I’m in the mood for something regal, majestic...say the Queen of the Fairies herself? In Shakespeare’s Midsummer Night’s Dream, Titania is impulsive, passionate in her mood swings, and slightly volatile. The name Titania itself invokes a sense of danger from the uncertain; not at all like the glitzy ditzy dames we picture when imagining Fae monarchs as kids.
A little background; this is not the first time I’ve designed a look for this character, but I’m maintaining some of my initial concepts. The first Titania I created was half woman, half deer. Mainly, I’ve tried to stir clear of presenting Fairies as wispy beings of light. I believe they’re more grounded (literally, with non-functional wings), and very in tune with their surroundings. Take the fairies from the film Pan’s Labyrinth, in disguise as insects and all around us though we fail to notice them.
And speaking of insects, that was my first vision I had for this Titania. Butterflies are regarded as the most visually beautiful of all insects, coming in vibrant colors that allure and fascinate. I’m especially drawn to blue butterflies, loving that deep indigo wing decorated in tints of black, so that design is the core of this costume.
My mood board for this project consists of a color palette of corals, browns and oranges. Some inspiration came from things such as the cover art for the novel Splintered, or different insect wing shapes. I’m thinking of creating some sort of tiara for Titania from antennae, and for the wings, I was inspired by Storm’s cape from the anime version of X-Men, something that coils and folds around the shoulders, more demure for someone of Titania’a rank. I want her to seem delicate and seductive, but with an air of intangibility, like she could suddenly become fierce and unpredictable in the blink of an eye-or in this case, the flutter of a wing.