A day at the dressmaker

 

The Ripponlea Homestead

The station signage from the movie

Today I made my way to the costume exhibition of The Dressmaker held at Ripponlea estate in Melbourne Australia. The Dressmaker based on the acclaimed novel by Rosalie Ham is about the story of Tilly Dunnage (played by Kate Winslet ) a dressmaker and the town of Dungatar set in the 1950’s. Tilly returns to the town to find out about a missing link in her childhood memory. As the mystery unfolds she changes the town with one frock at a time. I thoroughly enjoyed the movie not only for the story line but also the finely executed couture in the film. The film is now an Australian classic and the costume designers Marion Boyce and Margot Wilson brought the Characters to life with their designs. 

Upon walking up to Ripponlea estate you are greeted by the train station sign in the movie “Dungatar” and a red carpet leads you into the exhibition. The grand entrance to the house you are greeted by the “red coat” that Tilly wears at the football match. It is truly stunning piece with a wide shawl collar and circular skirt made from a vintage red moire silk taffeta.

This would have to be one of my favourite pieces in the collection.

The rooms are filled with many other designs (see photos) all have matching hats gloves and bags as were styled in the movie. Though one room is a collection of vintage hats all on stands and you are transported in time to a 1940’s boutique.

There is also Tilly’s sewing room set up with the original sewing machine in which Kate Winslet learnt to sew with to be authentic to her character. The room is filled with patterns, fabric and sewing notions.

Tilly's sewing room recreated from the film.

The piece de resistance was the fairy tale ball gown which was a strapless boned bodice with a full skirt of a pastel mint silk netting embellished with Swarovski crystals and sequins.

On the bodice was a gold flower flower necklace that was sewn on to the front. This embellishment finished the whole design and brought the gown to have a Cinderella type effect. This gown was worn by the character Gertrude when she attends the footballers ball to impress her secret crush. 

I really don’t want to give away the whole exhibition as I do want you to find out the magic of the gowns and have the same wow factor I did. It was all very well executed and the costumes in real life were more amazing than on the cinema screen. The exhibition will be open every day for viewing till the 30^th of July at Ripponlea estate. 

Vintage 1950's hat display

Till next time,

Miss Apollo

xx

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The Dita Dream

 

             

For years now I have followed Dita Von Teese. I first stumbled upon her as I scoured the internet for vintage history in my early 20’s. I was starting my collection of Vintage lingerie at the time. I was fascinated not only by her burlesque work but also by her constant search for authenticity and love of fashion history. Through following Dita, it has lead me to other inspirational ideas and people who relate. I feel there are very little performers who devote so much time to their craft in the modern age.  Living in Australia I never thought that I would be able to get to see Dita preform but something that was on my bucket list to do. My mother surprised me with the tickets knowing how long I wanted to see her performance. 

The first question of course was what to wear to the queen of burlesque?

After pulling apart my wardrobe and pieces from my business (Apollo vintage). I decided on a classic black dress with Alannah Hill leopard heels and a matching clutch. Lastly to finish the ensemble I kept a piece of stock from my E-boutique a vintage 1950’s faux fur coat. A pre cocktail from home to calm the nerves of excitement, my partner and I then made our way to Dita.

Alannah Hill Heels

Held at the Melbourne Forum theatre, it set the perfect scene for old time glamour. The theatre was magical with all of its ornate furnishings and its beautiful statues that surrounded the stage.

The Forum Theatre Melbourne, Australia

After waiting in anticipation finally The Strip Strip Hooray show began and we were greeted by the joyful Murry Hill who was to be our presenter for the evening. The opening scene was Dita with her famous martini glass performance. It was exquisite and for of one to think how she danced so gracefully with no slipping on that glass structure amazes me. Her corset shone like the brightest stars in the clearest night sky. Her art is very refined and the movements are so graceful. There were four Dita performances in all throughout the night. I’m not going to detail them all as I don’t want to give away to her admirers the magic of it all.

Although I will say my favorite was the bird cage number, it was an array of pink, red and purple hues. The performance was not only in the most magically and personal favorite colours but with the two large feathered fans Dita danced with it was a beautiful example of the work from Sally Rand. Dita had made the fan dance her own but it was also very exciting to see Dita is keeping the dance still alive something that could be lost to history.

I would see Dita preform once more if I came across the opportunity again. Her work is all originally her own and executes each piece with perfection. I admire how Dita keeps alive the classic burlesque dances of the past for the current generations to come. This art will not be lost to history.

Till next time,

Miss Apollo
xx
 

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