Roy Mustang Cosplay

So we attended Geekfest 2016 at Central Texas College last month, and it was a pretty good small show.  I have a few costumes for myself, but my husband usually just dresses in the NERDpillo shirts we had printed as a "uniform".  This time, he wanted to go as Roy Mustang from Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood - and he let me know about a week ahead of time (ugh!).  But, I got it done!

For this cosplay I used:

10 yards of blue cotton fabric
One yellow iron-on patch
6 star shaped buttons
5 yards light iron-on interfacing
2 yards gray cotton fabric
10 yards yellow cording
Various gold, gray and silver round buttons
4-5 packs of gray bias tape
Elastic (for waist band - optional.  You can do a zipper/button if you want)
Ring from a keyring
Sculpey clay
Silver paint
Green, red, white, and yellow ribbon
cardboard
(optional for neck pins - soda can, print of pins on collar, safety pins, ball point pen)

I couldn't find any suitable patterns online to use directly for the uniform, so I knew I would have to draft my own.  I started with Simplicity pattern 1039, and decided I could alter it enough to work.

I used the pattern for the suit on the left for the most part.  I began with the jacket, since I knew that would be the most time consuming part.  I cut out the pieces for jacket A, trimmed it to the length of jacket B so it would be shorter.  

When I alter a pattern, I always trace the piece onto a large piece of kraft paper (I keep a huge roll on hand for such occasions). Then I alter the piece on the paper before I cut it out for use.  Not only do I have a stable piece for the fabric, but it can be used again and again and isn't made of that flimsy tissue paper that patterns come on.

I added a rectangle to the left front panel of the jacket at an angle, to make the fold in the front of the coat.  To be sure it worked, I folded the pattern itself, and resized until it worked how I wanted it to.

For the rest of the four panels of the coat, I didn't alter much.  I added interfacing to the blue cotton to give it the crisp uniform look, and lined it in the same blue cotton since I was pretty sure the coat is blue inside.  I completed the sleeves as directed in the pattern as well, but didn't hem them so I could add the cuffs later.

Here's the fun part where you learn from my mistakes!  I added the sleeves before adding the epaulets on the shoulder.  Sad, sad day.  But it was an easy fix (rip out a seam, add it in).  For the epaulets, I did a 2.5" wide piece of fabric the length of the shoulder to just under the neck seam, along the top of the shoulder.  I took two pieces of blue cotton that size, sewed them together on three sides, leaving a shorter side open, and flipped it.  For the yellow lines, I tried embroidering ribbon but it just looked terrible.  So I took a yellow iron-on patch, cut it into thin lengths, and ironed them on.  At this point, I placed the open end of the epaulet into the shoulder seam and sewed it into place.  Each shoulder should get 3 stars, and I secured the end closest to the neck with a gold button sewn through the epaulet and onto the shoulder of the coat.

For the sleeves, I measured the length from the wrist to a little under 1/2 of the elbow, and used that as the measurement for the cuff.  Don't make this a complete circle when you sew it on, because the sleeve does have a slit in the cuff (shown in the photo).  Once this is in place, use your bias tape to outline the cuff on both sleeves.  The same can be done for the collar, I measured a 5" high piece of blue cotton the length of the neck collar, cut this, used interfacing and lined it in cotton.  I then ironed it in half to make the fold in the collar, attached to the coat, and lined in bias tape.   This is a good point to line the rest of the coat in bias tape, as needed, including the "t" shapes on the breast of the coat.

The rope on the shoulder was impossible to find around my home without ordering it, and I didn't have the time.  So I simply took yellow cording I found in the dollar section of my local hobby store with the ribbon, and braided it together.  I took a piece of bias tape and made a loop with it, and sewed it to the middle of the "t" on the coat, then added a ring from my car keys that I wasn't using.  I attached the cording to the key ring, then attached it to the cording I placed around the shoulder and under the epaulet with hot glue inside of a piece of clay I made in the shape of a tube "t".  The clay was painted silver to make it look like metal.  At this point, I added the rest of the buttons onto the coat since it fit nicely.   I also had used velcro to keep it shut, but it didn't seem to be working as efficiently as I had hoped.  I sewed a few snap buttons on the inside of the coat instead.

For the belt and cape that goes around the waist, I had to create my own pattern from scratch.   I measured the length from the waist to about halfway down the calf, and measured the waist.  I wanted the belt part to be 1.5" the circumference of the waist, so it would overlap in the front.  I used gray cotton, as close to the color of the bias tape I could find.  I made the belt 4" high, so the fabric was 1.5 x waist circumference by 4.5" high (seam allowance!).  I cut two, used interfacing, sewed it together flipped it.  For the cape, I used the measurement from the waist to the mid calf, and measured the part of the waist the cape should touch.   If you look at the photo, the cape should go around the hips, but not close in the front.  I made two trapezoids out of the blue fabric, and made the bottom of them about 4" longer than the tops.  I sewed it together about 3" at the top in the middle, but not all the way down.  The cape is split in the middle.  Outline in the bias tape, sew it to the belt!  I also added snap buttons here to keep it in place, and added two large gray buttons at the front just as decor.

The pants were the easiest part.  I simply did the pants in the pattern, but made them a little larger in the thighs to make them "billow out" a little bit.  I kept them the original size on the calves, since the pants had to sit inside of boots.  I also didn't add a zipper or button on the fly, since my husband didn't want any of that.  We went for an elastic band placed inside the waist band instead.

The details were pretty easy, though I have to admit they were quick solutions that I will update later.  I used pieces of cardboard and ribbon for the ribbon the front of the uniform, and simply wrapped them around the cardboard and glued them in place.  I added a safety pin to make them stay on the uniform.  For the buttons, I wanted to order the official ones but there wasn't time.  I cut up a clean soda can, printed a photo of the buttons on Mustang's collar, and traced them onto the aluminum using a ball point pen.  This makes an impression on the aluminum.  Go over it a few more times with the pen, and you'll have good, deep impressions.  I folded the edges under to try to make it less sharp, added a safety pin, and that was that.  This method does make a SHARP edge, so please be careful.  They will definitely be replaced for the next show. 

We paired the uniform with the Roy Mustang gloves we got online (I was going to make them but he insisted), and a pair of boots we found at the local thrift store.  Ideally, the boots would not have laces and be pull on, but those seem impossible to find around here.  We make do with what we have!  His costume was a pretty big hit, and it rained that day so he had a lot of people marking snarky comments about how he's pretty useless in the rain.  It was great!

Exercise Eggs Pokemon Go Free Cross Stitch Pattern

I have been busy #crochetgo -ing a lot, and working on a new pattern for amigurumi to post, and I thought it would be great to have the cross stitching crowd jump in on the Pokemon Go crafting fun!  

This pattern uses 5 DMC colors, full and back stitches, and 14 count aida.  It measures about 2" x 3" when done, so it's a quick fun stitch!

Download it HERE!

This is for fun and learning purposes only, it's fan art and not an official Pokemon product.  This pattern and resulting finished product is not meant to be sold.

Happy stitching! (And egg hatching!)

Queen Koopa Cosplay, Part II

When we left off, we were just about done with the bodice and overskirt of Queen Koopa, and just about to add the green "poofs" in the overskirt.  I made large half circles, and pinned them where I wanted them on the overskirt after hemming them about 1/4".  I pleated the tops to give them a bit more volume.  I found these amazing pearl bead spikes online, and added them to the green sections of the skirt to imitate the shell of Bowser.  These each had to be hand sewn on, one at a time.. time consuming, but the end result was (I think) worth it.

I wanted to embellish the dress a bit more, so I sculpted a few pieces out of Sculpey to adorn the waistline.  I added a thick black rope to the tops of the green overskirt, and threaded it through a large coin I had painted gold.  I ended each rope with a red shell, knotted underneath to stay in place. I also added more grommets around the base of each sleeve above the flounces, and sewed the sleeve flounces up to keep them out of the way, as well as show off the green lace underneath.  This was actually a step in the original pattern that I wouldn't have thought of myself!  Lastly, I added lace to the bottom of the gold overskirt for a bit more detail.

The last piece I had to complete for the dress was the underskirt.  I completely ignored the original pattern for this, and instead opted for a traditional and easier circle skirt.  Not only did it take me a whole ten minutes, but there were no pieces to sew together except the elastic to the skirt, and the hemline.  It also added fullness to the dress that gave it a more elegant appeal.  I also like to swish when I walk!  I didn't attach my own tulle to the underskirt, though I did experiment with it and decided to nix it.  My store bought black petticoat was much more comfortable, poofy, and a lot less work.  This is the completed dress, without the petticoat.

I used a wig from Arda Wigs, the Victoria Classic in maroon, to complete the look.  My (awesome amazing talented) husband printed off the horns on his 3d printer for me, which I in turn painted an off white, added the orange rings with sculpey and sewed to the wig.  I wore it to Classic Games Fest 2016 in Austin, as well as Geekfest 2016 in Killeen and had a blast both times. 

A couple of things I would change - the sculpey coin is a bit heavy for the rope that is sewn on, and I'd like to replace it with a plastic 3d printed version.  The stitches holding the rope waist on are a bit strained from it.  I also want a bit more fullness to the green overskirt, so I may take them off, add tulle beneath them, and sew them back on.  I also lost about 15 pounds since I had measured myself for the bodice and it's a bit big.  I need to go back and tighten it a bit more.  I'm planning on fixing it a bit and doing a photoshoot for it soon!  

Queen Koopa Cosplay, Pt. 1

We are gearing up for Classic Games Fest in Austin at the end of next month, and we all know what that means - new cosplay! I wanted to go with a classic character (since it is Classic Games Fest), and my son is absolutely obsessed with Bowser. It went hand in hand. However, having learned from previous shows we have attended, I knew I didn't want to be hulking around in some huge costume with a mask and the whole nine yards all day. I wanted to be unique and put my own spin on the character, which meant some brainstorming and research. I eventually ended up with Queen Koopa - an 1800's inspired female human Bowser costume.

 I honestly have never, ever boned a corset. The thought of it scared me half to death. It sounds so daunting and intimidating. But the only pattern that matched my idea at all included boning a bodice. So I decided to tackle it head on and just learn. The pattern I chose was Simplicity 4092 dress B, of course with my own alterations, though not many. Mainly I was planning on altering the length, which I would have had to do any way because of how short I am.  I imagine this was meant to be a "Pirates of the Caribbean" costume, given the time it came out, but it fit my needs fine.

I ended up using poly satin for the main fabric.  Not only was it very cheap per yard, but it also had the sheen I wanted, and wasn't see-through.  It is extremely slippery to work with, however, and isn't for the faint of heart or perfectionist!  It all turned out in the end (so far).  I also used broadcloth for the lining, and muslin for the interlining.  You can also see in my materials box a pendant I made for the front of the dress.  I found a clearance pendant, hammered out the image it contained with a chisel, and made a new one out of Sculpey clay.  Baked it, and sealed it with clear nail polish.  Voila!

Do the hardest part first, right?  That was my theory, along with the fact that's where the pattern told me start.  Between boning, cutting all the pieces and putting it together, it was about 4 hours.  Not awful for my first boned bodice, and it all lined up perfectly!  I measured myself exactly, and chose the pattern size accordingly - but I could tell it was too big. I altered it later to fit much more snugly around my body.

I added the sleeves, as well as some hand-dyed lace I made a few months ago when I first started planning this cosplay.  I tried to dye shoes to match, but they just fell apart.  Shoes + hot water = glue melting.  That's another story.

While I knew that I wanted the skirt to be shorter than it called for on the pattern, I decided to make it the length it was supposed to be made and then cut it to my desired length afterwards.  I can always save the fabric for another project later.  Let me tell you, pleating a skirt with poly satin is no joke. After adding the overskirt to the bodice and altering it to fit me (it was about 2" too large), I was left with this!

 At this point I was pretty reluctant to cut the skirt down, but anyone who has been to a convention knows it gets hot, people are everywhere, and tripping hazards are many.  I stuck with my original design and chopped it knee-length.

Instead of ruffled lace, I added black leather with grommets for the trim, and I added ribbon across the front of the bodice to mimic Bowser's lines on his stomach.  The top one is crooked, and it will drive me insane until I fix it, so that's the immediate next thing to do.  I still have two more days of work in it, including the underskirt, some more trim around the sleeves, and the green part of the overskirt.  Hopefully I will be done by the end of the week!