I think this costume came out very well. I got almost all the fabrics discount, with the exception of the gauzy orange for the bow.

The dress pattern I used was actually a strapless ball gown pattern I bought and modified with both the slit and the dip in the chest. The material was some white bridal silk, very fine print, that I bought at Denver Fabrics Annex (when it was still open *sniff*). It was very delicate, and very difficult to sew. I ended up sewing the costume twice, it was so delicate! I then used a heavy red silk for the red trim, and a self-designed butterfly became an iron-on decal for the butterfly patch.

As for the bow, it's made up of at least three different materials: Gauzy orange, a crushed red satin, and a soft butter yellow for the obi trim. As Ayane's bow was a red/orange color, I mixed the two to get the effect, covering the red with the orange, which is actually a drapery material, and wasn't cheap. To keep it's shape, I inserted boning into the bodice part of the obi, and trimmed it with the pale yellow. Finally, I made the whole thing snap-on. The Obi snaps around the waist, and the bow snaps onto the obi. Then, the obi-jime ties around, and its tie is concealed behind the bow, cinching the waist a little more tightly.

The headband is also snap-on, which is nice, it keeps the wig in place. The sleeves are made of the same material as the dress, and I got those thigh-highs at welovecolors.com. Lemme tell ya, if you need an odd-color set of thigh-highs, that's the place, they have every color imaginable!. Finally, the shoes I managed to find at just a random store in the mall for only $20.00! Then, I just folded down the zipper part the way she does, and voila! Not bad for a first-time seamstress, eh?