My friend wanted the Donna Noble dress from Doctor Who Season Four Epsidoe Two, The Fires of Pompeii. It’s a really pretty purple gown with gold embellishment. I opted to do a full lining, though the pattern I bought did not recommend it.
Challenge: $40 spending limit.
Here are two of the reference photo I used (screencapped by the dress’s final owner, from Doctor Who, Season 4, Episode 2, The Fires of Pompeii):
Donna Noble Pompeii Dress in under $40
MATERIAL COSTS:
- 2 spools gold ribbon $5/2 on sale
- 5 yards fabric @ 4.00/yd on sale ($20)
- Thread $2 on sale
- Pattern $12 on sale
TOTAL COST: $39
I used McCall’s 2954 as a base pattern for this fantastic dress. I had to change the neck lines and sleeves, as Donna’s dress has a v-neck back and a v-neck front, as well as ungathered close-fitted sleeves. I also added the gold details at the neck and waist, as well as back details, including a folded ruffle that ran long-ways down the back. I had to play with the gathering on the back ruffle, as well as move some seams (including under-bust seams, which fell too high on the original dress), but I’m over all happy with the results. The modifications were fairly straightforward. The back details were the most difficult, but I molded the folding of the fabric off of Vogue’s Tom and Linda Platt V2847 (out of print) which I used as a base pattern for a wedding last July.
TOTAL TIME: 3.5 hours, including shopping.
Pictures of the final product are pending arrival at their home in the states, as I had no suitable sized models locally.
