Modern Beauty

“Look, there she goes
The girl is strange, no question
Dazed and distracted, can’t you tell?
Never part of any crowd
Cause her head’s up on some cloud
No denying she’s a funny girl, that Belle”

A few months ago I started reimagining what I think the various Disney princesses would dress like if they grew up in our era. It was a lot of fun to put together wardrobe based off of characters I’ve known since I was young. I was going to share my versions via photoshoot, but decided to wait and share as Halloween costumes instead!

I’m so glad I waited – it gave me time to find what I feel is a modern Belle look and style. And dye my hair to fit the character better!

The hardest part was deciding what story our beloved bookworm should be engrossed in. Personally, I like to think that she would be a strong, intelligent woman, who can still enjoy a classic fantasy tale. The Princess Bride seemed like the perfect story for her to fall in love with. Especially since it’s one of my favorite romantic adventures!

Modern Belle Costume

I’ve had this white button up shirt since high school, but the dress was a recent hand-me-down from a friend. While it would seem an obvious choice to go with black flats (seeing as that’s what she wears in the movie), I felt it looked too much like the movie (and a little leggy with the length of this dress). I really wanted to create a modern Belle, not just a copy of her look. Not to mention, with the weather is cooling off, boots just seem like an obvious choice, especially if you’re walking around in the park during Fall (they also kept my legs warm when the wind was blowing).

I kept her makeup simple and tried a similar hairstyle, even adding a quirky scarf-bow into the ponytail. A rose appears in a few shots as a shout-out to the significance of that flower in the movie as well.

Location, Location, Location

Lucky for me, the location was easy to find (in the same town I live in), a park with a beautiful stone fountain that I knew would work perfectly!

Of course…the problem with finding your perfect location is that you need to make sure to use it in a timely manner before something unexpected can happen to it.

I was extremely disappointed to find out on the day of my shoot when I arrived at the park, not only was the fountain turned off, but a tarp was sealed over it for the winter season. Talk about last minute change of plans. Even though there were other elements to use in the park, I know that fountain would have been perfect!

Conclusion

That little glitch aside, the costume (and shoot) turned out really well. The only thing that could make it better is adding another character to interact with!

This is one of those costumes that would be really fun to do with a partner. Personally, I think a Belle and Gaston pairing would be hilarious at a party. Just think about all the fun you could have bantering back and forth over ridiculous things!

Making Belle come to life with a modern day look was a lot of fun. So much in fact that I may continue with this idea after the Halloween season! Maybe I should just get through the rest of my costume ideas this month first…

Who would you want to see as a modern day character from a Disney movie (princess or not)?