My first attempt at the overskirt was less than ideal. It didn’t hang right. I sat down and thought about how I could change the pattern. The first way would be to make it all one piece like a typical skirt. I would have to sew that by hand because my sewing machine can’t handle fabric that thick. The second idea was to make a waistband and lash each strip to it. I liked this idea. Simple, clean, easy to do.

As I got into the process I realized I could have used rivets. Even cleaner. None of the craft and fabric stores I’ve visited have the right kind of rivets. If I could find a local leather shop I’d try them, alas. It looks like I’ll stick with the lashing. The skirt hangs nicely and fits well enough. I’ve made the closure adjustable just in case my waist fluctuates by the time Dragon Con rolls around. I could use some ideas about the lashing material. I’ve temporarily tied it together with ribbon.

Any thoughts before I start on the underskirt?

By the way, have you taken a look at the guest list for Dragon Con? I’m very excited about meeting Sean Astin, Avery Brooks, Cirroc Lofton, Micky Dolenz, Edward James Olmos, Michael Dorn, and many many others. Check it out.

You might be wondering what I’ve been doing with myself this week. I’ll tell you.

I have been reaping the benefits of driving past Hancock Fabric and seeing a fabric sale. I was able to pick up vinyl for $6 a yard. I was pretty happy with that price. Is there a better price? Probably, but this one makes me smile. I am now in possession of black and white material for Wonder Girl’s battle skirt. I’ve even begun to cut some of the white pieces. Today or tomorrow I will place the punches and eyelets then lace the strips together. I’m excited.

I finally got around to making the eagle W pattern for Wonder Girl’s armor. After looking at her a few more times (read over and over), I decided to add the yellow foam around the red foam. The emblem is outlined in gold so this should make it easier to paint. Don’t you think it makes a nice guide? But let’s not get ahead of things. First I need to shape it to my chest and seal it.

There’s more Kitty progress too. At the same fabric sale I found some yellow knit on sale. There’s some stretch to it. I have an idea for making her body piece that should be okay with knit. I’ve been fretting about the gloves. They need to be the same color as her costume but I’ve never made gloves. A very helpful member of Cosplay.com told me about We Love Colors. Wow. They have gloves, tights, leotards and so much more in every color you can imagine. I’m keeping that on standby just in case my glove attempt fails miserably.

So that’s where I’m at today. I’ll post tomorrow to show what happened to my skirt.

Cross your fingers!

I’ve been working on the Wonder Girl armor.

The construction paper pattern was originally 2 inches tall. Then I remembered there needs to be some overlap for the pieces to fit together. Another half inch to the height. It wasn’t wide enough to cover the abdomen though. I added two inches to each side…glue sticks are handy to have when making patterns.

I placed the pattern on some yellow fun foam. Trace and cut three times and voila! Three abdomen plates. The only bad part was the horrible job I did of placing the pattern on the foam. If I had judged it a little better the pelvic piece would have nicely fit on the foam. I didn’t and it doesn’t. So, it stays construction paper red until I pick up some more foam.

Here is a quick shot of the ab pieces assembled. The next step is shaping the foam. This will require heat and a body form. This weekend I’ll make the form…we’ll make the form as it is a two person job. Then I can begin shaping the foam to the curve of my body. After that, well, we shall see, won’t we?

Now off to do actual ab work…