designers
The Martin Family, and Rachel Murphy

seamstress
Rachel Murphy

“Nenya,” an original Irish dance dress design, was inspired by the ring of the Elf-queen, Galadriel (in the mythology of J.R.R. Tolkien), and, too, in the dress’ candle-flame imagery, by Galadriel’s title as “Lady of Light.”  The skirt rim is a beautiful, vine/leaf design inspired by, and loosely based on, one of Eowyn’s costumes in the film, The Lord of the Rings:  The Two Towers.

The base fabric of “Nenya” is Periwinkle raw dupioni silk, and a dark-purple lace netting covers the sleeves.  All of the appliqué is done in metallic shades of purple and silver; and the embroidery is freehand machine work in silver metallic threads.  The dress is accented with Swarovski (genuine Austrian) crystals in the colors of Heliotrope and Crystal Aurora Borealis.

This dress was completed by Rachel Murphy of Silverlode Needlecraft for a lovely Yeates Academy dancer, in February of 2005.