Metallic Silk Cage Gown

I was contacted by Shannon Grant photography back in September for a collaboration on a fashion shoot. We discussed ideas for a romantic photoshoot with a model I've worked with previously, so I was very excited! We both had similar tastes so I decided to go all out and create a new gown for the shoot. The main inspiration was the use of a cage skirt in the design in a place where the viewer can see it. After playing around with some color palattes, and looking at what fabric I already had, I decided on a corseted design with a metallic silk overskirt.

Construction

Dress

The dress has a small steel cage skirt under it. The steel is encased in cotton twill tape that I dyed to a deep burgundy color to match with the metallic silk. Over the cage skirt is a huge gathered tulle skirt in a tan color for contrast.

Corset

The corset is worn over the cage and tulle skirt. The corset it made out of a gorgeous silk brocade that I bought at Mood in NYC after hours of searching for the perfect fabric. The corset is piped in a satiny purple piping, and lined and bound with burgundy cotton. It is boned with plastic cable ties.

Overskirt

The overskirt is a metallic silk organza. Due to the nature of the metallic fibers in the silk, the fabric can crumple and make creases really easily. I loved this property of the fabric, so I wanted to play that up as much as possible. The skirt is essentially a large rectangle that is pulled together at the waist with decorative cording with fancy tassels on the end. I tattered the bottom of the skirt by going crazy with a pair of scissors and scrunching the fabric in my hands.

Bolero

The bolero is made out of the same silk as the overskirt. It's completely french seamed and has a small facing around the outer edge. The sleeves are bishop sleeves gathered into a small cuff at the wrist. The collar is large and crumpled down against the neck.

Photos by Brian DeMello!