Over the next few weeks we are profiling a few of the costumes used throughout the series’. From the way they’re made to why they were designed the way they were. This week is Lotties’s costume. Click any of the costume pictures for a larger view.
As an older sister, Alice is fiercely protective of Ellie. She is fun loving and can be rowdy but deep down she is kind and sensitive and has wisdom, which she offers Ellie and others who need help.
Angry at injustice, Alice has a hot temper. She is a formidable foe but a fantastic friend.
In Series 2 we saw her on her farm tending to her pigs but in Series 3 we saw Alice blossom when she met Ned. At first Ned was the most disgusting foul mouthed little creep that she had ever met but Alice saw a side of him that no one else was privvy to. They made each other laugh and Alice could finally look forward to some happiness in her life.
So in Series 3 Alice really grew as a woman and took more pride in her appearance. She’s always been gorgeous and this costume really brought her beauty.
This was her second costume worn during Series 3.
Alice’s skirt is made of a heavy black satin. The front is split into three panels with the two outer panels having shiny black piping diagonally across them ending at the middle panel. Hanging down the front and attached to the waistband is a beautiful overlay. The fabric has beautiful bluey green tones with a snakeskin pattern in shiny black over it. It is like a soft velvet. It hangs down the front and at the bottom is cut on angles on both sides and meets at a point in the middle. Two long pieces of black shiny piping start at the top and continue down to the bottom on either side of it.
The back of the skirt actually has two layers and the top layer is cut with a large V missing at the top but the two sides meet and are tied together through an eyelet with more of the bluey velvet as a drawstring.
The top that Alice wears under her corset is made of a stretch torquoise cotton on the top half and thick black lycra on the bottom. It has a very wide neckline and sits very wide on the shoulders. The sleeves are 3/4 sleeves. Decoration on the arms is made with black drawstring bobbles. A knobble at one end fits through a loop at the other – much like you might find doing up a jacket.
The corset is made of the same black satin as the skirt and uses the bluey velvet as detail in the front panel.
It is heavily boned and has the shiny black pvc piping on every seam. It has large shoulder straps also with black piping and is done up at the back with long black shoelaces through 19 eyelets on each side.
Alice’s red jacket is made of red denim that has a two toned silvery look to it – especially on the reverse side. The collar is made of red vinyl to match the jacket and it has a very large lapel.
Around every edge there is sewn piping that is done in the reverse side of the denim fabric – it is very shiny and almost silvery looking. Two long diagonal strips of this have also been sewn from the underarm seam down around the front and ending on the side seam of the jacket. This gives the effect of the jacket coming in more around the middle
The back of the jacket is in similar fashion to the skirt. At the back the jacket has been made a little wider than necessary so that it can be folded in and drawn up through eyelets with black leather strapping. This also helps give the jacket a more fitted look and is really flattering.
The jacket is done up with a lovely little clasp. It is silver metal and has flowers and leaves on each side that clip into each other.
Alice wears large chunky silver jewellery with this outfit and her hair is beautifully spiral curled with small red flowers set on the top.