"Happy Hunger Games! And may the odds be ever in your favor!"
-Effie Trinket
Avant garde-clad Effie Trinket, a character brilliantly crafted by Suzanne Collins, takes the spotlight (the fashion spotlight that is) in the latest installment of The Hunger Games trilogy. Actress Elizabeth Banks beautifully captures Effie's eccentric behavior and stuns in designs chosen by the film's costume designer Trish Summerville.
With a resume that includes The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Summerville already knew the pressures of living up to readers' expectations, a task much harder than dressing actors for an original film. "When you’re reading a book, each individual person gets to imagine each character. What they look like, as well as what they’re wearing and what they do, and how they act. So I just had to take the approach of what I thought would be visually appealing, ‘cause a lot of things that are written don’t necessarily translate onto film." explained Summerville.The unassuming drab clothing worn in the post-apopcalyptic districts and the contrasting fantastical designs of the frivolous capitol crowd ranged from hand-crafted pieces to show-stopping looks chosen from past Alexander McQueen collections. One of the most talked about dresses worn by Effie is McQueen's butterfly dress paired with Iris van Herpen boots with soles adorned with fangs. The look was punctuated with miniature butterflies perched on the tips of her eyelashes and glued to her arms. Not something one could easily pull off on a winter Kansas day.
Effie Trinket's costumes were over-the-top, but Katniss Everdeen, played by Jennifer Lawrence, also wore impressive show-stoppers, including her white wedding dress that transformed into a black mockingjay costume as it was engulfed in flames. When asked about the mesmerizing gown, Summerville said, "I wanted to have a subliminal feel of flames and feathers to keep her the Girl on Fire while also representing the Mockingjay."
As with most things Hollywood, capitol couture is being capitalized. Summerville has partnered with one of my favorite fashion one stop shops, net-a-porter.com, to exclusively sell her mini collection inspired by the popular film. The collection includes a mockingjay printed silk chiffon dress for $550 and a black twill jumpsuit priced at $414 that you can imagine Katniss wearing in the arena. These pieces may not be worthy of Effie's outrageous style, but they are a little something for the masses.
Although I am slightly obsessed by Effie Trinket's frocks, you won't see me traipsing about covered in butterflies anytime soon. I did, however, make a few unique pieces this week with a modern vibe.I designed a top that buttons up the side with a high collar, added red lace accents, and paired it with some basic skinny pants I sewed with ankle cuffs. I also made a black and white dress using an Italian fabric that I keep coming back to. It is stiff, durable, and could easily be transformed into a bat suit.
MADE IN KANSAS
