Princess Jasmine - a whole new....costume thread! First wear! and a tear!!

[najla86]

I'm about to embark on a brand new costume, which is the transformation of one of my grandma's "cruise wear" tunic and palazzo-style pants into a Disney-esque costume worthy of both little kid theme parties and regular performances. Here are two inspiration images--the animated Jasmine from the film, and a character actor playing her at the Disney theme park.

My goal is to make a costume that is
-danceable
-recognizable as Princess Jasmine
-more blingy/detailed than the cartoon costume

And....go! Tonight is sketching night ..g.:

[shimmygoddess]

that pic makes me miss Walk Disney World..I worked at Epcot back in 95-97...it was sooooo much fun going to the parks all the time...I dreamed of being a princess character...LOL

[lilya]

Can you do the whole thing in a drapey silk charmeuse/lycra, with some ruching in a lighter blue along the hip? And then add some dangling beads and bling?

And seriously? They couldn't find a better fitting top for the disney actress?

Why am I writing in questions? AAAAH!

[danielabellydance]

I have a Princess Jasmine costume! I dressed as her for Halloween one year....and one day I will wear it again and force the hubby to be Aladdin....:-)

[MaryRaks]

What about incorporating the necklace into the bra with a halter or maybe making fringe with tiny fringed loops? Another idea would be making an overskirt to give the pants a different look like this:

[najla86]

Lilya, I like the ruching idea! I think I"m going to incorporate some in the bra too.

While working on my sketches, I've been having a big debate about tone on tone (highlighted with bling) versus color/gold. I'm not super-keen on how the Disney costume has a seemingly random gold belt with multi-colored beaded fringe. It's still identifiable as Jasmine, but seems like a cheap sort of pull to childrens' love of rainbow things. I think I'm going to do something like raised/looped beading primarily in the turquoise, but with hints of gold for texture.

I really love the overskirt idea, and I think it may be a good way to deal with another debate I'm having. On the Disney costume, as well as the Jasmine doll I had when I was little, there's a sheer netting-type material with either a shimmer or small specks of glitter. It's very stiff, almost crinoline-like, and gets very poofy, when gathered, especially in harem pants. I have a feeling it'll be a sewing-machine killer :( I like the look, and it does help fit the more cartoon-recognition needs of the costume for potential pint-sized audiences, but I'm worried the mega-pouf may seem unsophisticated or a bit too much like a caricature. Since my first step will be an easy conversion of the wide-leg pants into harems, I'll see how much pouf there is, and then gauge the necessity of the sheer. I'm also trying to keep this SUPER low-budget, as I'm only freelancing right now....oy

Any thoughts on uber-pouf/sparkly sheer versus sticking with just plain satiny harems? Fabric pics to come tomorrow

[najla86]

woohoo! I had put out an ISO for big jems, but nothing was quite right. Someone suggested using cabochons instead, so I had decided to use Cat-Eye style stones, which were pretty cool..

But, lo and behold, while shopping at the farmer's market, one of the flea market vendors had this....6 ginormous 2" or so stones, and they already have holes through them so I don't have to worry about finding the proper settings. It was cheaper than getting the stones online + shipping. Now, how to make the white plastic gold?

[najla86]

here are the fabric pictures. I'm starting with a "cruisewear" outfit by Vanity Fair that formerly belonged to my grandma and was worn in the late 70s and early 80s.

[andalee-oriental]

Oh my...if only you knew how in love with Princess Jasmine I was as a kid. Wow...the costume of my childhood fantasies. Now I cringe at the political and ethnical incorrectness of it all...but those days were special.

[najla86]

so today, the work has begun!! Right now, this costume is representing a lot of things to me. A way to keep busy while looking for work, a way to make myself marketable as a dancer to another kind of audience, a way to be creative & get a chance to sew, and a way to make a costume on a budget. I've never had the money to buy expensive costumes, so I try to recreate a lot of them--this is something different, in that I'm going for a pro look, but with a rather simple cartoon style in mind as the influence. In my quest to stick in a supertight budget for both the challenge & financial needs, I'm using a lot of leftover fabrics and supplies from a past costume. Thankfully, gold goes with everything ..g.:

Here are some basic sketches/materials pile:



PS> for some reason I've forgotten the tricks of how I used to get images down to Bhuz size but not tiny...sigh

[Linnyg]

I can not wait to see how this turns out! I love Jasmine.

[lylagus]

[QUOTE

PS> for some reason I've forgotten the tricks of how I used to get images down to Bhuz size but not tiny...sigh[/QUOTE]


Resize, Shrink, Sketch, Blur, Grayscale and Crop Images or photos online

i use this site

[najla86]

Now, for some juicier materials :)

I found the jeweled bracelet at the flea market on Saturday, which was great. Unfortunately, no matter how much prying I did, it wouldn't come out of its white plastic casing. So, of course, being too impatient to find plastic paint and craving some sort of instant satisfaction after the waiting game of calls/emails regarding jobs, I decided to start making the first of 2 medallions anyway. I made a padded oval of interfacing, felt and gold lame, and then attached the jewel through the pre-drilled holes. I did a basic bead loop with a sequin at the end (my first foray into 3D beading!!!), but that didn't cover up the plastic. I ended up taking the strung sequins and threading some beads and then veerrryyy carefully applying tacky glue to the flat edge of the jewel, and then to the tiny edges of the jewel frame to cover the white. My glue is half dried as it is, and REALLY tacky (but I'm too cheap to buy more/still don't know where get those things in this city), so there was a lot of breath holding and tentative daubing....but, voila, a pretty glam looking jewel. I'm going to create two, one for in the middle of the bra, and the other in the headband. I really need to find out where to buy sewing/craft materials, as I tend to dislike buying these things online, especially for color matching issues. I could go down to the garment district, but I don't know the first thing about prices there, or what I'll find, or what of the more "sewing supply" things they'll have. Another thing is that currently, I don't have anyone to go do these kind of errands with me, which makes it a little depressing. My fave sewing buddy is also in another state, which is more depressing....




wooohoo, latent photoshop skills returned!! ha

[Mintaka]

That jewel looks fantastic!

[andalee-oriental]

Amazing. I'm lovin' it.

[1shadylady]

nice job on the beadwork!

[mmouse1534]

This is AWESOME! I have a Jasmine costume but mine is the really cheesy one that comes as a cheapo deal in a package for Halloween. I dress it up by wearing my gold loop over the top of it! I was surprised at how well it turned out! ;-)
Looking forward to watching the progress on this one!
I heart Princess Jasmine!
xoxo,
-NJ

[Qamar60]

Me love this! :o)

Qamar

[shimmygoddess]

this is going to be beautiful! cant wait to see more pics

[tigerb]

I am "glued" to this thread!

[Andrea2]

You can also try a gold Sharpie, although what you've already done looks fantastic. This is going to be so cute!

[Lauren_]

I really like the cartoon's midriff top with off-shoulder sleeves (sleevettes?) Seems very appropriate for a children's party, too.

Nadirah Johara, can you show us a pic of your costume with gold loop?

LOVE how the jewel turned out! That's amazing.

For future reference, I've used gold model paint before, I think it may be more durable than nail polish, and more metallic. I think I found mine at a Hobby Lobby.

Sounds like this project is going to mean even more to you as you go -- you're going to get out and learn more about your city, AND learn to enjoy (or at least tolerate) exploring on your own. When I lived in San Francisco, I was so in love with the city I walked all over it every day, all by myself. Ate lunch by myself, drank coffee in cafes by myself. (didn't know anyone, didn't have a choice.) I learned to really enjoy it.

Where is it you're living now, and how long have you been there?

[najla86]

Sounds like this project is going to mean even more to you as you go -- you're going to get out and learn more about your city, AND learn to enjoy (or at least tolerate) exploring on your own. When I lived in San Francisco, I was so in love with the city I walked all over it every day, all by myself. Ate lunch by myself, drank coffee in cafes by myself. (didn't know anyone, didn't have a choice.) I learned to really enjoy it.

Where is it you're living now, and how long have you been there?

I did a lot of this when I lived in Paris last summer, and it was fun, but after a while, I did get lonely. This is a bit better, as I'm in NYC and my friends/family are still in the same time zone, but it took me almost the entire first month of being here (plus searching since June) to find a job....which I am FINALLY starting tomorrow or Wednesday, thank god! I know for sure I'm not cut out to be a housewife, that's for sure ..l;, I do like the walking, etc, but for me, I was on such a tight budget this past month that even those things have been a bit difficult, or even meeting with friends in the city could get costly...on the weekends, when my BF doesn't have work, we've been doing a lot of downtown NYC history, which I love. Now that I'll have more structure/funds, it'll be easier to go on "missions" to find the parts to complete my costume. Since I have a schedule and source of income, I no longer have to worry about being near my computer/phone to hear about interviews and to be able to jump on them when they came, which really tied me to my apartment/neighborhood.

I'm REALLY looking forward to starting to work. When I was offered the job, my soon to be boss (who's probably in her 60s) said "Well, I wont buy my belly dance costume just yet, but we hope you'll accept the position." My co-worker in the department is a choreographer, so it should be a pretty dance-centric life, especially if I get to teach a BD class at my BF's school, which is in the works right now

Good call on the nail polish/model paint suggestions. I must be just totally airheaded from this job search drudgery, as I've actually used nailpolish to fix chips in the heels of more inexpensive shoes I haven't gotten a chance to do more since the jewels, as I had a lot of last-minute interviews, job wardrobe shopping, etc, but I have been doing a lot of contemplating about how to structure the top.

Does anyone have any pics of choli/choli-esque bras, or costumes with the hanging sleeves? I've seen the pics of Astryd Farah in the ads here on Bhuz with a sleeved costume, but I can't quite figure out how they're attached. I'm afraid of attaching them too loosely and having floppy sleeves, or doing them too tightly and then busting a sleeve mid-dance. Pics appreciated :)

[najla86]

So I haven't had a ton of time to sew this week as I started my new job (!!!!) and it's been taking me over an hour to get home (should take 30 - 35 min) because the roads have been solid with traffic from the UN general assembly and the fact that they stop EVERYTHING so the motorcades can go in. I really think my new boss is TOTALLY into the BD thing...she introduced me to the director of the museum and brought it up with him too, and he seemed pretty interested. I'm so relieved to finally be working, and it's awesome....now I just need to start bringing my sewing on the bus ;)

Here's the beginning of my PJ earring--I'm doing tone-on-tone gold embroidery with a little bit of gold beading, and either AB or turquoise crystals. The idea is a somewhat 3D padded look based on common Egyptian embroidery patterns - when it's done I'll put a nice gold lining on the back and then attach it to an earring back

[_Ahava_]

What a cool idea for the earrings, Najla! That sounds gorgeous, and also lightweight enough that you can make them big without worrying that they'll pull your earlobes off. ..g.: I'm really enjoying watching your progress through this costume--it's so inspiring!

[kemintiri]

... but I have been doing a lot of contemplating about how to structure the top.

Does anyone have any pics of choli/choli-esque bras, or costumes with the hanging sleeves? I've seen the pics of Astryd Farah in the ads here on Bhuz with a sleeved costume, but I can't quite figure out how they're attached. I'm afraid of attaching them too loosely and having floppy sleeves, or doing them too tightly and then busting a sleeve mid-dance. Pics appreciated :)

Hi Najla,

Sorry no pics, but here's a thought: what if you used a random tank top as the base? (Cut it so it's midriff and use it as your pattern.) When you put it together in your fabric, you can use elastic in the sides (ie under your shoulders) to hold it up more securely. For the sleeves, cut a band of fabric that is roughly 1.5 times the circumference of your upper arm. Then sew a wide hem, leaving an open space in the middle, attach both sides to your tank top base and drawstring a gold or turquoise cordlet in the hem. Then you can tie the sleeve to be as pouffy or as drapey as you want. Depending on how much support you need, this would mean wearing a strapless bra underneath though... (Or use the strapless as base?)

Sorry, just brainstorming... Now you make me want to do a Jasmine costume too! LOL ALthough yours looks like it is going to be awesome. Love the jewels and the earrings!

Kem.

[txchic]

If you feel you need support for your bra you could use the invisible bra straps. Years ago I had a strapless bra costume and was not comfy with the lack of support. I made a sleeve of fabric to cover the invisible straps and tacked a bit of yarn to the sleeve. The yarn was the type that is hairy, for lack of a better phrase. It had all the colors in the costume in it and it was whimsical. I also add a bit of the yarn as a streamer from the belt on one side and a shorter version from the opposite side of the bra. Oh, and a bit in my hair and as a wrap on one arm. (Just 3 strands braided together, wrapped from wrist to bicep with dangling bits.) From the stage it was quite interesting. I was able to remove the tubes of fabric from the straps and use the straps in other ways. Quite inexpensive yet fun. For PJ it might be an option.

[SamarDahab]

I love that idea. Can't wait to see the finished product

[najla86]

any pix, TXChic? my mind is shot from work and I"m having visualization issues :P

kemintiri -- I like your idea too, I think I just need to sketch it out (see above, haha). The adjustable concept is pretty nifty

[aasiyah]

i want a progress update on this, please :)