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Introducing. . .

My Other Blog. For your daily dose of timeless beauty.

Nerissa, by JW Godward

~Elise's Gallery~

Arwen's wardrobe: Part II

~The Grey Cloak~







~Blood Red Dress~









~The Bridge Dress~





~Various outfits~








I'm wondering if this the same costume as the blue dress above, only digitally altered to change its colour? It seems to be a very similar design. . .





~Deleted scenes~









And a couple that I couldn't identify. . .

This was certainly not a very organised or exhaustive overview of Arwen's costumes! For an infinitely more in-depth and informed look at Arwen's outfits, click here.

Arwen's wardrobe: Part I

Reasons why to do this post:

1. I'm a Lord of the Rings fan. A female LOTR fan. I mean, how many guys would write long blog posts discussing the various qualities of x character's costumes?

2. I love the costumes in LOTR. Why can't we dress like that today?? 

3. It's a good excuse to share some gorgeous LOTR pictures.

So, let's begin. I am no costume expert, but that doesn't mean I can't admire, even though I know nothing about sewing and costume design!

~Arwen Arrives~

~Fleeing from the Ring Wraiths~

This is one of the more subdued outfits worn by Arwen (played by the gorgeous Liv Tyler) in the trilogy, but it is nonetheless beautiful. Check out the unique egg-shell/spiderweb (which do you think it looks like?) lace trim on the collar.

~The Green Dress!~

Okay, so I guess I'm not doing this in chronological order, LOL. This is the dress worn by Arwen near the very end of The Return of the King, at Aragorn's coronation. 

A detail of the beautiful beadwork in the sleeves and trim around the neckline.

~The Fellowship's Departure~

This gown is made from an exquisite patterned fabric. The large sash adds a slightly oriental, kimono-like feel to the outfit. Speaking of oriental - some of these fabrics and colours remind me very much of India! :-)

Well, that was fun. Part II to come soon, hopefully.

Most of my pictures are from this website.

A beautiful blog

I only just found out this morning that Alexandra from The Value of One has started a new blog: Of Trims and Frills and Furbelows. It's a beautiful blog (great job, Alexandra!), and, most importantly, the blog posts themselves are interesting and well-written - particularly if you have an interest in costume drama and/or fashion history! :-)

So, please drop by, and leave a comment or two!

Clothes shopping

Clothes shopping. . . hmm. Do you like it or loathe it? Personally, I like it and loathe it by turns. I can tolerate, even enjoy, up to 30-40 minutes of shopping, but after that it just gets too stressful and too confusing.

I'll be all excited (sometimes - often there's not much in modern fashion to be excited about) about certain new season trends, with a mental list of clothes items to look out for whilst shopping. Then, after an hour's shopping, I'll come home totally disillusioned, feeling like I never want to hear the word "fashion" again.

It's times like these when I almost wish I had an older sister. It's good to go clothes shopping with my mum, but - we don't often get the chance to go for a leisurely shop with just the two of us.

Yes, an older sister, one who has time on her hands, enjoys shopping, and has good taste in clothes.

On the topic of sisters - I frequently feel like I should have been a younger sibling, rather than the oldest. Big sisters are supposed to be responsible, mature, confident, and good at bossing people (younger siblings) around. I'm not as responsible, mature, or confident as I would like to be. And I am certainly not good at bossing people (younger siblings) around. Oh, I'll try it, but I don't do it very convincingly. Me: "____ [insert name of sibling], get down from there!" or "do this!" or "do that!" or "don't do that, you're not allowed!" Younger sibling almost always pays little or no attention, sometimes retorting "you're not Mummy!" or "yeah, whatever. . . "

Seriously, my 11-year-old sisters boss me around much more than I do them. 

Getting back on topic: which is the best way to go clothes shopping? I have tried two methods, and haven't been very successful with either:

1. Go through your wardrobe, carefully consider what you need to get rid of and what you need to buy for the season, be it summer/winter/whatever. Make a list of clothes items to find and purchase.

2. (This is a much less organised method): simply go to the shops, try on whatever takes your fancy, then pick the several items that you like the most and need the most. 

I find both "methods" can be somewhat stressful. 

So how do you find/buy the clothes you need without: a.) getting too stressed/exhausted and b.) spending excess money?

Beautiful costumes!

Thanks to Wendy from the Tudophiles forums for letting me know about this site!

Aren't these gowns beautiful?? You could pretend you were a fairytale princess, or a beautiful girl in a Pre-Raphaelite painting, or an elfin maiden of Middle-earth. . .

Go to the website for many more stunning dresses.

All pictures are from the Dark Angel website.

PS: I've added a new playlist to my sidebar. Have a listen!

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