This was not the Edwardian black-and-white stripe suit I planned for Carnevale 2022, but this was the one that turned out pretty damn good in the end. A year before, our group decided to take a walk in Edwardian costumes, preferably in black and white, during Carnevale. So I thought this would finally be the time to make my version of Helena Bonham-Carter’s awesome stripey suited costume in Wings of the Dove (1997).
That costume by Sandy Powell has a stripe skirt, but I would reverse it and make a stripe jacket with a solid skirt. Then Karen gave me a bunch of black-and-white stripe fabric that was leftover scraps from her Carnevale outfit. This sealed the deal!
I started by basing my jacket on a McCall’s pattern and making an exaggeratedly large collar, more like the movie costume.
I even thought I’d make it up all proper ‘n shit by pad stitching a layer of hair canvas and steaming the collar’s curve. Oh foolish girl!
Well, it was all for naught because that jacket fought me like hell. First off, that fabric was weird. It was a mystery blend upholstery weight where the white satin was lighter than the stiff black velvet stripes. It didn’t want to drape or curve at all. And it was SO hard to fit! I tried multiple times, first taking apart the sleeves and changing the shoulder with my mom’s help, then taking off the skirting and adjusting the bust and waist with Kendra’s help. But no, it never fit me quite right.
It might look reasonably OK on the dressform (which it doesn’t fit either because that’s not my corseted shape). But it looked AWFUL on me. Unfortunately, I realized this in mid-January, after having worked on this coat off and on for nearly a year. And Carnevale was coming up in a month!
Well, I’d bought some yummy black and white stripe wool at a Black Friday sale (long after I was deep into fitting this coat) … and I found a different but still Edwardian-ish pattern in my stash. And huzzah, this one went together super easy in a weekend or two! Far less fussy to fit due to the boxy shape, and the wool was like butter to work with.
I’d long earlier skipped the idea of making a skirt, blouse, and waistcoat. Instead, I bought an Edwardian Twill Skirt from Recollections and a random white ruffled blouse on Amazon (after going through a bunch of different blouses from my closet, eBay, and Amazon, eep).
The hat was simpler to make! Inspired by how Jen Thompson made a huge Edwardian hat from a sombrero, I set about doing the same. I found a $24 felt sombrero on Amazon and ripped off all the trim, punched down the pointy crown, and steamed the brim flat-ish. To cover the crown, I gathered a circle of black silk and sloppily tacked / glued that over it. Then I assembled a giant bow out of purple silk, plus a hat band, which I tacked around the brim. I ordered some big-ass ostrich feathers from OnlineFeathers, curled them a bit, and tacked them to the hat. Ta da! Giant fucking hat, done.
People ask how I packed this hat because it’s so big. Easy — it’s big, but it’s only as wide across as my biggest suitcase. So I just stick it in the mostly full case, upside down, with some tissue around the feathers, and stuff socks and things inside the crown, packing things all around.
So, on to Carnevale! We walked around Venice and headed to the Church of San Giorgio Maggiore, which is a beautiful white classical edifice on a little island directly across the lagoon from Piazza San Marco.
I also styled a curly purple wig to fill out my own hair & better balance the hat on.
Accessorized with my bat purse, purple tights, & American Duchess pompadour shoes.
Wearing vintage rhinestone glasses occasionally.
Around the campo near our flat.
Karen, me & Kendra in black & white.
On the island of San Giorgio Maggiore with the campanile in the background.
Liam, Kendra, Barbara, me, Karen, & Liam on the steps of the Church of San Giorgio Maggiore.
Me & Kendra as Edwardian tourists inside the Church of San Giorgio Maggiore.
