-) Of course, if you want to do it for less than $2500 minimum...look in Indian stores for lehenga skirts. Most have a drawstring waist, so as long as you get the right color the size doesn't matter. A surplice-style top should be pretty easy to find at Ann Taylor or a similar store...something that is meant to go under a suit and just show a lot of ruched chiffon or silk at the v-neck. Then, I would get a cheap corset from eBay to wear over the top...they make some really cheap ones made out of Chinese brocade material that are underbust corsets (I bought one in blue for my wedding). If you could find that in gold or something complimentary, with a gold lehenga skirt and a dyed gold surplice top, I think with jewelry and your hair up, that would look pretty darn close. I love costumes.

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Sunday, January 29, 2006 8:15 PM

SPACEMANSPIFF

I did find the dress up for auction...I was amazed!

Thanks to everyone for your help, but it looks like I'm going to have to scale back my ambitions. Lack of time and money...

Curse your sudden but inevitable betrayal!

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