What happened to all the sleeves?
Dec. 8th, 2011 04:56 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
beccaelizabethWhen did sleeves go out of fashion? I knew it was always a pain to find them in ordinary dresses, and I have five of the same dress because maxi dresses with long sleeves just aren't that common. But I've been looking at wedding dresses - because I'm in a fantasy wedding mood - and I can't find a single one with sleeves on. They're all godawful strapless things that look structurally inadequate, frequently modelled by terribly skinny women with their shoulderblades sticking out, standing in that hunched over position that fears things will pop out if they straighten up. And many of them seem to forget a wedding dress gets stared at from behind quite extensively. The rear view is all clumsy construction lines. Plus zooming in on the detail work, the beads and whatnot, finds them looking all lumpy and lopsided. For the amount they cost it's quite ridiculous.
The bridal corset collection at fairygothmother at least knows how to stay up. And looks interesting from behind. And a great many other angles.
... shocking news, my aesthetic preferences in wedding dress greatly resemble my tastes in less formal attire.
So searching for gothic or celtic wedding gown works better than looking at the big wedding sites.
Also they have more sleeves.
*big shrug*
http://www.lindsayfleming.com/gowns.html has some lovely. http://www.lindsayfleming.com/ros/ros.html twirly knots and floaty sleeves. And zooming in on the knotwork still looks good and even and tidy. http://www.lindsayfleming.com/janel/janel.html has some serious sleeves going on. Also, lace up clothes just seem more practical given the fluctuating shape of biological entities. If my trousers won't fit the same two weeks in a row I can't rely on a swish dress doing so.
Medieval dresses had some serious construction going on. Lots of parts and pieces. And if there's ever an excuse for swishing along in a dress that takes twice as long to pass as you do, a wedding would be it.
The big dress collections I seen before I added some keywords were all kind of samey, because once you've taken off the sleeves and the shoulders there's only so much you can do with the rest. It's annoying.
oooh, shiny! http://www.rossetti.vispa.com/med4.html
that site has a bazillion things.
use of sari fabric to elaborate medieval flowy dresses makes much glittery interest.
So, plenty of dresses around to distract myself with, but not in the kind of big shops you find if you search 'wedding dress'. That's kind of sad. So many, so samey. And so sleeveless. Really, what's with that? Wrist to ankle coverage in a formal gown shouldn't be so hard.
I like high necklines and long cloaks and shiny fabrics and patterns.
I like this stiff looking collar dress, probably because I get the feeling I should know which SF film I saw it in.
Obviously the Princess Leia makes an awesome wedding dress.
Especially since it cost somewhere between 1/10 and 1/100 of some of the other dresses.
But really, awesome or most awesome?
I should just face it, my standards in white dresses are all about how much they look like hers.
The Dark Angel make a lot of really nice gowns. I got the Angel dress in silver. I didn't so much get many opportunities to wear it, but sometimes that's not the point.
Okay, time to do something more productive.
PS: think I found girl!6's favourite dress
The bridal corset collection at fairygothmother at least knows how to stay up. And looks interesting from behind. And a great many other angles.
... shocking news, my aesthetic preferences in wedding dress greatly resemble my tastes in less formal attire.
So searching for gothic or celtic wedding gown works better than looking at the big wedding sites.
Also they have more sleeves.
*big shrug*
http://www.lindsayfleming.com/gowns.html has some lovely. http://www.lindsayfleming.com/ros/ros.html twirly knots and floaty sleeves. And zooming in on the knotwork still looks good and even and tidy. http://www.lindsayfleming.com/janel/janel.html has some serious sleeves going on. Also, lace up clothes just seem more practical given the fluctuating shape of biological entities. If my trousers won't fit the same two weeks in a row I can't rely on a swish dress doing so.
Medieval dresses had some serious construction going on. Lots of parts and pieces. And if there's ever an excuse for swishing along in a dress that takes twice as long to pass as you do, a wedding would be it.
The big dress collections I seen before I added some keywords were all kind of samey, because once you've taken off the sleeves and the shoulders there's only so much you can do with the rest. It's annoying.
oooh, shiny! http://www.rossetti.vispa.com/med4.html
that site has a bazillion things.
use of sari fabric to elaborate medieval flowy dresses makes much glittery interest.
So, plenty of dresses around to distract myself with, but not in the kind of big shops you find if you search 'wedding dress'. That's kind of sad. So many, so samey. And so sleeveless. Really, what's with that? Wrist to ankle coverage in a formal gown shouldn't be so hard.
I like high necklines and long cloaks and shiny fabrics and patterns.
I like this stiff looking collar dress, probably because I get the feeling I should know which SF film I saw it in.
Obviously the Princess Leia makes an awesome wedding dress.
Especially since it cost somewhere between 1/10 and 1/100 of some of the other dresses.
But really, awesome or most awesome?
I should just face it, my standards in white dresses are all about how much they look like hers.
The Dark Angel make a lot of really nice gowns. I got the Angel dress in silver. I didn't so much get many opportunities to wear it, but sometimes that's not the point.
Okay, time to do something more productive.
PS: think I found girl!6's favourite dress
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no subject
Date: 2011-12-08 07:59 am (UTC)Usually if the wedding dress has sleeves, it's because Grandmother Insists. One woman wore a suit jacket over her ballgown.
no subject
Date: 2011-12-10 07:50 am (UTC)oooh, shiny...
wait, I found a page that has all the dresses on, and ONE has sleeves. ONE. In many seasons.
*blinks*
no subject
Date: 2011-12-08 11:29 am (UTC)I think that rossetti site was a bad thing to show me, lovely, lovely stuffs!
There are nice gowns on here that can be done in different colours - as I own a few made by Damiana I can tell you that they are lovely http://www.ashesclothing.co.uk/page_1894922.html
I have this dress in purple (also a long sleeved top in black and a purple short sleeved top, same style) http://www.swirlclothing.co.uk/Peasant-dress-8-10-12-14-16-18-20-22-24-26_AXM53.aspx though that site hqas many lovely things as I also have this coat in black (specially ordered for my good self) http://www.swirlclothing.co.uk/Moss-Green-Mandarin-Collar-Coat-Linen-Mix-18-20-22_AZGTW.aspx?0
Some lovely dresses on here, too (I've just bought a shrug from them) http://www.obsidiangothic.co.uk/
And there's always Moonmaiden who will change materials/colours to suit (I've had fishnet sleeves and cotton instead of velvet on some of their stuff, still looks nice and is a lot less hot). http://www.moonmaiden-gothic-clothing.co.uk
If you've been looking at gothic stuff though, you probably already have these linked. :)
If you want sleeves, you can always wear a sari with a long sleeved top underneath, bit fiddly to wrap though and I had a lesson off my mum's friend who wears them! I got mine from http://www.diyaonline.com/
some pics...
wedding
purple frock
sari