Mie Makes Stuff

Kinda mostly a cosplay blog, but really for anything Mie makes

[miezukuri]

I haven’t posted anything in forever. Have some WIPs of my Mimikyu tail.

[chibiannecosplay]

Really cool and fast way to cover foam!

[bee-whistler]

[qunaributts]

Cosplay Materials/Tools I Wish I’d Known About Forever Ago

Because I’m just getting this shit recently and it’s all amazing.

Hot Knife - Holy fucking shit it heats up and you can slice and dice anything you fucking want pretty much. And you can get a multitool version of it with interchangeable heads so you can fry different patterns on to your work how fuckin neato is that? (Cut away from you. Cut away from you. Cut away from you. Don’t be me. Don’t slice yourself with a sharp and also vERY HOT blade. Don’t do it. CUT AWAY FROM YOU).

Dremel - Hand sanding is for people with strong arms (not me) and the patience of saints (also not me). Sand shit down at the speed of FAST. Multiple tools can be attached to the spinning doo-hickey and you can cut and grind and buffer to your hearts content.

Paperclay - Forget wall spackle for filling cracks in props, just use fucking paperclay. Plaster can suck on an egg, put paperclay over your props and sand that shit down for a smooth as fuck and sturdy finish. Build little embellishments with it. Build pretty much fucking anything with it holy wow its great.

Dentists Tools - Listen you’re gonna need poking tools. You can either look through the junk drawer for a pencil or pen to poke things, or you can spend 5$ and get a set of sharp metal sticks that bend every which way and are amazeballs for getting in to the nooks and crannies of your costume. They’re so useful please get them.

Clear Plastic Storage Tubs - I know it sounds stupid but I used to store all my stuff in old shoe boxes (my mom buys a lot of shoes). Having big tubs you can SEE THROUGH is a fucking blessing. You dont have to go digging, you’ve got a place to put your shit, stuff is moderately more organized (lets face it we’re all going to be huge messes no matter what), and its easier to keep track of all your miscellaneous junk.

[fabrickind]

I love paperclay and use it all the time, but I still find myself reaching for the spackle, since paperclay doesn’t work in all applications. 

I’ve found that as a surface treatment, to smooth out and seal and a surface, spackle isn’t the strongest thing in the world (it won’t add strength to a project), but it is easy to use, lightweight, and can be sanded very smooth. If covering a large area of surface for the sake of making it smooth, spackle is the way to go. (I’ve used this as the surface coat on XPS foam for my Ultimecia headpiece and Condesce horns, and as the edge of my Juri Arisugawa sword, and have had no problems with it there. I’m sure I’ve used it elsewhere too, but those are the major applications I can think of.) 

For a crack filler, it can go either way. Paperclay is prone to cracking in and of itself during the drying process. It is also much heavier than spackle. For smaller cracks, it works well. For larger cracks, it may be too heavy, and may have problems with drying. I wouldn’t use it to fill an entire area, but would use it for smaller repairs, or, in rare cases, as a thin surface coat on a small area.

Spackle is good for filling in larger areas (get the lightweight stuff that’s the texture of a stiff buttercream) with a lightweight material, though the areas would have to either be very contained (a narrow and deep hole, like a crack) or wide and shallow, since it can’t be built up super easily. You have to wait for it to fully dry, add another layer, etc. But it’s good for filling in space when weight is a concern and certain shapes are involved. If you are trying to take a surface that is bowed inward and make it flat again? Lightweight spackle will be much lighter than paperclay. If you then want that space to have a harder surface, a thin layer of paperclay can go on top of the spackle.

I’ve found that spackle and paperclay have two different types of weakness: spackle is soft, in that it can indent or crumble (it doesn’t work well on sharp angles for that reason, unless you are very careful), and paperclay can crack (not the cracks that form during the drying process, but the dried material itself cracking), and doesn’t bear weight well, especially when in thin pieces (say, the arms of a trident…that was a mistake). Either way, you have to be careful with the material.

So, really, both have pros and cons. Paperclay is great for a hard surface, making small accessories and details (or things like horns that aren’t overly large), and for things that need to be sculpted, but is very heavy and cracks easily, so it isn’t as suitable for use over large areas, especially where things light take a hit. Spackle is good as a lightweight filler (especially if you use the “lightweight” kind) or surface coat (I’ve done this both with the lightweight and regular kind, though regular is easier to sand….but both can get very smooth, as evidenced by my Condesce horns) when covering large areas, but can’t be built up easily or sculpted into shapes, and has a harder time with sharp angles.

So for filling cracks? If they’re small enough, paperclay is A+, would recommend. For filling larger areas, or coating a surface? Spackle is the way to go.

[vilyacosplay]

Worbla sealing technique

I’ve been asked many times how I sealed the Worbla on my Wrathion costume for it to look this smooth. I don’t have progress pictures but I can explain since it’s pretty straightforward. This technique not only allows you to have a smooth surface, it gives you the chance to refine the shape and erase seams if, like me, you’re unable to form Worbla perfectly. Also, if you use a flexible paint and varnish on top, your piece will remain bendable without cracking.

Keep reading

[petiotism]

It’s time for the promised GLOVE Tutorial!

I’m so sorry that this took far longer than I said it would - I just finished my Bachelors Thesis and had to do some other exams. Now, I’m free and did the tutorial (without pictures, but if people ask a lot I will do a picture tutorial).

Glove Tutorial

Version 1: Elastic Stretch fabric

Version 2: Non-elastic fabric

Keep reading

[ilsa-makes-things]

Tutorial: Add a Mandarin Collar to a Keyhole Neckline Tunic

Hey, folks! A follower recently asked how I added the orange collar seen in my sew a keyhole neckline with a facing tutorial. I shared the process with my Facebook friends a few years ago, so I thought I would update those old photos and descriptions and share them with you here! They’re quick and dirty, but it will help you get the idea of how to add a mandarin collar to a keyhole neckline.

Your finished neckline will look something like this, if you sew your facing to the inside. If you prefer a decorative contrast facing, you can sew the facing so it folds to the outside, like this!

Right, let’s go!

#1. Prepare your facing piece as normal.

Finish the edges with serging (or a zigzag stitch, or whatever you like) so it won’t unravel.

If you don’t know how to sew keyhole necklines with facings, refer to this tutorial here to learn!

#2. Cut out the inside of your keyhole’s facing. 

I don’t normally do this at this point when I’m sewing tunics without collars, but this time, it’s necessary.

DO NOT cut the slit of the keyhole at this time.

#3. Trace that hole in your neckline facing onto the body of your garment. 

(The photo below should be rotated, but you can see that about 2/3rds of the neckline is forward of the shoulders, because that’s how our bodies are built.) Cut this out, too.

DO NOT cut the slit of the keyhole now, either.

Handle both your facing and cut neckline delicately, as these can stretch out of shape if you tug at them too much, and then they won’t match when you go to sew them together.

#4. Make your collar pattern.

There are a couple of different ways you could do this. You could sew a collar that’s just a straight band, but the top edge won’t want to follow the neck, Something with a bit of curve is trickier to sew and attach, but it will fit the neck more closely and be more inclined to stay standing up.

I used this method for drafting the curved collar.

The line with arrows is supposed to be the grainline. It shows me how to lay my pattern out on the bias. This isn’t necessary, but it’ll curve around the neck more happily. The tutorial illustrates this better.

The writing on my pattern says ‘Mandarin Collar For Tunics, Cut 2 self on bias, blockfuse.’ This means that I’ll cut two pieces out of my main fabric to sew into the collar, while “blockfuse” refers to the interfacing I’ll add. 

NOTE: My pattern looks funky because I decided that the top curve didn’t follow the neck closely enough: I wanted it to be shorter, while keeping the bottom the same length. To do this, I cut the pattern apart in the middle and pivoted it together. This took a little wedge out of the center back of the collar, while keeping the bottom edge the same, so it can still be stitched to the tunic.

#5. Add interfacing to your two collar pieces.

I’m going to add some interfacing to my collar, which will help it stay stiff and stand upright. I used a lightweight fusible knit interfacing. I could have used a heavier interfacing, but this was  what I had sitting around.

Because cutting out your fabric in the pattern piece, and then cutting out your interfacing, and trying to fit the two together is HORRIBLE AND MURDEROUS, I have instead fused interfacing to a bit of extra fabric. I’ll cut my collar pieces out from the pre-fused fabric. This is called “blockfusing,” and it’s WAY easier.

More on blockfusing here, if you’re a nerd who enjoys these things. I certainly am!

Here’s my pattern piece laid out on the pre-fused interfacing. I’ll cut out two of these.

#6. Construct your collar.

Since we’ve last met, I’ve cut out my two fused collar pieces and stitched them together with a 1/4″ seam allowance, right sides together, along the top edge and sides of the collar, leaving the bottom open. This edge is what gets sewn to the body of the tunic.

#8. Trim the points of your collar.

The points of the collar can get bulky, so it’s wise to clip them down a little. Doing this will let the points turn better: they’ll look sharper once you flip the collar right side out.

#8. Turn your collar inside-out and press it nicely. 

Baste the edge of the collar shut with long stitches, using a narrow seam allowance. Mine is probably too wide, but that’s okay– I’ll have to pick those basting stitches out later, so they won’t be visible.

#9. Pin your collar to that raw hole we cut in the body of the garment and sew together.

You’ll be pinning right sides together. Don’t worry about the raw edge, we’ll add the facing and enclose all the raw edges with that. Use lots of pins. Make sure the collar meets at the center front with maybe a 1/8″ gap, and matches up with the center back points. Sew carefully at a 1/4″ seam allowance. It’s probably easiest to sew this with the collar, not the body of the garment, facing up. The collar will NOT want to squash flat, but that’s a good sign– it means that the interfacing we added is keeping it perky. Just sew slowly, and everything will be okay! Remember that the collar only has to match the body at the edge of the cut hole– it can misbehave all it likes beyond that, because that’s the only point we’ll be sewing down.

Here’s what the tunic will look like when you’re done sewing the collar to the body. (Excuse the beach towel– I needed an impromptu ironing board while my main one was out of commission!)

Note that you’re looking at the tunic from the OUTSIDE. We need to cover up that raw edge with the facing, so it won’t fray. 

#11. Pin your facing on from the right side of the garment and sew the keyhole facing as normal.

This looks super weird, but I promise everything is right sides together: the collar just didn’t want to lay flat for the photo. This is fine!

To clarify, from the top down, the layers go like this: facing, collar, actual garment body. (At the keyhole slit, it’s just ‘facing, garment,’ because there’s no collar there to work around.) 

Sew the keyhole facing with the facing piece on top, like this.

#12. Do these finishing steps, and you’re done!

Once it’s all sewn together, you’ll cut the slit open, flip the facing to the inside of the garment, leaving the collar on the right side, trim away some bulk at the seam allowance, and do some topstitching. Basically, we’re almost done! Topstitch the facing, so it won’t flip out from the wrong side. I also edgestitched the keyhole slit and stitched in the crack between the collar and the body.

And that’s all!

Going further: hoods and external facings with collars

If you would like to use this method for adding a collar to a tunic with a decorative facing on the OUTSIDE, the steps are identical– you’ll just start from the WRONG side of the tunic, not the right/outside.  You can also use this method to finish the raw edge of a neckline you want to add a hood to. But that, as they say, is an exercise left for the reader. Thanks for reading, and happy sewing! Let me know if you make a collar like this– I would be thrilled to see what you come up with! Best,

Ilsa of Drentha

[cosplaytutorial]

Mounting World of Warcraft Cosplay Shoulders

Hey franz! I did a quick walk-through video of how I did my World of Warcraft Rogue Shadowcraft shoulders. I received a lot of questions about my Death Knight shoulders and it’s basically the same principle. If you have any questions, feel free to comment below! Hope this helps! ^_^

Tutorial by:  FakeNerdBoy Tutorial Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e9rLPtwjYC8

[miezukuri]

How to Christmas for Your Cosplayer

The great season of spending is now upon us, and if you’re lucky, you know a cosplayer who needs something cool under the tree. But what do these rare and capricious creatures actually want?

“Easy!” You say, throwing your head back with self-assured laughter ala Gilderoy Lockhart. “Cosplayers like Joann’s gift cards!”

I will not contest this, as it would be patently untrue, but if I sat down and thought about it, the last several costumes I’ve made came from Joann’s in very small percentages…

• Undyne: Skirt fabric, paint, interfacing

• Momohime: Paint and some interfacing???

• Linkle: Linen, symphony broadcloth for lining (so full of regret),  interfacing

What all that adds up to is that I’m basically buying more and more of my very specific supplies from online retailers with better selections. That being said, us cosplayers tend to be very, very selective about the specific components of our costumes, so even if, for example, you know I’m doing Fight Club Mako for Sakura Con, I’ve probably already decided exactly what I want to use for lining, how I’m going to redrill the holes for my geta, and that I’m going to have to make my props out of paper clay, since a real pair of pliers will ruin the drape of my coat. So unless you’re willing to take the surprise out of your gift and work directly with the lucky recipient of your love, don’t buy stuff for specific costumes; you’re only obligating them to use it when it might not have been the best way to go about it.

So how do you surprise your cosplayer with something they need and want? One of my favorite cosplayers, @mangosirene did a great set of videos with ideas for both stocking stuffers, and readily available, easy to find gifts, both full of really thoughtful ideas. You can check them out here:

• Stocking Stuffers for Cosplayers

• Last-Minute Gifts for Cosplayers

I also pinged some other cosplayers I follow, asking for suggestions on something Affordable, a Stocking Stuffer item, and a Big Ticket item. @necroticnymph said, “So something affordable but awesome would be a Crop-a-dile, for punching grommets and eyelets (I love mine),” suggesting a dressform or a dremmel as an “I really love you” item, and  also recommended fabric scissors, bobbins, pins, fabric chalk, and tape measures for stocking stuffers. Additionally, she also had a great idea to (if you’re close to the cosplayer, and have access to their gallery), have a book of their prints made. My buddy, @plaguemd had tons of widely available (and cheap!), but necessary commodities: x-acto blades, and other cutting implements, storage containers, and foam. Lots of foam. Think: Upholstery foam, but also craft foam (in all its myriad thicknesses [6mm is a godsend]), EVA foam, expanding foam, etc. Also resin supplies, clay working tools, paint, primer, sealant, etc.

The Dremmel came up again as a super nice list recommendation, as well as an electric carving knife, which has +3 effectiveness against foam-type monsters.

He also echoes my sentiment about costume-specific purchases: “Basically I wouldn’t want people to gift me costume-specific materials without working with me. Like if you were to be like ‘Hey, this is an iou good for a wig of your choice,’ that’d be rad but, ‘Here I bought you this wig,’ not so much.“

I asked @cowbuttcrunchies, and they said you really can’t go wrong with a Joann gift card as a stocking stuffer, and it’s so true. We WILL use them. Also, clear rulers (because being able to see the fabric underneath the guide is so, so important) and fabric tube turners. For real, because doing it with a chopstick is an exercise in self loathing. For a good affordable option for under-the-tree gifting, they recommend the Simflex Expanding Guide for simple, even placement of pleats, grommets, snaps, hooks and eyes, buttons and button holes, or whatever. Big ticket suggestions are Worbla (not just for armour!) and a good pair of Gingher dressmaker’s shears. These are the textilist’s best friend. I’ve had mine for nearly twenty years, and if you take good care of them, they can be your forever scissors.

My daiji na aniki over at @kitsuninjitsu recommends rotary cutters and mats, as well as a variety of hobby knives. EVA and craft foam make an appearance in his list of picks, too, along with BARGE CEMENT (aka the greatest adhesive for foam ever~). And if you’re really wanting to leave the choice up to your giftee, there are lots of other places us cosplayers shop! He pitched gift cards from Harbor Freight, Home Depot/Lowe’s, Michael’s, and I’ll just throw in there Fabric.com, since that’s where I’ve been getting 70% of my cosplay fabrics lately~

So that’s it. Tons of great ideas here in every realm of money. Here, though, I’ll add my own personal ideas:

Cosplay contact cards, love Ken’s idea of IOU’s, like, “Good for all notions for your next project,” or, “Circle lenses of your choice,” or “I’ll buy thread for all your costumes next year,” etc. I received my serger as a gift, and it’s one of the greatest things I’ve ever gotten, so there’s that. Also! Airbrushes and compressors for those to whom money is no object. Of course, also pins, all-temp glue sticks, DUCT TAPE, sand paper in all the grits (If you really wanna go the extra mile, make them some sanding sticks, and package them with replacement strips and spray adhesive!) a really nice iron, if your giftee doesn’t have one (and on that note, one of these, because sometimes you don’t see the crap on your iron until it’s on your fabric. Forever.).

As a final suggestion, I could recommend putting together a con survival kit in a cute tote, including a travel sewing kit, a mini glue gun/glue sticks, duct tape, fashion tape, Airborne, a cool water bottle, an external cellphone battery, some granola bars, a small bottle of tylenol/ibuprofen, and maybe a Starbucks gift card.

tldr; here’s the master list in approximate tiered order

Stocking Stuffers (Under $10ish): Universal sewing machine needles, all temp glue sticks/e6000/3M Super 77/adhesives, bobbins, thread, storage containers (bonus points for including cute labels!), craft blades, fabric scissors, tape measures/yard sticks (I would also add clear plastic and metal rulers), tailor’s chalk/fabric marking pens, pins/pin cushions, storage containers, fashion tape, mod podge, craft foam/expanding foam, duct tape, sand paper, polymer clay/paper clay/wood clay, and crafting tools (especially this bead former, zomg), craft paint, clear seals, wood putty, Plastidip, protective ironing scorch cloth thing, makeup brushes, paint brushes, Got2B Glued spiking gel, interfacing (multiple weights in black and white), Heat'n Bond, needle nose pliers, masking tape, (For armor-smiths:!) pop riveter/Chicago screws, nylon belting, bias tape makers, ergonomic seam rippers, Wonder Clips

I actually like you (Under $50ish): EVA foam/Upholstery foam, cosplay contact cards, self-healing cutting mats, Barge cement, heavy duty snap tool, propane torch, glue pot, diamond file blade sharpener, Amazing Mold Putty, flat-iron for wig styling, resin kits/pigments, electric carving knife, stock pot for dying fabric, electric drill/screwdriver, heat gun, wood burning tool

You owe me (Restraint? What’s that?): Dressform, serger/sewing/embroidery machine, iron, airbrush/compressor, Dremmel, IOUs for wigs/circle lenses/shoes for upcoming project, 3D printer, Worbla, book of prints, IOUs for hotel/airfare/badges for an upcoming con?! Whoa.

[miezukuri]

Just in case anyone forgot, I like making stuff.

[miezukuri]

Almost-done progress shot of my Drifter helmet.

I used a Magneto-looking helmet pattern (that was admittedly meant for worbla) from Kamui Cosplay, and I modified the giblets out of the face opening, and drafted my own pattern for the visor and ears.

The jewels, I had 3d printed from a really cool dude on Etsy. His shop is called Otaku United, and you should totally hit him up whenever you need 3d printed components for cosplay — or whatever, really. His prices are super reasonable, and he’s really good about communicating through the entire process!

So anyway, I took the prints, sanded them down (though I heard about this great product from Smooth On called XTC3D for filling in ridges on 3d prints!), and made molds of them. Initially, I tried a product called Instamold, and despite following the instructions to a T, the first molds yielded a cast that was really rough and porous, and just unusably ugly. So I remade the molds using Amazing Mold Putty which I’ve used and had great results with before, and cast the gems in resin.

Since I had never worked with resin before, I used this helpful tutorial from Skinner Studio to guide me through selecting alternatives to resin pigments which a)are not widely available, b)limited in available colors, and c)often not transparent. Based on her results and suggestions, I wound up buying a few bottles of Dye-na-flow from Dick Blick. If you’re interested, I used Hot Fuchsia for the helmet gems (with just a drop of bright red acrylic paint mixed in, as it wasn’t quite deep as I wanted on its own), Teal for the small pyramid gem, which I used in my Linkle cosplay, and for the huge green Drifter gem, Jacquard didn’t make a green that I felt was lime-y enough, so I used the Teal I already had and mixed it with some Sun Yellow. The brand of resin I used was Amazing Clear Cast, which is lovely, but it is also very, very, very important that you get the ratios spot. on. If one of the chemicals is even slightly off, it won’t set.

That’s all for now! Hope someone found this helpful!

[miezukuri]

So for the sabatons, I used a tutorial and pattern from Storm the Castle. I wound up removing one of the segments, as these were intended for feet much larger than mine, and completely re-drafting the toe, as it wasn’t as pointy as I wanted.

Having cut it so, so very close on time, I never did a walk test in them, and so two minutes out of the car, I scuffed both toes up pretty badly, showing the blue foam underneath. Whoops. After doing some research, I feel as though 3mm foam, even backed by poster board, is too flexible for this design, as I had the toes separate completely as some points, and swing around under my foot, where verily I did crush them. I think when I remake these, I’ll try Sintra and pop rivets.

The greaves were honestly just graduated panels that I cut based on my calf measurements. That being said, I feel like right now is a good time for a PSA: When making tubes to fit around your calves, thighs, upper arms, and forearms, always err on the side of being a little too short, unless you think not being able to bend you arms or legs for 8 hours is great fun.

Yeah, totally went too long on the gauntlet cuffs, too.

Made the gauntlets using this video as a guide: Cosplay Prop Stop: How to make gauntlet armor with foam sheets

[miezukuri]

So once crunch time hit I got really bad about updating this blog. I posted a couple of quick progress shots on my Facebook, but for those following the story of my Undying armor, here’s how the painting process went from where we last left off:

Everything got two coats of 1:1 Mod Podge before getting two coats of Plastidip.

From there, I did a base coat of metallic black, then a coat of deep metallic red, then did dry brushing in more metallic black. When all that was done, I hit everything with a Rub’n Buff seal in whatever their black is called (I think Onyx?), of which I have no pictures that aren’t of me in the costume, but I’ll get to those after I post this backlog.

[miezukuri]

Not bad for my first foray into EVA-smithing. The tassets will attach to the hips via nylon (or pleather if I'm feeling fancy) belting beneath the fauld. Left side is open for entry, and will secure with industrial Velcro with decorative external strapping. Waiting on my 3mm foam for doing the pauldrons. Until then, on to detailing, sealing, priming, and painting~

[miezukuri]

Pattern fit check mostly a pass. Just a couple small niggles to fix. Won't be able to mount the tassets directly to the fauld as I'd hoped, but probably better not to stress the seam with too much weight. Probably going to have to add an extra side seam to the fauld so I can have an actual point of entry. Yay, progress!

[miezukuri]

Pauldrons, yeah~

[miezukuri]

Armor patterning for Undyne. Attempt three. I am out of duct tape.

[miezukuri]

The appliques came out too large since I scaled down the furisode for my non-anime-character leg length, but all in all, I'm pretty happy with it! The opacity of the yellow gradient required so much paint that the sleeves are much stiffer than I'd like. I think next time, I would just get raw habotai silk, and dye it by hand.