Latias Update 3

I am happy to announce that the first part of my Latias cosplay is complete!  The dress is done, and it looks so cute!  ^_^  Eeeeeeee, I’m so happy!  I really wasn’t sure how it would turn out since I heavily modified my base pattern and added a lot of self drafted appliqué pieces to the top, but I am pleased to announce that it looks amazing.  I want so bad to rush outside and get a mini photoshoot, but I can’t since it’s raining and the rest of the cosplay isn’t done yet.  It also doesn’t help that I don’t know where my camera is.  >_<

I only have a few more things to make now before I’m completely finished with this cosplay.  I still have to make two armbands, make the visor and head wings, paint the visor, maybe dye and finish the wings if I have time, possibly paint the shoes, and maybe add wings to the back of the shoes.  Sorry I don’t have any pictures.  I lost my camera and don’t have access to another at the moment.  Nevertheless, thank you so much for reading.  ^_^

Latias Update 2

The dress piece is almost finished.  All the red appliqué has been applied to the shirt front and back, and the skirt pieces are completely gathered and sewn together.  It’s taken me a couple tries to get the shirt and skirt right, but I’m happy with how they look.  Still, I have to sew the shirt to the skirt, make and apply the collar, add the blue triangle appliqué, sew part of the back seam, attach the sleeves, and put in the zipper.  I might have to fit the shirt better since I used a modified historical type pattern to get the look and feel I was aiming toward.  So far the shirt looks fine, but I want to make sure it fits well in the waist, bust, and hips (which aren’t really a problem with this cosplay, which is nice.  It’s really nice to only have two fitting related areas to worry about, especially since it’s so close to con, aka 9 days away). 

I just realized that I only have 9 days left until the convention this month.  Ahh!  What have I been doing all this time?!  I’ve got a lot to sew and wigs to style once they arrive.  Elgh, so much to do, so little time is such a true saying now.  Sigh.  Nevertheless, I’m making progress, and I have some pictures to share!!!!  In order, the pictures go shirt front, shirt back, shirt, and shoes.  Enjoy!

The Wigs Have Arrived

As the title suggests, my wigs came in the mail today.  They are all so gorgeous.  I love them all.  My order included four wigs, a pair of wig trimming scissors, a pair of wig thinning scissors, and a small container of styling wax.  Everything arrived safely and on time except for the wax which is apparently still in China since Fantasy Sheep didn’t ship it with the rest of the items.  >_<  Now mind you, I didn’t get all my items from Fantasy Sheep due to many negative reviews on the color and tanglability of the wigs.  I just bought the scissors and wax from Fantasy Sheep, and so far I’m happy with the scissors though I have yet to put them to work and test the true quality, as best as one can get for China made steel wig sheers.  I will let you know what I think of the scissors in a different post. 

Back to the subject of wigs, I bought two wigs from C.C. Kids and two from another Taobao wig store,whose name I don’t know off the top of my head.  I love the two wigs from C.C. Kids (short brown wig and specialized Akari wig).  The fibers are really soft and the colors are perfect and very close to the advertized images.  I am very pleased with the quality of their wigs and plan to purchase from C.C. Kids again in the future. 

The other two wigs I bought from the other Taobao store (a long, blonde wig and a long, pink, curly wig) were just as nice as the C.C. Kids wigs and just as smooth.  The pink, curly wig is stunning and perfect for Luka.  My only worry is that I’ll have a hard time managing it since it is so curly.  As for the blonde wig, it is the perfect color and very smooth.  My only issue with this wig is that it is a bit thin fiber wise for making Temari’s hairstyle without too much issue.  Nevertheless, the wig is still very nice and not noticeably thin (it’s only a bit thin if you plan to use it for a pony tale style) as well as very easy to manage.  I plan to get another of the same wig in the future to use for Tear if I don’t end up getting a new wig for Temari and use this one for Tear. 

Sadly, I don’t have pictures to share as I still do not know where my camera or SD card is.  I will try to get pictures by the end of the week, but I can’t promise anything.  If I can get pictures I’ll post them to my DeviantArt account (link in side bar).  That pretty much sums up all I was going to same about the wigs.  If you want to know the name/url of the other Taobao store I mentioned just message me or leave a comment and I will let you know.  As always, thank you for reading and have a good day and an even better week. 

Latias Update

It’s less than one day till a local cosplay event, and Latias is about 40% complete.  Yeah, yeah, I know.  I’m not gonna sleep at all today.  >_<  At this moment, the skirt is about halfway done, the shirt is about 25% done, the armbands and the headband haven’t been touched, the wings are at 10% done, and the shoes are bought. 

I found the cutest red shoes at Goodwill the other day.  They’re perfect!!!!!.  They are a light red color with a white wedge heel which will make me look taller and thinner.  Huge bonus there.  Depending on how the wings dye, I might or might not paint the shoes a dark red.  The darker red would fit the general cosplay better, but if the wings turn out too light then I’ll have shoes to help match the color.  Either way they’re a great bargain, especially since I bought them for $1.99!  ^_^  I’m supper happy about the whole find.  ^_^  Time to get back to sewing!  I’ve got a lot to do if I’m going to be ready by tomorrow. 

Pokemon Gijinka

I’m jumping on the band wagon with the new pokemon gijinka craze.  Pokemon was one of my favorite shows as a young child.  Even though it is not nearly as special as Digimon is, I love a few of the pokemon enough to turn them into gijinkas to cosplay. The main aspect I like about gijinkas is that they’re each open to complete interpretation.  I can design a gijinka cosplay how ever I want and no one can say I didn’t do it right or wasn’t accurate enough because it was based of my own design that I personally own.  It silences naysayers and elitists arguments rather quickly and easily. 

Nevertheless, I’m planning to make a Latias gijinka for the next con in May.  I’m planning to use a mid-thigh length red and white dress for the base of the cosplay.  I’ll be adding the red triangles she has on her front and back as an appliqué to the dress and appliqué her blue chest triangle on top of the red.  I’m also making a helmet with wings and a triangle design.  I’ll paint her red facial/head triangle to the helmet and leave the wings white.  I’ll use red wedges for the shoes, and if I have time I’ll make detachable wing sleeves as an added design bonus.  Since I’m short on funds, I’ll be making this cosplay out of cotton based scraps and an old bed sheet in had set aside.   

I am very excited to make and cosplay Latias as she’s been one of my favorite pokemon since grade school.  I love her simple design and special abilities.  I also love the dragon type pokemon.  She’s everything I like about pokemon in one character.  I should also include a picture of her so here it is!  Note: this the pokemon not my gijinka interpretation.

Thank you so much for reading.  Have a good day and an even better week.  ^_^

May Convention Preparation Part 1 – Cosplays and Such

It's been a while since I last updated about my cosplay progress so here goes.  All's well right now.  I haven't made much if any progress on my Akari cosplay or any of my other ones due to school, but I'm hoping to work on one to two of them this weekend.  It's under a month til my first con this year.  ^_^  I'm so excited, but I have a lot to do in order to be ready in time.  I have three cosplays to finish, two of which are at least 40% complete, as well as style at least four wigs and help a couple of my friends with their cosplays.  At least school ends next week.  I'll have a lot more time for sewing and resting. 

I recently added a new cosplay to my list.  I'm hosting a cosplay to Starbucks little fun event on the 15th and a couple of my friends are cosplaying pokemon gijinkas so I decided to make a pokemon gijinka.  ^_^  I've been wanting to make one for a while, but I did find a reason to until now.  I'm planning to make Latias.  So far I already have the concept art done and most of the fabric and materials I need are just lying around the house so I should be able to start it soon.  I'm planning to work on it this weekend as well as my Maria Ross cosplay. 

The wigs I ordered arrived at the batch order leader's today.  Now I just have to wait about a week until I get them.  Then it'll be a lot of wig cutting and styling amid sewing.  I have a feeling that I'm going to be getting about as much sleep during final week as I will during the next three weeks.  I still have a lot to do in order to be able to go to the con like get a badge, see if I can room with friends, find and get food, and gather the list of other things I need such as any extra makeup and items for my cosplay emergency kit (I'll post a list of useful and needed emergency items later).  Ah, the joys of con prep.  ^_^  I still can't wait to go, even with all I still have to do!