FOUNDATIONS REVEALED COMPETITION ENTRY
Swan Maiden
(click images to to enlarge)
Other Credits
Photographer: Christopher McGreal
Outline the story …
European Folklore abounds with tales of people turning into swans, various areas have their own take on this tale with various incarnations, however most popular in modern culture is the basic tale of the hunter who spies the swan maidens land and remove their magic cloaks to bathe only to return to swans and fly off into the sunset. One day he steals the cloak of the youngest who is then stuck in human form and marries the hunter. How the story ends depend on the region some happily ever after, but I prefer the Swedish version by Herman Hofberg, where the duped swan maiden turns back into the swan and never returns leaving him to wallow in the misery of his deception.
To create the swan maiden I first looked to my stash as I had inherited a long unfinished silk wedding dress that I could use to create an underdress. Being, at the time of beginning the project, 2 months post baby, I decided to use a base of regency style as it would be the most forgiving to changing shapes and also be able to work within the confines of the yardage I had available. The glory of the costume though was to be a cloak of feathers that could magically transform a maiden into a swan.
Outline the construction…
Construction started with the underdress, drawing inspiration from BBC's Pride and Prejudice, I had to amend the S&S pattern not only to fit but to the new neckline. This was a challenge as though I have sewn for years I have rarely bothered to truly fit myself especially with a body changing daily. I did get a good fit however this changed to slightly big as my bust decreased in the next 4 weeks (which also meant I had to adjust my stays down 2 inches on the top bustline). It was also the first time I have used a hem stitch. I chose Pearls as the adornment due to their water affinity and to re-use as much of the wedding dress as I could. I was sad to not be able to reuse the scalloped hem of the original seamstress due to length constraints so you see only this nod in the bottom of the sleeves.
The biggest challenge was the cloak which has over 500 feathers individually hand sewn onto the crinkle organza. I would have loved to cover the whole cloak but cost constraints required I alter my original design. I would likely have been better to use a more drapey fabric as the hood does not sit as I would like, but for a first self-draft I am not to upset with it. Edges were hemmed using invisible thread which was a challenge to work with and not one I am planning on doing again.
Love the use of tulle and feathers! very whimsical!
Thank you 🙂
The pretty buttons and feathers suits this character so well. So nice that you could use the unfinished wedding dress!
I was very lucky to be able to get my hands on so much silk. Thank you for looking 🙂
This cape is lovely! And I love the buttons detail♡
This is a fine capture of the swan maiden, the feather cape is beautiful and so is the dress . I to like Hofbergs ending and know the story by heart. Your images capture the moment when she puts on her cloak and fly of, spot on. Very well captured.
This interpretation of the swan girl is really sweet and beautiful. This cape playing with transparency and feathers is sublime!
Yes, exquisite cape! Lovely concept and light, flowing, work. Very well done.
Lovely job! I know how challenging it can be to sew feathers, but you did so well and the overall look is great!