Black Swan Costume

This costume was put on the back burner for such a long time.  But I felt I had to finish, if for no other reason, than to stash it in my etsy shop.  This is not an actuall tutu that a dancer would wear onstage--I created this as a costume, and wears quite like any little black dress (but you can still dance in it:).  It's two parts:  bodice and skirt.  They are both embellished with distressed tulle, coq feather trim, black and crystal gems, black trim, and more black tulle than I can keep up with.  The top layer of the skirt is black organza, and I put a sprinkling of gems on the left of the skirt like the film version.  I had to make this one long enough to cover my rear...but, I do have a 'pancake' style underskirt that can be worn underneath to raise the skirt and flatten it all out.
For the shoot I left my pink leather ballet slippers at home and opted for dressy combat boots.  This is a fun costume to make...any costume that involved feathers and gems is a sure winner!

Black Swan Tiara

I've had my own Black Swan costume on the back burner for several months now, and while I am working on a version to sell in my etsy shop, I thought that it would be a good idea to tinker with the tiara and bun topper.  After playing around with different types of clay, I finally found one that I was comfortable with.  So then I just did a couple of trial-and-error runs, shaping wire bases to see which one I like the best, then forming the clay over the bases (I am no clay expert, but it is fun!). 
After it dries, I filled in any problem areas with more clay and let it dry.  When it started to look the way I wanted, I was finally able to paint it, first with metallic pewter spray, then highlights by hand with acrylic in black, silver and graphite.  It's hard to see the highlights in the pictures.
My favorite part...the rhinestones!  I found some vintage Czech glass rhinestones on ebay, the only problem was, it's virtually impossible to find settings to fit them.  Oh, well, I was still able to attach them to the tiara no problems.
The posting:  http://www.etsy.com/listing/91765039/black-swan-tiaramade-to-order