Breaking Down the ‘Downton Abbey: Grand Finale’ Dress Code
Because the gowns and dresses are supporting characters anyway. (Spoiler-free!)
Hey WNVM-ers,
It's Fawnia here and I’m kinda bereft because Downton Abbey is over. Like many of you, I’ve been with the Crawley family — upstairs and downstairs — since their PBS beginnings. And, despite the 1930 setting, Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale explores some very relatable Gen X themes, from divorce to downsizing. Plus, I mean, who doesn’t love a period costume extravaganza?!
I interviewed costume designer Anna Mary Scott Robbins when the series ended (and in person with Mrs. Patmore and Daisy!) and for the first two movies. So it wouldn’t have been a proper goodbye if I didn’t talk to her one last time about the resplendent dresses and gowns in Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale. (And, yes, I cried when the credits started to roll.)
And in news, our Queen of England, Victoria Beckham gets the documentary treatment and a “Wednesday” x Death Becomes Her crossover.
PS: Extra kudos to ‘80s/’90s song lyrics savant Cheryl for this issue’s spot-on title, which was written in 1929 by Irving Berlin and then remade in 1982 by Dutch musician, Taco.
Per usual, you may need to read the entire newsletter in your browser. And, if you’re feeling generous and love a well-placed revenge dress as much as we do, please give us a heart at the bottom of the post.
Putting on the Ritz
By Fawnia
Downton Abbey holds a special place in my heart. It encapsulates my childhood favorites: “Dynasty”-style (but exceedingly polite) soapiness, that “Masterpiece Theater” prestige and patina I remember from watching “Brideshead Revisited” and “Jewel in the Crown” with my dad, and all the glorious period costumes.
I mean, the ladies of Downton have always been on the cutting edge of fashion. From Edwardian times when the dearly-departed Lady Sybil (Jessica Brown Findlay) wore pants — sorry trousers because pants means underwear in British — to the early-‘20s when Lady Mary (Michelle Dockery) chopped her hair into a flapper bob that totally confused Carson (Jim Carter). On the big-screen in Downton Abbey: A New Era, circa-1929, socialite-slash-freelance journalist1 Lady Edith (Laura Carmichael) lounged on the Riviera in louche Coco Chanel-inspired pajama sets.
Fittingly, to send off the extended Crawley family in Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale, set in 1930, Emmy-nominated costume designer Anna Mary Scott Robbins — who started on season five of the show — went all out.
“I want to go big and bold with this!” says Robbins, recalling an early conversation with producer Liz Trubridge. “I wanted to just turn up the dial on color — color combinations and unusual colors — across the board. She was like, ‘Yeah, Anna, go out with a bang!’”
Robbins continued to leverage her talent for hunting down the most sublime vintage from markets, dealers, and her secret sources. (Check out her Instagram for excellent BTS.)
“I always go back into this world thinking, ‘Will I find the same quality of vintage? Will I find these treasures again?’ she says. “But I absolutely have on this.”
For the fans, Robbins also peppered in Easter eggs. In the final scenes, for instance, Mary takes charge of her new chapter in a country-posh checked coat, vest, and skirt set that evokes a power suit.
“We then paired it with a brown cloche hat that she's actually worn from series one all the way through,” says Robbins. “So we finished with her in something that just still ties her to her life at Downton over the last 10 years.”
Grab your tissues because, ahead, Robbins takes us through the most opulent and meaningful dresses in Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale.
Mary’s Red ‘Revenge’ Dress
The eldest Crawley, Mary, is poised to take over Downton Abbey, as parents Robert (Hugh Bonneville) and Cora (Elizabeth McGovern), step back and downsize to the not not-grand Dowager House, former home of the late Violet, Dowager Countess of Grantham (the late Maggie Smith).
Kicking off the grand finale, Mary readies to face the fallout of her impending — gasp! — divorce from philandering race car driver Henry Talbot (Matthew Goode2, busy filming “Dept. Q”). But first, she wants to enjoy one last scandal-free night at the Petersfield Ball in London. She drops by the dressmaker to buy the most jaw-droppingly gorgeous gown in a striking shade of red that literally telegraphs her impending bombshell.
“I didn’t want it to be too scarlet. It's quite a tomato-y red, with a soft luminousness to it, as well,” says Robbins (with the English “toe-mah-toe.”). “It’s bold, vivid, and dramatic – a quintessentially Mary color.“
At the top of the ‘30s, Mary would obviously be one of the first to pivot from ‘20s slouchy, drop-waist, column silhouettes right into the slinky, streamlined bias-cut gown. “This dress was going to feel quite significant, so the back was really important,” says Robbins, who referenced circa-1930 fashion illustrations for the intricate interlace on the plunge-back of the dress.
As if a mass text hit the partygoers mid-gala, the hot-off-the-press goss immediately spreads like wildfire — and Mary is unceremoniously kicked out of the party. As she huddles and hides from royal VIPs under the stairs, the criss-cross on the back feels especially strong and defiant.
“It’s the Mary that we know and love,” says Robbins. “Just before things change and things come crashing down.”
Mary and Edith’s Sisterly Color-Play (and a Chanel Tribute)
Throughout six seasons of TV, the Crawley sisters went through some pretty savage sibling rivalry and dabbled in ruthless sabotage — like Edith ratting Mary out to the Turkish embassy (we barely knew you, Theo James) and a seriously petty Mary blowing up poor Edith’s spot multiple times. By the movies, Mary’s applied her tactical prowess to managing Downton and Edith’s enjoying her high-ranking status as Marchioness of Hexham, after marrying undercover scion Bertie (Henry Hadden-Paton). The sisters reach a mutual respect for each other, and Edith has her sister’s back — thankfully, too, since Mary’s currently flirting with scandal number two.
“Edith has just come into her own with her position and she's just a really confident, settled woman,” says Robbins, who illustrated the sisters’ alliance by swapping their signature colors: Edith’s pink and Mary’s blue.
But first, Mary sets the scene in a striking royal-blue dinner dress with a shimmer nodding toward Edith. “It had these iridescent pink beads [giving a] two-tone quality,” says Robbins. “I wanted her to feel bold and confident. She's dealing with a lot, so I wanted there to be quite a soft edge.”
After a later family dinner, a vulnerable Mary, in soft pink, confides in Edith, in assured navy, who sets out to protect her older sister from future harm.
“Mary’s pink lace dress is based on a 1930 Chanel dress with chevron lace panels and these really full godets [triangular inserts that add flare]. It’s barely there and ethereal,” says Robbins, who imagined Mary would obviously stock her closet with the latest Coco Chanel designs. “Edith is in a navy velvet bias-cut dress with quite a graphic pleated neckline and a low back. So reversing their dynamic.”
A United Front at the Races
When the Downton crew hits the Royal Ascot, Edith and Mary re-embrace their trademark palettes, and, with Cora, reinforce that they’re stronger together.
“I wanted this really beautiful, complementary grouping,” says Robbins. “They're a family, and they're united.
For Edith, Robbins and her team happily came across an early-‘30s bolero jacket and dress set with elegant circular lace embroidery. “I wanted Edith to be pretty in pink — almost a confectionary pink,” says Robbins, who accented the outfit with rarefied all-white accessories from the hat to gloves.
Edith’s playfully pretty ensemble feels especially delicious and satisfying when she flexes her influence and to quash the imminent threat to Mary. “[The pink dress] was a lovely contrast with the steely strength that she has,” says Robbins. “She's strong and direct, and really goes for it.”
Mary turns heads in a navy blue and distinctively ‘30s fit-and-flare dress. Robbins took inspiration from images of 1930 Ascot attendees for her edgy, saucer-shaped hat, with a blooming Edith-referential floral accent. The vintage, draped lace overlay on the dress also features a “delicate pink fleck.”
For Cora’s soft turquoise ensemble with ornate burn-out floral patterns, Robbins combined vintage dévoré lace with custom-dyed silk chiffon. “A lovely jacket dress combo,” she says. “Pink, turquoise, and blue were all present in the prints on Cora’s dress. There was something really cohesive and elevated about the whole thing.”
Gold and Silver Linings
Skilled journalist Edith understands the power of the PR spin. So to rehabilitate Mary’s reputation, she plans a star-studded dinner at Downton, with guests of honor, screen and stage idol Guy Dexter (Dominic West) and playwright Noël Coward (Arty Froushon). The thirsty, snooty aristocrats, who’ve declared Mary persona non grata, won’t be able to RSVP “no” this time.
In the last, splashy black-tie event of the movie — and the franchise, sob — Mary shines in an unexpected new color for her, and with another statement gown. “A chartreuse gold liquid velvet is a bookend to the red at the beginning,” says Robbins. “I wanted to finish with her in a bold color again. She's coming back into herself.”
Obviously, Mary’s gold-tier dress needs a stunner of a back. “I just love the idea of a diamond and onyx mix that's very Deco and very ‘30s,” says Robbins. “So we custom made jewelry that was incorporated into the dress straps and draped back — another cutting-edge ‘30s shape.”
Edith proudly presides over the evening in a shimmering contrast-panel halter gown that Robbins custom-designed with custom-dyed satin and a vintage lamé fabric adorned with silver roses.
“Then [Edith’s look] came together with this absolutely stonking aquamarine brooch that we placed slightly off center,” says Robbins. “That dress is one of my favorites — the fishtail train at the back is just so different from what we've seen and, yeah, just stunning.”
Cora beams in a gold leaf-embroidered confection that's also fashion forward in her own way. Robbins explains that Cora’s gown is actually layers of metallic separates: a silver lamé bias-cut slip, a hand-pleated shot-chiffon skirt, a vintage cap-sleeved top, and a chain-stitched shawl that drapes down the back.
“It’s quite unusual,” says Robbins,. ”I built it up organically, draped it on the stand, and worked three-dimensionally. That actually tends to be how I work with Elizabeth more than anyone else.”
Cora’s gleaming ensemble also conveys why we love this series so much.
“It catches the light with all the lamé playing underneath, which ties into Edith, with the silver thread within hers, and Mary, with the gold tones,” says Robbins. “So it was creating a trio: mother and daughters.”
We are two Gen X journalists who celebrate people of our generation doing cool things, as well as analyze all the '80s and '90s nostalgia in current pop culture, fashion, and beauty. Read more stories like this one here!
You Oughta Know
Jenna Ortega wore a top by Givenchy (designed by Sarah Burton) to the Emmys that looked a whole lot like the one Isabella Rossellini wore as the sorceress in Death Becomes Her. How are the gems staying in place in both situations??? -CW [InStyle Instagram]
"New Documentary Reveals How Elton John Turned His Kneecaps Into Jewelry." This is an actual headline for a thing that apparently really happened. -CW [Stereogum]
Anna Sui's new book, The Nineties, just dropped. From the publisher's site: "A favorite of Gen Z and nostalgic Gen X-ers, the ’90s remain a beloved moment in fashion and culture." (This is a rare case of millennial erasure.) -CW [Rizzoli]
A three-part Victoria Beckham docu-series debuts October 9 on Netflix. We need an entire reality show dedicated to this family, because we cannot get enough of them. -CW [Tudum]
Remember when someone asks, her"You're a writer?" and she responds "A journalist, I'm afraid." TOO TIMELY.
On the "Happy Sad Confused" podcast, Goode has a fun anecdote about how Mary — "Dockers" — is actually better off on her own.
I can't wait for the Victoria Beckham docuseries. I agree. We need more Beckham docus.
Not a DT watcher, but that red dress is Atonement level iconic!
Double-sided sticky tape?? Ow!!
I am living for the Posh doc!
Thank you both so much for sharing the good gossip.💕