| Costume made by: Tomak |
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| 1) Tell us a little bit about yourself, your hobbies and background. I'm an image archivist with a BA in Art History in my public life, but I've been a die-hard SW/Leia fan from earlist memory. My parents went to see ANH in 1977 when my mother was 8 months pregnant with me, so the joke has always been in my family that I was indoctrinated in the womb, and I'm told that at the tender age of 3, I sat unbelievably spellbound through ESB (all I recall is a lot of white hallways and the Wampa). In short, since then, it has filtered in some way into every facet of my life, between the toys and role play of my youth, to fanfic and costuming as a teen and now as an adult, including having long hair past my waist since childhood, despite the fashion. 2) How long have you been costuming? What kinds of experiences have you had? Aside from worshipping Leia (and, of course, Han!), my other passion has been sewing and embroidery, so it's small wonder that I would turn to recreating Leia outfits, which I started doing in my teens. My mother was an avid sewer and made several Leia costumes for Halloween for me as a child, so I had quite an inspiration and well of technique to draw from her. When I look back at those costumes, I laugh and cringe at the lack of experience, but it only serves to compel me to learn more, especially now that I am branching out into costuming for others. Needless to say, my first attempt at an ANH gown hood was hysterical at best, and one of the best memories I have is spray-painting muslin green and brown for an Endor poncho in the backyard when I was 16 (yes, Ben Franklin sold spray paint to a minor!). And with a serious love for historical film as well, my costume experience now runs the gamut from SW to medieval/Elizabethan to fantasy films like Lord of the Rings. I've been to a number of conventions in my life, but only once thus far in costume; GenCon 2002 in my Bespin Leia gown (3 months of embroidery and counting, as I'm doing some upgrade work on it). However, it ranks as one of the best experiences I've had. Just walking around and talking with other costumers was fantastic, and I came home with 2nd place in the best SW costume category; not too shabby for a first time! Currently, I head the costume club of the Wisconsin Fanforce/Milwookie Council, and that in and of itself is certainly an experience, and I continue to upgrade and add to my Leia costume collection. 3) What's your earliest memory of seeing Return of the Jedi? My parents took me to see ROTJ when I was just 6 years old. I remember standing in line for quite a while, bu the pay off was worth it. Seeing Leia with her hair down on Endor and knowing mine was just as long was exhilarating to my young mind, and that year, I begged my mother to make me an Endor gown costume for that Halloween, which she did. And I fell instantly enchanted with the metal bikini, but my mother would never let her child wear that, of course (although that's not to say I didn't ask! ;-) ). I also remember the cereal box offer for ROTJ posters, and one of them was that famous shot of Leia next to Jabba as he offers her a drink. I had that on my wall for years. If only Kenner had made a Slave Leia action figure, I would have been in heaven! 4) When did you get your first "metal bikini" and what drove you to it? I made my first metal bikini in '99; it was sort of a personal dare to myself. And I had always wanted to have this costume, but I had been unsure of what it would take to make it, not to mention my small budget allowance for it and the fact that I'm not the best of sculptors. But I had come across Tania's recipe for making one with Crayola Model Magic clay and wire on the original Metal Bikini site, and suddenly it seemed a tangible goal. For the whole of October, I worked diligently on it and come that Halloween, it was finished. 5) What is your favorite memory of appearing as Slave Leia? While I have worn it a few times since it's debut, but it's the memory of that debut that I really love. At the time, my fiancee was the director of the Rocky Horror Picture Show cast at the historical Oriental Theater (it was built in the 20's, with an Indian gilt theme), and we thought that would be the best place to wear it, plus the best scenery for the first (and sadly, the only) pictures. Encased in a wool medieval cloak (while it wasn't bitter cold, it was nippy enough; I mean, this is Wisconsin in October), I stood outside in line with friends while waiting to be admitted, and the compliments flowed in. Even funnier, when I made it inside and had to go through security, I opened my cloak to reveal the costume, and the guard began to laugh hysterically and just waved me on. I did enter the costume contest that night, but did not win (which was not disappointing; I was the director's girlfriend after all). But one of the best compliments that night, though, came from a friend of his in the cast (the whole cast had known I was doing this costume beforehand, but this was the first time any of them had seen it). After the show, his friend walked up to us in the empty theater as we took the final pics (at 4am no less!), and said to my fiancee with a grin, "When you die, could you will her to me?" Hardly a p.c. compliment, but flattering and funny nonetheless! It was a great night, and I will never forget it. 6) If you danced for Jabba the Hutt, what song would you dance to and why? For a modern element, I would definitely choose any dark, slow works by artists such as Sade, Annie Lennox, or Tracy Thorn. But now that I dwell further on it, I think I would prefer a selection that would fit within the SW realm, with a traditional and more ethnic feel. I would choose Loreena McKennitt's "Prologue" from her album The Book of Secrets. It carries all of those elements, including a haunting, plaintive note, which would echo Leia's feeling at the opening of ROTJ very well. Although she may have released Han from his carbon imprisonment, he's been taken from her once more, and there's little she can do at the moment to change that. If Jabba had asked her to dance for him in those hours before Luke's arrival, she would, though very grudgingly (unfortunately, it's not the time to throw wrenches into the works with a flash of temper; that time would come soon), but in her apparent reluctance, she would withdraw into her mind and the music to help her withstand the situation and her misery. This piece would compliment such a trance-like state wholly. 7) Any final words? It has certainly been a fantastic experience, creating this metal bikini; however, sadly, it remains in a Rubbermaid container, turning green and disintegrating. The gold paint I had used (which had said was specifically made for clay) began to eat away at the Model Magic clay 6 months following completion. But I am not entirely displeased with this. As much as the bikini turned out great in many ways, there was a part of me that was still not satisfied, especially with the boots and the color (every flash shot made the costume purple when it was really burgundy! Ack!), and how fragile the costume seemed to me. So, now armed with Sculpey and Sintra, I will be embarking on a new and improved bikini, guided by the successes of such costumers as Mirax and others. I hope to have pictures taken following it's completion and I will post them with the other shots of my costumes on my (brace yourself for the shameless plug!) Yahoo! photo album at http://photos.yahoo.com/leiayt1300. But this first bikini will always hold a special place in my heart, as it was the first unusual bit of costuming I had ever done, and it truly was a satisfying challenge. Thanks Beret! |