I wrote a tutorial so you can cheat at embroidery by using your sewing machine. Enjoy!

Making of Cyber Honoka

Ok so! Cyber Honoka is the most difficult, time consuming cosplay I have made so far, so I thought I should make a little “making of” post to show the progress!

I don’t have a lot of WIP pictures of it, but I’ll show what I have

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Cosplay Tutorial: Crafting a Worbla Gauntlet

I love my worbla gauntlet!  It looks cool as heck, is pretty dexterous, and can be easily made with just a few materials.  To get started crafting your own, you’ll want to pick up the following supplies:

Each type of worbla has its strengths.  Worbla’s finest (brown worbla) is an all-around hefty material, black worbla is smooth and requires very little finishing, while mesh worbla is strong and incredibly sticky, even against other materials.  Combining black worbla for its finishing and mesh worbla for its stick means that we get the best of both worlds.  While you might be able to get away with using only brown worbla, I do not recommend using only black as it will not stick to your satin glove without additional adhesive.

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Making your own witches hat is not incredibly difficult, so I figured I’d make a little cosplay tutorial on how I made my own lwa hat! It’s pretty self explanitory, but if there are any questions, don’t hesitate to send me a message (:

I was just finishing up my order for S76 materials off Amazon, and I thought I’d give this site a shout-out. Maybe it’s already well known, but in case you haven’t come across it yet let me present Fakespot.com! Basically, it’s a website that analyzes the reviews on any Amazon product page to see if the feedback is from real customers or a marketing ploy. It’s not a guarantee of quality, but it can save you from accidentally buying junk. Case in point, this sandpaper vs. this sandpaper. 

The first link is for generic sandpaper at a much cheaper rate than the second link which is a brand name. I figured I could save some $$ by going generic until checking the reviews on Fakespot. As you can see, it received a “D” indicating that about half the reviews are likely from marketers vs. customers. In the grand scheme of things, this wouldn’t be a huge problem but I’ll save myself some frustration and go with the name brand (which received an “A”, by the way).

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. ^_^

Stitches Tutorial by  AshFantastic

View the Full Tutorial Here: http://ashfantastic.deviantart.com/art/Some-Stitches-89359326

I posted this on Facebook…might as well share here too. I’m looking at you, Link cosplayers. This is what I did for all the pesky lacing business in my tunic. 

Hate the look of metal eyelets in period or fantasy costumes but can’t hand stitch a neat eyelet to save your life? YAY ME TOO. So set your metal eyelets and then wrap them with embroidery floss or whatever you happen to call this stuff right here. My method is to thread a medium sized needle (as big as will happily punch through your fabric or this will be a long, painful process), then knot together the ends of the thread so you’re actually wrapping two strands at a time. Then I just literally go down through the eyelet, up through the fabric, down through the eyelet, up through the fabric, all the way around, until your metal is covered. I can do one big eyelet in 3-4 minutes.

I will say this though: if you’re wrapping smaller eyelets, the extra padding of your thread will shrink the opening to the point it might be tough to use any kind of thick lace (like leather or rope). I’d suggest doing a test run to make sure there will be room left for your laces because OH it hurts to do a bunch of eyelets and then not be able to fit your laces through. I almost always use the bigger eyelets for that reason.

Top right is what it looks like from the front, bottom right is from the back. The fuzzies are just the knots I failed to trim.

Planning Your Cosplay panel, as given at SacAnime Winter 2017

This is just the bare bones of the panel, as many of the examples were elaborated on in-person, and it is just the slides, not any of my notes. It is not meant to be exhaustive or definitive, and is just meant for general advice and suggestion purposes only. If anyone has feedback they would like to give, feel free to do so. That said, I hope that people find this information useful.

Here is a link to a pdf of the presentation. You may download for personal use, but please do not alter the presentation, repost without permission, or do any sort of other unauthorized use. (If you have a question about how you can use this presentation, please send me a message with your question and we can work it out. I promise I’m not scary. ;]) Feel free to reblog this post as much as you want, though. I do these panels and post them because I want the information to be shared.

I hope someone finds this helpful! :]

For everyone who’s been wondering about how Pearl made her Sapphire petti… here it is!  I’m actually using this method today to start on my Sakizou petticoat.

Oh, hello. Where have you been all my life?

How to Ventilate (or Add Hair to) a Lacefront Wig

I’ve seen a lot of really creative methods for adding realistic hairlines to wigs, but in my personal opinion, nothing beats a good lacefront wig!  With lacefronts starting to be offered in a rainbow of colors, cosplayers have a lot more options to work with than they did even a few years ago. 

But it’s hard to find a lacefront that 100% matches your desired hairline right out of the box..  I’ve heard a lot of people talking about “sewing hair” onto wigs, and there’s an actual term for this: ventilating!  It’s accomplished with a ventilating needle or latch hook, and much less time consuming than threading individual wig hairs through a conventional hand-sewing needle.  Ventilating kits are relatively inexpensive ($10-$20) and can make adding hair to a lacefront wig a fairly simple, if not tedious, task.

Read more for a more in-depth walkthrough!

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10 Tips From a Cosplayer

Okay, so I’ve been doin this nonsense for about 8 years now and here are my 10 biggest tips for anyone else doing this sadistic hobby (This is a bit geared towards people who make costumes just FYI. I will post another more geared for beginners or those who buy later)

1) Remember Why You Do This.

Maybe you showed up to con and were 1 of 74 Jinx’s. Or maybe your costume wasn’t as accurate as someone else’s. Or maybe it feels like everyone else made theirs and you bought yours. So what? Did you have fun? Did you meet friends, and/or bond with the people you came with? Unless you’re in the contests, remember that it ISN’T a contest. And even the contests are meant to be fun. Alternatively, don’t let any elitist fans ruin your fun.

2) Don’t Take Yourself So Seriously.

Remember that being a cosplayer doesn’t make you ‘more’ of a fan than someone who doesn’t. Remember that you do this for your own enjoyment and that is all that matters. Spend as long or as little as you want on a costume, end a con with 20 silly selfies and some new friends, compliment that other cosplayer in the same outfit because you clearly both have something in common, don’t think of them as competition.

3) Don’t Be Afraid to Ask for Help.

Parents, siblings, teachers, friends, neighbors, craft store employees, theater teachers, art teachers, people online. There are tons of people who could offer help with even little things like what glue to use on foam that needs heatshaping(non-flammable x-treme elmers glue is nice) , what paint to use on leggings (apparently fabric paint stretches with it just fine), ask your grandma what stitch is best for rounded edges on cotton (idk), ask a JoAnn’s associate what thread to use. In my experience store associates are extremely helpful, even with things like a second opinion on matching colors.

4) Use Coupons.

Seriously. If you can, set up an email just for coupons. Going to Michaels for a 2 dollar little thing of paint? Use that coupon they emailed you and now it’s 75 cents and you have more money for other things like fancy fabric or idk food. Check if any stores have student or teacher or senior discounts if that’s applicable, then you’ll have a discount even without coupons. Especially good for big purchases. If you’re buying everything at once there is almost definitely some sort of 5 off of 30 type of coupon out there. If you are able, this is a good way to set up a savings for con or your next costume maybe, just look at the receipt, see how much you saved and set that much (or a part) aside for food/hotel/gas/merch.

5) Look at your Source.

No matter how well you know your character or your design do not go very long without looking at the source. Working on a wig? Have a picture in front of you the whole time. Maybe sketch out the different angles beforehand. Going fabric shopping? Stare at the original. If you print out a reference pic know that it may be slightly off. If you’re doing a costume where the color seems different in every shot (like Rey from Star Wars) then pick the one you like. If you can, consider coloring or painting a swatch of the color on an index card and bringing it with you to compare. Seriously. Keep checking the source when working. It’s equivalent to “measure twice cut once”.

6) Measure Twice Cut Once.

Even in crunch. I know, it’s stressful and scary and frustrating but you know what is more frustrating and scary and stressful? It being 8pm the night before the con and you just cut that last bit of fabric too small. Or your wig too short. Seriously. Just double check yourself.

7) Check Yourself Before You Wreck Yourself.

Outdated meme but useful tip. If you’re getting anxious to a difficult level, or exhausted physically or mentally  address it. Take a break. Take a nap. Eat a meal. Go for a walk. Watch an episode of that show you’re trying to cosplay. Play that game. Watch cosplay videos if you’re scared of losing motivation. Just don’t push yourself too hard or you risk messing up parts of your costume and more importantly, you risk hurting yourself. Don’t work until you accidentally stab yourself with a hot iron and have a panic attack. Would you rather spend 15 minutes playing with your cat or crying and bandaging yourself?

8) Use It.

Found some fabric you love for that SnK skirt thing, but it’s infused with glitter?Who cares, use it. Every cosplay you have seen of Red Hood has a lot of leather and cargo pants but you want skinny jeans and suede? Use it. The costume is for you. Make it how you want. To quote the great Hilary Duff “Why Not?” Also, go listen to that song if you need encouragement. 

9) Enjoy The Whole Process.

Maybe it is redundant at this point but seriously. Have fun. Not just at the con, party, photoshoot, meetup etc. Have a wig styling party. You finished that jacket? Nice, wear it out shopping and be proud. Make a playlist for each character you work on or general motivational music. 8-tracks.com is great for this too. Test those seams/that hairgel/ those shoes/ flexibility by putting on your jam and dancing around. Send snapchats to your friends when you test your make up. Skype your aunt to show off that circle skirt. Put your hat on your dog. 

10) Procrastination isn’t Great.

Probably don’t put off making your costume by making a list of tips for other people.

Fabric: the bread of the cosplay world. You can laden it with your beads, lace, and trims like any great BLT, but your fabric is the foundation of your costume sandwich. And just like with bread, we all have our favorite kinds! Whether you like melonpan or minky, taftan or taffeta, pumpernickel or poplin, or maybe something more exotic like cauliflower pizza crust or “crêpe” de chine, cosplay introduces us all to a wide variety of fabric types. And after ten years, here’s a video counting down my personal favorites I’ve gotten to use while making costumes!

Itsy Bitsy Hems

When hemming super sheer and delicate fabrics, I am always reminded of that quote from Futurama, “When you do things right, people won’t be sure you’ve done anything at all.”

I learned this technique from Vicky, one of my frequent co-workers on shows, who is honestly far too modest considering all of the amazing costumes she has made over the years. (She doesn’t really have social media etc.) I forget the exact reason it came up, but she said it was a favorite technique she would use on delicate dresses she made for Coleen Atwood films. The key is adding machine paper (Like from an adding or cash register machine) a nice roll of almost computer-paper weight paper, nothing fancy like the shiny chemical reactant kind. This method is a little time consuming, but with practice you can get amazingly clean hems that are 1/8” - 1/16 on even the most difficult of fabrics.  

For this tutorial I documented sewing the skirt of my Evelyn Cosplay, because the skirt is one continuous piece of fabric (about 5 yards) I really wanted the hem to be as clean as possible, and this technique is perfect for that. The Top two photos were Taken by Eric Anderson, or my finished costume at the Exposition Rose Gardens in Los Angeles.

Step 1 - Lay your fabric/hem edge on a flat surface, like a big table or the floor. It is important to let the fabric sit as you want it to be hemmed. So if its bias and you want the hem stretched out/ to ripple, stretch the fabric gently. If you want it natural - lying relaxed and so on.  pin the adding machine paper under the hem, keeping the desired hem tension. On curved areas tear and angle the paper. Basically you are using the paper to “block out” the desired hem once sewn.

Step 2 -  Stitch about 1/2” from your cut edge, as shown. (I had a 1/2” Seam allowance on my pattern) Once it’s all stitched to the paper, take out your pins and go to the iron. Using the paper as an anchor, use the iron to press the fabric on the stitch line so the seam allowance folds over onto itself. You want a clean sharpe fold.   Remove the paper gently. I find it easiest to tear one side free, taking advantage of the stitch perforations. The second side will fall away much easier; any lingering little bits can be gently wiggled loose with a pin.

Step 3 -  Stitch a second line of stitching next to the first/now the folded edge. If you stitch 1/8” your finished hem will be close to 1/8”, 1/16 will be 1/16” etc. I find I get a nicer result if I *very* gently pull the fabric taunt while sewing this second line. Using very small scissors (I have a curved pair I like for this) trim off the seam allowance as close to the second line of stitching as you can. Press.

Step 4 -  Folding the hem one more time on the second stitch line (or as close as you can get it) stitch through all layers. Again, I find I get a nicer result if I *very* gently pull the fabric taunt while sewing. Trim off your thread tails, press it again and Viola! Done.