Queen of Hearts Costume, Part II: Tailoring the Underdress

Once I had my materials assembled, the first thing I did was to make sure my black and white dress would fit me. I bought it on eBay and was more concerned with design and speed of delivery than with the precise size, so I ended up getting a dress that was a size or two too big. But better too big than too small, right?

While it would have been simpler to take the dress in only on the sides or at the side back seams, I decided to get a little creative and take it in at the front seams– this way I was able to alter the shape of the color-blocking to make it slightly less square and more tapered (and thus more flattering).  Because the dress was lined, I took in only the outside layer so the lining would disguise the stitching on the inside. I also shortened the shoulder straps so the dress would sit better on my torso. See the before and after below:

  

I left the hips as-is, because while I could have taken them in to get a more fitted line, I didn’t think it was worth it when the overskirt was going to cover everything anyway. While I would love to pull a Sabrina and have an ultra-slim underskirt with a hugely poofy overskirt, my black and white dress isn’t structured enough to pull that off. Also (sadly) I’m not Audrey Hepburn.

So anyway, that’s it for this post. Not a very exciting stage of the costume process, but a necessary one.