Black, lace, sequins, fur and pearls....

I have started to get exited to put my outfits together for my OTS, i feel like I'm in my element, its the thing i know a little about. When i think about the 1950's people were conservative, very feminine and the women's outfits were definitely figure-flattering. I have been inspired by the 1950's vogue photographs, especially ones the featured the women in black and white. There were some things i noticed; 1. They were very pale which contrasted well with the black dress they wore, 2. They never really wore trousers - they liked to dress very womanly by showing off their assets. 3. Red lips, red nails and black eyeliner was all the rage. I was also quite annoyed with myself, because i have loads of 1960's vogue covers shots on my PC but no 1950's. I definitely need to look outside the box that i am in.

Inspired by these iconic images, i started to route through my own messy wardrobe and my mum's black lace throws. I do understand that fur back then wasn't as frowned upon as it is now, i don't agree with fur but stroking the much-loved fur collar that was my Great-Grandmothers (the lady in the previous pictures) made me question my own beliefs, the collar was so warm and cosy and very well-kept - but i stopped suddenly with the thought about what my actress would say about wearing it. She has probably seen fur in most thrift shops, or has some that has been passed down from her relatives, but i don't think she has ever actually worn it. I don't think i have ever actually worn it

Oh and looking at this image (left) also gave me the idea for my killer to wear gloves. It wouldn't be because she wanted to hide her fingerprints as i don't think they knew about that stuff back then, but it would definately add to the mysterious, but glamorous look! If this outfit was black it would be perfect. However i must also note that this lady is wearing a day dress, so she would be wearing something similar but not exactly the same at night while playing poker.

The other items i found were very delicate lace black dresses and my very heavy prom dress which has more sequins and beads on it than the amount of people in China. I will very soon be uploading pictures to this blog of my actress wearing the different outfits that i have combined for her. I will probably take these pictures against the cobbled wall outside my house. She is also very pretty and photo-genic which helps with the glamorous and seductive look i am aiming for, as it is very common in film noir.

I was curious to find out what happened when i typed in '1950's Chanel', and this popped up: ->   How lovely. It was Chanel's first women's suit in 1953. Its black, elegant and shes wearing pearls, this look makes her look like a strong and independant woman. Chanel making this shows that a woman can wear a suit and still look feminine. Perfect.

Going onto the killers costumes, i will probably use my trusty vintage women's trilby and my on trend camel coat which i have used for just about every 'dress-up time' when we have had to take pictures or film. I have purposely made sure that the killers outfit isn't black. This is to show the distance and difference between the women at the poker table and the killer (it also makes a welcome changed to just black). It makes the killer even more unidentifiable.

I have been distracted by the three ladies outfits, i haven't even thought about the mans. I think my trendy dad will have something hiding at the back of his wardrobe (he strangely has more clothes than me) which would be suitable for the sharp look. A white crisp shirt is a must, but with a budget, i am not planning to fork out for a £130 'Vivienne Westwood men's plain orb white shirt' just for 3 minutes of film. I don't think the examiner will care that much.

If the examiner doesn't care that much about costumes, why am i bothering so much about it? I think i would feel as if the OTS was incomplete without the costumes looking authentic, i would feel cheated that i wasn't able to achieve the EXACT look i wanted. I'm a perfectionist.

Photos of what items of clothing i will be using will hopefully be uploaded soon, and the pictures of my actress wearing the carefully put together outfits will definitely be uploaded in a few weeks!

Beaux vêtements signifie une bonne lecture!