The Black and Purple Cairo Skirt

The Black Silk Emilie Blouse is worn with the Black and Purple Cairo Skirt in each of these photos. I really LOVE this outfit!


When creating the skirt, I decided to include two lines of embroidery that highlighted the centre front panel.



I wanted the embroidery in black to still have an eastern feel to it, so I used a more geometric design.



The Penelope Red Cairo Skirt has been handmade from a black linen and purple silk/cotton blend. The draped black body creates a feminine line, the contrasting T-bar in purple around the waist and centre front, makes an elegant impact.



This design is part of the Red Queen Collection, inspired by Gustav Klimt paintings and Ancient Egyptian Costume. The one-shoulder look of the Black Silk Emilie Blouse, and the pleating on the skirt, reminds me of something an Egyptian Queen would wear. The vintage metallic braid and black embroidery help to convey a feel of eastern design, but they also remind me of Gustav Klimt paintings as well.

Behind the scenes: Penelope Red Autumn Photo Shoot part 3

The following photos are a few more behind the scenes images from our photo shoot day for The Red Queen Collection! You can take a look at the previous postings of other behind the scenes photos here and here.

Above Chris and Lucy are creating the hair and make up for Monica's look!


Lucy P. in the Nephthys Black and White Silk Blouse and Monica in the Cleopatra Deco Gold Sequinned Top.


Make up artist, Lucy, applying fake eye lashes to Mariene. I loved Lucy's quote of the day: "More is more!"- we all agreed!


Above, Lucy P. wearing the Spinx Orange Blouse and the Hathor Olive Pants.


Above, Bryn, from BlueDoorsStudios is taking the group shot of the girls together. It takes a lot of work to get this shot looking its best- as you not only need to get the correct lighting, but all of the girl looking thier best at the exact same time!


the stunning jewellery pieces we borrowed from Shirley- a designer at The Rocks Markets. These are actually necklaces, but for some reason, they just felt so right to become head pieces!


The beautiful Mariene modeling the Olive Silk and Antique Lace Mermaids Dress.

More designs will be added to the Penelope Red shop online in Australian Dollars and American Dollars over the next few weeks. Some designs are already added!

Behind the scenes: Raisa's beautiful hats for the Penelope Red Autumn Photo Shoot

Everyone who knows me well (or perhaps who has followed this blog) would notice that I LOVE my hats! Hats have this way of making every outfit look finished, polished and a little bit over the top in one. Most people would not like the idea of looking over the top- but I love that extra glamour hit.

Last year I discovered a little Russian-Australian lady, Raisa, selling these divine handmade hats at The Rocks Markets- not too far from where my market stand was. I instantly fell in love with Raisa's craftsmanship, and with her passion for what she does. It isn't very often that I come across a fellow designer at the markets, who actually creates most or everything herself, like I do, so it was nice to get to know Raisa.



When I organised the Penelope Red Queen Collection photo shoot for Autumn, I didn't initially think of hats to be included in it, since it was going to be taken in doors. Since Raisa's hats are more like fascinators, and more a decoration rather than a full brimmed hat, they worked perfectly for the setting. Besides, I wanted everything to be glamorous, fun, and a little over the top!

These photos are not the finished professional photos, but they were taken to show you the hats we used. All of the Penelope Red designs that the models are wearing will be added to the Penelope Red website soon!



Raisa handmake's all of the designs herself, in her home, in Sydney. If you are interested in purchasing a handmade hat, please contact Raisa on: 0412031612. If you live in Sydney, she will be at The Rocks Markets every Saturday and Sunday throughout April 2011.



I purchased one of Raisa's hats last September, to wear to the races. Raisa designed and created the hat specifically for me to go with a particular outfit of mine. You can take a look at Raisa's handmade hat for the races here. If you have a particular outfit in mind, she is happy to design something to match it, and her prices are very competitive. You can email Raisa on: rmyndra@gmail.com