This is a quick "Thank you!!!" for all the favorites and lovely comments the past few months and a huge "I'm so sorry!!" for missing all of them. :-s
I haven't been ignoring anyone; I started a new Real Job (TM) that pretty much ate my life. The money is good, but I have no internet time and even less to work on cosplay projects. (Pooh!) Which is sad because I had some great stuff in the works.
Currently languishing in various states of completion are Wizard Howl's necklace, Sailor Neptune's henshin wand, Sailor Mars' Star Henshin Wand and the Sword of Dios. *face-palm*
I can't promise that I'll post more, but hopefully. I'm currently seeking a new, larger abode in hopes that actually having space to create - I currently do a great deal of work on my bedroom floor. 0_o;; - will help me to finish up my pending projects and start the new ones percolating in my head.
Which brings me to the other reason for my post, a new prop! Sailor Chibi-Chibi Moon's staff as seen in the Stars manga!
Crafted of wood and plastic, it measures a con-friendly one meter in length as per the request of the comissionee and splits in half for storage and shipping. I have a close-up shot of the top finial I'll be uploading soon that shows the glitter in the heart and the metallic paint a lot better.
After taking way too long to finish it, I present the EGL skirt I recently finished for a friend.
The fabric is 100% linen. I bought it several months ago thinking I'd use it to make a loli skirt for myself, but never found that elusive Round Tuit. When my friend asked me about doing a skirt for her she really liked it, so now it lives as it was intended. :)
In an effort to improve my photography, I looked around at some brand sites and nicked the idea of a coordinating background. I think they turned out pretty good, especially since my "studio" is a corner, two lamps with the shades removed and my comforter tacked to the wall. ^_^;
I'd wanted to put a drawstring in the center back so the skirt could be worn hitched up or down. I've seen that on other loli skirts and kinda liked it, but alas, it did not look as nice as I'd hoped.
I also tried to get the back ruffle to fall like a Victorian "waterfall" drape, but since I didn't think about that when I was cutting, it also didn't work quite as I'd wanted.
One thing that did work are the requested elastic sections in the back waistband. Insurance of comfy fit even after food-tastic holiday parties. ;) The back bow is permanently tied and removable via heat-resistant transparent nylon snaps.
It turned out so well, I had a hard time mailing it off! Too bad the shop I bought the fabric from doesn't have any more. ^_^;
I found this lovely lady's site and videos a while ago and have been daydreaming ever since. I've always wanted to do this kind of thing. I'm not a great swimmer but it looks like so much fun. *^_^*
This is reminding me of how I never have made that swim tail I've craved since I was seven. (My early tries using cut-up inflatable pool beds were not very successful so they don't count. ;) The fabric one my mother made for me when I was eleven was pretty sweet. I still have it, too!
But now. Now I have skillz. And all that leftover ABS sheet. And an airbrush. And, oh look, Denver Fabrics sells 3.6 mm neoprene! XD
Just like Yuuko herself, this was one contrary prop. It absolutely refused to photograph properly. I finally got some good shots on the third try.
The stem is wood with a faux grain finish. The mouthpiece and bowl are sculpted from clay and finished with gold and silver leaf.
I chose a clay made from volcanic ash specifically so the bowl would be resistant to heat. A smidge of incense can be placed in it and lit, which gives great ambiance. ;) Alas, it didn't photograph too well so I had to resort to a brush.
Brushes by Nadija-stock, Falln-Brushes and Darkgarden over at Deviant Art.
I'm a bit of a Michiru fangirl and when I came across a reproduction antique mirror that was sooooo close, I couldn't resist.
Rather than alter such a fine piece and possibly mess it up, I chose to recast it in resin and add detailing to bring it closer to what was seen in the series.
The mirror I ended up custom-cutting from acrylic, because I fail hardcore at cutting glass! It worked out better for a prop, though, as acrylic is stronger and won't shatter.
It's up on EBay if you're interested, because I am also very poor.
When I'm prohibited from indulging in funsies, I pacify myself by researching. This is what I've dug up lately.
Moulin Rouge: I found a nice replica of the Gothic Tower necklace recently and it reminded me that I really do want to make Black Diamonds someday. I never looked into it seriously because I knew it would be fabulously expensive and time-consuming. All that beading-! But, why not get an idea of just how fabulous?
Sequin fabric? Found. Its thirty-five to forty-five dollars a yard for the really good stuff. That's bearable considering I'd probably only need one yard.
Mass quantities of bugle beads? Fire Mountain Gems for the win. A kilogram of Czech glass ones is around $30. (Stomaching stringing them into ten miles of fringe, now that's another story.)
Then there are the rhinestones. The tails have five different sizes plus what's on the trim, the lapels and the scallops on the bodice. I know from Eowyn's Cloak of Stars that while a gross of stones sounds like a lot, it actually doesn't go very far at all. I'm guessing three to five gross for the bodice scallops and probably that many for the tails.
I found a place online where one can buy acrylic rhinestones in bulk. Fifteen gross of assorted sizes will run somewhere around eighty dollars after postage. Expensive, yes, but not out of reach. I've spent larger amounts on sillier things before.
Then I started thinking. Acrylic is... acrylic. It's plastic. The plastic stones would also have to be glued down and things one glues on tend to pop off. Sew-on glass or crystal rhinestones are classier, stay put longer and it's not like it's that much more trouble to apply them.
No, the trouble is the price. The only place I've found that has sells crystal rhinestones to John Q. Public in the five sizes and quantities I need is Tutu.com. The sizes are spread amongst Swarovski and Czech crystals, but for what I want would end up being mostly Swarovski. The tab for fifteen gross of those lovelies is five times that of the acrylics. That's a car payment! O_o
I think I'm going to tell my inner snob to shut-up and go with acrylic stones when and if I actually do this.
~~~~
Fairy Wings: The Fancy Fairy has always been known for their gorgeous wings made of iridescent vinyl. I've been nosing around on and off for years trying to find out where they might be getting the stuff.
Today I think I may have found it, or at least something close. It's a pearlescent vinyl apparently used for making decals for cars and such. I've only found one place online that will sell it to the unwashed masses. They carry two widths, fifteen and twenty-four inches. The fifteen inch would be okay for very small and dragonfly style wings, but I think the twenty-four inch would be most versatile. It comes on a ten yard roll for $108 plus shipping. Ouch! :s It might be worth it if I was rich or planning on going into production, but that's pretty steep for just farting around. Back to the plastic wrap from the hobby store and Joanns' clear vinyl, methinks. At least until my lottery jackpot hits. :-p
~~~~
My Little Pony: The G1 flutter ponies were and are some of my favorites. They're easy to find on FeeBay for good prices, but most are missing their wings. Those things broke if you looked at them cross-eyed. Since part of the thrill in vintage toys for me is restoration, I'd want some reproduction wings.
There is one fan in the UK who actually makes reproduction wings but she's not taking orders any longer. She just throws a pair up for auction every now and again. :( Worse yet, with the exchange rate between the dollar and pound where it is one pair of wings can cost more than the pony herself.
So, make my own? It wouldn't be difficult if I had space. I could just put together a vacuform table. Hey, it's most likely what she did and the Star Wars armorers make it look fairly easy. ;)
The trick is getting clear thermoplastic in sheets. I found one site offering PETE (soda bottle plastic) but it was very expensive. Then I looked up using actual soda bottles. The consensus is that it doesn't work very well. Pity. ;) Though that same site did say rigid vinyl will vacuform and I know where to get that fairly inexpensively... Hrm! Now all I need is a garage.
I managed to not allow the metal leaf to get the better of me, so Juri's Kokoro no Ken is finally finished.
She's made of wood, plastic, foam core and epoxy clay. I'm still trying to decide if I want to keep her or sell her off. The wolf is at the door, but he had to bring a picnic lunch! o_0;
