Forest Green Empire Waist Dress with Red and Gold Trim (Versions 1 and 2)

Click for larger version (PNG):dark overskirt, light overskirt; click for PDF version: dark overskirt, light overskirt. Click here for the list of dolls.

Sorry about the confusion over the last contest! See, we were out of town for the weekend; I don’t like to announce that sort of thing to the whole Internet, so I didn’t say it, but I wanted to keep to my schedule so I set up Saturday’s post to go automatically. Right up until we left, I was sneaking looks at my computer, thinking “Surely someone will guess in the next ten minutes?” On Saturday, I saw my mom, and she informed me that Ana had guessed correctly, so she posted a comment saying that Ana had won — and she should know, because she was there. Then, to Mom’s surprise, people kept guessing anyways! I think she might have even taken it a little personally…

In any case, my birthday was the 3rd, and I had a wonderful birthday, complete with chasing down the FedEx guy for one of my presents, a mix CD from one of my best friends that I listened to while coloring tonight and a perfectly clear night on Puget Sound so Brian and I could stand out on the edge of the low tide and stargaze. (Oh, and my dad freaking out about the aging process, the day wouldn’t be complete without it: I suspect my 30th birthday next year will be a little hard on him.)

Anyways, Ana won the contest, and here’s what she wrote:

ok then cool. first off happy belated birthday and secondly I’d like the first black and white regency gown from may (http://bit.ly/g6yMRy) coloured, please. I’d like dress to be a deep forest green with the accents and trim in gold and deep red (preferably without looking too christmasy in the process).

Without looking too Christmasy? Oh, I think I failed that one right off the bat… Would that Ana had won in summer when the associations wouldn’t be so strong! But oh well, I enjoyed myself thoroughly, and Ana, I hope you like at least one of these versions!

This dress is actually a little difficult – it’s too fussy, and you see the overskirt is actually intended to be lacy or semi-transparent: with the rest of the dress forest green, I thought a forest green overskirt would simply look too heavy, so I originally wanted a semi-transparent gold overskirt. However, I failed to make it look anything like how I wanted, and I gave up and made it white with just a little bit of gold, despite how carefully I try to stick to the contest winner orders. Still, I couldn’t help messing with it in Photoshop, which produced the version with the darker, gold-embroidered overskirt, and I found a place in my heart for both versions. I think the darker one makes the dress look a little more exotic and the whiter one just can’t help but give off that Christmas vibe. Which one do you like better? Take the poll…

Prismacolors used: Dark Green, Tuscan Red, Jasmine, White, Pale Sage, Kelly Green, French Grey 90%, Cool Grey 20%, Bronze, Dark Umber, Black, Sakura white gel pen, colorless blender

17 thoughts on “Forest Green Empire Waist Dress with Red and Gold Trim (Versions 1 and 2)

  1. sweet, first vote goes to me! I think the darker one is more in keeping with mood of the dress personally. Not that they aren’t both fabulous.

  2. it’s not what i imagined but it is still gorgeous. and i think it could go either way of being christmasy or not depending on how much ties you have to the holiday. Espically since my friend from Saudi Arabia just saw and didn’t think it looked christmasy.

  3. I’ve been wondering how that dress would get colored ever since I first saw it. Personally I don’t think either dress looks very Christmasy, but I like the gold overskirt one better. The white overskirt just looks out of place and a bit harsh with the darker, more muted colors in it.

  4. No need for a poll-love the darker skirt.Love the dress and sorry, red and green=Christmas unless the green is very spring green and the red is more cheerful rose bud red. Thanks Ana for tricking Liana into doing a Christmas dress!It’s beautiful

  5. I think it looks a bit Christmas-ish, but then I don’t celebrate the holiday, so perhaps I’m a bad judge. I think they are both lovely, but like the darker one better. It’s a little less busy.

  6. Ooo- I love the way they look! The one w/ the darker skirt doesn’t look christmas-y compared to the lighter one. I personally like the lighter skirt better but you did a great job on both liana!

  7. I love the gold overskirt… I would wear that dress in a second, and I think it does look pretty Christmasy, although it’s hard to be objective with the tree up and all our decorations. The lighter dress, not so much, but they’re both gorgeous!!

  8. Oh! I just discover your blog and…You made fantastic dress!I really love your works and I hope I can copy it a bit for sewing real dress for me (expecially this one, I really need a green-empire waist dress!)

  9. I thought it was fabulous! Personally, I’m not a fan of lighter colors, so I prefer the darker, but you could go either way.
    Oh, and happy birthday, Liana!

  10. Not sure I get the Christmas-y vibe. I suppose it could just be my longstanding love for jewel tones. Both are very pretty but I confess to preferring the darker.

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