Lots of lolita things.

Oh hi!So I didn't write a second blog post last week cus I don't have a ton to talk about so I figured I'd save it for today.

So let see, lets see.... What have I been doing?

Well I've been working on a few projects. I'm hosting another Lolita even this fall and it's Halloween/gothic themed. So I'm making an appropriate coord to wear to it. I'm excited because it's going to be a photo shoot in a graveyard! I am hoping like crazy that it snows. That would be so elegant!

Anyway, I've started making a blouse based on this pattern:

New Look 6599

Mine is going to have long poet sleeves (large bell sleeves gathered into a deep cuff). I've changed the pattern so it buttons all the way to the top, like lolita should. It's going to have a collar like C but instead of lace it will have a big ruffle. And it will have the ruffle down the front like D. It's coming along pretty well. The sleeves aren't as large as I'd like them to be but they still look nice. I think it will be very elegant with the high ruffled collar. Very Victorian, which is my favorite fashion era.

Along with my poet blouse I'm working a pin striped vest. 

Doesn't it look so pretty? Yes, well it would if it didn't look like this in the back:

My bane....

Yeah... it's like 2-3in too huge.  Because I'm not a perfect hour glass shape and my top is smaller than my bottom, I have to take in the pattern when I cut it out, which I forgot to do. So it's hugenormous. 

 So now I must rip out all of the beautiful lining and redo half the damn thing so it fits. 
But once it's done it will be lovely. And go quite nice with my ruffly collar and all my frills.

Then I'm going to make an underskirt with a chiffon ruffle to go under my black skirt so it's a little more frilly.

THEN I'm going to make another skirt for no reason in particular other than I have super beautiful fabric to make a skirt with.

Isn't it so pretty? XD

The green with birds and butterflies will be one panel in the front and the wine color will be the rest of it. I think it will be super elegant and very classic lolita.

Let see, what else? Oh I'm going to make some bloomers for my lolita coords with this pattern:

I'm going to make the shorter ones in the bottom right corner. I might actually make them a bit shorter. I also REALLY want to make the nightgown in the pattern because it's so gothic and pretty! I have no reason what so ever to make it.... except to wonder my house at night wearing it being melancholy and melodramatic. 

Hmmm... do I have any other exciting sewing things going on? I'm not starting any new cosplays yet. Well... except Pooh Bear. I was asked to join a Winnie the Pooh gijinka group, which I'm excited for! I'm really hoping I'll be able to attend the next con and get my cosplay together for it, because I've been wanting to cosplay as Pooh for a while! In our group we have a Tigger, Eeyore, Rabbit and Piglet! So I really want to be able to participate. If I can't there is always Fandem next year.

And that's it I think! I'll try to be more exciting next week. I'm thinking of trying a new series of posts for this blog. So we'll see how that goes!

Until next time!

~Edward

Housekeeping...

Ok, I know I’m late. But this time it’s a very good reason. My husband has been out of town for a couple of weeks and he finally got home yesterday! So I spent all of that day shnuggling him! Sorry, but in my book, penguin shnuggles are more important than prompt blog entries. 

Anyway, time for some housekeeping...

So remember a few posts ago I mentioned something about making some changes to my blog? Well, I’m thinking I’m going to make it more about sewing and crafting in general. I’m just running out of things to talk about with cosplay. I do have some ideas for future posts, but not enough to carry an entire blog on. I’m sure if I didn’t post every week I could get away with having this blog be only about cosplay, but I like writing my blog and I want to be consistent (when I don’t forget ) for you guys. 

Don’t worry, cosplay will still feature heavily in this blog! I’ll still be cosplaying, but what with our financial situation changing, I won’t be able to start any big projects for a while. I’ll still do the interviews, but perhaps not as often. And I may make this blog a bit more personal. Talking more about my sewing projects. If I do that, I may be able to do tutorials. The only reason I haven’t done a tutorial, is because by the time I think, “I should make a tutorial of this” I’ve already finished it. Or it’s the first time I’ve made this thing so I don’t know if it will turn out. OR I watched or read someone else’s tutorial, so why repeat what someone else has already done? But I will try to share more tutorials in the future. 

So what can you expect to see from now on? All the same things I talk about now, just not as frequently, more of my personal sewing projects, more lolita related things, possibly more tutorials, more crafting related things, features on crafters that aren’t necessarily cosplayers.

You may wonder why I’m always talking about starting new blogs or changing this one, and it’s because I have a whole lot of things bouncing around in my head that I can’t talk about with many people and I need to get it out. I’m interested in more than just cosplaying and sewing, I like a lot of things. And I’ve thought about possibly writing a blog about nerdy things in general, so I can talk about more of the things I like. I also really enjoy writing. I think what is going to end up happening is that I’m just going to end up writing a “me” blog so I can get all my feels out in one blog. But I’m not sure if people would even like reading that sort of blog. So for now, I’m going to try to keep my blog ideas separate, so people can just read the parts about my life that they are interested in.

So since this entry was terribly dull, I might do a second bonus entry this week. Nothing too exciting, but some projects and things I am or plan to work on. 

Until next time!

~Edward

Cosplay Showcase Special: Usagi Yojimbo Plush

*looks at calendar* Oh it’s Wednesday..... OH CRAP IT’S WEDNESDAY?!?!

Sorry about that. If you haven’t figured it out by now, I’m terribly forgetful.  But hey, as long as I’m posting once a week we’re good!

This time it’s a special cosplay showcase of my little Usagi Yojimbo plush that I entered into the Plushie Costume Contest at Fandemonium this year. I know I said this in my last post, but I actually won fan favorite with this guy and 2nd place with the judge! I’m so proud of him so I decided I’d share him with you guys! I hope you like him!

First off, if you don’t know who or what Usagi Yojimbo is, you should check it out! He’s an anthropomorphic bunny samurai and he kicks ass!! What else do you need to know? Oh, he also made an appearance in the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle tv series back in the 90’s. And the Turtles appeared in his comic as well. (I haven’t seen or read any of those episodes/issues, but someday I will!!)

Cosplay Showcase: Usagi Yojimbo Plush

Master samurai Usagi!

Why did you chose this character to make? Why did you chose it for the showcase?

I super love the comic Usagi Yojimbo. And when I found out about the plushie contest I knew I had to make this bunny into Usagi! His little ears are perfect!! And his profile is even the same as Usagi’s! Even though he doesn’t have the right legs his top half was so right I just had to make it.

I wanted to share him in the showcase because I’m so proud of him! This is the first time I’ve ever made a costume for a plushie and I think he turned out really well! There isn’t anything about him that I want to change or fix up. He turned out just how I planned!

What was your construction process?

Well first I had to device a pattern for the hakama. His legs are shaped like bunny legs and they are attached to the side of his body, so pants don’t really work for him. So I made a paper mock up that looked like pants and just kept shortening the legs until they actually fit him. Then I made a mock up with scrap fabric and added the appropriate pleating and then I made the actually pants. And they turned out perfect! 

I like how his little feet poke out.

Next I made his kimono top. This plush used to be a white rabbit plush and he had a little jacket with coat tails and a little vest. I used the vest to make a pattern for the top part of his nagajuban (“Kimono-shaped robe worn by both men and women beneath the main outer garment”- Wikipidea. Used to keep the kimono cleaner). I figured I didn’t need to make a whole one since you only see the top part of it peak out under his kimono. And it’s not like he’s going to sweat on his kimono. Lol. Then I took apart the jacket so I could use it to base my kimono pattern off of. I used bias tape for the white edges. Everything went so smoothly and I only had to unpick stitches one time! That’s a first for me! I painted the little designs on the front and the sleeves.

Then I made his katana and wakizashi (that’s the shorter sword). They are made of cardboard and tin foil. I painted the cardboard and it kind of looks like lacquered wood! I was quite pleased with that. I wrapped tin foil around the blade part so they looked like metal and I wrapped the handle with green thread. I like the thread better than if I had painted it. It looks more like a katana. I also made the sheaths out of cardboard that I folded over.

Deadly weapons...

The final detail is his top knot. The tie isn’t anything special, but to be accurate to the “real” Usagi, I placed a lock of hair (that was my husband’s) wrapped in a piece of paper inside of it. Usagi keeps a lock of hair that belonged to his true love inside his knot at all times. Of course no one sees that part, but I know it’s there. 

He looks like he's going to kick some bad guy butt!

The things you love about this cosplay.

Everything. Lol. I just love him so much. He turned out so good and he’s so stinking cute I can hardly stand it. My favorite thing would have to be a toss up between his pants and his swords. They both turned out exactly how I planned them and I’m really proud of that.

The things you hate.

Nothing really. Well, I guess if I had to pick a thing I would have finished the inside seems a little better, as that docked me points on the judging. But I’m not going to fix it. I like him just how he is. I just know better for next time to finish my seems nice.

A general closing statement and where one might find more pictures of this and other cosplays you’ve done.

I fucking love this bunny!! I don’t ever want to take his costume off him! It’s so adorable and I love it. I enjoyed making plushie costumes so much I think I’ll do it more regularly. And I definitely want to enter the contest again next year! And you can find more pics on my facebook page or my deviant art.

Photo by Krystal Miller

There he was! The cutest bun-bun ever! I hope you guys enjoyed this entry and thanks for indulging this proud plushie mama. Haha.

Next week.... Well I dunno what I’m doing next week... I’ll think of something. 

~Edward

Con Review: Fandemonium 2013!

OK! I’m finally recuperated from con and am now ready to be part of the world again. 

So Fandemonium 2013 was.... FREAKING EPIC! Oh man, I had such a great time! They had new and interesting events and I entered contests (and won some stuffs), and best of all, I hung out with my friend a whole lot!

First off, I’d like to thank my super awesome dad for buying me my ticket!! I wouldn’t have gone at all if he hadn’t of bought it for me, so THANKS DAD!! He also attended the con with me, which is always fun!

Secondly, I’d like to thank the couple of people who approached me and said they like this blog. THANK YOU! That means so much to me!! I hope that I can continue to entertain you and that you’ll keep reading!!

On the first day, I wore Sailor Moon and entered the Costume Craftsmanship Contest. When I found out they did this contest I was really excited because most of the costume contests judge based on the outward appearance of your costume and they don’t really dig into it and see how you crafted it. So it was cool that they have a different kind of contest that judges based on the quality of your work. The judges are actually all friends of mine.(Two of them have been interviewed on here, Jen and Tangle, and the third is going to be very soon) I dunno if that helped me or hindered me (or made no difference), but either way, I won 3rd place! 3RD PLACE! I cried when I accepted my little plaque. You probably don’t understand what a big deal this is for me. I have seriously NEVER won anything EVER in my whole life! So winning 3rd place is super amazing!!! Especially for doing something that I’m really passionate about and that I’ve been working on for years. It means so much to me that other people, who I admire and respect, think my work is well done! I plan on improving my Sailor Moon costume even more, and maybe I’ll try again and shoot for 1st place!

By the way, the guy who did win 1st place is this guy:

He crafted this armor by hand and it’s historically accurate! He could seriously go into battle with this on and not die! He got a perfect score. It was completely deserved!

Also, second place went to my friend Samantha who I interviewed before (she did the AT-AT).

It’s her own voodoo witch doctor character! I think it’s really awesome and beautiful. Also, that little alligator head is real and all the animal pieces are from real animals! Very authentic!

This red and black furry character got “honorable mention” in the craftsmanship contest too. Which is nothing to shake a stick at! They did a super awesome job!

Let’s see, what else did I do on Friday... Oh! I also entered the Plushie Costume Contest with this guy:

If you don’t know, he is cosplaying the character Usagi Yojimbo from the comic of the same name. If you watched Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles you may recognize him, as he made an appearance in both the comics and the show. 

I really love this little guy. He turned out so well! I am so proud of him and plan to do a post all about him. Well, apparently others thought he was awesome too because I won fan favorite! (Oh my god, I won two things??) And with that I got a free admission to Fandemonium next year! Woo!! Some folks joked that I “stuffed the voting box” but I promise I didn’t! I just asked my friends if they voted for my plush, and it seems everyone did! And sometimes I’d ask if they voted for mine, and they’d ask which one I made and I’d tell them, and they’d say they already voted for him! So I think he legitimately won. And a lot of people recognized him, which made me very happy! I also won 2nd place with the judge! (Three wins??) Which is super awesome! I was a little sad to not win 1st, because the prize was a $25 gift card to Build-a-Bear Workshop, but free admission to next year is super amazing!! I plan to enter the plushie contest again! It was fun to see the super adorable plushes! 

1st place went to this super adorable “Dovashy”:

Which is totally deserved. I mean come on! Fluttershy is the best Davahkiin ever!

Here are all the plushies!

The "bear" metal alchemist. He's so cute! My friend Cher made him!

Samantha made this one. I love the bunny sticking out of his hat!

"Mountain" goat. Arr arr arr arr. XD

I also did a mini photo shoot for my Sailor Moon cosplay with my brother-in-law! We didn’t get a ton of pictures, but I think some of them will turn out cool. Once he is done editing them I’m going to to a cosplay showcase on it.

Also on Friday I entered the “Con Impressionist” contest. It was an audience vote and I tied for 2nd for doing my Bubbles impression! (Oh my Luna, I won 4 things in one weekend?! I can’t even believe it! ) It was fun, and some folks were really good! The girl who won first did the Wicked Witch of the West. It was awesome. The other second place person did Golem and the priest from Princess Bride. It was fun and I won this super funny hat:

Later that night I went to “It Came From the Bad Fanfic” with my friend. Sweet Serenity! Some of the stuff people write..... The first one we affectionately call “The Legend of Lunk and Zeldr.” I really hope it was written by a child, because it sounded like it was. It was littered with bad spelling and grammar and the occasion awful pun. Not to mention its terrible story line. It was pretty hilarious and Samantha and A.C. did a great job of reading it.

Samantha and A.C. reading "Lunk and Zeldr."

Then there was the Optimus Prime and Princess Leia one.... I won’t go into all the graphic details..... But let me say it was rated XXX and was hilariously disturbing. My mind was officially blown. 

I had a lot of fun at the bad fanfic reading and I hope they do more panels like that. It was great—even if I was scarred for life.

On Saturday I entered the Original Character Fashion Show. I wore my OC Peacebow, which I’ve talked about before. I didn’t win anything, but I loved seeing all the original characters! People are so creative! Here are the pics I took!

She won! So awesome! With authentic battle damage!

On Sunday my brother in law and I did another photo shoot but with my OC. It was fun and we used someones yard as an awesome forest background. Haha. I’ll do a showcase on that one too once I get the pictures back.

Also on Saturday I attended that “Costume Contest” and the “Cosplay Contest”. It was fun and I enjoyed seeing the costumes and skits. I really liked the Weeping Angel that did this cool robotic type dance. She won a prize, though I can’t remember for which category. She was also the one who entered the “Dovahshy” into the plushie contest.

Here are the pics I took of some of the cosplays I saw:

Several of my friends in a Madoka Magica group.

An awesome Videl!

An adorable Alice!

A cute lolita!

So awesome!!

I love this one!

This Cinderella fought with me in the battle cosplay!

A little turtle!

I found another Briar Rose!!

A sweet Edward.

Jen being freaking EPIC as Abbey Bominable!

A bunch of ponies!

Kitty as Queen Frostine.

My friend James as his steampunk OC.

Bug version of King Candy! She also one fan favorite in the costume contest!

A super awesome dragon furry!!! I love this one so much!!

A female Link. I love the design so much!!

Some Civil War reenactors.

A humanized Tardis.

Briar Rose!

The other Cinderella that joined us in battle.

It's-a me--Mario!

Furries!! 

And a real live Dalek that rolled around and talked and even sang!

I also attended my friends panel “Mental Disorders in Popular Media” which was really interesting! There was lots of great discussion!

And later on Saturday I entered the “Cosplay Fight Tournament” as Briar Rose and my battle companions were two different Cinderellas, one in her ball gown and one in her peasant outfit. It’s a fun contest and the rules are that instead of winning by who wins the match, you are judged on how entertaining you are. It was fun and silly! I liked watching people act out their characters. The Power Rangers team won, which was good, because they were really funny and really into it. It was great!

So Sunday I helped Samantha do the Convention Support Group. It was pretty much how it sounds: a support group for people who have been bullied at cons or for their nerdiness. I was really flattered that she asked me to help her, because I really like helping people. And I hope that we did help people feel better about their experiences. I think we had a lot of good discussion and I hope to do this panel at all the cons because some people don’t have anyone to talk to about their bad experiences and they need to get it off their chest. So if you came to the panel, thank you! And I hope we were helpful!

I also peeked in at the “Scrap Cosplay” contest. Man, that was really awesome! Basically you formed a team of three people, and you are provided with a bunch of random crafting supplies which you have an hour to create a cosplay with. You also HAVE to use the secret ingredient, which in this case was packing peanuts. There were some really great cosplays people came up with! Recognizable too!! It blows my mind how creative people are. Here are the pictures I took!

He won the judging. He was a fabulous pimp!

This one was my favorite!!

And then I went to closing ceremonies and found out all the things I won and was totally flabbergasted. I had already been having a great time and all my wins were just icing on the cake! 

And here are the couple of things I bought!

These magnets are made by Cosplay Scramble and are super awesome! Their heads and bodies are separate so you can mix and match them in funny ways. I got some last year and loved them so much, I knew I had to get more this time! This time I got the Princess Mononoke ones and Sailor Moon. She doesn’t know if she’s going to be at Fandemonium again next year, but she does sell them online here. She has a TON of different ones. Go check out her catalog!

I also got this Trunks chibi by my favorite artist Mika! I wouldn’t have been able to get it because I didn’t have enough money but my awesome friend Jen helped me out!! So thanks Jen!! I’ll get you back at the next con!!

I also bought some ElfQuest comics to fill out my collection. Someday I’ll have all the ones I want. 

So in closing, I had a super awesome, amazing, fantastic time and I can’t wait until next year!! This is Fandemonium’s 10th year and it finally hit 1000 attendees! The perfect present! So I hope that if you were unsure about going this time that will attend next year! I’ll definitely be there!!

~Edward

Oh my Luna, this post was sooooo long! I’m so sorry! Thanks for reading all the way to the end!