Empress Theodora

Finally another costume done! Meet Empress Theodora of the Eastern Roman Empire who lived in the 6th century. She's a fascinating character because despite being from a humble background, she managed to become the most powerful woman in the Empire (and a Saint). More here: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theodora…
The costume is based on her representation in the mosaics of the San Vitale Basilica in Ravenna, Italy (pictures in the link above).

Despite Theodora being an actual historical figure, I approached this project just like any other cosplay, trying to get as close as possible to the original, but without reaching for historical accuracy. Also, early medieval bling-bling!

Back to the picture
Left: full costume.
Middle, top: close-up on the crown (the crafting part is not my strongest point...).
Top right: detail, embroidery on the tunic (all hand made, took me about a billion hours because I'm a noob).
Middle, bottom: detail, patterns on the cape.
Bottom right: earring hack for people whose ears aren't pierced.

Hopefully I'll get some nice pictures soon!