To kick off this year’s Costober and the Social Justice Warrior theme, I chose my favorite fictional political powerhouse, Padmé Amidala. I use the avatar ‘PoliticalPadmé’ to curate politics on twitter and tumblr. And I use Natalie Portman’s ‘Stop Wars’ photoshoot from her 2006 SNL appearance as a social media layout, and have done for many years.
About the Look
I’ve worn disneybound versions of the Meadow Picnic Dress and the Flame Handmaiden. My look today is inspired by the black Post-Senate Gown Queen Amidala wears when leaving Coruscant. In the scene she starts to form her plan to fight back in conversation with Jar-Jar and then immediately takes her leave of Senator Palpatine and the capitol to move forward with it. It’s a powerful moment, with Padmé finally asserting herself and wrenching back control of her own and her planet’s fate.
And it includes the Star Wars line I most often quote, almost daily since 2016: “It is clear to me now that the Republic no longer functions.” My childhood was in the Reagan years so it’s been clear for my whole life. But now the sitting president is preemptively refusing to accept the election results. Already rampant income inequality is getting worse. Separatists exist. The Republic no longer functions.
About My Look
So I centered my outfit on that stark, brilliant, terrifying line. I designed the shirt myself and paired it with a black tiered crinoline, patterned tights and two sweaters. Together these suggest the silhouette of the Coruscant Gown, and reflect the color palette of black, white, and red. I’ve a lace headband with a net on my hair, gold crown stud in my left ear, and ruffled knit arm warmers. Queen Amidala’s make-up is iconic. My red gloss is Revlon’s Ultra HD Vinyl Lip Polish (limited edition WW84).
I also wore a simpler version to go on errands. I removed the netting sweater and swapped the crinoline and tights for grey jeans. I wore the make-up out for this photo but removed it before going into the store due to the required face mask. I’ve included masks in a few of my looks this year, but I wear one with every outfit when I am out of my home.
My goal for this year’s Costober is to purchase pieces secondhand, or from BIPOC-owned businesses, or from independent artists. The crinoline and tights were handed down from a university theater group. Both sweaters and the jeans were purchased at a thrift store. The arm warmers are from Sock Dreams (these were purchased years ago and are no longer sold, but they have many options). And I created the t-shirt design. It is available on both TeePublic and RedBubble in many clothing styles and as a sticker.
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