Skip to main content

Costume Project: Wisteria Fox Day 3

The project moves forward by inches. I managed to scrounge up enough energy to cut the paper pattern pieces that I need. And seriously, that's all I could do today. While the migraine has subsided, I spent a long time chatting with my parents as is my Sunday custom and made some taco pasta. 

And while I thought I would have all of Monday to do things, I managed to snag a massage appointment so part of my day will be taken up by that. 

Modifying a Pattern to my Design

What I ended up doing today was cut paper pattern pieces. Now I could have drafted my own kimono pattern. Honestly, it's not super complicated compared to some articles of clothing. A lot of Japanese clothing is a series of rectangles or angled shapes. However, I like it when the work is done for me. So I am blending two commercial kimono patterns that are technically meant for costumes. 

Highlighted the yardage I needed

I have mentioned before that I do feel a twinge of regret not making my own pattern, but I'm also not a masochist. Pattern making is not something I enjoy doing. Well, for clothes at least. I don't mind designing armor. That's easier to me for some reason. Moving on. 
Identifying the Obi and Sleeve pieces

So I am taking the obi and sleeve from the simplicity pattern, but the body of the kimono from the McCall's pattern. I am also mostly following the instructions for the McCall's Pattern. (They were a little better written and understandable.)

I've identified and cut out the corresponding pieces from each pattern.  The next step will be to lay out the pattern pieces on the fabric, then cut and label the pieces. The lining and outer fabric is the same so I need to make sure things don't get mixed up. I will be dyeing the outer fabric so that should help but I also had a bit of a thought that I might not have enough fabric to make the sleeves since I took my yardage count from the McCall's pattern which has a shorter sleeve. (Dang...may need to order more fabric.) But I'll see what the future holds...after my massage appointment. 
All the paper pieces in a box.
(2024 Notes: There are now better, more authentic patterns for making furisode than these patterns and blog posts about how to layout fabric so...the only thing I haven't found a great resource for was making a lined kimono.)
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Costume Design: Guiding Principles

Part of designing costumes is finding a way to pick from many solutions. Limiting these choices can be the art of design.  I have some of my own "Guiding Principles" or Design Principles when it comes to costume design. Some of these constraints are based on non-mutable factors. (Or currently difficult to change.) The fun ones are a bit on the arbitrary side. These are self-imposed limitations for the costume that as a designer I decide to apply to any given costume.  The point of these principles is to help you make a final decision if you are paralyzed by many choices. I may get hung up on some pretty silly things, so at the very least, this helps me move forward and kind of imply that I had a plan all along.  Immutable Design Principles We might run into some touchy subjects here but whatever, here we go! Immutable principles are either constraints your life situation has you in at any given time or core beliefs about what you wear. This can mean things like religious beli
Post a Comment
Read more

Costume Fabric Cheat Sheet: How to Pick Fabric for your Costume

 In the previous post , I laid out how to describe different aspects of fabric when trying to find a good fabric for your costume. This post will go over ways to apply those terms and actually pick out a fabric for your costume. I will attempt to teach by examples.  4 Avenues of Research Cheat! I mean...look at other cosplays. You can often find images of photoshoots which make for better references than illustrations. If you are lucky, the costume maker may have posted a journal about how they made their costume or at least list the materials they used.  Check for Suggestions in Sewing Patterns Sewing patterns will list suggested fabrics to use for the costume. Pop those terms into a search engine and see the results.  Historical, Cultural, or Real Life Examples With a search engine or books, you can find out about how clothes were made back in the day or what materials are used around the world. You can also check the tags on your clothes to see what it's made of.  Narrow down to
Post a Comment
Read more

Hakama Series - Hibakama (Scarlet Hakama)

The bright red hakama with a white kimono is a common sight in both anime and video game characters. Shrine maidens or Miko also wear this combination of colors when they work at Shinto shrines. Honestly, there is a LOT of history and cultural significance wrapped up in this one.  Anime/Games: Inuyasha, Genshin Impact, Sailor Moon,  So let's talk Design. Design Considerations Cultural Significance This is one I'd pay attention to if I was creating a character of my own. I assume that already created characters have had this research done and have taken their artistic license.  Some of the research taught me a few things: The color is technically scarlet or vermillion, not "red". 🤷 Miko are not part of the Shinto clergy. Sometimes they are just seasonal workers.  Generally, Miko are young women in their teens or early 20s. After a certain age, they wear different colors.  This was based on Heian nobility colors and fashions.  Color Like I said earlier, the color is ve
Post a Comment
Read more