Carnival. It brings to mind Rio dancers, New Orleans floats, and the spectacle of Mardi Gras. This time think Brit.

The Notting Hill Carnival is an annual street party, the largest in Europe, that takes place during the August Bank Holiday.

This year’s Carnival is August 24-25th. Over the two days, 1.5 million people will take to the streets. A whopping 7,500 participants will entertain the masses. Three hundred food stalls will serve Caribbean treats. That doesn’t’ count the more than seven thousand police and 200 medical staff keeping everyone safe.

The Carnival was started in 1964 to help ease race relations in an ever melting London. A large number of Caribbean immigrants had set up new lives and brought with them tangy food and steel drum beats. A local street party organizer had the idea to tailor the event to the growing Trinidad population. It’s grown every year since, only getting official support in the 80s.

The Carnival opens Sunday with Children’s Day. It’s a family friendly event that showcases the youth. The parades, the bands, the dancers are all under 21. These kids don’t take the easy way, oh no, their costumes and dances are just as intricate and mind blowing as the adults taking the street on Monday. About 30 million sequins, 15,000 feather plumes, and 30 liters of body paint cover the thousands people.

Music and food are just as important as the spectacle at this event. The parades have hundreds of musicians marching. Bands and singers line the streets. Steel drums started it all, but the scene now includes reggae, r&b, and ska. The food vendors serve jerk meats, lots of plantains, and of course the British staple, curries.

The Notting Hill Carnival theme for 2008 is “Welcoming the World.” It represents China’s handover of the Olympics to London. Go have fun. Dance and eat well. Most importantly, dress for the spectacle.

Photo credits: MyVillage, KOCIAK, MyVillage, MyVillage, Haldon, and MyVillage. Links to their profiles and websites can be found in the gallery.

Dr. Horrible wears the classic mad scientist smock. Some call it a Dentist smock or a Howie coat. Also consider Chef’s coats as a possible match. The reason it is not a Dentist smock, but is very similar, is Dentist smocks are typically short-sleeved. Horrible’s coat is long-sleeved, white, buttoned at the shoulder, and long with side slits. Don’t fret, I have a suggestion.

We ordered our coat (product MCCX1) from a UK supplier. I can not testify to its quality as it has not yet arrived. International shipping is notoriously hard to track. My fingers are crossed. Some costumers have taken to sewing the gown/coat. Admittedly, it’s a simple pattern for an experienced sewer, but us regular folks are better not to try it. My last suggestion is to buy a costume smock and modify it.

The Mad Scientist is very close. Remove all the black buttons. Next apply velcro (sew or adhesive) along the edges for an invisible closure. Then attach four buttons to the shoulder. Basic white or clear buttons are fine. Check the length and sides. You’ll want to hem if it hits below mid-shin. Add slits up the sides if none exist. The slit should be at the hip. This is an easy fix requiring only scissors and a straight seam (sew or heat bond). Finally, add the caduceus logo right front pocket area.

Skymouth, Dr. Horrible’s coat is likely Dr. Simon Tam’s coat from Firefly. They look identical to me and the costume designer is the same. It could mean the coat was a custom job inspired by the antiseptic Frankenstein look. Let me know if you find something.

Good luck.

My Dr. Horrible post was going to be about the ever troublesome goggles. We had some on order. Back order, actually. That wasn’t a big deal because we knew that all the major suppliers were being overrun with orders. Just a few days ago we were finally notified that the back order that was supposed to take 10 days (ordered in July) will not be available until the first of September. Since we need them for Dragon Con which takes place Labor Day weekend that date was unacceptable. The order is now cancelled.

I’ve called all the local welding supply shops only to find none of them carry a model similar to Dr. Horrible’s goggles. I have found them online but most are international shops and can not be trusted to arrive stateside in two weeks. I’ve ordered them from a questionable little discount store. I have an order number but no tracking number as yet. The order will need to ship by Monday if we have any hope of taking the goggles to D*C. My fingers are crossed and I continue to call stores looking for the goggles.

All this talk of the new Trek movie has me in a Roddenberry state-of-mind. One of my oldest loves is Star Trek.

My dad and I used to watch Star Trek reruns. We saw the Star Trek movies. Then someone with money and power decided to throw a bone to the Trek fans and give us The Next Generation. There was sunshine in the world again. By this time my friends and I were having our own Trek conversations and debates. We all purchased the Klingon Dictionary. Eventually, they gave us Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and Enterprise. I fell in love with Data (I met Brent Spiner!). But this post isn’t about Data, it’s about Klingons.

Worf is the man. Michael Dorn somehow conveys a full range of emotions despite the head gear and rough voice. Worf isn’t just a security officer or tactical man; he is a father, a widower, and an ambassador. I urge you all to go beyond The Next Generation and watch Deep Space Nine to see the complete Worf arc. Good stuff.

Every year at Dragon Con there’s a massive Klingon presence. It’s the home of the Miss Klingon Empire Beauty Pageant. My friends Lissa and Ash have attended the pageants as spectators and tell me it’s loads of fun. I want to make it to the pageant this year. The costumes look great. They always impress me. It’s a big undertaking: armor, prosthetics, and make-up. The men and women in Klingon wear have it down to an art.

So now you know, I like Star Trek and Trek costume creations. The pageant is on Sunday, August 31. Stay tuned for pictures and recap of the Miss Klingon Empire Beauty Pageant.

Kitty’s coming along nicely. My boots and collar are trimmed with yellow. My belt fits and is only in need of a completed X buckle. Each time I cut out the buckle I find it’s not quite right. Sigh. I’ll just have to pick the least messy one. The pattern is ready for the yellow body accent. This is it. My hands? Why yes, they are supposed to be covered.

Gloves, gloves, gloves. Why must you vex me so?

Kitty needs gloves. Much to my chagrin, my little sewing machine does not have a zigzag stitch. Nope. Just for laughs, I tried sewing the belt, but the evil machine hated the material. The yellow knit and sewing machine are like oil and water. So what do I do?

Do I try to track down a local seamstress that can whip up some gloves for me? Do I buy some cheap marching gloves and try to dye to match? What do you think?

This is a big month for the world: it’s Olympics time! Take the time to have some field days with your friends and family. Give out Office style medals of yogurt caps to the competitors and generally have fun creating your team’s uniform look.

1. August 8: Summer Olympics. Let’s start this list off with a bang. Have a party for the opening ceremonies. Decorate the table with tiny flags and have each person represent a country.

2. August 18: Bad Poetry day.
This day is evil
It’s for all the people
to speak in rhyme
for a limited time
A limerick will do
Wear a beret too
*shiver* See what I mean?

3. August 19: Aviation Day. It’s Orville Wright’s birthday. Be like Snoopy. Dress as pilots, attendants, tourists, handlers, and airplanes. Check your local calendar for air shows.

4. August 22: Tooth Fairy Day (disputed Feb 28). Male or female, it doesn’t matter just have fun. Dress as a tooth fairy or dentist. Be as demented or sweet as you want. Great day to talk about tooth care with little ones or cause terrible nightmares. Your call.

5. August 24: Vesuvius Day. This one is a little demented to celebrate since three cities were destroyed when Vesuvius erupted in 79 A.D. I say if Doctor Who can play with the story why can’t we? Dress as a volcano god or roman citizen. Maybe hold a fake dig and be archeologist for the afternoon.

6. August 26: Nat’l Dog Day. This day is about recognizing how dogs help us and about how we can rescue them. Check your local shelters to find out if they’re holding any special promotion and offer to lend a hand. A much more fun way to celebrate is to dress like your dog. I don’t mean put your dog in clothes that match your clothes, but to wear dog ears, a nose, and a tail that matches the dogs fur.

7. August 30: Frankenstein Day. Not to be confused with Frankenberry day on October 30. This is a great opportunity to get spooky before October arrives. Gather your friends for a Young Frankenstein costume group. There’s nothing quite like a good mad scientist.

I tried another Sixties inspired costume. Why? It looked like a fun little dress and I secretly want to be Goldie Hawn. This is the Funky Mod Sixties Costume from Costume Craze.

Look familiar?

The pattern is the same shift as the Mod Chic. The dress is purple velour and funky poly with hot pink vinyl accents. It includes the dress and the matching pink headband. I went with a classic side ponytail and boots. However, the look would be more authentic with colored tights and patten flats.

Tousled hair just won’t do. A dress like this calls for coifed hair and fake eyelashes. Maybe add a patent cap or a wig.

Go all out. Be funky.

I’m a Horrible fan.

Two weeks ago the internet met Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along-Blog. It’s the child of the Whedon brothers with help from Maurissa Tancharoen, Shawna Trpcic, Ben Edlund, and many many others. The short story follows Dr. Horrible (Neil Patrick Harris) as he tries to come to terms with being evil. The problem is he has a soft side, a lovey-dovey “I believe in love and puppies” soft side. That just doesn’t cut it when you’re trying to join the Evil League of Evil. We follow Horrible as he fights his nemesis Captain Hammer (Nathan Fillion) and woos Penny (Felicia Day) the girl from the laundromat.

It’s a musical.

Check Hulu for live showings or purchase a season pass from itunes. A DVD chock full of extras is being developed as well as a soundtrack. You can read more about Captain Hammer at the Darkhorse Comics myspace. Best of all, you can purchase emblem tees from Jinx.

We’ve decided to scrap the Waffler for the time being in favor of a Dr. Horrible costume. Like so many other fans, the goggles are proving to be very difficult find. It seems the manufacturer changed the body color a few years ago and nobody bothered to update the catalog photos. People are receiving goggles other than what they thought they ordered. I’m expecting the wrong ones to arrive some time next week. Sigh. In the mean time, I have my Kaylee goggles.

Check out my friend Manny at My Disguises for tips on costume pieces.

So, do I look like a Horrible groupie?

The table is covered in Yorrick’s poncho. Accompanying it is a ruler, markers, super glue, scissors, tape measure, and a sewing machine. Last night we tested the strength of glue versus thread. Both seem to hold well. Neither method puckers too much. It looks like we’ll use a combination of the two.

The back room has no floor. I have vinyl and foam everywhere. It’s not a pretty sight. I’ve begun shaping my new bracelets/gauntlets. These are slightly longer than my old ones. Anyone else find it interesting that the Amazon bracelets started out being maybe two inches wide and now cover most of the forearm? How about gold to silver? Anyone?

We’ve added another costume to the list…but you’ll have to wait until tomorrow for me to tell you what it is. Horrible, aren’t I?

My first D*C was in 2006. It was a whirlwind of people, costumes, and celebrities. I had a blast. Lucky for me I knew other attendees who knew the ropes. I only had two costumes that first year, Kaylee Frye and Inara Sera. I wasn’t there for the costumes, though, I was there for the spectacle. Every minute of each day was loaded with lines to get into panels, with panels full of engaging stars, and with people expressing themselves. It was great.

I met the men of Battlestar Galactica. I got in Mickey Rooney’s way. And I picked up Erin Gray’s (very charming) autograph for my dad. Someday I’ll make a Col. Wilma Deering uniform. All the incredible costumes got under my skin and I had to come back and bring more than two outfits.

When I returned to Dragon Con in 2007 I was more prepared for all the excitement. Though I admit you’re never really prepared. D*C expands each year to include more fandoms, more costume contests, and more tired bodies than you can count. We entered the Whedon Track contest and took Honorable Mention.

I watched person after person ask for ManWithPez’s picture in his Serymour Krelborne costume. I talked with the incomparable Ron Glass. This time I got an autograph for my mom from William Katt. My highlight was swooning over Brent Spiner. Yep, I’m one of those. Heh. All in all it was too much to take in just a weekend’s time.

This year promises to be even bigger and better. Sean Astin and Adam Baldwin are the big question marks. Each year they plan on attending then cancel at the last minute due to work commitments. I’m crossing my fingers that they’ll both make it to Dragon Con this year. While I don’t think I’m ready for the big time contests yet, I am going to try to participate in the more informal Hallway Costume Contest.

I want to thank the Wolfpack Elite for taking me under their wings and helping with techniques. I look forward to meeting them and seeing their incredible creations. These folks are very talented and versatile.

One more thing, I’m claiming a prime curbside location for the parade this year as well as hitting most of the contests. You’re going to see some incredible stuff when I get back. Just you wait!

His Halo gear:

Iron Man mask