Sunday, January 27, 2013

Downton Abbey Sewing: Season 3, Episodes 2 and 3

The episodes of Downton Abbey from the last two weeks have some amazing costumes!  SPOILER ALERT, if you haven't yet seen these episodes then you might not want to read this post.

This dress that Mary wears is one of my favourites:


I love the lace overlay, the sash belt and the beautiful sleeves.

As an aside, don't you just love her bedroom?  Look at the bed frame and matching vanity.  This is probably pretty close to my dream bedroom:


I found a very similar 1920's dress pattern, available from CynicalGirl's Etsy store:

I imagine it would be fairly easy to reconstruct the flutter sleeves from Mary's dress using the long sleeve drape from this pattern.

My second favourite outfit has to be Cora's embroidered black dress:


I really love the assymetrical neckline, which shows off the lovely embroidery so well!  The closest pattern I could find is this gem from Adele Bee Ann Patterns Etsy shop:


I think this neckline would look fabulous with some embroidery (sans long neck tie).

The best costume of the show?  Hands down it has to be Edith's wedding dress.  It's a very simple dress with a slight scoop neckline and a train that starts at the shoulders.


I can't believe how much this 1960's pattern matches Edith's wedding gown!!  This is available at RetroMonkey's Etsy shop:


I think it would look exactly like Edith's dress if it was made in a soft silk as opposed to the much stiffer satin fabrics of the 1960's.  I'm pretty chuffed to have found an almost exact pattern match!

There's also a pattern that can be used for the veil (available here).  I think view 'c' is a pretty close match for the shape of the veil:


What did you think of Edith's wedding gown?  Did you like it better than Mary's wedding dress?  What was your favourite costume from the last two episodes?

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17 comments

  1. In 1968 my cousin made that wedding dress. It was beautiful. It is one of the most elegant dresses I have ever seen. I love the costumes from the show. Even the servants.

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  2. I actually have that veil pattern and it's fairly modern.  I bought it to make my sister's veil in about 2006.... I think.  Maybe it was 2005. :) I made view D....

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  3. Debi_myhappysewingplaceJanuary 27, 2013 5:45 PM

    Wow! That is really neat!!  I think the dress is beautiful and it could be so different depending on the type of fabric used!

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  4. Edith's wedding dress was better than Mary's hands down!

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  5. I LOVED Edith's dress! I would pick that one over Mary's in a heartbeat!
    I am so so so glad that I have found your blog. I am a vintage lover and anxious to go through your posts and follow along. ;-)








    -Jamie
    http://chatterblossom.blogspot.com/

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  6. I\Edith's definitely. I lvoe the little drape to the shouder too. I was a bit surprised as tis one is way more sophisticated than Mary's and given the two characters, I would have swapped them over. But hey, they do what they do!

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  7. Edith's wedding dress was so much more elegant than Mary's! My favourite outfit in this season has been Lady Cora's embroidered coat (in the episode where they go to Scotland). Those sleeves are absolutely staggering. 

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  8. I loved loved loved that embroidered dress of Cora's, and you post has just reminded me that I have exactly one pattern from the '20s, and it is almost a dead ringer for that one!  Off to work...

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  9. I thought that Edith's dress did upstage Mary's - it was beautiful! But I think my favorite dress so far this season is Cora's red and gold dress. I'm also LOVING all the hair jewelry and hats. 

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  10. I loved both Edith and Mary's wedding gowns!  They're so elegant and gorgeous!  But I think Mary's may be my favorite, just by a hair.  :)

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  11. Debi_myhappysewingplaceJanuary 30, 2013 12:23 AM

    That's great that you made your sister's veil from this pattern! I think it's a very classic (yet modern) look!

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  12. Debi_myhappysewingplaceJanuary 30, 2013 12:24 AM

    I agree with you! I would have thought Mary would have gone all out with her wedding dress...but it was much simpler than Edith's!

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  13. Debi_myhappysewingplaceJanuary 30, 2013 12:24 AM

    I love the episode where they go to Scotland!  I'm hoping to make a dress based on that episode....

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  14. Debi_myhappysewingplaceJanuary 30, 2013 12:25 AM

    That is FABULOUS! I can't wait to see that 20's pattern!!!

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  15. Debi_myhappysewingplaceJanuary 30, 2013 12:26 AM

    I agree! I think Cora's red and gold dress was hands down a stylish winner!  I just love the Asian influence....

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  16. I found myself so captivated my this seasons costumes, they are perfect!  Ediths wedding gown has been my personal favorite thus far! Also the Tiara both Edith and Mary wear, that's one of the things i adore about Downton... attention to detail! Brilliant!

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  17. Please do some Lady Sybil costumes!! Hers were my favourite!!!

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I read each and every comment--thank you so much!

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