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This outfit is the result of my second contest, which I held over Twitter. An ancient Greek outfit won out over a 1930s dress or a fairy outfit, so I started a Pinterest board and did some research into what they were like. Happily, in this day and age plenty of the relevant information is easily available for free!
- The Costume of the Ancients, by Thomas Hope. Entirely made of illustrations taken from vases and other sources.
- Ancient Greek Female Costume, by J. Moyr Smith. A nicely illustrated book about what Greek women wore.
- Greek Dress, by Ethel B. Abrahams. Another very detailed, illustrated book about ancient Greek clothes.
- The Grammar of Ornament, by Owen Jones. Information about patterns and designs, including one on Greek patterns.
I’d be happy to hear about other good sources of information — for all I know, something new has been found since these books were printed! I wanted to read these books thoroughly and do more research, but didn’t have time. So I will probably continue, albeit slowly, even though this outfit is all done.
The winner of the contest, chosen by a random drawing, was Karen Martin, and here’s what she requested:
I think for colors, I’d like white, blue, and gold, with maybe some purple thrown in?
She also got to choose from a list of patterns, and she chose the wave, scroll and heart patterns you see on the outfit. So here it is! Karen, I hope you like it.
Let’s start a new contest! Part 1 is a poll, which will close next Thursday. Once I know what I’ll do next, I’ll do my research and draw a sketch, then hold the contest on the 21st. Here are your options…
Come back next week for a dress based on a key scene from one of the coolest games I’ve played in a long time! As always, you can follow me on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterestfor updates, sneak previews and lovely Art Nouveau pendant pictures. If you enjoy my work, I’d also appreciate your support through Patreon.
Another AWESOME work! *O* I also love the jewelry!
Thank you! :) The jewelry was a lot of fun to make, too!
We studied ancient Greece in school last year. It was interesting. (they’ve been doing the Olympics for longer than you might think!) Though they did have some pretty mixed-up thoughts.
The dress is a wonderful shade of blue. Could gaze at that colour any day of the week!
Sarah =D
We studied it too, way back in the day, and I always enjoyed it, particularly the mythology. Glad you like the blue, it’s always fun to play with color like that!
I really appreciate this outfit.
When I think of the old Greeks, I know only the dour old men, sitting in the shade off a busy street, saying things like: “the fairest universe is but a heap of rubbish piled up at random” or “death is what we see when awake, when we are asleep it is dreams”.
While it’s true that every beast is driven to pasture by a blow, it’s also true that these guys were out-glooming one other just around the corner from some gal wearing a cheerful, colorful outfit like that.
So: thanks.
When I read about ancient Greek embroidery, I felt like it was such a shame that such works don’t last equally as long as the works of those dour old men! I feel like what’s been preserved on vases and statues can only show a tiny portion of what was created, and they show so much beauty. But I can well imagine someone saying “the fairest universe is but a heap of rubbish piled up at random” when her favorite veil got torn…
Lovely shades of blue! I love the jewelry, too, especially the head thing(headdress?)Haha. Very nice. Thank you.
Thank you! When I read about Hellenistic crowns like that they were usually called diadems, but I guess I never did work the word into the post…
Blue, being my favorite color and I’m happy that the perfect shade is right in the middle of the skirt.
I guess it helps to have plenty of shades to choose from! :)
This is stunning. I enjoy studying Ancient cultures, particularly Greece. I think you captured the ‘mood’ of Ancient Greece very well.