Risu
Master Member
I wish this was in my skill set, that's just amazing.
What costumes are you working on?
- Thread starter Mieal Deneb
- Start date
I wish this was in my skill set, that's just amazing.
RebellionBarbie
Active Member
That Abe Sapien head is...zomg. :love
My current baneofexistanc--err, project, is a little back of a Star Wars EU throwback. (I'm not much of a prequel/clone gal, never have been and never really will be.) I always liked the Young Jedi Knights and I've already done Jaina, so now I'm working on Tenel Ka. It's been a really exciting project because aside from a few pointers here and there, I've been constructing this costume on my own and I haven't really done that before. I'm really quite proud of my pauldrons.
So far:
This is just the left pauldrons and the bolero. The bolero and pauldrons will sit right once I have a leotard, I know how that'll all get tacked down. And once I have a way to secure them I'll be adding scutes (those hard bony plates that ridge the pauldrons, the sort of thing found on crocodile and tutle backs) to the bolero as well in a neat arrangement.
The pauldrons and bolero and leather gloves, the gloves being at a slightly awkward angle. (though when I complete the costume, 1 glove won't be necessary!)
And this is just the primary pauldrons together:
Waiting for my Nocturne Armory Tenel Ka rancor tooth lightsaber hilt to be shipped, and for a bunch of roadblocks in the project to go away. >.<
Anyone know if airbrush painting leather paint to 2-way stretch PVC works at all? Or if it just cracks and peels like crazy? (Or if there's a better kind of paint I could use on stretch PVC?)
The others on my list are mainly Chiana from Farscape--that has been on my "currently working on/to-do list" for more than 2 years now and if I don't get that accomplished this year I might...I don't even know what lol. And some of my friends have conned me into doing Magik from X-Men, that should be interesting to say the least.... I'd also like to do Juno Eclipse this year as well as Geonosis Padme. And I'm slowly trudging through logistics on the side for doing a stillsuit build in the next year or so...
My current baneofexistanc--err, project, is a little back of a Star Wars EU throwback. (I'm not much of a prequel/clone gal, never have been and never really will be.) I always liked the Young Jedi Knights and I've already done Jaina, so now I'm working on Tenel Ka. It's been a really exciting project because aside from a few pointers here and there, I've been constructing this costume on my own and I haven't really done that before. I'm really quite proud of my pauldrons.
So far:
This is just the left pauldrons and the bolero. The bolero and pauldrons will sit right once I have a leotard, I know how that'll all get tacked down. And once I have a way to secure them I'll be adding scutes (those hard bony plates that ridge the pauldrons, the sort of thing found on crocodile and tutle backs) to the bolero as well in a neat arrangement.
The pauldrons and bolero and leather gloves, the gloves being at a slightly awkward angle. (though when I complete the costume, 1 glove won't be necessary!)
And this is just the primary pauldrons together:
Waiting for my Nocturne Armory Tenel Ka rancor tooth lightsaber hilt to be shipped, and for a bunch of roadblocks in the project to go away. >.<
Anyone know if airbrush painting leather paint to 2-way stretch PVC works at all? Or if it just cracks and peels like crazy? (Or if there's a better kind of paint I could use on stretch PVC?)
The others on my list are mainly Chiana from Farscape--that has been on my "currently working on/to-do list" for more than 2 years now and if I don't get that accomplished this year I might...I don't even know what lol. And some of my friends have conned me into doing Magik from X-Men, that should be interesting to say the least.... I'd also like to do Juno Eclipse this year as well as Geonosis Padme. And I'm slowly trudging through logistics on the side for doing a stillsuit build in the next year or so...
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Darth Mule
Sr Member
Those pauldrons are very cool Monique. I'd love to know more about how you did the ridges. Very cool.
Hmmm....2 way stretch PVC. Are we talking the slick looking PVC? I would think that it wouldn't paint well at all. BUT I fully admit to never trying it. However, I would be tempted to try out that Nu-life leather paint stuff. Even that though.....hmmm...probably not 'cuz it's just so plastic-y. Anyway...that would be what I would try. If it's matte PVC perhaps it might actually work. Love to know the answer to that riddle!
RebellionBarbie
Active Member
Thanks Bob, I'm SO looking forward to getting it done, submitted, and start trooping. Duck will be happy to have the numbers up I'm sure. :lol
DM, it actually wasn't that complicated once I decided on what I was doing...the really cool part about it for me was less the construction and more the design. Initially I had just made the pauldrons out of leather and plastic, and it was very plain looking. I started sewing on scale armor onto the shorts and realized it looked awful AND was taking too much time. So I scrapped it and tried to redesign the whole thing, and took a page out of Farscape's book, using Scorpius' (the main villain) costume for inspiration, and came up with the scute idea.
D'oh. Yeah I haven't seen it done, which for me is kind of indicitive of "It doesn't work." But that leather paint is wonderful, it's flexible and really soaks into the leather well and I've never seen peeling or cracking. I'm using that to paint the leather for my Chiana costume and it looks fine. I figure the PVC is a very similar medium aside from the stretch factor....but I worry about the peeling because it IS stretchy. But then I'm airbrushing it on, so I wonder if that will make a difference. Looks like I'm going to have to find this out the hard way, trial and error lol.
I can already tell the leotard is gonna cause me a lot of grief, especially since I want to incorporate boning into it in the waist area. *sigh* I think I caught the "costume crazy" disease. :unsure
(Btw Fangs, you gonna make the trek down to celebrate SPD with us all again someday?
)
DM, it actually wasn't that complicated once I decided on what I was doing...the really cool part about it for me was less the construction and more the design. Initially I had just made the pauldrons out of leather and plastic, and it was very plain looking. I started sewing on scale armor onto the shorts and realized it looked awful AND was taking too much time. So I scrapped it and tried to redesign the whole thing, and took a page out of Farscape's book, using Scorpius' (the main villain) costume for inspiration, and came up with the scute idea.
D'oh. Yeah I haven't seen it done, which for me is kind of indicitive of "It doesn't work." But that leather paint is wonderful, it's flexible and really soaks into the leather well and I've never seen peeling or cracking. I'm using that to paint the leather for my Chiana costume and it looks fine. I figure the PVC is a very similar medium aside from the stretch factor....but I worry about the peeling because it IS stretchy. But then I'm airbrushing it on, so I wonder if that will make a difference. Looks like I'm going to have to find this out the hard way, trial and error lol.
I can already tell the leotard is gonna cause me a lot of grief, especially since I want to incorporate boning into it in the waist area. *sigh* I think I caught the "costume crazy" disease. :unsure
(Btw Fangs, you gonna make the trek down to celebrate SPD with us all again someday?
)
Boning in the waist....hmmm....what purpose is it going to serve? 'cuz you're totally itty bitty so it can't be what I'D use it for....hahahaha Could you get away with creating a foundation garment to wear under it? And then potentially attach that to the inside of it if you needed to? Really I'm grasping at thin air here and likely talking about of my a....well...you know. But I do love a good costume mystery solveing!
As for SPD that would be fabulous to come to once again BUT I've been told I have to hit some parades and other events in different Garrisons before I start doing repeats.....:lol
As for SPD that would be fabulous to come to once again BUT I've been told I have to hit some parades and other events in different Garrisons before I start doing repeats.....:lol
brainiacfive
Member
I've got several costumes 'in the works' and a few more in the planning/design stage.
Priorities are going to be a couple of comic book based costumes for DragonCon this year.
First off, I'm going to put together a Doctor Occult (magic-detective from DC Comics). Fairly simple costume: trench-coat and fedora, but he's got a glowing mystic symbol I'm currently designing and will probably be my first prop build in literally years. I'll probably create a thread for that in the prop section sometime soon.
Second, a Rond Vidar Green Lantern suit (31st century GL from the Legion of Superheroes) - the recent black and green version, not the white and green from the 80's.
Third, though I already have a 90's reboot Brainiac 5 suit, I want to do other versions of the character, including building the classic version of the Force Field belt, as well as doing a 'Smallville'-inspired jacket version of the character.
Besides that, I have been gathering pieces with the goal to make a Rocketeer costume, with rocketpack, in time for the 20th anniversary of the movie (of the most appropriate con that year, I suppose).
Aside from comics, I am in the very preliminary stages of designing a Melkor costume from the Doctor Who episode "Keeper of Traken", as my wife wants to do Cassia at a Doctor Who con, and the idea just popped into my head. That's a major project though, and I've never even considered something that massive, so it's on the backburner until I have it all planned out.
Priorities are going to be a couple of comic book based costumes for DragonCon this year.
First off, I'm going to put together a Doctor Occult (magic-detective from DC Comics). Fairly simple costume: trench-coat and fedora, but he's got a glowing mystic symbol I'm currently designing and will probably be my first prop build in literally years. I'll probably create a thread for that in the prop section sometime soon.
Second, a Rond Vidar Green Lantern suit (31st century GL from the Legion of Superheroes) - the recent black and green version, not the white and green from the 80's.
Third, though I already have a 90's reboot Brainiac 5 suit, I want to do other versions of the character, including building the classic version of the Force Field belt, as well as doing a 'Smallville'-inspired jacket version of the character.
Besides that, I have been gathering pieces with the goal to make a Rocketeer costume, with rocketpack, in time for the 20th anniversary of the movie (of the most appropriate con that year, I suppose).
Aside from comics, I am in the very preliminary stages of designing a Melkor costume from the Doctor Who episode "Keeper of Traken", as my wife wants to do Cassia at a Doctor Who con, and the idea just popped into my head. That's a major project though, and I've never even considered something that massive, so it's on the backburner until I have it all planned out.
aceofknaves88
Active Member
Some awesome stuff being worked on around here! I WISH I was working on something, but I'm so damn broke it's out of the question for now.
Darth Mule
Sr Member
I guess I meant to ask about what you used for the ridges? Bits of foam perhaps? And did you paint all the backing scales in? Or is it a piece of vinyl? Just curious about the techniques. Looks really cool.
The paint has alot to do with what type of paint you use for what application. Sadly I'm a bit out of the loop on my painting/dyeing technology as I left that job for school 5 years ago. I can tell you, however, that I always had problems with Nu-Life cracking and peeling off of non-stretchy items and would usually opt for the more flexible acrylic based Angelus. You may also want to try the Jacquard fabric paints as they are pretty flexible. And just a thought... Since PVC is essentially plastic, I wonder if the Krylon Fusion paints would bond with it???
I'm not sure what purpose boning a stretch bodysuit would serve other than aesthetic, but there are a few tricks to make that easier if you choose to do it. Building the boning into an understructure, like Fangs suggested, is one way. The other would be to use boning tape on the inside, but before you put it down, you can cut small strips of armo-weft, the size of the boning tape, and press them to the inside where you will put the boning. this will keep that area from stretching and make it easier to work with. I use a similar technique when putting zippers into stretch and dance wear. Helps you get a nice clean line.
schphgochi
New Member
lol.....
that is always a question mark...
I have 17 Star Wars costumes already...and said 6 costumes ago that I was not going to make anymore...
but...
who knows...
I have always had my eye on the Naboo Pilot costume..
:eek
that is always a question mark...
I have 17 Star Wars costumes already...and said 6 costumes ago that I was not going to make anymore...
but...
who knows...
I have always had my eye on the Naboo Pilot costume..
:eek
Darth Mule
Sr Member
You'll have to take that up with Betsy, although if she's allowed along I'm sure I can talk her into moving to Canada. :lol
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RebellionBarbie
Active Member
It's actually nothing more than super sculpey and acryllic paint, believe it or not.
As far as Krylon.... :confused Yknow...I hadn't thought about it, but you're right. That would make a lot of sense. I might do a test (once I manage to get a hold of some friggin' brown stretch pvc, I hate how complicated it is to get this stuff) with some gold krylon, I'll get back to you on that.
The boning is purely for aesthetics, and for holding my stomach in. What is armo-weft? That sounds interesting. I've never put boning in anything so this will be an experience. Boning tape sounds like it might be less time-consuming than building it in...
This one is definitely a mystery! I've literally got 2 reference images to work with. On the one hand a HUGE pain, on the other hand it's cool because it gives me a basic design to work with, and from there I can branch off and elaborate.
But yeah, the boning is in there to serve the purpose of holding me in lol. I have about 1.5" between my hip bone and bottom of my long ribcage so any amount of waist I can squeeze in to give me more shape, the better. >.<
Honestly I think the worst part of the project is going to be figuring out her hair. Her braids aren't knotted/'elasticked' at the ends, they just kind of fade off into nothing...I'll probably try to use the sort of cement that people use in mohawks to keep its shape.
Darth Mule
Sr Member
Armo-weft is something you've probably seen in passing at least. Its a light weight fusible interfacing that sort of looks like cheescloth with plastic woven into it. It comes in Black and White. I think they sell it at JoAnn's and Hancock. If not you can order it online through Sew True or Atlanta Thread or if you're in the neighborhood in NYC you can pick some up at Greenberg & Hammer or Steinloft & Stoller or one of the many notions and tailoring suppliers.
Boning tape - http://store.corsetmaking.com/Merch...CTGY&Store_Code=CMS&Category_Code=BC&AFFIL=CM
Its just a canvas tubing made to hold the boning on single layer corsets. I like the guys I just linked for corset supplies. Farthingales (the other major supplier) overcharges.
RebellionBarbie
Active Member
Darth Mule, *huge* thanks on the spray paint suggestion, it does in fact work, and like an absolute charm at that. Picked up a couple yards of 2-way stretch leather-look material, and cut a couple little sample sizes out and sprayed them with a couple kinds of krylon that were lying around. The gold metallic krylon works PERFECTLY. And miraculously it was dry almost instantaneously. I could handle the painted material in under a minute without any residue or bleeding, and it stretches without any hint that it's been painted. The H2O Latex krylon has not dried yet (granted it's been less than 5 minutes lol) but it looks like I've got a real winner in the regular krylon sprays.
So anyone doing work with stretch vinyl, note that spray painting is indeed a sound method! Thanks so much DM! :thumbsup
So anyone doing work with stretch vinyl, note that spray painting is indeed a sound method! Thanks so much DM! :thumbsup
Darth Mule
Sr Member
Glad it worked out for you. I was actually thinking of the Krylon Fusion stuff that is made to stick to plastic, but hey! whatever works right?
Now that is just too friggin cool (I'm a budding costume designer, so she's a celebrity in my book).
