Costuming Update

So I'm officially in crackdown mode. For the next two weeks or so I'll be cramming to finish costumes for Halloween and Nebraskon.

So I thought I'd give you an update on the newest costume I've started.

That's right, I'm making Hawkeye from the upcoming Avengers movie. I'm making the costume for a friend- Eric. As I make the costume I'm taking little video clips to try and make a better tutorial. The final video will be posted on here along with pictures of the patterns I used, so you guys can sketch out your own! So over the next week, stay tuned for more updates and the final video :]

<3

Construction Techniques: Fabric Paint vs. Applique

When putting specific prints on costumes, you have a lot of options. You can paint, applique, embroider, bead, and sometimes embossing works. The method you choose should correspond first to the look and texture of your fabric and pattern, and second to your skill level. Today, I'm going to discuss fabric paint and appliques.

Fabric paint is great for beginners. All you need is a bottle or two of fabric paint, and appropriately sized paint brush, your fabric/garment, and patience. While I say it's good for beginners, I'll admit that I've seen absolutely fantastic painting on some master level costumes. It can be great if you want very sharp details.

Appliques take more time and effort than fabric paint. First you iron the applique paper to the wrong side of your fabric. Then you cut out your design(s). Then you remove the applique backing and iron the designs in their appropriate places on your fabric/garment. I've use this method on my gun Yuna ((FFX-2)) and Rose ((+Anima)) costumes.

All of the symbols are appliqued. This includes the dark blue symbols on the skirt and the white sun on the shirt, which isn't visible in this picture.

All of the dark brown triangles are appliqued. It was a bit tedious, but I managed to make it go a bit quicker by cutting out strips of triangles about 4-6 inches long, shaped to match the edge of the fabric. Once the applique was done, I put white bias tape over it. Voila!


Also, I know that my costume isn't finished. I was rushing out the door to get to a picnic and forgot my gloves and hair flower. But I do have them!







Once the ironing is finished, you'll want to go back and stitch around the edges of the appliques to make sure they never fall off. Appliques can add gentle texture to you costume that fabric paint might not achieve in the same way.

TIP:
Unless your costume specifically needs it, avoid puffy paint at all costs. It becomes bulky and can crack or distort if bent, and it can ruin the look of your costume.

<3 Kandell

Sheeta and Pazu - Laputa: Castle in the Sky

If you're an anime fan like I am, you've probably heard of Hayao Miyazaki. He's the brain behind animated feature films such as Spirited Away, Howl's Moving Castle, Baron: the Cat Returns, and one of my favorites, Castle in the Sky. For Anime Iowa 2011, a friend of mine wanted to do a simple cosplay as he didn't have any sewing experience. I immediately thought of Pazu, the male lead. Since watching the movie I had wanted to cosplay Sheeta, so I decided AI was a perfect opportunity. Most of Sheeta's costumes are quite simple; there's the purple dress she wears in the beginning, very simple to Kiki from Kiki's Delivery Service, and a boy's outfit she wears when trying to evade pirates. I chose the pirate outfit she wears during the movie. It consists of coral harem pants, a yellow mock turtle neck with puffed sleeves, red flats, and an orange belt with a silver disc buckle.

For the pants, I found a harem pant pattern on a bellydancing website. All you need to do to make your own pair of Sheeta pants is copy the pattern, altered to fit your measurements. The pants would come to your natural waist, and the ankles of the pants should reach your ankles. Don't be afraid to use a lot of fabric, because if you use cotton like I did, you'll want the volume to make the pants poof out like Sheeta's. Make an elastic casing for the ankles and either do the same for the waist, or make several tucks and sew on a waistband with a button.

Harem Pant Pattern

For the blouse, I used a simple pattern that would fit somewhat loosely, since Sheeta is a young girl and doesn't need a clingy top, and her shirt blossoms over the top of her pants. You'll want to make your blouse long enough to wear with normal pants, so that when you have it blossom out you don't have to worry about keeping it tucked in. That's a mistake I made when I did the shirt. Don't forget to make it fit your measurements, as there aren't any measurements really given on the pattern. The sleeves are a lot easier than I first expected. I'm including the pattern I used. And remember, for all of these you'll have to figure out the measurements on your own. It's a pain, I know, but it's a lot cheaper than buying a pattern for every piece of the costume. Use the middle sleeve pattern in the picture.

Blouse Pattern

Sleeve Pattern


















 The belt is very simple, it's just a strip of orange fabric with either a small button at the front or a safety pin.

The belt buckle on Sheeta's costume is a rather large silver disc. I used a silver button cover and simply didn't put fabric over it. It was slipped onto a long button pin and glued so it wouldn't slide around. Then you simply pin it to your belt and voila!

The shoe covers are also relatively simple. Pick a pair of extremely comfortable flats and set them on your red fabric. Trace around them with a reasonable seam allowance, and this will be your bottom. Although you'll want to reinforce the fabric on the bottom with something that will give you some traction and keep the fabric from ripping. I ended up using duct tape because I completely forgot about it until the day I wore it and had to get the tape from the convention staff. After you've taken care of the sole, it's time for the sides/top. Lay the shoe on its side and trace it, adding a few inches to the top to accommodate for seams and the fabric reaching to the center. Once you have four identical pieces, stitch them together from the toe to just past the flat's edge, and stitch the heels. Then sew the pieces to the soles, slip the flats inside, and you're done! In the picture, the red zig zags indicate where you'll sew before attaching the tops to the soles. Please forgive the extremely crappy illustration, I'm not exactly an artist....

Shoe Cover "Pattern"


















Pazu is much easier. All you need is a white, button up shirt, a brown vest, a tan or brown newsie hat, a pair of goggles, a pair of jeans, and a tan square of fabric for a patch. The shoes are more or less up to you. I'm sure every guy has or has access to a perfect pair of Pazu shoes. If you can't think of where to find any of these things, check out your local Goodwill or other thrift stores. My Pazu's vest was originally a women's jacket that I ripped the sleeves off of and re-hemmed.

Well I hope this helps to get you started! If you have any questions, don't hesitate to comment or message me and ask. For more updates you can keep tabs on my blog or follow me on Twitter at www.twitter.com/k4ndell