The best party of Carnevale 2022 was Tricia’s Pirates and Mermaids Party on a historical ship that sailed around the lagoon all night! It was a super fun theme in a kick-ass location with awesome people. I didn’t know it would turn out so great, of course, when I was planning my costume, I was
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
I missed a few Carnevale parties in 2022 because my luggage was delayed by four days. But I wore most everything around at some time, like this mishmasy-y fantastical outfit that’s kind of 1920s with an exotic flair. I just wanted an excuse to wear this gorgeous purple velvet cocoon coat with a fur collar
I’ve had this fabric earmarked for Leonard’s 16th-century suit for ages, and I finally bit the bullet and commissioned Jenn to make it for me. After all, she’s the pro, having made countless gorgeous such suits for fellas in the Court of St. George. We had a great time planning the design and during the
My favorite outfit of Carnevale 2022 turned out to be this dark confection made mostly of purchased items with loads of alterations and embellishments. And that rather sums up my ideal approach to costuming! Actual sewing irritates me, but taking various things and hacking them into my vision and loading them with trim is what
Starting in spring 2020, all our big costume events — whether Costume College, sci-fi conventions, academic conferences, dress-up balls and parties — were canceled due to the global pandemic. Travel of most any kind was prohibited as well. In a health emergency, this makes good sense as COVID-19 is spread through the air and contact
With Bridgerton still on my mind and a massive longing to travel again after being cooped up in my house by myself for a year and a half, I took a leap of faith and bought a ticket to the Empire Party at the Grand Trianon of Versailles. Which meant making another 1810s-ish costume, a
One of the events I planned to attend at Venetian Carnevale 2020 was the “red party” held by friends — it was a dinner where guests had to wear a little bit or a lot of red. I went through quite a few costume concepts for this one because I thought I’d wear something from
One of the events my friends and I planned to attend at Venetian Carnevale 2020 was the Napoli Ball, and 1860s evening attire was requested. But Victorian ballgowns bore me, so I decided that Leonard should branch out from the 18th century. I bought a black wool tailcoat tuxedo, a waistcoat, and a shirt. I
For Venetian Carnevale 2020, I wanted some kind of harlequin outfit because that’s so iconically “carnevale.” But it had to be in my favorite gothic colors, and I couldn’t find any fabric remotely close to that. The obvious solution was to make my own, but wow, that sounded difficult! So I talked to my mom
Many of us have seen this delightful painting with an 18th-c. gent wearing leopard-print breeches and waistcoat. It’s the generically named “An Interior with Elegant Company” by Venceslao Verlin (d. 1780). While I can’t find much about this specific painting, there are other images from around 18th-c. Europe of men and a few women wearing
Another CoCo has come and gone, and we survived! Well, except for some epically awful concrud, wherein most everyone I know came down with a nasty headcold immediately after Costume College. While I rarely, if ever, make elaborate new costumes for CoCo, I still have a blast attending for two reasons: I love teaching classes
My motto for this website and all my dress-up endeavors has long been, “We’re born naked, everything else is a costume,” which is a paraphrase of RuPaul’s “We’re born naked, everything else is drag.” Because Mama Ru and I have the same philosophy that all the clothes / makeup / hairstyle / etc. we garb
It’s easier than you might think Have you ever dreamed of waking up in a canopied bed, throwing open the curtains to look out over rolling green hills, then dressing in your finest period costume to stroll about those hills with your best friends? Do you fantasize about candlelit dinners in wood-paneled rooms with you
A little something we did in France!