We have a saying on D'hay-lar: One can never be green enough! Nor mottled prettily enough, for that matter.

May I present to you, the Empress K'hay-Thora of the planet of D'hay-lar in her Imperial robes!

Click on the left picture of the Empress for a large version with the other guests of the Sci-Fi party, and on the right for a larger version of the picture.

The shape of the crown is fashioned after the Imperial crown of the Holy German Empire. The superhumeral and pallium are taken from Byzantine Imperial dress of roughly the 6th/7th centuries. The velvet hat inside the crown is modelled to look vaguely Russian and the lycra hood is an homage to all the wonderful Sci-fi B-movies where the evil aliens seem to wear those hoods all the time. K'hay-Thora is wearing her long white hair in braids in the front, everything else is hidden beneath the hood and the black semi-circular veil when wearing the Imperial robes. The robe itself is black with gold stripes at both sides and along the bottom. It is shapeless and was, in fact, a sari 13 years ago (yes I did wear such things to University... that's how I met my best friend, she keeps talking even nowadays about the black/gold sari outfit she encountered one day in the library of the English department. *laughs!*) and was used as a curtain in my last apartment in Germany. Long evening gloves complement the Imperial state robes and jewelled shoes, which are in fact velvet slippers from Marks & Spencer with sparkly bits sewn on.

The staff was used in 1997 in its first incarnation in gold with a fleur-de-lys on top, when I celebrated with a Baroque(ish) party my graduation. Now it is sprayed matte black, has glittery dangly bits and a cool colour changing glass wand. The pallium and superhumeral are gold fabric that was stiffened and have pounds of glass stones on them, as well as yards of pearls.

The glass stones as well as those shiny gold and blue nuggets (plastic) were deco material, meant to be put into vases and such. The facetted rectangular honey coloured stones are from cheap bracelets which I found - of all places - for 1.75 quid in the Victoria & Albert museums' gift shop! Most of the pearls are from charity shops and rarely more than a pound per necklace.

All in all it was the greatest fun I have had for YEARS! It seems I have found the joy again in making costumes, something the re-creation of historical costumes - as authentically as possible - had killed in the last years, simply because I got so awfully stressed making Ben's uniforms that I could not enjoy it at all anymore. Every seam, every cut, every ribbon I fretted and panicked over to 'get it right' or at least as right as possible. I hope that soon I can enjoy making those again, but right now I need a break and get over being burnt out.

Crown with velvet hat. The 'dangly bits' are attached to the hat. The three headed Imperial Eagles are painted onto the gold.	The make-up without the forehead mottling. I took photos to remember Her Imperial Greeness for next time :-)

Graphics, Contents and Photos copyright N. Kipar 2003-2005.