Nothing to major to say. Sadly I have to wait till after Christmas to really work on anything I want. Of course all my ideas get changed around. But I know for sure what I'm going to make for Katsucon. I've replaced Flora with Clover from 999.

Holy crap isn't that the cutest thing on the planet? Yes it is. Someday I'll get to Flora but not now. I have the fabric for the sweatshirt, I'll be able to start after Christmas. And for Claudia I'll be getting the fabric for that as a gift.

Also going to Magfest this year. I'll have my new camera by then, no new cosplay but I'll be taking a ton of photos for it and this time I'll get the chance to post it!

Also added a new page for future cosplay ideas. I was going to make a post about it but the list is far too long and I really don't feel like clogging up a whole post.

I hope everyone has a really wonderful christmas and they get everything they want!

New Outfit.

So...AC Brotherhood has made me completely change my mind. I need to cosplay Claudia now. Playing through the game, she's become completely amazing, I just adore her. And then she got a brand new outfit, the Assassin's Garb.

This will probably be the most challenging outfit I'll make up till this point. But I always get really excited for big projects like this. I think what makes it look more difficult then it probably is, is the how detailed the material of the fabric looks. But actually breaking it down isn't as bad. Its just about breaking it down into pieces and working a bit at a time. Though I am the most concerned with the design on the back of the cloak, I really need to find something bigger and more highres of it. But for Katsucon it'll be nice for our group.

So it looks like for Katsucon I should have Kay Faraday, Claudia Auditore, Miku (Red Hood) and Flora (from Professor Layton). Flora should be rather easy to whip up so I'm not concerned about that. From here on its get through classes and get this done.

AUSA: Miku and Amanda

So it's been a bit since an update! I managed to finish my costume for AUSA of course and I have a few finished photos of them to show off. For the most part AUSA was a friend con, so I really didn't attend many of the events like I would have liked, but I had a really great time there. So of course the finished costumes...

Miku (Red Hood)


and closeup


And our Peacewalker group!


Sadly I have no photos of my own to share. My camera broke early on at the con so I couldn't take anything. I should get a new camera some time around Christmas so for Katsucon I should have ton of photos to show off.

As for Katsucon...my cosplay list is a bit tentative right now. This is what I know for sure:
Kay Faraday (Ace Attorney)
Miku Red Hood (Vocaloid: Project Diva 2)
Teodora (Assassin's Creed 2)

There will be one more but that all depends on some circumstances. Teodora will be a serious experiment for me, I've never had to work with a corset before. But I have confidence I can pull it off. There's a lot that needs to get done in between, school and of course Katsu coming up. I'll try and post as much progress as I can!

Progress

Time for for progress! I've done a lot of work in-between so lets show off what I've done since the last post.

So I spent a good deal of time working on the stitching detail around the outfit. There's a ton of it and it's been a little time consuming.


And here's everything together:

It's a little wrinkled, but the purpose was to see how everything fit together. The apron there sits too low so I need to fix it up a bit so it fits correctly. The stockings aren't correct which is a little sad, so I'm still waiting for the new ones to come in. And I ran out of ribbon so I need to buy more for the sleeves.


And here it is with the apron pinned and fitted more correctly. I'm pretty happy so far, though there's still plenty more to go!

Progress

So normally what I do is I wait until a costume is done and then I post the progress and everything behind it. But I really want to keep active with this blog. And if I wait until it's done, I won't make posts all that often. So what I decided to do now is post my progress as I come along, so I can be more active here.


Amanda progress. Cut and styled the wig. This was the first time I really got the chance to use thinning sheers with a wig. The scarf needs a bit of working on, I need to fix it up a bit before I call it finished.


The hood and trim for Miku. The hood pattern was something free I found online, while the collar had to be drafted myself. I was a little unsure of how to do it, so I sort of winged it and I'm happy with how it came out. The most tedious process was the stitching detail along the hood. It wasn't hard it was just time consuming. But I'm happy with the result.


The plush for Miku, on her head. The plush was stuffed a bit too much, so I had to take a good deal out from the body so it could sit right under the hood.


And of course the apron. I was really happy with the shape of it, getting it how I wanted. I still need to add the embroidery along it. I haven't done embroidery before, so it'll be an interesting sort of experiment.

Cosplay Meme

For fun, I decided to post this cosplay meme that I found on Deviantart. Still working on various things!

Projects 2010-2011

It's been super busy getting back from Otakon and then starting school. So I'll try and keep up as much as I can. I never really took the time to write up what I thought about Otakon, maybe I'll get to that eventually, but it feels a little too late now. I might try and keep up with that more with upcoming cons, but for now I can at least sort of showcase my costumes.

Part of this counts still in 2010, so I'll keep using the 2010 tag until 2011 hits. I still have a con in 2010 anyway. So far this year (and next) I plan on going to AUSA, Katsucon and Zenkaikon. I'd like to make it to Tekkoshocon but we'll see about that. And I have no definite plans for a summer con yet.

As for what I plan on wearing. At the moment I'm still working out what I want to wear where. But so far this is what I plan on making.


From left to right: Miku (Vocaloid: Project Diva 2, Amanda: MGS Peacewalker & Sister Teodora: Assassins Creed 2)

Teodora will be the most challenging, so we'll see how this goes!

Side Project: Helsingard

This is probably the fastest I've ever completed a project. I had basically two days to get this done. While I worked through the first day, I spent all night of the next night to get it done. But I'm really happy with the results.

I used anti pill fleece much like I did with the previous two. And this was the first time I had to make these half circle shapes. I used some techniques from Metorid Hat to help me get the half circle shape that I really needed. Not much else I can really say about this plush, other then I was tremendously happy when I finished with it.

This version of Helsingard is from the upcoming animated feature Atomic Robo: Last Stop. It was made for Baltimore Comic Con and will be raffled off.

Finished

Side Project: Metal Gear Rex

While waiting for Otakon to get here, I decided to try and make as many plushys as I could, to help get some extra income. In between MK.II's I decided to make a new Metal Gear. Because Metal Gear Solid is my favorite out of all the games in the series, I decided I had to make Rex. Rex's design was really easy to figure out when drafting a pattern for. Basic geometric shapes. But it was far more complicated then MK.II when it came to sewing and details. There were more detail to worry about and to figure out when attaching everything. Rex is also smaller then MK.II by a few inches. MK.II is also wider.

But overall I'm really pleased with the results in the end. Rex turned out really nice. I was even more surprised when I was able to get him to stand up. I didn't think I'd be able to, because of how thin his legs are. But it worked out really nicely. The only thing I think I want to fix in the second version is to figure out something better for the rail gun. What I have now is alright, but it's really, really basic. Maybe I can find a better way to translate the gun into plush shape.

Progress: Head


Progress: Body


Progress: Body + Legs


Finished

Side Project: MK.ll

So I've been trying to get into bringing some kind of prop to go with my cosplays, mostly because it's easier to pose with if you have one, and it makes things just a bit more interesting. Sadly I tend to struggle with posing, I run out of ideas or can't think of So I decided to make a plushy to go with my Sweet Snake Otacon cosplay. The plush adds a bit more to the cuteness factor of the cosplay, and I'll have something to pose with. This was my first time making a Plushy, so it was quite the adventure. But with some help and advice I was able to get it down pat and I'm very pleased with the results. It was a fun little experiment and now I have a cute prop to go with my costume.

The material is anti-pill fleece. It's really soft, the spare fabric I almost wanted to use as a blanket. The eyes are buttons and the arm has a wire inside to pose and move the arm. The feet have little buttons to represent the wheels but I'm thinking for later versions I might not include them. Those buttons specifically were a bit expensive.

Vers. 1 progress


Vers. 1



Vers. 2 completed

With this one I added a stitching detail to the body, to give it a little more definition and detail.

Eileen Galvin (party dress variant)

I had done Eileen previously for a con, but just her regular daytime outfit. A friend of mine asked me to be her Eileen to her Henry so of course I wanted to. Plus, Silent Hill 4 is probably one of my favorite Silent Hill games, next to 3. So after that, I decided I was going to make her party dress. Normally I make these kind of posts BEFORE a con but because of the nature of the costume and needing help with it, I had to wait till after Otakon until I could finish this up.

This was probably the most reveling costume I had ever made. Which isn't a terrible thing, but just not something I was used to. A lot of side boob action going on. The dress was mostly constructed from patterns I had laying around, the top found and modified. The bodice was a little difficult because I sort of had to construct it on my own, and the fit was off. It was a lot of me trying to fit it and refit it, which is always a little irritating. The fit is still a little loose, but I don't think is too noticeable.

The fun part was getting the makeup to look all beat up. I had never really done that kind of make up before (I'm generally not that experienced in anything more then trying to make my skin look even and decent) so it was a fun little experiment. The make up used is just this cheep Halloween stuff that I found on the internet, and me playing around with it and looking up tutorials. I had a lot of really helpful advice for it to help improve what I have, which was awesome.

For the progress shots I have, the hardest part was trying to bandage myself up. Thankfully for the con I'll have friends to help me do that. It's a little awkward to do everything one handed. Unfortunately I couldn't do the makeup for the numbers written on her back by myself, my arms just don't bend that way. So for Otakon I'll have to have someone do it for me. The makeup is actually fairly easy to do and I have confidence in my friends in getting it done.

For her purse, I really lucked out and found a purse at a vintage store. I covered in the leftover fabric from my dress and I had a prop and something to carry all my stuff in which is even better in this outfit. The worst part? Probably the shoes. My feet were pretty sore after all of that. But the makeup was really surprisingly resilient. It was still on even after the heat and walking around. What was a bit funny though was walking into a bathroom and having a woman stare at me. Well probably not too funny, she probably thought I was actually hurt. But thankfully the make up washed off pretty easily, except for the stuff on my back I couldn't reach. Had to wait until that faded off.

Progress
Dress


Makeup Test


Finished

Kay Faraday

The Ace Attorney series has always been one of my favorite game series. The assistance were always some of my favorite characters. So of course after Investigations came out I had to cosplay Kay. Despite it being rather a simple costume, there's a lot of little details on it that add up to the level of complication. Like the tabi boots. You know how hard it is to find a pair of tabi boots? This costume had a mild bit of shipping drama with some of the items.

The easiest parts were making the skirt and the actual shirt part. The skirt was just a basic pleated skirt, the marital the same as my Magnet Miku costume. It's always nice having left over material less money spent on stuff later on. The top was a modified shirt pattern. Basically I just cut down the center and extended it a bit to create the awkward vest look and the pattern on top was painted on with fabric paint. The gloves were bought then modified, adding the trim on the bottom, though it makes it more difficult to actually put on the gloves, once I'm wearing them it's alright, the added lace took away the stretch at the wrist.

The belt was a modified belt I found on ebay. Love ebay, I think I get the majority of my cosplay finds from there. Got my wig from there as well as well as the clip that attaches to it. The boots were bought off ebay as well. You wouldn't believe how hard it is to find tabi boots for a cheep price. It's almost always pricey for specalty boots. The pink parts are actually just little covers, rather then worrying about making whole tabi socks, it was just cheeper (with matrial I had left over) to make little covers that just look like socks (there was Velcro in the back to attach and detach it). The gloves were also bought off ebay and modified as well.

Her pin and key I had to make myself. The pin was made from sculpy, baked then painted. A pretty simple process. I will admit though I'm not really an expert with sculpting or anything like that. I just had to do my best and work with the tools I had.

The scarf was done from my own pattern. It was sad how badly the first version turned out. The second I took much more time for and it turned out perfectly. Just shows it pays off to actually take your time and make sure you do things correctly rather then quickly try and get it done.

The bag was an odd part, it was a rectangle shape, I needed to sort of keep that. And I've really never made a bag before. The material is the same as my Otacon jacket, the pink parts being left over from my shirt. I wanted it to be actually functional, so I lined it with yellow fabric. The shape is kept with a rectangle made from Bristol board. It's functional for what I need it to, and I'll be able to keep my stuff in it for the con. It attached to my belt and is worn from behind.

Progress
Scarf + Pin


Pin


Pattern


Shirt, Scarf & Skirt


Finished

Otacon: Sweet Snake Figuremate

This is just about the easiest thing I ever had to make. I chose this costume because I adore Metal Gear Solid and I love these little figurines like no other. They're just too adorable. This was made basically because I wanted something easy to wear. This post won't be nearly as long or impressive because it was a rather small, easy costume to make.

I decided to use my own hair for this, worked at with a curling iron. Not a terribly difficult process, I just needed to do a few tests to see what I liked. My hair is a bit longer then what I'd like for this sadly, by the time a con rolls around I'll have it trimmed, but the style is about right. I decided to use my own glasses for it.

Then it came down to buying vs. making the outfit. In the end I ended up doing both. The shirt is bought and dyed to the color I needed it to be and the jacket was made. Finding the style I needed was difficult and more expensive, it ended up being cheaper just to make it.

Progress
Hair


Jacket + Shirt


Finished

Maylene

(I'm actually making the manga verson rather then the anime, so the color choices are different)

So to start this off I'll have quite a bit of progress to post with Maylene, since I got a lot done before I even made this blog. I'll just go through most of my progress shots and show the progression of the costume, of what I have up until this point.

This costume was the first one I had to basically Frankenstein the patterns for. All of it is from previous patterns and were modified for this costume, which made it hell to figure out. I really should do something with practice before hand, before I cut into the fabric, but I really just didn't have the extra to do that. So it's always sort of measure and cut for me. Though that made this process a bit hellish unfortunately, making me have to go in and fix up previous mistakes over and over again. Sadly this was all made before I had some kind of body form to fit this to, so every time I did something, I had to stop, try it on and the fix whatever mistake I made.

Usually I don't get into buying wigs until much later, but the wig was something that came and went. So I snatched it up before I even decided I was going to cosplay her or not. And god does the wig feel amazing. I left the strings for the pigtails there, lovely.

Before I had a chance to buy the fabric I ended up making the headdress out of leftover fabric I had laying around. Not really a major accomplishment of any kind, the headdress was easy enough to make. A lot of little stuff like this I never really make patterns out, I just sort of go with the flow and see what happens with it.

After I went out and got the fabric, I started doing the patterning. And god I thought that it would be an amazing ia to just Frankenstein without really putting the amount of thought into it that I needed to. Needed more measurements, needed more testing without wasting my good fabric. My first attempt at the sleeve seemed alright. From the terrible cellphone photo you can see it seems alright. But really it was rather terrible looking. It didn't sit right at all, it was way too big, etc, etc. So I ended up scrapping it and remaking the sleeve entirely. From there, it was touch and go. Really I'm not completely satisfied with it. There are parts I really want to fix and remake entirely, though I'm kind of at the point where I don't even want to touch the costume anymore.

The best part of the whole costume was the apron. Honestly I'm starting to love making aprons. This is probably my second or third one? Something about maids I swear...but the apron was so easy to make and feels rather lovely.

Both the shoes and glasses were found items, the shoes from Forever21 and the glasses from a local vintage store. You'd be surprised how hard it is to find large round glasses. I lucked out with these and popped out the lenses. The white part is just Bristol paper that I can just pop out and remove.

I think the last thing I'd really want for this costume is a prop. Most of my costumes don't have a prop, but when the switch happens I think a prop would really help. Though I can't find anywhere that sells a toy rifle. And I really don't have the prop skills in making one. Oh well, I'll probably have to pose without it.

Progress
Apron


Dress


Dress + Apron


Finished