Shiny Objects

Livejournal refugee in search of my fandoms: Mass Effect/DragonAge, Jim Henson, Classic Film, multifandom cosplay, science...My slowly growing number of cosplay tutorial posts are tagged "cosplay tutorial". I reblog tutorials and occasionally make originals.

[cosplaytutorial]

The Abhorsen’s Bells

My biggest project for Geek Girl Con this year was creating Sabriel’s iconic bells, the magical tools she uses to battle necromancers and lay the dead to rest. Since the bells are such an integral part of her character, I knew I wanted them to be both aesthetically pleasing and sturdy enough to endure lots of handling. (And unlike her sword, this was a project where I could use actual metal!)

Tutorial by:  Grace of Ginger Armadillo Costumes  Tutorial Link: http://gingerarmadillocostumes.blogspot.ca/2016/10/the-abhorsens-bells-progress-walkthrough.html

[silentstephi]

Makeup Recs

OK, so… halp.

I need asari makeup.

I know that the stuff we used for DCon last year (that I can’t remember the name of but it was a powder that needed an activator but I’m dumb and just used water -.-) MEHRON is supposed to be goooood shit for body paint coverage.

I need blue and white, and I need recs on what kind of activator to use, as well as application.  Like… I know brushes, or sponges, but what gets me zero streaks?

Also, what kind of sealer is good? Do you apply sealer before and after? like a coat over the skin then the make up then seal that shit?

Waaaagh halp meeeeeee -.-

I don’t want this to suck and I really don’t want the blue to rub off on the costume. -.-  I’m already remaking the shirt (thank GODS the shrug and skirt are fine.)

Still gotta fix the hat though… guuuuuh

PS: This is the outfit I plan on wearing

[tumblingmagpie]

First: you are awesome!

Second: Usual disclaimer about how I’m only a keen amateur and there are folks out there who have real training & knowledge. But I’ll share my experience.

I have a group of friends who have painted themselves blue on occasion over the past 10 years. Sometimes I felt like they were purposefully trying to find excuses to not get an airbrush and do it properly ;-) So airbrushing is probably the best way to go for shading / artistry, speed and coverage; I still don't have any experience with it myself. Eventually, one of them got an airbrush and they used alcohol-based paint and they loved it but I didn’t see the process so can’t help.

Past efforts also included:

Graftobian & Ben Nye creme-based foundations: both are about the same. Clean skin, apply cream, powder (colourless / neutral-set) between layers, needs a couple layers to get coverage. Spray with sealer. (FinalSeal by Ben Nye or Green Marble’s Sealr. Green Marble’s is probably the harder working one -- it can also be layered so you could throw down a layer to begin with, but I haven’t tried that myself. Worth a shot). Powder again to finish. Great for faces but could smear off hands / necks etc.

MagiCake Aqua Paint: water-activated cakes. They couldn’t put this on hands because it smeared and washed off too easily. But they liked how it felt and went on. Pretty much same process but I’m not sure you should powder between layers (clean, test a starting layer of sealer?, paint, dry, layers, seal then powder). You can add a product called “LiquiSet” (Ben Nye) to this to make it more water- and smudge-proof.

PAX: Pros-aide (prosthethic adhesive) & liquitex acrylic paint - more info here (http://fx.wikia.com/wiki/PAX). Historically-used stage makeup (I’ve seen production-used PAX bottles leftover from Star Trek TNG :-) ) that was honestly the one that stuck on the best and gave them the best coverage. PAX is not without some controversy because the acrylic paints used might not be FDA-approved. It is also a hassle to wash off and might not give you subtle control or shading. Same process (clean, paint, powder between layers. Powder to finish. Powder is especially important because this paint sticks to itself, but you have to wait for each layer to completely dry before powdering or adding more make-up. Sealer might not be necessary).

For the most part they used sponges for application, but brushes can be faster although streaky. So maybe brush then sponge your last layer.

Also - tips for hands - If your costume has sleeves and you can hide the transition from glove to skin, consider surgical gloves (conveniently blue as a base-layer for an Asari!) painted with PAX to match your desired skin colour and add shading, or stretch fabric gloves / gloves made from nylons/pantyhose (painted as you wish). It’s so hard to keep even the best make-up on hands.

[tiarasnteakettles]

Do you know how to prevent glitter from falling of a fancy dress? I keep reading hairspray, but that seems like a temporary fix.

As far as I know, this is one of the greatest mysteries of the universe. :( If anyone else has a permanent solution for this, please reply! (Because I need to know too, plz)

[ace-of-swords]

I ACTUALLY KNOW THE ANSWER TO THIS ONE!!!

98% of my grad class had glitter dresses. There was glitter EVERYWHERE during rehearsals, so I went to my resident costumer for the drama department and asked what her secret was … and it’s called spray adhesive.

But not just any spray adhesive, guys, get one that’s fabric-safe and heat-activated!

Examples: Therm-o-Web, Heat’n Bond Lite Spray, 606 Spray Adhesive

Then what you’re gonna do is test a bit of the spray on a part of the dress that’s not going to be seen. When it doubt, test it out. If your fabric reacts well to the adhesive and low to medium low heat from your iron, go ahead and start with the lowest part of the dress that’s covered in glitter. Apply a thin coat of the spray, cover with a slightly damp cotton pressing cloth, and iron. 

Repeat until you can press against the dress without sparkles coming off on your hands. 

This isn’t going to be 100% fix in all cases, but it’ll keep most of your glitter where it belongs: On your dress!

[tiarasnteakettles]

Woomp there it is

[nehirose]

reblog to save a sparkly dress

[angelfruitloop]

ATTENTION COSPLAYERS:

I would like to make the paint brand “Angelus” known. It is a special paint that is for leather, faux leather, rubber, and similar surfaces.

This is literally the best paint you can buy if you love a pair of shoes, but they aren’t in the right color for your character.

This stuff coats VERY well AND the coats of paint bend with your shoes. This means no cracking!!

In the photos above I took black rain boots and painted them with Angelus Turquoise. As you can see, they don’t look black any more! It’s so good!

I managed to paint two boots with a little one ounce bottle of the paint, and I still have a third of the bottle left over!

The paint dries very fast, so you can put layer on top of layer on top of layer without it streaking.

You can get the paint on Amazon and it comes in every color!

I just really wanted to make this known!! :D This stuff is amazing!

[the-bowieologist]

[armory-rasa]

Since the Merrill bracers themselves were probably going to be out of most people’s price range, I’ve gone ahead and posted the pattern for free, because I luv u nerds.

Didn’t have time to make proper, printable scans, but it’s laid out on a 1" grid so it should be easy to figure out. The straps are riveted to the back piece and then criss-crossed such that the rivets don’t show, tacked down temporarily with contact cement and then stitched around the edges to keep everything strong & tidy.

I used 4-5 oz veg-tan leather for this, but craft foam would probably make a decent (if more delicate) substitute. The straps for the wrists I riveted on at the A3/B3 holes, and the straps for the forearms are riveted at A9/B9, then both are included in the edge stitching. The length of those straps should be arm/wrist circumference + 4".

That pattern gives you way more length than you need for the palm strap, so figure out how much overlap you want, cut off the excess, and stitch it down.

Uhh, I think that’s everything. More angles of the finished bracers here.

And as always, if you do happen to be rolling in money, Armory Rasa can make them for you. ^_^

[roxas08]

[katvalkyrie]

This one is probably my favorite from my shoot with @thejaykid7! Involved lots of cloak tossing and a pretty sunset. Yay for feeling and looking powerful!

#cosplay #jedi #jedicosplay #tailoring #starwars #lightsaber #saberforge #bane #jaykid

[the-bowieologist]

[durnesque-esque]

Selling my personal Meg dress: $300 including USA shipping.

Bust 34, Waist 28, Hips 36, Height 5'4" - some size alterations possible!

Worn once for DragonCon. Hand pleated all across the top and stomach panels. Hidden zipper. Silk and pleated cotton. Very comfy, but also sexiest I’ve ever felt in a cosplay! Will include matching hair band.

PM for purchase inquiries. (Posting date: Feb 21, 2017)

[aquilacat]

Tips for my fellow cosplayers: regarding powders to seal lipstick, Ben Nye rocks and Mehron sucks.

I have been using the Ben Nye sealant pictured above to seal my lipstick for years. It’s quick to apply with a qtip, and quick to remove the excess powder with a qtip, too. It completely seals the color in, even with eating, drinking, and all day use. After 12 hours or so it can start to get a little less-than-perfect, but it lasts a long time. And it’s colorless. It’s a miracle worker when I’m cosplaying Lalondes because the black lipstick doesn’t lose its color after applying the powder. It might be barely duller, but is still a vibrant black, just comes off as more matte than shiny.

I tried the Mehrom powder pictured above today, and was not pleased. It takes more work to apply the powder, and it takes off too much of the lipstick when I brush away the excess powder. It also remains very white and ruins the color. To be fair, it does say white on the container, so it might be useful for when I’m sealing facial white makeup when cosplaying Toriel, but even then, I will use the Ben Nye on it first because it will seal it better.

[fripperiesandfobs]

Liberty dress ca. 1912

From the John Bright Historic Costume Collection

[armory-rasa]

Leatherworking with gremble: the other Anders bag

How2Andersbag, part 2! This is for the square-ish bag he wears on his belt, which I think kinda looks like a granny purse, but it’s a useful size for carrying cellphone+wallet, and a useful technique to know because it’s so ubiquitous. I think everyone in the DA2 crew has at least one bag constructed this way, adjusting the colors/proportions as necessary.

Keep reading

[tumblingmagpie]

anonymous asked:                    

Hi! I was just browsing your blog and came across your gorgeously accurate Gilderoy Lockhart cosplay- I was wondering where you got the design for the embroidered sigil on his waistcoat. I've managed to grab a few frames in the film where you can see it alright but they're not clear enough to get an accurate enough design :-(

Wow! Another question lurking in here that I had no idea about - my apologies! And thank you for your generous words.

I made this costume SO long ago, I’ve forgotten a lot of details, including the important information about how I came to have this picture in my files. There’s something about it that reminds me of how I sketch, so I might have done this myself, but I also worked on the crest with a talented friend of mine (who translated the illustration into embroidery on her fancy machine). Googling doesn’t turn up a version of it, so I don’t think I found it on the web (such as it was back then!). I do remember being ridiculously pleased that his sigil is the letter “G” within a caged heart, topped by a crown.

[tumblingmagpie]

hi so cos-tips just linked me to your tutorial for (fake) fortuny pleats. in your tutorial you used a dress that was already sewn together. the thing i'm doing has some pieces pleated in a different direction from the other parts. do you think your technique would work for fabric before cutting it and putting the garment together?

Hi! Wow! I didn’t see this - many apologies.

I think the main challenge with your plan would be that when you wash the fabric you lose the pleats and always have to reset them while drying the garment. I’m not saying it’s impossible, but if you get it wet, you’ll need to figure out a way to re-pleat all the sections in different directions and tie them tight while drying.

When you sew a pleated section of fabric like this to another, it will hold the crinkles in place at the seam, so that could help you re-pleat the section each time you wash it.

If you plan to never get it wet though, I don’t see a reason why you couldn’t!

[tumblingmagpie]

Hi, I have a question about your Tali cosplay; how did you apply the piping on the bodysuit? It looks so neat!

Thank you for the kind words! I’m a bit embarrassed to admit this, since I’m usually a believer in legit sewing techniques, but I used Loctite Super Glue Gel (cyanoacrylate) and elastic cord. The cord is hand-sewn down at the ends and pressure points (where it’s hidden) for some extra stability. I bought white cord and coloured it silver with the same fabric markers / sharpie used for the patterns on the purple & black fabric. Since I was using glue, which will crack if you pull on stretchy fabric, I put the suit on a duct-tape dummy while applying the piping. Incredibly, the glue has held despite wearing this costume at least 10 times now, dancing in it, wearing it in a parade, etc - sometimes in really high heat - and washing it (by hand) after every wear.

[nevertoooldtolovemuppets]