Ursula's Peacock Gown

Ursula is a really vibrant woman!  She has a big personality, is artistic and creative, and has so much energy and enthusiasm that she literally fills my studio when she visits for her design meetings and fittings.  I have never known a client for whom a peacock-inspired gown would be more appropriate!

She dances only International Standard style, which means she does 5 dances, Waltz, Tango, Viennese Waltz, Foxtrot, and Quickstep, and she does them all in closed hold, maintaining body contact with her partner in the process.  This means that although everyone wants a gown to be lovely from the front...

...since Standard gowns are seen mostly from the back, they need extra design attention provided to the back of the gown.

In this case, we decided on a feather-embellished godet "tail" of sorts, to add an extra bit of excitement at the back of the gown.  We found some beautifully sequinned mesh and a bit of green gold silk to back it with and then added real feathers to the top, along their spines, so they could move in the breeze.

We also created individual eyes from several different fabrics. to provide a base for our diagonal embellishment of the gown, and then swirled round the eyes with delightfully green-gold Jet AB curling feathery bits.

We tested various stones to get just the right effect, before beginning the actual rhinestone application.

The finishing touches included a necklace and earrings, and four floats for her arms, created from color-blended ostrich boa, and more peacock eyes.

I always really enjoy designing the jewelry to go with each gown!  Ursula will bring her gown back in next week for an additional layer of underskirt or two, in green-ish gold, to give it just a bit more volume and show off her nice, neat footwork.  Thank you so much Ursula!  We had a great time making your Peacock gown!