Alongside our regular favourites, the studio makes a number of bespoke costumes each year. Commissions vary widely from rainbow seahorses to cosplay superheroes and there are always a few historically inspired costumes in the mix.

This wonderful Elizabeth I dress is worth showing off, so here are a few pictures and the story of how this dress came about.

The dress is inspired by what is known as The Peace Portrait by Marcus Gheeraerts the Elder. If you want to find out more about how this portrait of Queen Elizabeth I came about and represents, there is a great blog post by historian Christine Hartweg here.

Making a historically inspired costume for a child involves some compromise. We like to make things comfortable, so you don’t need a chambermaid to get dressed, but we always try to use traditional sewing techniques and make sure we get the look right. This usually means we (happily) spend a few weeks looking for exactly the right fabric, haberdashery or jewels. And in the case of this Elizabeth I dress, we were lucky to find a very beautiful embroidered ivory silk.

16th Century royal haberdashery was a little more tricky to come by (on budget), so we made had to be creative in combining pearl trims and braidings, setting ruby rhinestones into the trim and finding the right replica centerpiece brooch to get the bejewelled look.

To get the structure of the dress right without making a corset (stays), – which is never a comfortable option for a child -, we stiffened only parts of the front of the dress. A hooped underskirt and calico overskirt got the right volume into the skirt. And the typical Tudor shoulder rolls and hand sewn cotton and lace ruffs for neckline and cuffs finished off the look.

The dress is fully lined in pure cotton and for 21st Century convenience closes with a zip at the back.