Home-Made Buns

To honour International Star Wars Day, SNAP brings you this homage to Princess Leia’s buns. 

BEHIND THE SCENES OF PRINCESS LEIA'S CAPTURE BY LORD VADER

During the battle when the Princess Leia is captured by Darth Vader’s imperial troops, her Royal Hairdresser is killed. The Princess has no choice but to go on without him.

However, in this extremity, she knows that she cannot wash her hair, for there will be no-one to wind up her buns again. Undoubtedly, it will not matter, as Lord Vader will probably have her executed anyway.

But to her consternation, she is rescued by the impetuous Luke Skywalker and that mercenary but confoundedly handsome scoundrel Han Solo.

Princess Leia determines that the buns must stay in until they are safely back in the bosom of the Rebel Base and some minion can be fetched to re-do them. But finally, when she at last has the opportunity to wash her lank locks, no suitable hairstylist can be found. Princess Leia decides to attempt the buns herself. 

The result is not happy. In fact, her buns are half-baked.

The Force forbid Han see her like this! Always pragmatic, Princess Leia decides it’s time to part ways with her outré ear-muffs and goes for braids instead.

Nina’s Colours

When I saw Black Swan about a fortnight ago, one of the things I really liked about it was the costume design, particularly the minimalist colour palette.

White, grey, black and pink were used to define the characters: Nina starts off in girlish sugar-pink and white, and by the end of the film she is wearing black and grey. Costume designer Amy Wescott explains this, “As Nina’s character unravels, her colours become darker.”

Vincent Cassel and Natalie Portman in ‘Black Swan’. Image from Life.Wintry and delicate, these colours suit the popular notion of a ballerina, and perfectly expresses the frightening transformation of the sweet white swan into the seductive and terrible black swan.

It would be a pretty palette to try out this winter, although I don’t think I could wear it exclusively (I’d get bored). Grey and white are always favourites with me; black I wear on rare occasions, but soft pink almost never. My one concession is this pink wool scarf that reminds me of cotton candy – and of the fluffy white scarf Nina wears in the film.

Read an interview with the costume designer Amy Westcott at The Ballet Bag, and check out some of her sketches at Clothes on Film.

From light to dark: ballerina, dove, smoke, noir

Another Naked-Lady-Winning Performance

Scrolling back through the SNAP archives recently, I came upon these photos from my Oscars-inspired story earlier this year. I had another good giggle and decided to share the outtakes and extras with the world.

Give me a long gown, a naked lady statuette to grasp, and a post-production mike, I could (and did) ham it up for hours making tearful speeches and waving my arms about histrionically.

Click on image for larger version

The gown in question – in true Oscar-style – has had only one outing to my cousin Naughty Amelia-Jane’s evening wedding a few years ago. I love its completely backless elegant 30s style. The heavy black satin falls beautifully, and the draped boat neckline folds over the shoulders prettily, giving a little glimpse of plum-coloured lining.

The rhinestone earrings and bracelet are vintage, and came from a long-gone Sydney boutique called, appropriately, The Jazz Garter. A vintage Russian squirrel fur completes the picture.

And that’s a wrap.

Monster Fashion

My friend Sapphire and I both love vintage clothes. We both like to dress up. And we are both perfectly happy to clown around in front of the camera. It’s a friendship made in heaven.

We excitedly discussed the idea of doing some B-grade movie photoshoots (Sapphire particularly loves zombie films), and I proposed The Day of the Triffids (right) as our first venture. Sapphire enthusiastically took up the cause.

Obviously some research was required, so I rented out the DVD of the original 1960s movie. I had already read John Wyndham’s book some time ago, and enjoyed it immensely, so the movie was a bit of a disappointment in the way the main female character – a notorious young lady with a reputation for wild partying – was replaced with a wholesome little school-uniformed girl.

Triffid artwork from past decades. (Click on image for larger version.)I was also disgusted (and amused) by the usual histrionics enacted by the other female lead, screaming her head off in the lighthouse, instead of helping her estranged lover fend off the triffid attacking them. Give me a heroine with some gumption! Sapphire, however, took on that role with relish, while I armed myself with a garden rake.

Of course we are both unsuitably dressed for defending ourselves against slobbering cactus hybrids. Those skirts are far too tight to really do anything other than cower in terror against the wall. (AHA! I think I have just stumbled onto the real reason heroines from the old classic movies did nothing but shriek!)

Fashion Notes

Tatiana: vintage 1950s dove-grey dress, R&K Originals (For the Girl Who Knows Clothes), vintage gloves and earrings, Zoe Wittner shoes
Sapphire: own vintage navy shoes; wool top and skirt, belt, vintage gloves, Tatiana’s Closet

Wonderland’s Wardrobe

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Absinthe and personality crises notwithstanding, Tatiana finally makes it out into the marvellous garden glimpsed through that tiny door at the bottom of the rabbit hole…

I’ve very much enjoyed my little sojourn in Wonderland, but like Tim Burton’s grown-up Alice, I can’t promise I won’t be back. I just might take a leaf out of costume designer Colleen Atwood’s book though, and make my comeback in some new finery.

I finally saw the film only a few weeks ago. Leaving behind too high expectations (after reading middling reviews), I found myself thrilled most with the brilliant art direction and various costume changes Alice made. Why limit our heroine to one blue dress indeed? I particularly loved the scene where, accompanied by the sound of dressmaking scissors, the Mad Hatter – in fond reminiscence of Edward Scissorhands – swiftly fashioned a tiny gown for the shrunken Alice to don.

Check out the various incarnations of Alice’s classic LBD (Long Blue Dress) – and one red – below. (My own blue dress comes courtesy of Melbourne label Ammo, and the half-apron is a 1920s original.)

Alice, fresh from her engagement party, in ladylike powder blue.Deliciously en déshabille; precariously robed in Grecian folds, Alice nevertheless manages to run in this beribboned gown.A little snippet of a thing, Alice slips into a creation worthy of Wonderland's own couturier, the Mad Hatter himself.Scarlet befits the Red Queen’s court; back in blue, and back in the real world where shipboard adventure awaits.Many thanks to my cat Hero, who graciously consented to model for me.