Bustle Dress: Beginning with the Bodice

My Halloween costume should be complete super early this year, because it is a complicated and very fun project.  It's hard not to work on it!  I'll be Irene Adler, from the American film with Rachel McAdams and Robert Downey Jr.  Daniel will be Sherlock.

I found two simplicity patterns that I will take pieces from for construction, but the majority of it is my own pattern and a lot of experimentation.  Here are the two patterns, which will provide a base for the sleeves, the skirt's waistband, and an overcoat if there is still time:

These are the bodice pattern pieces that I've prepared. I'll cut them with the burgundy satin fabric, then I'll use other shapes and pieces to get the finished product.  I don't have a bustle skirt pattern, so I'm looking forward to experimenting with materials to get the right effect.

I'm almost done with the bodice prototype, which I used to make sure that my collar plans will work. Since the prototype is made of remnant fabric, I only had enough for just the bodice and I removed the mismatching collar for the final garment. Here is the bodice, not quite finished, but close.

Check back in a few days for an update on the costume's progress!