The costume vault

As I explained in my last Padme-related article, most of her designs in Revenge of the Sith are actually very similar. That was the basic problem when it came to deciding what was going to be the next costume I reviewed. In the end, I opted for the "Delegation gown" because it was the one that offered me the best chance of not repeating myself. This costume was designed for a scene that ended up being cut from the movie (a Delegation meeting in her apartment) and was later repurposed for the scene when Obi-Wan goes to tell her that Anakin has turned to the dark side. This results in the dress being very little on-screen, but that's nothing new to her character. This outfit consists of a long, green, velvet gown, conical in shape, which helps disguise her pregnancy. The gown has a V-neck that's accented with a jeweled pendant with dangling beads. It also has long, loose sleeves. The whole gown is decorated with intricate motifs. The gown also has a hood, w...

The same way that Padme's character becomes less and less relevant as the prequels progress, so do the designs. That's why most of the designs of Episode III are hardly remembered. The most iconic costumes of the characters, those that everyone remembers, are from the first two prequels. That doesn't mean that there aren't good designs in "Revenge on the Sith", because there are. The main problem is that her pregnancy, and the fact that she needs to hide it, places such limitations on the designs, that most of them end being too similar and not very interesting. Still, I'm going to continue this series of articles about the real historical influences behind the costume designs of Padme Amidala in the Star Wars prequels with a few designs from "Revenge of the Sith". The first of these designs I will be breaking down will be the "Peacock Dress". Padme was supposed to wear this somber dress during a meeting with Chancello...

The last design from Episode II which I am going to be covering is the wedding gown, which happens to be the literal last outfit worn by the character in the movie. She wears this dress in the final scene of Episode II, during her wedding with Anakin. It's a brief scene, but somehow people really remember this gown. The design consists of an intricate gown made of lace and beads that goes with a lace veil. The gown is long and flowing, and has a small tail. The white fabric is decorated with an off-white delicate embroidery. The sleeves reach her elbows and are hemmed with scalloped lace. The entire gown is studded with pearls. This gown takes from various historical sources, most of them pertaining to the early 20th century. The basic ones with which it works are Edwardian fashion (1901-1911) and the 1920's. The basic structure, with the gown and the laced overdress, is clearly taken from late Edwardian fashion. These dresses (dated 1912) are quite...