Queen Astraea is unlike the typical TikToker that comes up on your For Your Page. Astraea, 30, is a historical fashion buff and LARP (Live Action Role Playing) enthusiast who loves “playing dress-up.” She’s an expert in her craft, with her beautiful Italian Renaissance-era gowns and cottagecore dresses, which has amassed her a loyal following across various social media platforms (including nearly 2.1M followers on TikTok). Fans delight in her aptly titled videos like “I Bought Too Many Crowns” where she displays an enviable collection of nearly 400 ornate crowns.
BUST had a chance to chat with the queen of fantasy fashion, catching her on her travels from hosting a ball in France. In the interview, the native New Yorker confesses that her closet is overflowing with outfits and takes an impressive stance against “corset slander.” Learn how she expresses herself through dress–while respecting the power and impact that clothes have really had for women over time–below:
How did you come up with the idea for Queen Astraea?
The queen was an imaginary childhood friend of mine. I’m an only child and I would get easily bored. Naturally, I would always come up with really fun, imaginative storylines, but there would be times in school when I would not understand questions and I would sometimes get really huffy about it. So I came up with this lofty young princess who has to become a queen at a really young age. I basically came up with that queenly persona because little me needed a way to focus on my work and my studies. I always tried to imagine that “of course the queen has to learn all of these protocols to become a queen and be a good queen for her people.” It was just something that I intuitively used as an excuse to really help me focus and over time it just grew and grew in my head.
What made you bring Queen Astraea onto TikTok?
I was attending an LARP and D&D group called Night Realms in New Jersey before the pandemic occurred. I already had my costumes; I was just using them and having a great time. I was also a graphic design intern for a major conglomerate—I was in the user interface making content. When the pandemic happened my company went into full shutdown mode; I was doing my work alone at home when they suddenly fired all the interns—they didn’t even give us two weeks’ notice.
I was having a panic attack because I’d lost my job, no one was hiring, the pandemic was in full force, and I was stuck alone trying to figure out what to do with my time. [With the encouragement of a friend] I made an account on TikTok and was really loving all the hilarious content. One day I worked up the courage to put on a costume. I stacked a couple of my old textbooks and put my phone on top of them, shone a lamp in my face, did a video, posted it, and went to bed.
Here’s the problem: I thought my settings were on private and they were not. So I woke up the next morning to discover that that one video I did—and it was my first video—went viral. It reached something like 750,000 views.
We have to ask: how many crowns do you own?
I’m sure it’s over 400 at this rate. I lost count after 300. I can’t keep track of them and I recently acquired an Ikea closet that I was able to customize to fit the majority of my things. Even that is overflowing now, so I had to take some of my tiaras and put them in bins in a storage unit, so that’s fun.
What about gowns? Is your closet similarly bursting?
Gowns are another question. If you’re talking about historical gowns, I’m going to say I have maybe 35, which may not seem like a lot but they’re in quick rotation and they always give something different. If we’re talking ball gowns, I think I own maybe 50 to 75 gowns. I don’t keep count; I just notice that the closet keeps growing exponentially and I know there’s an avalanche coming.
How would you best describe your costuming style?
Historical fantasy for sure. I think what makes my costumes interesting–and why people love them so much–is that there’s always a hint of a learning lesson being thrown in. You’ll see this often in TV and film. Bridgerton is a great example of this: they take an era and then [make it their own] by adding modern accessories or by using modern fabric…It’s very historically inaccurate, but it’s fun because they took the silhouette and then they just elaborated on it. I do essentially the same thing.
I really love the Italian Renaissance—it’s my shtick. I think it’s such an intriguing time, especially when you look across multiple different cultures, countries, and kingdoms. It’s amazing what you can see and pull from the past. And all I do is simply take the silhouette from that period and embellish it with fantasy elements: the tiaras, the jewelry, the accessories, the way that I do my hair. That’s when I have more creative freedom and that’s when I get to look at Pinterest and see this amazing array of cool styles. And it’s not just the Italian Renaissance—I take inspiration from ancient fashion, like Grecian fashions. I really love to look at Celtic fashions as well as English fashions. Tudor periods are a huge slay; everyone loves the Tudor period.
I love to see how women were able to make something fashionable for themselves. At the end of the day in Western fashion, you’ve got to remember that women were barred from [positions of] state, barred from politics, and barred from positions of power time and time again. And what women did was they turned to dress to express themselves and assert power. Women did that because they wanted people to notice them. To be seen is to be heard and to have space is to have power. These women quite literally said, “No you’re not going to ignore me, I’m going to wear something so big you have to navigate around me.” That’s power. Women don’t do this for men, ever; they do this for themselves. I love to take that piece of information, alter it, and give women that same position of power. When I wear those types of gowns at the Renaissance Faire, people will ogle me, and it’s definitely a reminder of how powerful that type of clothing in that expression can be.
Do you feel like the history of fashion also drives your style?
Absolutely. When I was really little, growing up in Manhattan, my mom would always take me to the Met [Metropolitan Museum of Art] museum. It was always our “fun time.”
My mom is a professional Joffrey ballerina, and ballet is also rooted in history. All of the tutus, ball gowns, the background characters–they all take root from a historical context. And it lit a fire under my ass. I just absolutely fell in love with historical dress because it just made me feel a little more in tune with what women’s history was.
How would you best describe your style outside of costuming?
For everyday wear, I take inspiration from the cottagecore aesthetic. I really like its whimsy, and I adapt it with a more royal taste. So with a dress I’ll put on a pair of stays [term used for the fully boned laced bodices worn under clothes] and make it really cute. I’ll wear jewelry or accessories, or I’ll wear my Italian Renaissance snude, which is a beaded headdress. It does come with a price—people recognize me far too much the minute I put those on. So there are times when I’m like, “Do not perceive me, I’m trying to get groceries!” On a day-to-day level, hell, yeah, I wear my stays, my accessories, I wear cute little frilly dresses. I could care less! What’s the worst that’s gonna happen—someone’s gonna tell me I look good?
What would you say your favorite accessory or piece of clothing or jewelry has been?
I have two distinct favorites. My first is what I call my “Eleonora di Toledo gown.” It is a replica piece that was made for me [based on Eleonora di Toledo’s funeral gown, one of the only intact articles of fashion we have remaining from her time period, the 1560s]. Eleonora was in a major position of power [as a noblewoman], she was a patron of the arts–a literal “gaslight, gatekeep, girlboss” kind of woman. (The very notion of the duties of the First Lady stem from Eleonora di Toledo; that’s how influential she was.) I fell in love with this replica piece and thought the history behind it was so fascinating. It’s a luxurious red velvet gown with gold trim and a stiffened bodice, it has a beautiful red train, red sleeves that are tie-on, and a little pinkering as well. Every bit of that gown is so well crafted and you can tell why it was such a popular silhouette at the time—it cinches the waist and lifts everything just right. The color red is such a visceral color. I love it to death.
My second favorite is my silver gown. It was designed by me, modeled and inspired by the iconic Ever After gown. We all love the Drew Barrymore movie Ever After. It’s a realm of believability, but still fantastical! The dress is based on real Italian Renaissance dresses; they just used modern fabrics, but it gives that fanciful feel and I wanted to have a dress that emulated that. It’s silver with sea pearls on the bodice, and it has small iterations of a star on the cap of the sleeves. And “Astraea” means “starry maiden,” so I tried to incorporate a star motif into most of my dresses. Because again, it provides that realm of believability. Women would often have some sort of identifying marker of their family crest, so I try to put that into my dresses.
Do you find that you get any flack for the way that you dress or express yourself?
Oh, absolutely, all the time. And I just do not care. I really don’t! That’s not going to affect my personal life—I’m still going to dress the way that I dress.
What’s your advice for someone who is starting their cosplay, LARP-ing, or costuming journey?
Start off with things you know for sure that you can make, and be sure to check your budget. Don’t break your bank. There are so many ways you can take pieces and adapt them at any price point. Look in vintage shops, go exploring with your friends at any Goodwill– just try to put some outfits together.
There are so many ways that you can explore [clothing], just let yourself be curious and have fun learning. It’s like a treasure hunt.
Check out Queen Astraea @queen_astraea
Written by Solange Castellar @champagnelangie
Top Photo By: Elizabeth Elder @emackphoto
