My Janet Weiss costume posts are my most popular blog posts. All five posts are listed below.
- Janet Weiss Makeup & Hair
- Janet Weiss Accessories (THIS POST)
- Janet Weiss Lingerie
- Janet Weiss's Pink Dress
- My Janet Weiss Dress
Some more Janet Weiss analysis, this time we're looking at accessories. Click the pick for bigger.
CARDIGAN
Well I only had to check the entire internet but I found a reasonably accurate Janet cardigan here
It is white (snow white, not off white), crew neck as in buttons all the way to the neck and has no collar, and long sleeved (raglan). It is a fitted shape and hip (low hip) length. Feel free to compromise on any of this other than the long sleeve if your dress is also long sleeved. For instance a long sleeved no collar zip up sweater might look quite accurate.
You might have better luck finding a new white cardigan that meets these requirements if you look in the warmer months as white cardigans tend to look great with summer dresses. Go places where dorky people shop.
Cardigan patterns are also pretty common if you can find a suitable cotton knit. Her buttons are pearly white (semi-transparent).
PURSE
Janet carries a white purse on a chain. For the wedding she wears it shoulder length then later it is shorter like a handbag. Perhaps it is the type that you can rethread the chain through a loop on one side and attach it back to the beginning to make a strap one half it's original length. See pic for evidence.
This handbag is a simple envelope clutch rendered in a patent leather or vinyl. Shiny white vinyl is commonly available at fabric stores and there are patterns available (modify to make flap reach the bottom and for chain loops and good luck working with vinyl... use an awl).
Handbag chain is best bought at bead stores but many fabric/craft stores now have jewelry items. The chain is silver colored. Purse closure seems to be a magnet (ie, not a buckle). White handbags have been out of style for quite some time but besides the thrift store you might have luck at places like Ross. Put your hershey bar in your bag.
SHOE
Janet's shoe is a white mary jane with about a 2" heel. The key thing here is that again it is snow white and fits well. Any heel height is acceptable but for stage performances I would recommend a character shoe - it will look really close and you will be able to perform in it.
JEWELRY
Janet's gold name necklace is available in a screen accurate rendering. Get your own name or get Janet, damnit. Walmart has a 14K gold version for $70. You can find goldtone versions, like on Etsy for $16.
Janet is also wearing little gold hoop earrings. I heartily recommend hinged sleepers but any kind of plain hoop one inch or smaller will work fine. If you don't have pierced ears don't bother with earrings.
Janet is of course wearing her new engagement ring. It has a round "diamond" and a thin gold band with two lines etched each side. Get something tacky.
Note About Pantyhose
As you see in the shoe picture and throughout the movie, Janet is sometimes wearing pantyhose. When she is shown close up in her underwear (with Rocky in the tank), she is clearly not wearing pantyhose. For those of you who were never old fashioned ladies, underpants are worn under the pantyhose or omitted (that would be less old fashioned). I do recommend that women wear pantyhose to perform on stage (unless you're in trousers) across the board. This provides some modesty and will make your leg color more uniform and can help with thigh rubbing (if the pantyhose fit correctly). This is all a story for another day but my point is I do not consider pantyhose part of Janet's outfit to emulate as she may or may not be seen wearing them and based on her underwear situation, would not actually be wearing them. Susan Sarandon wore pantyhose because the shoot location Oxley Castle was cold as hell.
Choose high quality pantyhose, either heavy-duty hose such as Oroblu or those designed specifically for dancers.
