Not Quilting, But Beautiful Design

I know that some of you developed your love of fabrics long before you turned to quilting.  That's why I thought I would show you some of the iconic clothing that I recently saw at a free museum in Ireland.  FREE .... man, I love that word.  This museum was free because it was the gimmick to get you into a silverware shop in Newbridge, Ireland.  I expected the display to be small, but it was huge.

Those of you who followed my personal blog of our trip at www.brendaswitwalking.blogspot.ca already know how impressed I was to see the costume storehouse for the theaters in Stratford, ON and you have already seen the one Princess Diana dress shown here.  I'm fascinated by the imagination of the designers, the quality of construction, and the details of the costumes.  And aren't those three elements exactly why I'm always impressed with your quilting projects too?

Let me start with the one quilty item there.  It's a crazy quilted jacket worn by Bob Dylan.  And I'm saving my favorite for last so be sure to keep reading.  Keep in mind that all these exquisite pieces are behind glass so the quality of the photos isn't as great as I hoped.



This next one was worn by Vivien Leigh in That Hamilton Lady.

Judy Garland wore this in The Pirate.

Debbie Reynolds wore this for her role in What's the Matter with Helen.

If you are a fan of Breakfast at Tiffany's, you might remember this on Audrey Hepburn.

Here are a couple of Barbra Streisand's concert gowns.

Here is one of her outfits from Funny Girl.

The museum has a few outfits that Diana wore.

I remember this dress so well as it created a media frenzy.  I don't know what big event Charles was at after their divorce, but it was supposed to make the news.  Diana went to some event the same evening in this dress, and Charles' newsworthy event virtually went unnoticed.  Diana was a maven of media manipulation.

 

Here's one of Liz Taylor's caftans.

This beautiful dress was worn by Princess Grace of Monaco.

Katherine Hepburn wore this in The Rainmaker.

Here's my favorite which was worn by Joan Fontaine in Ivy.  Why didn't I take lots more photos of the details?  There is a hand painted bow on the bust of this and these sweet, sweet cherubs down the front.  It's incredible as all of them are.

I have total admiration for costume designers and their seamstresses who bring the visions to life.