Fancy dresses for the mares 03

More fashion designs from my Equestria dreamscape. Having completed the gowns for Applejack, Applebloom, Fluttershy, Carousel, Rainbow Dash, Zecora, Pinkie Pie and herself, link link Rarity had just three mares left before she could turn her attention to the stallions.

Twilight’s dress was an interesting combination of traditional and that season’s latest fashion out of Canterlot. While pleats and creases were the current rage in fashion circles, Twilight’s dress recalled design elements that very popular half a century ago when pre-unification neo-classical became all the rage. This fashion movement had been particularly strong with many of the unicorns in Canterlot.

Ponyville’s resident librarian’s gown closely followed the contours of her svelte figure with only a modest amount of pleating. In fact her gown more closely followed the design cues of RD’s and Zecora’s gowns.  The main body of the gown was pale-mauve linen a couple shades lighter than her coat. A matching mauve saddle emblazoned with her cutie mark was something straight out of a Mane Austen novel.

A greatly exaggerated saddle blanket of similar mauve formed a secondary skirt to the ensemble. Both the blanket and the skirt had deep scalloping to their edges, and hemline of skirt was decorated with gold stars. Finishing out Twilight’s outfit were banquet slippers of blue satin that matched the deep Prussian blue of her mane. The slippers were accompanied by several matching smaller bows and a neck sash adorned with a gigantic bow fashioned to look like a flower. 

Granny Smith presented Rarity with several challenges. First the elder matriarch of the Apple family didn’t think she needed any fancy new threads.

“I’ve got me one of those fancy, frilly dresses in a trunk up in the attic!” Said Granny. “I just need to find it and sew a button or two back on and I’m ready for this here hoedown!”

So after much rummaging, moving, coughing and disturbing of spiders in the attic of Sweet Apple Acres was this legendary trunk found opened. Rarity fears were quickly confirmed.

Fifty years ago this dress may have been fashionable at the local Grange picnic, but it would’ve never been considered presentable at such a formal function as the Royal Banquet. Also decades of hard work and raising a family had taken their toll on Granny’s figure. No amount of adjusting hemlines or letting out the waistline would make the dress wearable for Granny again. Besides, even with the liberal use of mothballs the local wildlife had nibbled, gnawed and borrowed various parts of the garment.  

Only then did Granny reluctantly agree to let Rarity make her a new dress. Ponyville’s resident fashionista eventually settled on a design that was elegant enough for such a formal occasion while still agreeing with Granny’s sensibilities and figure. The main body of the dress was done in pale yellow-green silk. Contrasting the main dress was a cummerbund deep copper-brown satin and a large neck sash of matching satin the formed giant chrysanthemum-like bow.  Finishing Granny’s ensemble were short, stiff spats of ivory linen.

Petina was a joy for Rarity since they see eye to eye on many things related to fashion, and Petina was willing to throw some of her own bits in to get what she wanted. Most important to Petina was the fact that she wanted to make a splash at the banquet. Yes both her and Carousel had perfectly fine gowns from our trip last year to the Canterlot Music Festival, link but both Petina and Rarity were horrified by my suggestion that she should wear the same gown again.

“No, no!” Exclaimed Petina. “For such an important and profitable event I simple must put my best hoof forward. Besides undoubtedly there will be mares at the banquet that also attended symphony last year and they would immediately recognize the gown.  To be seen in the same gown at such formal gathering would greatly compromise my stature that evening. Besides the older gown is really more autumn than spring wear.”

When I said I could not tell what made one gown autumn wear and the other spring the two mares politely patted me on the head and told me to just trust me on this one, and maybe I should go sit down and let the mares go about their business.

The main body of Petina’s dress and boots was of shimmering white-silver satin. Trimming both the dress and the boots were bands of pale gold satin that were embroidered with Petina’s cutie-mark which is a dollar sign.  The boots went up most of her front legs. On either of her shoulders were bows of tourmaline green satin. A necklace of gold and tourmaline beads with large pendant of white opal incised with Petina’s cutie-mark and inlayed with gold wire finished her ensemble.

Next up were the stallions. To be continued.