Modesty's Costume Closet

 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

The number of fabrics available is staggering. It makes it tough to decide which will be best for any particular costume...especially if you are not using a commercial pattern. (Well...even if you are using a pattern, you may not want to use their suggested fabrics!)  Too many choices! How to Learn The ways to learn about fabric when starting out are:  Fabric Suggestions from Patterns Walking around a fabric store Online fabric stores With patterns often you will see a picture of the finished result. The fabric suggestions help you achieve that result. Learning the names of fabrics will help you in your search online or in-person for the right fabric.  Interacting with fabric in a physical store also introduces you to the names and qualities of the fabric. Touching fabric gives you a lot of insight into how it behaves and feels against your skin. Also, if it is a store that specializes in fabric, it is likely that people working there know a thing or two about their products.  Online s

Sewing patterns are much like cooking recipes. You'll find a list of ingredients, measurements, and instructions to complete the dish or clothing item. It's a legitimate way to learn a bit about how to sew (or cook). At the very least it helps you learn terminology and techniques that you can do tutorial searches for.  Making patterns is a skill that takes time to learn. Just like coming up with original recipes is a learned skill.  Even if all we do is follow recipes, over time we start to gain knowledge, preferences, and our own little tricks that we can apply to projects. Eventually, instead of following a pattern word for word, we start adding our own methods. As we collect patterns, we start to mix and match.  Myself, I don't often follow the instructions for adding sleeves like most patterns suggest. I use a method I learned from a t-shirt tutorial. (It's so much easier!)  The skirt thing on this costume was a pattern piece You also do not have to use the pattern

 With the wide variety of tools and chemicals you can use when making a costume, I figured it might be advisable to create a general SAFETY FIRST type post.  Typically you'll want to be careful of:  Sharp Things Dust/Particles/Flying Debris Hot/Flammable Things Chemical/Fumes Electric Things Machines General Precautions - Research your Materials and Tools! Before using any material or tools, check for warning labels. If you find 'em, read 'em. Usually you can find these on the product itself if the warning is warranted. You can also do a little online research.  Common warnings are:  Flammable High Pressure High Temperature/Hot Hazardous Material Irritant Warning Skin Contact Warning Poison Just to name a few. - Be Alert and Focused One bit of advice I got from an online course is to never cut leather while upset or tired. You make a lot more mistakes if your brain doesn't have the capacity to focus and coordinate your movement. When handling sharp, hot, or dangerous it

Prop making has always been kind of a challenge for me. The skills, tools, or materials are just a step or ten out of my comfort zone. So, what does one do if they want to add a prop to the costume? Here are some of my suggestions.  Purchase the Prop Commercially  Store bought Sword  The character or costume may be popular enough where the iconic prop is available commercially. They can come in different price ranges too which will affect the quality or final look.  Hire a Prop Maker Maybe hire someone who knows what they're doing... If the character or costume is a bit more obscure or niche, you can hire an artist/craftsman/Prop Maker to recreate it for you. Commissioning a prop from someone might be an unfamiliar process and knowing how to find a competent artist in your area can be a challenge. But at least we have the internet these days.  Some independent prop makers may have an online store which is kind of like purchasing the prop commercially.  Modify a Toy or other Closely

Prosthetics are a highly versatile tool for a costumer/cosplayer. They can add a bit of natural look to any unnatural additions to your body such as pointed ears, horns, long noses, and much, much more.  Materials - Allergy Warning The most common material for prosthetics is LATEX. This is a rubbery, thin material that blends very nicely with human skin. However, some people have an allergic reaction to latex so you may need to look for alternative materials such as silicone. There is a growing market for non-latex Prosthetics parts.  Depending on the part you are making, you may decide that a rubbery flesh texture is all wrong. Some alternatives to latex and silicone are:  Resin - great for claws and horns and such Paper-Mache - great for a bone structure, claws or horns Foam - expanding foam that you carve, EVA foam, or furniture foam that you shape can make just about anything. Fabric and stuffing - you can be very clever with your plushie patterns to create soft horns, hooves, musc

Another creature feature detail to add flair to a costume are claws. Some of us may grow our nails that long or utilize nail art to get a similar effect. But I will provide as many options as I can think of to add claws to the costume.   Claw Placement and Style We'll start with claws then go into hoof creatures. Claws are typically the last digit on the paw. When comparing to our human hands, it comes out of our fingertips. (Our "claws" are covered in flesh.)    While it is a way to attach fake claws, most costumes benefit from extending those fingernails we have to look like claws. This will usually not hinder the use of fingers as normal.  Nail Style In these methods, you extend the length and shape of your nails (usually with artificial materials). As you may notice in my first image, I used fake nails on GLOVES so you are not limited to putting nails directly onto your real nails.  Acrylic Nails I find that "fake nails" are generally the most accessible and

 I wanted to go over a few common "special effects" for costumes to add that bit of flair and added pernach. There are lots of characters and creatures to dress up as that have some oddness about their teeth. Fang-like canine teeth, rows of shark teeth, buck teeth, gold or diamond teeth or event rotten teeth can be easily achievable. But first...let's have a care. Precautions So, most of these solutions for teeth involve putting plastic in your mouth. So don't ingest anything...won't be fun. Also for the love of all things holy make sure what you put in your mouth was sanitized first. If things start to feel uncomfortable at any time, remove safely from your mouth and store away for later. Don't leave teeth in while eating. You may be okay for drinks and small snacks.  Please don't use glue in your mouth. Denture adhesive was made for things like this.  Many of these solutions for fangs and such, I do think professionally made kits are actually quite good.

For the final post about colors, I'm going over hair color.  Changing your hair color is fun, but can be a challenge depending on your hair type, base color, and goal color.  Not my real hair color! Quick Tips I color my hair frequently, so I've got a few experiences to share. First, let me set up some basic things about hair color.  It's easier to color light-colored hair than darker hair. So, to get a vibrant color, first, a dark-hair person will need to bleach their hair. Bleaching your hair can also cause hair or skin damage. It's better to work with another person. For your first bleach, I recommend getting it done at a salon. You don't need to go to a high-end place, some places will even let you bring your own box of bleach.  Personally, I'm not the biggest fan of the "drug-store box hair color". Not only because I had a rough experience but there's a pretty big challenge coloring your own hair. Having another person to help is good but some

A character with a skin color different from your own will come with its own challenges depending on how much skin is shown. (If you're lucky, it's just the face).  Natural vs Unnatural Skin Color We should, right off the bat, address the elephant in the room. While I believe you can cosplay as whoever you want, at least in the United States, there is a social expectation to not to darken your skin to portray a character that has a darker skin color than your own. To put it in blunt terms, no "black face" or "brown face" please. This has fallen very far out of fashion and could ruin your political career. (If you have such asperations.) But in all seriousness, I'd like to think that as cosplayers we're respectful and sensitive enough not to participate in this practice.  HOWEVER, if you get dark when you tan or get lighter when you stay indoors, this is perfectly acceptable. (Even spray tans to an extent.)  I think generally because we dress up as a