Modesty's Costume Closet

 I bumped up the Polish blend kimono on my project schedule so I could have it done in time for the cultural festival at church. Then I realized the event was in May and not in March like I originally thought. Oh wells, better to get her done.  And while trying to get'er done, I started embroidering on my machine. My original plan was to embroider the patterns directly onto the fabric then sew it together.  That worked for the corner of the sleeves, but then I got to thinking, "perhaps it would be better to sew on some of the other designs after I put things together. After all, my hems tend to be a bit unpredictable in placement." After breaking 2 needles while embroidering the sleeves, I got to thinking again, "perhaps sewing on the finished garment is a bit risky. Going over a seam while embroidering will surely break a needle!" So maybe it would be better to sew on some of the designs as patches. A couple of the designs are very dense and would suit patches

I was revisiting some of my sketches for Goro's fox form that I made awhile ago.  The first image is the ideal look I want for the puppet except the front paws aren't quite right.  The correct vibe and anatomy. Wrong face, but correct front paws. The character concept for Goro is a dragon-blooded kitsune. This is why he has scales down his back and more dragon-like front paws. However, I must consider how to make this in puppet form! There are few things these front paws need to do:  Support the puppet by hooking into my clothes with claws Have a bit of weight to hold it in place Keep a round, finger paw shape Support the wire frame and remain posable Method 1: Sewing The easiest method would be to simply sew and stuff the paws more like a lizard or frog. This would give them the correct shape. The downside is that squishy front paws won't "hook" onto my clothes as easily because stuffing deforms. Even if the claw portions are a hardened material, it won't dis

 I'm going to share a bit of my process for making decisions. Lately, I have been assailed by indecisiveness and fretting about costume colors. So, I've sat myself down and did some practical things to help make these decisions.  Requirements This will require visual aides so either use a drawing that you will trace and color in or scan in a drawing to manipulate on art software. I use Photoshop but you can use any program that lets you dump colors and change layers.  Process Brainstorm :  Find inspiration based on costume themes or favorite colors or common color compliments for clothes or traditional cultural colors.  Create a cookie cutter template where you can place the colors generally where they need. If you are doing this physically, make sure the linework is bolded so you can retrace and try other colors.  Look at them all side-by-side.  Eliminate first by 'feeling'. "I'm not crazy about this combo." "Not my vibe." "Just not into it

 The production of this costume has been as elusive as a unicorn. In part because I've put some kind of extra pressure on myself to have a certain look for my dance. So, hopefully, writing this will help me nail down some of my indecision. (Spoilers: It does!) Source Inspiration The theme of the dance is Night at the Movies, and I picked "The Last Unicorn". I will be dancing a rumba to the opening theme. I knew I was going to be "the unicorn" and my partner will be another character. (I'm hoping the red bull.)  Design Considerations In any costume design there's both a practical and aesthetic consideration.  Dance Costume Considerations Because I will be dancing with a partner, I need to make sure that my garment is out of our feet's way, I can move my arms and legs freely, and I don't have any costume malfunctions. So the major points of consideration are:  - hem length: I want to avoid catching the hem on my heel or have my partner trod upon a

 I saw a thing on Etsy that I sort of wanted to buy but didn't because I thought I could make it. An LED edge light lamp with various scenes or figures. I figured I could 3D print some stencils then use that as a template for painting or etching. While it IS possible, (see video below) I kept screwing up my stencils. The lines and details were getting lost. But the video does detail how to make an etching without having to modify your 3D printer. (To be fair, I was printing on the default bed and not onto the glass directly. I have never printed onto acrylic glass before so...something I may need to try.) Turned into a whole thing. But here's where I've ended up. (Currently, this is untested by me. I will update this post once I give things a go.) UPDATE: I have tested some of these methods with great success. See my Art Blog for details about these projects.  So CNC machines like the Cricut can cut vinyl and engrave things like acrylic glass or leather in some cases. So

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

 Last time, I wrote about my rushing to learn how to knit. This post is an extension of that, but more about hitting a wall I cannot surmount.  The Solution...and me. First, let me set up the "problem" I'm trying to solve and the backward ways I've tried to solve it... The Impossible Cape So I set myself up with a bit of a thought challenge on how I would use either knitting or crochet to make a shawl or cloak like the Flame Hashira from Demon Slayer.  It's so Flamey.  So ignoring the first b.s. thing about how it stays on his shoulders...that's not my problem yet. (But I will struggle to ignore that it's impossible.)  First, I'm ignorant as to what shape this is. (I know now after literally days of research but I'll get to why it took me so dang long.)  Second, there are three color changes, one of which is a soft edge gradient and the other an irregular flame pattern.  Third, the edges are also irregular to imitate fire.  Fourth, the interior col