(more pictures available at: http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10151071366532932.501459.542502931&type=1)
OUTFIT DESIGNER:
GG (co-designer Dominic Ang)
OUTFIT MAKER: GG
(disco stick made by Dominic Ang)
MAKE UP ARTIST:
Andrew from Estee Lauder
TOTAL COST FOR OUTFIT:
you really don’t want to know
OUTFIT INSPIRATION: Lady GaGa’s “Edge of Glory” in Sydney, Australia 2011 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8LznZ8JMkAM)
OUTFIT NAME: N.O.X
I have decided to name this
outfit “N.O.X”, which is Latin for “night”. The outfit is meant to reflect the
night sky with its overall black theme - the studs, sequins, and diamonds
represent the stars, while the left shoulder piece mimics the crescent moon. The
message behind this outfit is one that Lady GaGa has mentioned in her song “Marry the Night”. The reason why I have
chosen to metaphorically wear the night sky is because to me, the night
represents the darkness in my life – my sorrows, regrets, and frailties. Upon
wearing this outfit, it is symbolic of how I choose to embrace all my pains and
heartache and bear them close to my heart since they are ultimately a part of
me. Just as my clothes are my second skin, wearing this outfit that stands for
my own sorrows is representative of how I come to terms with the darkness in me
that has in fact made me stronger. I choose to “Marry the Night”, for I am my
own Night.
I have also made “N.O.X” an
acronym that stands for “Night Of X-tasy”. Here it carries a secondary meaning
and it is as it sounds. It is such that this outfit was made for only one
purpose and reason – to be worn at Lady GaGa’s “Born this Way” Ball! Indeed, that night was meant to be a time of freedom,
celebration, and ecstasy. Thus this outfit will always remind me of that
unforgettable, ecstatic night when I was dressed to ‘ball’ and together with my
fellow Little Monsters, witnessed Lady GaGa herself perform live! Furthermore,
given that I will never wear this outfit ever again, N.O.X will always be synonymous
with the night of 7th June 2012 - that Night of X-tasy.
DESIGN AND MAKING PROCESS: The entire outfit took a total of 72
hours to complete. I had an original design for my outfit but I decided to
scrap it as it looked too simple for GaGa standards. My designer and I spent a
couple of hours brainstorming and sketching designs for this outfit, and the
design was finalized a few days later. Within a week we purchased all the
necessary materials and work was commenced immediately.
About a couple of weeks later the
inner and outer layers were complete. I went for my first fitting and I was
absolutely taken aback by the quality of the outfit. It was a relief for my
fashion designer that it fitted as he was concerned over the chest size being
slightly small. However all was well and the outfit fitted perfectly. The only
downside was that the material for the inner layer was not elastic and the
turtleneck made it difficult to put on. At this stage the shoulder piece still
needed more studs and diamonds added to it, and I felt that it needed to be
raised higher in order to make it look more prominent.
As my fashion designer worked on
this, I purchased the hat, gloves, boots, and chainmail choker from overseas,
while the acrylic crystals and mirror tiles were purchased locally. Once the
main outfit was complete, we worked on minor details and touch-ups. I thought
that the gloves could afford some sequins sewn onto the fingertips since that
would mimic the ‘monster claw’ – a pose symbolic of Lady GaGa’s Little Monsters.
To complete and balance the look, I donned a hat with more crystals and
diamonds. However when I received it in my mail I realized it was slightly
oversized and looked too big on my head. My fashion designer therefore had to
re-stitch the hat while still keeping its height and size.
The boots too had to be altered since
they were rather loose on my calves. I originally planned to wear either
stilettos or platform heels but scraped that idea as I thought it would be too
uncomfortable standing in them for hours (besides I didn’t want to go in drag –
I was aiming for a male version of GaGa’s outfit, one that would look
“masculine” but still reminiscent of the Gaga look). White acrylic crystals were
hot glued onto the boots so as to draw some attention to the legs and to
balance the outfit. The mask itself was simple enough to make but I decided not
to wear it on the day of the concert as I felt that it obstructed my view, and
it kept on sliding down my face during the photo shoot due to perspiration.
Finally, after about a month
since we first put the pen to the paper, the entire outfit was complete and
ready to be worn. I collected it from my designer’s place and stored it in my
house until the day that I would wear it to Lady GaGa’s concert.
MAKE UP: Make up was essential since it complimented the outfit.
Having a black theme in the outfit meant that my make up had to follow. I had
to be careful here since the look could easily slip into a Gothic theme, which
was not what I wanted. I therefore decided to contrast the blackness of the
lips and eyes with a pale look for the face. Good foundation was used to cover
the redness of my face, while applying moisturizer to keep it comfortable for
the period of time. I used concealer as well to hide blemishes and minor make
up smudges. As for the eyes, much eye shadow and different kinds of eyeliner
(liquid and pencil) were applied around them since I wanted a thick and heavy
look around that area. As for my lips, I had to moisturize them a few times
before applying the black lipstick with a lip brush. However the black lips
completed the look and gave me the “dark” theme that I was aiming for.
To my Mother Monster, who told me to be myself.
"I love your outfits. Not because you look like me, but because you look like you" - Lady GaGa
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