The costume vault

As I'm sure I've mentioned before, the size of Padme's wardrobe is leaning towards big. One might even say gigantic. Because of this, I am forced to choose which ones I review and which ones I don't. Otherwise, I would still be reviewing the costumes from Episode I . Thanks to this selection process, right now, in my Padme series, I am reviewing costumes already from Revenge of the Sith . But lately, I've been thinking a lot about those designs that got "lost in the selection", as I call them. WHY WEREN'T THESE SELECTED? Generally, those that I did not select for the series were considered "not interesting enough". But what does that mean? Well, it means two things; either they pulled from the exact same influences as any of the dresses I had already addressed (which would make for a very repetitive article) or were considered too simple and basic to talk about them at length. And then, of course, were those that I simply did not like...

This is the last Senate design for Episode II; the "velvet Senate" gown, and it's one of the most over the top designs. It's big, lavish and extravagant; it's the ultimate Senate gown. And yet, it's not even in the movie. She wears this gown during her address to the Galactic Senate after the attempt on her life. Unfortunately, this dress was cut from the final edit of the movie (you can see the scene in the DVD special editions), which is a sad fact waste of a gorgeous design. The design consist of a golden underdress with a dark blue velvet overdress that has the lapel and collar turned up. Attached to both sides of the collar, under the lapels, rests a glossy, crimped scarf-like shawl that is tied together at her mid-back with a large, beaded ribbon. The ends drift apart as they fall down. The full sleeves end at the elbow, giving way to a drawn-up sleeve of lustrous fabric. The gold underdress is decorated with needlework around the high...