How to Make Dorothy's Ruby Slippers

So you want to be dress up as Dorothy from Wizard of Oz? That's easy! All you need is a white blouse, a blue dress and Toto. But what about the ruby slippers? If sparkly shoes are not in this season, you can make a pair yourself with just a little patience and a lot of glitter.

The original ruby slippers made for Judy Garland in the Wizard of Oz (1939) were dyed red and then covered with organza, decorated with burgundy sequins, and then two bejeweled red leather bows were added.

The original ruby slippers via Smithsonian National Museum        

Since sewing sequin is pretty time consuming, simple glitter would do the trick. 

You will need:
- a pair of pumps or ballet flats (if they are red, that's a plus)
- loose glitter
- craft glue or Mod Podge
- glitter glue
- a few paint brushes you're not too attached to
- hairspray
- disposable cups
- a stiff red ribbon
- a glue gun
- scissors
- red rhinestones in different sizes
- needle and thread

STEP 1
Clear a working space for yourself and make sure to cover it with cooking parchment or some disposable paper. Glitter has a tendency to get everywhere. I made these shoes a week ago and there's still bits of glitter I find in my bedroom and on my balcony.

STEP 2
Fill one disposable cup with a bit of glue and the other one with loose glitter. I don't usually like to use anything disposable, but this method will help you avoid contaminating your glue with glitter and will let you collect any loose bits of glitter afterwards.

STEP 3
Using a paint brush, cover a section of your shoe with a thick layer of craft glue.Sprinkle loose glitter over that section. Shake it off. I have seen some tutorials where people mixed the glitter and the glue and then covered the shoe with the mixture, but it didn't work for me. The glitter got too lumpy and wouldn't spread.       

   
STEP 4
Repeat this process over the entire outer area on both shoes. Avoid the inside of the shoe (you don't want to feel glitter between your toes) and the heel. Leave to dry over night.

STEP 5
See if your shoes still need some coverage in places. Cover those sparsely glittered areas with more glue and glitter. Now with a paint brush cover the heels of the shoes with glitter glue. I prefer this to covering them with glitter as glitter glue gives a smoother shinier finish and you can avoid sending bits of glitter flying everywhere when you click your heels together. Leave to dry overnight.

STEP 6
Cover the entire outer area of the shoes with glitter glue. This will help keep any loose glitter in place. Give the heels another layer of glitter glue. Leave to dry.

STEP 7
In the meantime, make the bows. Cut your ribbons into two strips, approximately 6cm each. Using needle and thread make them into bows. With the glue gun, attach smaller rhinestones all over the bows. Aim for as much coverage as you can get gluing the rhinestones close to each other and making sure to put some in every nook and cranny. Attach a larger rhinestone to the middle of the bow with the glue gun.

I took these pictures after a full night of partying, so some of the rhinestones were lost on the dance floor 

STEP 8
Once the glue on your shoes is completely dry, give them a nice even spritz with the hair spray. I had a real problem with loose glitter, so I had to spray them four times before I was confident that I would not leave a glitter trail behind me as I walk.

STEP 9
Once your shoes are completely dry and no loose glitter is left behind when you shake them, attach the bows to the front of the shoes with the glue gun.

Now put on a pair of bobby socks and you're ready to follow the yellow brick road!   

DIY: Great Halloween Makeup Ideas

I've been so busy this week that I haven't had a chance to post any new Halloween costume ideas. But to get you all Halloween-ready, here are some wonderful makeup tutorials from the ever brilliant Kandee Johnson.

Poison Ivy (Batman & Robin)



Queen of Hearts (Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland)



Edward Scissorhands



Betty Boop



Princess Jasmine

Snow White and the Huntsman Costume Featurettes

Most films don't spoil us with costume related featurettes. But Snow White and the Huntsman has at least FOUR!

This video is really great. Colleen Atwood describes all the characters she had to work with and tells about her creative process for each of them.



And here are three more featurettes where she shows the costumes and tells a bit more about each of them.







I can't wait to see this movie!  

Snow White and the Huntsman Costumes

What is it about Snow White? Why do we keep making films, TV shows, and music videos about a heroine whose only claim to fame is her incredibly pale skin and proclivity for harmful fruit? I will certainly think about answers to this question as I watch Snow White and the Huntsman when I go see it.

The costumes for this, what feels like the umpteenth version of Snow White this year, were created by the brilliant Colleen Atwood (Alice in Wonderland, Chicago, Memoirs of a Geisha). And they are dark, moody and atmospheric, just like the film (or at least the film's trailer).



I'm not a huge fan of faux-medieval chic, but a lot of it looks pretty cool.

 

Snow White's costume is very practical, if a little dull. I like how it illustrates the character's journey from an imprisoned princess to a strong and self-sufficient warrior. It starts out as your ordinary long dress, but as the story progresses, it gets torn and tattered and turns into a tunic that she improves with some leather boots, leggins and arm-guards. Really love those puffy sleeves.

The huntsman's costume is very basic. Everything looks like it was made by a guy who lives in a forest. Most of the elements were sewn by hand to give it that DIY look. It's leather on leather with more leather.

But it's the Evil Queen's costumes that are really worth a look. They are absolutely gorgeous and very creative.

  
Ravenna's feather cloak was the first costume that Colleen designed. There are over a thousand feathers hand-trimmed and sewn together.And it looks stunning. It reminds me of Prospera's magic cloak from the recent Tempest film. The dress underneath has this weird embroidery that almost looks like scars tissue.

Ravenna's wedding gown is incredible. It's beautiful and menacing at the same time. Some elements are delicate, like the soft fabric and the intricate embroidery along the bodice, but then there are the strips of leather attached to the skirt to create the contrasting pleats and the exoskeleton sleeves (which I absolutely adore!)

This is the Queen's "battle dress". It's essentially a chainmail with every metal plate attached by hand. It must have taken ages to construct. It does give the dress a very reptilian look, especially when she is walking with every single element moving. The collar is made of burnt and twisted leather. It does not look comfortable at all.

This dress is my absolute favorite. It reminds me of the legendary Lady Macbeth costume worn by Ellen Terry. If you're wondering, yes, those green 'spikes' are actually jewel beetle wings. The skirt and the sleeves look like they're made of cobwebs. there is a general sense of decaying greatness in this costume.

While the plot may be flimsy and the script cheesy, I will definitely go see this film, if only for the costumes.        

Review Mirror, Mirror: The Costumes were the Fairest

What did you do this Wednesday? I went to see Tarsem Singh's Mirror Mirror. I pretty much knew what to expect after reading all the reviews, so I just sat back and enjoyed the pretty pictures. And pretty they were!

The costumes for this film were designed by Eiko Ishioka who worked with Singh before on The Cell and The Fall. Mirror Mirror was, sadly, her last project and she died soon after the film's completion.

SPOILERS START HERE!

The setting for Mirror Mirror is very much 'once upon a time, in a land far, far away', and so the film is not bound to any specific time period or location. But most of the costumes seem to be inspired by 18th century court dress. There are powdered wigs and voluminous skirts in abundance.

My personal favorite is this beautiful dress Snow White wears at the beginning. The colors are just gorgeous; but what makes this piece a real beauty is the little applique flowers and butterflies that look almost alive.

Snow white's badass-trained-by-dwarfs look was my second favorite. And it's actually something I would wear in real life. Maybe the corset over a bright blue peasant blouse is a bit too much, but those pants look very comfortable.

My friend and reluctant movie companion was of the opinion that the best part of this flick was the Prince's coat. Which was, admittedly, very impressive.

I loved how Snow White's palette changed throughout the film. She starts with a delicate pastel dress, and then we see her in white, followed by the blue and black look and finally this gorgeous white, blue and orange frock. My guess is that brighter, stronger colors signify character development. Though there is very little of that going on.

The masquerade ball gives us some pretty bland 'symbolic' costumes for the main cast: peacock, swan and rabbit.

But it's the supporting cast that really gets to shine. It seems that everyone at this party is wearing a fauna-themed costume. And they are quite creative. Walrus, shrimp, chicken, moose.

The evil queen is the one who steals the show with her gorgeous dresses. The skirts are huge, the shoulders are prominent and the collars are impressive. All her costumes are ostentatious and extravagant. And yet the character is very lovable. I have to say, more so than the dopey prince or the naive heroine.

I would recommend seeing this film in the cinema. It looks quite stunning on a big screen. But it's more fluff than substance and you shouldn't expect a provocative plot or depth of character. For a modernized fairy tale it's more of the same.        

New Pictures from Mirror, Mirror

Here are some new pictures from the technicolor madness of Mirror, Mirror - a zany retelling of the Snow White story. And they are just as colorful as you would expect.

I love these costumes! They make me want to run to the sewing machine and start making something equally gorgeous. I think my absolute favorite is Snow White's yellow and pink embroidered dress with huge puffy sleeves. I adore embroidery and would love to make something similar.    

Mirror, Mirror - The Other Snow White Movie

Mirror, Mirror is the other Snow White film coming out in 2012. Apparently, Snow White and the Huntsman was not enough for Hollywood and they decided to have another film with a very similar plot.

Snow White (Lily Collins) and the Seven Dwarfs

Synopsis:
A dark twist on the classic fairy tale, in which Snow White and the seven dwarfs look to reclaim their destroyed kingdom.  - from IMDB

This film I am definitely going to see. Apart form the beauty of technicolor madness, it's got a great cast, hilariously outlandish costumes and the campiest performances I have seen in a while.

Julia Roberts is brilliant as the evil queen. She is doing it with so much ham and cheese that she turns a rather banal evil witch into comedic gold.

Julia Roberts as the Evil Queen with a passion for fashion

Lily Collins makes a cute and believable Snow White. She certainly looks the part, though it's hard to tell from the trailer if she is a particularly interesting character.

Skin as white as snow, hair as black as night

The dashing Prince Charming is played by Armie Hammer, which is weird, because to me he is one of the classic 'meh' actors - conventionally good looking and with as much charisma and stage presence as a cotton sock.

Armie Hammer aka Prince Andrew Alcott as the model of mediocrity 

Played by Martin Klebba, Jordan Prentice, Danny Woodburn, Ronald Lee Clark, Sebastian Saraceno, Joe Gnoffo and Mark Povinelli, the dwarfs seem a fun and diverse lot.

Snow White befriending seven tough fellas

Tarsem Singh, who has directed Mirror, Mirror, is well known for his stunning visual style. And this film doesn't disappoint. In addition to beautiful cinematography, it's got great costumes. Everything from Snow White's dorky 'swan' costume to pretty much everything worn by the 'evil' queen is absolutely magnificent.

The media is already turning this into The Great Battle of the Whites, anticipating a showdown between these film in spring/summer 2012. While I may skip Snow White and the Huntsman on account of me not caring much for a protagonist who looks either sickly or bored, I will definitely go and see Mirror, Mirror in the cinema. It may be style over substance, but at least it's got plenty of style.