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How to Make a Sweeney Todd Vintage Inspired Dress

by on Jun 9, 2008

Hey guys!  Here is how to diy dye a skirt to create your very own
Victorian costume!  For more information on this style and to see how
we created a Sweeney Todd/Victorian-inspired shirt for Rob, watch the video!

 

 

 

 

 

The bottom half of a purple dress that has a lot of layers to it.

 

 

 

Materials:
standard bridal petticoat
Rit dye
rubber gloves
old towel
newspaper
large pot
salt
detergent
stirrer
scissors
pins
sewing machine

1. First put down some newspaper, put on the gloves, open the dye, and read the dye directions a couple of times.

2.
Fill up your pot with hot water, add the packages of dye, a scoop of
detergent, some salt, and stir very well. Then heat it up on the stove.

3. Get the garment completely soaked with water.

 

Hands with purple gloves touching a large plastic object in a sink.

4.
Since the item we’re dying is pretty large, we’re gonna use a big
plastic tub to do the actual dying process in. Otherwise, we would do
it right in the pot where we did the dye bath. Put your garment in the
dye bath and completely submerge it. You wanna leave it in for about a
half an hour and the whole time you should be moving it around because
it needs constant agitation.

Pouring brown liquid into a container.

 

A pair of gloved hand mixing pink clothing in water.

5. Once you’ve reached your desired color, take it out and thoroughly rinse with cold water.

6. Then hang it up to dry.

Woman drying sweeny todd vintage inspired dress on rope and putting clips to it.

7.
Use another thrift store find to create a the top of your Victorian
Masterpiece. We found a velvet dress. Just cut off the sleeves and the
bottom into an appropriate shape.

A purple dress is on a mannequin in from of a painting.

 

Person using sheering scissors to cut out a dress.

8.
Cut the bottom ruffle off of the top layer of the skirt and pin it
above the top ruffle for extra poof. Put some ruffles around the collar
like we did for Rob’s shirt in the same episode. Add an old corset and
some simple sleeves, then sew it all together.

A dress and corset on a dummy with a white wall behind them.

 

A purple corset, that is currently on a dummy.

9. And you’re havin’ sew much fun!

Victorian costume inspired dress.

 

A purple dress that is very frilly.

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