Padme's grey apartment "packing" gown
Star Wars, Episode II:  Attack of the Clones

An early favorite from Attack of the Clones, I made this costume for Halloween in 2004 in a
couple weeks using some very bad "Halloween" style fabric from Hancocks.  While it was a
hurried job and done with bad fabrics it was well constructed and allowed me to form some
ideas as to how I would attempt the gown if I could ever afford to do an accurate replica.  The
new information now available from both the FIDM exhibit and "Dressing A Galaxy" book
make replicating this costume an easier task than relying on movie and promo shots alone.  
View my completed costume.
Reference Images
Here are a few images scanned from "Dressing a Galaxy".  Many other high quality images can be viewed at Padawan's
Guide, including several lovely shots of the gown on display at FIDM.
Copyright Lucasfilm 2006
Concept art
Vintage center panel detail
Promo/movie stills
Notes on construction
To understand the scope of this project, here is a list of the materials required and the sources I utilized
in purchasing my materials.  I should point out that this is no exaggerated list but the minimum necessary
to complete this costume in a screen accurate manner.    

Fabric Materials:                                                        

10 yards cotton voile (white)                                                  
25 yards muslin (white)*                                                
5 yards dark blue tulle netting                                                
2 yards 8mm habotai silk (white)                                         
2 yards silk velvet (white)                                                
3 yards heavy interfacing                                                
½ yard navy blue cotton velveteen                                                                                        

*Doesn’t include muslin necessary for mock-ups

Other materials:

10 yards steel boning                                                        
3 skeins gray Pearl cotton DMC embroidery thread (#414)                
1 skein gold DMC  embroidery thread (5284)                                
1 roll Kreinik machine embroidery thread (002J)                                          
1 roll Kreinik machine embroidery thread (321J)                        
RIT Dyes:  Pearl Gray, Black, Forest Green, Navy, Purple                
1 pkg. Black hooks and eyes and snaps                                
Covered button kit and refill (16 needed)                                
1 strand turquoise (stone) beads @4mm                                
1 box ceramic seed beads (cream)                                        
1 box glass seed beads (turquoise)                                        
1 box glass seed beads (gold)                                                
1 box glass seed beads (clear a/b)                                        
1 bag silver jump rings                                                
1 bag silver bead spacers, 1” or longer                                
2 zippers                                                                
1 pkg. Roofing tin                                                        
2-3 large shells or shell beads                                        
Blue Nail Polish (yes, I’m serious)                                        
Liquid Leaf (Pewter) & disposable brushes                                
Gold Leafing Pen (Renaissance Gold)                                
Clear Coat                                                                
JB Weld                                                                
½” Brass rods (2-3)                                                        
Jewel-It, Jewel Adhesive                                                
½” Velvet ribbon (black)                                                
1 pkg. Metal Embossing kit (pewter)                                        
45 turquoise (stone) cabochons, 4mm                                        
1 pkg elastic                                                                
Medium length wig (human hair)                        
6 long hair extensions                                                         
Chicken Wire                                                                
Felt (match to hair color)                                                
Upholstery thread or invisible thread                                        

Recommended Tools:  

Pliers (large needlenose and smaller jewelry)
Dremel Tool with diamond wheel cutter and bit and polishing bits
Disposable (foam) paintbrushes
Tailor’s awl
Rubber gloves
Safety glasses
Loop turner
The Undergarments:

Always the least interesting part of the project and by necessity the first place to begin!  More than any part of the costume, my undergarments
differed from the original costume both in materials and construction.  While the original costume has a separate corset/blouse and petticoat I
constructed mine as a complete underdress for ease of travel and dressing at costumed events.  Additionally, I used muslin and tulle for my
petticoat rather than layers of silk taffeta.  The reason for this was strictly budget-related.

The inner corset was constructed out of very sturdy materials, 3 layers of mid-weight muslin (white) and a layer of very heavy iron-on
interfacing (craft interfacing).  The corset pattern was extremely simple and drafted by myself.  Each interior seam was supported by steel
boning (hoopsteel).  I sewed my completed corset into the bodice of my underdress.  The corset closes in the back with hand bound lacing
holes.  The bodice zips over the top of the corseted back.  The actual bodice was constructed from the same custom dyed muslin used for the
petticoat.  2-3 layers of muslin were used and the neckline was hand bound with bias tape made from 8mm silk habotai that was used to line the
vest.  

The actual bodice and petticoat are constructed out of mid-weight muslin that I custom dyed using liquid RIT dyes (1:1, navy to purple).  For the
petticoat portion of the underdress I used approximately 8 yards of muslin, pieced into nearly a full circle skirt.  The skirt/petticoat was box
pleated into the bodice.  The ruffles on the petticoat were made using a layer each of muslin and navy blue tulle netting.  The ruffles were
gathered using a machine stitch, which was a very time consuming step.  The ruffles were so long that they were gathered in sections, rather
than using one long stitch and hoping the threads didn’t break in the middle.  Another option would be to simply box pleat the ruffles.  This
would avoid the problem of gathering thread breakage, though it would be equally time consuming.  

Being pressed for time, I only added ruffles at the bottom of the petticoat.  Examining the drape of the skirt it is clear that there is additional
support on the upper portion of the petticoat as well.  According to the Rose Bowl Parade report, the taffeta petticoat of the original gown uses
three tiers of taffeta.  I will certainly need to add two additional tiers of ruffles at a later date to get the correct shape in the skirt.
Left:  The corset layer that was sewn into the bodice layers.
It's an extremely sturdy corset, later dyed to match.

Right:  The completed undergown and belt cinch.  

The Sleeves:

Since the sleeves of the original costume are constructed from a shot-silk chiffon fabric (warp and weft are different, often contrasting colors),
it was the most difficult to obtain, being impossible to replicate by dyeing methods.  The original was also a crinkled chiffon, making it even
more difficult to match.  Thai Silks and other companies carry shot (iridescent) chiffon, however I have not located a source for the crinkled
variety.  Fortunately, Starfirephoenix located an excellent match in Australia and was kind enough to send me two meters.  Since one layer
was rather transparent and I lined my sleeves with a silver 8mm habotai silk I purchased from Gayfeather Fabrics in Madison (WI).  The
pattern I drafted was very basic, with one seam down the back.  Due to the volume of the sleeve, it was wider than it was long.   

I machine gathered my sleeves at the upper arm prior to sewing the sleeves closed.  I used a small piece of bias tape to anchor the gathered
seams.  I believe the gathering on the original costume was done by hand.  The bottom of the sleeve was also machine gathered into the cuff.
 The cuff was also constructed of the sleeve fabric, however it was anchored to a piece of very sturdy iron-on interfacing.  The top of the cuff
was cut lower in the back than the front to achieve the correct drape for the lower portion of the sleeve.  The closure loops were constructed
out of the silver 8mm habotai lining.  A loop turner is required to make a small enough piece of ribbon tape.  To ensure my loops were even
and for ease of sewing, I first sewed them to a piece of bias tape stiffened with horsehair braid.  I then inserted this entire piece between the
shell and lining of the cuff.  I made 8 covered buttons for each cuff using my sleeve fabric.  Since the covered buttons and loops are virtually
impossible to close by oneself, I made the cuff just large enough to squeeze my hand through without opening the loops.
The Metal Armbands:

There are several ways to re-create the armbands.  The originals are said to be extremely fragile and bendable, very suitable if you intend to
leave your costume on a dressform, however not so practical for those to intend to wear and travel with their costume, such as myself.  A
simple method of constructing the armbands is to simply purchase scrapbooking “memory” bands and attach them to a metal or nylon
base.  It is also known that the original “stones” are nothing more than blobs of blue paint.  Quite easy to replicate!  I decided to abandon the
“movie magic” idea and aim for something along the lines of real (sturdy) jewelry.  

I worked with the same scrapbooking “memory” wire, however I decided to emboss my own and directly copy the real pattern of the
movie armbands.  I obtained an embossing kit from a local craft store and was able to make all 8 bands from one kit.  This was very time-
consuming and painful.  I set myself to emboss at least half of a band every night.  The original pattern was too complex for the metal I was
working with, so I simplified it into a 2.5” repeating pattern.  After pressing the pattern into the back side, I would flip the band and depress
the background around the raised pattern.  I mounted each band onto a piece of heavy brass rod (from the hardware store) that I cut and de-
burred with my dremel and shaped using my rolling pin.  Each band was mounted to the brass rod using a ceramic/metal glue.  Setting
required 24 hours.  After the band was set I would antique the embossed design using Liquid Leaf (paint) in pewter.  This was not applied
evenly, but rather used to create the illusion of tarnishing.  This needed to dry another 24 hours.  After it was dry it was sealed with clear
coat.  The clear coat is absolutely essential!  The memory wire contains a small portion of lead and requires clear coat for safe handling.  All
the same, wear gloves and safety glasses during all these steps and wash your hands after handling.  (I still wash my hands after handling the
completed bracelets, just to be safe).  

I set real turquoise stones into each bracelet using Jewel-It jewel glue.  I only used 5 stones in each bracelet because they were extremely
expensive.  I bought my 4mm turquoise cabochons from Burnie’s Rock Shop in Madison for .45 each.
You can also find them at Fire Mountain Gems.  

To eliminate slipping, I glued velvet ribbon to the inside of each bracelet, just as with the original costume.  The real difficulty is closing the
bands.  Mine are extremely heavy and needed a sturdy closure.  Using a diamond bit I was able to drill some of the pieces on each end and
close them using disposable wire.  This was also extremely time-consuming.  I would recommend recruiting the help of a friend who owns a
drill press!  

Continued on the next page
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