Some More Collar Thoughts and a Mock-Up
Thank you all for your thoughts on the collar! Many of you did like the feathers in some capacity. I probably willl be doing feathers, but I'm just not sure exactly how yet. [Vicki W - I already have some ideas that are along what you suggested, just wait till you see what I have in mind. ] What better way to eliminate some ideas than by doing a few mock-ups? First, let's look at the pattern bag, with the luxurious fur collar (which LindsayT loves, and so do I, if I were just making the coat to make the coat - wouldn't a red coat with a snow white fur collar be gorgeous, along with white long gloves? Yeah, alright, back to reality.):
Yes, the collar is that large, it is not one of the pattern envelope illustrator exaggerations. Check it out on the dress form, although this is a slightly bigger than final form because I haven't trimmed it yet. As a side note, this is really the undercollar, as I wasn't sure what the real collar would be made of at the time, so I only quilted the one piece.
I went to Joann's and picked up a couple of cheap feather boas to play around with and see if I really was going to be able to make the feathers work. First, we have the maribou boa, I would stitch it down in rows, and cover the collar completely. This would be lux, and sort of like fur.
Second, we have a chandelle feather boa, draped in the same way:
Now to compare them side by side:
The chandelle boa seems to be a bit much. I think the coat would wear me instead of me wearing it. It would work better by itself - if there were no other decoration on the coat except for the collar. The maribou is a better, it is still soft and fluffy, and shouldn't compete too badly with the other elements. I know I can order a much thicker and better quality than what I found at Joann's, so I think I could pull that off without too much trouble. At this point, I'm still not 100% set on what to do. I think I will need to keep thinking about it and once the coat is assembled, see what the various options are. Seeing the whole picture will really help.
Parting Shot: Chocolate Moose. The Chocolate Moose is a custom chocolate shop in the city where my husband works. Every once in a while, he'll pick me up some chocolates. There are some giant truffles to share and some chocolate covered coconut squares in the box.
23 comments:
Just don't eat those chocolates while wearing that white marabou boa!
Colleen
I don't know... I really like the feathery-looking feathers. But I will trust you if you say that they would compete with the rest of the artwork.
I like both, the real feathery ones are nice and carry the bird theme well. Ultimately, you do have to consider the whole picture and they may be over the top.
I first liked the feathers best. But you are right, it probably would wear you. Mmmm, those chocolates :)
I think, sometimes, that over-the-top is not a bad thing. *grin* But, ultimately, you have to be comfortable with the whole piece. I wonder if there is some way to incorporate both so you have the actual feathers of the feather boa and then the marabou of the marabou boa as a more subtle base.
Call me five years old, I LOVE the poofy feathery collar! But you know best :)
I must admit I love the look of the chandelle boa, because the maribou seems look more like fur than feathers (at least, it does in the photo). But a better quality boa might fix that problem...
Both of them look pretty special!
I was thinking more along the lines of those beautiful individual feathers you can buy. I once pulled some off a cheap masquerade mask from a $2 shop to turn them into an indian squaw costume, and the more I played around with them, the more they became the absolute favourite part of my costume.
I don't know if i can explain what I mean with the feathers, but they are usually individual feathers and not as fluffy as feather boa ones.
I can imagine you creating some incredible pattern or just covering the whole thing with them. They are more sort of glossy I guess, and you can often get them at cheap variety shops here if they aren't available at your local fabric store.
I do like both, however I am more on the conservative side,so my pick would be the maribou boa :)
Those chocolates look sooooooo good.
HI,
I am not wild about the feathers as shown - maybe it would look better after you work your magic on them! Personally I think nothing less than white mink will do.
Patti
Depends on the look you wanna go for, but the maribou seems to be more suitable for what you want to do.
Good thing it's just a picture, if those chocolates were in front of me.......
Hugs,
Lory
Nice hubby. Chocolates look good!
I love the feather boa. Very burlesque!
The fur isn't my taste on that collar, but it might look different when it's finished.
But... most of all, I like it like it is in the first picture - blank.
But IF I would add something, it would definitely be the feathers. ;)
Agree with you that you probably can make a better choice when the jacket is more complete and you can see the relation between the different elements. Just now the feathers look too much.
When you mentioned using feathers, I thought it might look more like individual feathers, like this http://tinyurl.com/6aa3xe, but I'm now a maribou fan!
I also think that the maribou would probably be a little easier to wear. The chandelle looks like it would be ticklish, always brushing against your face and neck.
I love the feathery look of the chandelle. Would it be less overwhelming if it was just a narrower strip trimming the edge of the collar, with the quilting showing in the middle?
Isa
I was looking up your Houston dress for tips on finishing the hem and saw about side zippers and know I am late on this one, but even better RTW (formal-ish) dresses I had in the past sometimes had side zips. I think it was to keep it prettier. I prefer them to a back zip, easier to close on your own. Another reason could have been making a shorter side one was cheaper to manufacture (think WWII rationing) and the older patterns even say to make a "regulation style" snap closure as an option rather than buying a zipper, like the 1945 one I am finishing now.
I'm not reading the other comments first - just leaving my opinion and then going back to see what others said but I like the feathery looking boa...maybe not use so many rows! That one says feathers to me whereas the other one looks like fur. And if you are going for a fur look why not just use fur? It will be interesting to see which one you choose and as always thanks for sharing the process of making one of your "art" garments with us!
I think feathers are a good idea in the way I have seen beautiful individual feathers applied, but these renditions look cheap and gaudy. I am afraid it would really ruin your look.
I like the chandelle, but I agree with the people who said to maybe use a little less. It adds a sort of wild exuberance to the whole thing (unless wild exuberance isn't what you're shooting for, which is understandable).
The feathers would me my choice over the maribou.
Hmmm...
My thought is to find something inbetween the two. The Chandelle seems too poofy for covering the entire collar and the maribou too minimal. I don't know if it's possible to combine the two in some way or if you can find a feather boa that is between the two in size and poof?
Perhaps as someone suggested a base of the maribou and an edge trimming of the Chandelle?
I will say though that I *like* the feathers. They fit the theme, the silhouette and style of the pattern era, and this is (after all) a statement coat... an art piece. An extravagant gesture such as feather collar seems utterly appropriate to me.
Perhaps something like this using white feathers. The soft feathers give a fur illusion in keeping with the style of the coat. The sleek feathers give make a nice textural contrast - reducing the potential to overpower the coat and the wearer with the collar.
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