Showing posts with label as seen on tv. Show all posts
Showing posts with label as seen on tv. Show all posts

Thursday, November 6, 2014

reign: style profiles




Are you watching this yet?

One of my favorite things about Reign is that you can tell a lot about a person by the way they dress. The creators have attributed distinct personality traits into their wardrobe choices, and it makes for an interesting commentary on the development of each character. (Listen to my Reign soundtrack to get in the right frame of mind).

Because it's a Thursday and on Thursdays we watch Reign, I thought I would do a little breakdown of the things I've noticed via beautiful clothing, sparkling jewelry, and fetching crystal belts.

Let's start with...


Queen Mary Stuart:

She is fierce. Of course, she wasn't always that way. She arrived fresh from the convent, nervous and excited and very naive. At the beginning she wore a lot of white and pastels, a brand new baby at court. But now she is bold, I-am-woman-hear-me-roar, strong and golden.

She often wears stunning metallics and striking patterns. Her go-to colors tend to be darker like black, navy, and red, or incredibly posh like head-to-toe gold.

She rocks a plethora of crowns and headpieces, and tends to wear more form-fitting pieces because if you've got it, flaunt it. She also favors incredible earrings. Her hair stays pretty basic, down and side-braided. Not a lot going on there lately. I'd love to see some giant, va-va-voom curls on her.
She still occasionally veers into that bohemian territory, with flowing blouses and sheer fabrics (most likely influenced by fairy princess Kenna, who I'll get to later). Her bohemian nature tends to come out more when her and Francis are in blissful happiness, which unfortunately is quite seldom.

All of her clothes make a statement.

And that statement is I am queen, bro, lookit. 











Lady Lola:

She loses major lady-in-waiting points for having an illegitimate child with Mary's husband (pre-marriage, mind you), but I have to say she's growing on me. She stumbled around for a bit, but I think she's trying her best to be a good friend. And I'm not going to pretend like I don't secretly love the idea of her and Narcisse hanging out. I have a feeling on tonight's episode they will be having that tea date.

Her style is actually one of my favorites on the show, which probably endears me more to her than anything else.

She is a romantic, through and through.
Red, peach, purple, cream, lots of beads and embroidery and flowers. Always flowers. If Lola isn't wearing a flower of some kind in her outfit, something is horribly wrong.

She is very faithful to the empire waist, and tends to have some of the most intricate details of anyone on the show. I always pay close attention to her clothes. She has been quite unlucky in love (does anyone remember her first love, who was forced on Mary by Catherine and then unceremoniously murdered in the woods? Yikes), as evidenced by her brief fling with Francis that produced a son and her brief marriage to an impostor who had to leave her to save them both.

Let's hope her romantic clothing will nurture some actual romance in her life.























Lady Greer:

Oh, Greer. She is our resident blonde bombshell, and she has always been my favorite of Mary's ladies.

She is the only one of the ladies who is untitled, so her sole purpose is to find a suitable husband to give her wealth and title to save her family and yadda yadda.

From the very beginning she has been lavish. Most likely to make up for a lack of title, she has always adorned herself with decadent jewelry and accessories. She's nervous and stressed about finding a rich husband, so naturally she falls in love with a kitchen boy.

Her daily elegance works well to counter-balance her insecurity, though. She dresses in rich, earthy, cool tones. A lot of grey, blue, and green. Since she's also a sexy beast, she employs sweeping gowns of black and navy and occasionally white to illustrate her dedication to virtue. She wears strapless dresses more than anyone else on the show. The richer, the better.

Also, her wedding dress? Amazing. 










Lady Kenna:

The hippy child!
(Also, RIP Aylee and her exquisite head of braids).

Kenna is 100% bohemian. All of the time. One time her dress was just one giant butterfly on her chest.
She wears flowing, sheer garments. She utilizes layers, lace and tassels. She rarely wears anything truly form-fitting, but since she's so slender her clothes are always flattering on her.

She pretty much functions exclusively in headpieces and flower crowns. They're dainty and sometimes crystal, probably to hold all of her wishes and dreams. She also loves to sporadically braid tiny strands of her hair, sometimes stringing them with beads.
Despite her flower-child appearances, she's actually quite feisty. She's strong-willed and very stubborn. She is also unlucky in love, but unlike Lola, it has been entirely her own fault. She tried to be the king's mistress for a while, and that backfired horribly. She's definitely my least favorite, but I am enjoying her and Bash together.

Her clothing style is the result of her very free spirit and her forward thinking. She's a physical being (that's my way of not saying anything truly insulting about her). She's a bit ditsy and selfish, but she completes the ladies-in-waiting and brings her own flare to their interactions.






Queen Catherine de Medici:

Possibly my favorite character ever. She is so evil but deliciously so. The fact that she's played by the one-and-only Megan Follows of Anne of Green Gables makes it even better.

Her style strength most definitely resides in her absurdly opulent jewelry and her crazy collection of crowns. So many crowns.
She bathes herself in fantastically monstrous necklaces and giant rings topped with super-sized pearls and gems. I want them, just once, to show us her accessories closet. It has to be absolutely magnificent.

She is matronly, which is fitting for her station and her level of sophistication. She is dangerously smart and wickedly talented with poison. She wears rich, shimmering fabrics and is always rocking the up-dos. She never lets her hair down, both physically and metaphorically. She did once, but that was only to seduce the king so she wouldn't be beheaded. She's a sneaky gal.

My favorite dress of hers so far was at the end of season 1, and it was this glorious, shimmering black and cream gown. She normally utilizes thick, flattering layers with capelets and the castle-era version of a business blazer.









And lastly, the men of the show.
Francis, Bash, Condé, Leith, Castleroy, and every single other man.





Black, brown, leather, the end.

Unless you're freaky like Narcisse and employ the many talents of a rather stunning blue peacock coat.

Ugh. I wish I could say I hated it. But I did not.




Reign airs TONIGHT at 9/8c!

(p.s. see all reign posts)

Major credit to Fashima's Fashion of Reign Tumblr, which is one of my favorite sources for Reign details! I borrowed many photos from her site. Check out her page for exact outfit and accessories info, as well as countless Reign-inspired conversations and inspirations. She's fantastic!

Monday, May 5, 2014

reign: queens of beaded bodices

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Remember that post I wrote about Reign a few months back?

Well, get ready, my friends. This show's style has continued to wow me, and I feel inclined to write another post on it. You can't ever have enough castle intrigue, after all.

And by intrigue, I mean, look at this dress. 



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If that doesn't make you rethink your wedding dress, I don't know what will.
Did I say wedding? I meant your everyday dress because who says a floor-length all-over lace stunner has to mean wedding? Go to brunch in that thang! It'll go great with your mimosa.

This show has a lot to its charm, aside from fashion -- like the absolutely phenomenal music selection. Check out my Reign spotify playlist here, I update it every week!
But I think it's a combination of several things that really makes it so addicting. And a big part of that winning combo is the eye candy.
Meaning the clothes, of course.

When I wrote before about how they have completely reinvented style for this period drama, I wasn't kidding. They have taken some serious (and much appreciated, by the way) liberties with the fashion of the day, creating a strange world of bohemian renaissance. A place of crystals and fur and headpieces and beaded bodices; a place that, frankly, I want to live. 




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They have taken big risks. And like they say, the bigger the risk, the greater the reward.
They've done things like plaid and tie dye, completely embracing their creative genius. They make a ton of custom pieces for this show, but they also grab everyday ensemble enhancers from real-people stores like Anthropologie and Free People, as well as incredible fashion designers like Oscar de la Renta.
I'm sure as this show goes on they'll continue to get their hands on truly exquisite pieces from all over the fashion world. They're just too good at what they do.

Going back to plaid and tie dye -- I mean, sure, she is the Queen of Scotland. So maybe plaid is part of the many fashionista requirements for a queen like Mary; but this isn't quite the whip-out-the-bagpipes, rock-the-kilt kind of plaid. It actually kind of reminds me of a Prom dress from the 90's, inspired by the kind of rocker fashion of Hot Topic and Paul Frank.



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I'm not gonna fight it, though. I love plaid enough to give it a thumbs up, even if it pushes back the borders of appropriate attire for 16th century French court. Push the borders all the way to England, for all I care!

And maybe this isn't really tie dye. Go ahead and tell me it's bohemian, or abstract, or tasteful kaleidoscope. Either way, I love it. It brings back memories of dunking anything and everything white in my closet into big tubs of dye in my backyard. Did any of you used to do that? Rubberbands, buckets, tie dye splashes on your hands and legs?




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Ugh, look at that. Tie dye and crimped hair, it's like a perfect royal throwback to the 80s.
Actually, it's a royal flashforward to the 80s, because that's how queen Mary rolls. She develops her fashion tastes from the future. Legit.

PS: could Francis be any feistier? Gotta love him and his wispy hair and ironclad loyalty to France.

Alright: time for some really good news.
If you're wondering if headpieces are still a thing, they are. They're still happening big time.



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I'm fairly certain the lovely ladies-in-waiting have a Mean Girls-esque rule about head sparkle at court. 
Bling it everyday, or you can't sit with us. 

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Anyone remember this pearly beast?

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We should have known she was evil, by her obvious over-attempt at fitting in to the court headgear crowd. It was too much.
Like Zac Efron trying to dress hip in 17 Again. What'd you do, mug K-Fed?

But moving on; let's forget headpieces, because they're old news, amiright?

Let's talk about CAPES.

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The arrival of wintertime meant a lot of good things for Reign.
Snowy scenes, more fur, more sparkle. Cold weather always means more cuddling.
But the best thing was the appearance of scene-stealing capery.

We've known capes are great since the invention of superman, but this brings them to a whole new level. Velvet, embroidery, bold prints. Warmth and style and riches. The feeling of flying, when a strong wind arises. The element of mystery, because no one knows what your arms are up to.
Honestly, you just can't underestimate the grace of a good winter cape.


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Last by not least, this show has brought back my desire to go big or go home in the earring department.

The way of royalty always wins, because they don't do anything half-cocked. If your earlobes aren't drooping with priceless jewels, you aren't living your life right.



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Gosh, I love her. Part of me is thinking what in the sam hill is she wearing in her ear holes? And the other part is just swooning because she's like a dragon goddess wearing crystal weapons in her ears.

When it comes down to it, Mary does what she wants.
And we all love her better for it.

Do you love Reign? Are you finding yourself obsessed with maxi dresses, wishing they had a beaded bodice and a fuller train? Have you been shopping on Etsy for blinged out headpieces and gargantuan golden ear ornaments? 
Join the club. 

(And by that, I mean, leave a comment or send me an email -- I'm here for you!)

p.s. see all reign posts