I'm getting a job!

I called on suprising after filling out the app yesterday. Had my interview and now am waiting on the background check. Then I get called and will work not this Sunday but next. I can't wait! This means a lot more for cosplays too!

Update (Pictures!)

Finally. I know right? I finally got a chance to take a quick picture of my rosary prop. The darn camera was dying so they aren't very good but hey, I got a picture! This prop is created of three layers. But before I explain what and how I created it, here is the picture.

Caterina's rosary cross

This has three layers to it. I haven't made such a prop before so this was my first time exploring how to do so. I'll explain each layer and what product I used for it. Sadly I don't have pictures of each layer because I got bored and kept working on it. Which is something I don't normally do.

Layer one- Wire armature

This was made from florist wire which is not coated wire. It's easy to bend and twist. But has sharp edges. It's also easy to cut and you don't need fancy wire cutters to do so. It's very thin. I used the same wire to make my sphere prop as mentioned before (As pictured below) I started by making the longest part (The part that goes straight down first by deciding on a length (Around three inches I believe.) I bent the wire so it had two pieces, one rounded and connected at the end and cut it. Then starting from the bottom that was not connected I started to twist another piece of wire around that. I kept doing that through the prop as well as for the part that goes across. The squares were done last and I used the same method. The armature was firm and all connected. 

Layer Two- Oven-Bake clay

I used Sculpey brand clay. This is normally the cheapest, easiest to find clay. It gets VERY soft when kneed and I found it rather hard to make thick because of that. This part was easy. I had to mold the clay around the armature. After that was down I smoothed it out the best I could then popped it into the oven for ten minutes. I let it cool down for a few hours then later that night started on layer three.

Layer Three- Model Magic

This clay has been my got to clay. It's easy to work with, non-messy, molds nicely and dries fairly quickly. It's an air dry clay and is very soft and fluffy. I used it for my sphere prop as well. I covered the cross in MM clay to make it thicker and give it more character. It was a bit tricky because the clay I have is a bit too dried out but I managed to get it done. It does have a few imperfections but once it's painted and coated with resin you wont see them.

Now I need to...

• Paint it silver (Could take up to four layers)
• Paint on varnish 
• Cover with ice resin (Clear resin)
• Decorate while resin is still wet (Sparkly things, fake pearls, ect.)
• Start building the chain.

Change of plans

Sorry guys no pictures today. Didn't get around to finding the camera. But I did put the rosary into the oven and baked the clay for ten minutes. It came out perfect and is ready to be fitted with model magic clay. I also decided to use the resin once it's been painted. Once the resin is on I'm going to stick lots of bling onto the rosary so it's more eye catching. I also decided that all of Abel's armor will be crafted out of  EVA foam. Since it's lighter, more durable and wont chip or crack. 

I'll be starting on Abel's coat in about four weeks. During this time I'll be focusing on the rosary necklace and writing up a list of items needed for the costumes. I might start making patterns too at this time but I don't really know yet. I'm hoping to have both costumes done by Feb. 

Little update

Haven't done much besides fixing the rosary cross. I haven't had the time to bake it yet. My mom wanted me to bake her some cookies instead so I've been baking cookies for the last two days (Started too late the night before XD) I've been focusing on getting a job for the last few days and haven't really put much thought into finally putting the cross into the oven. I am tomorrow though. I just need to remember to stick the metal piece in so I can thread the necklace strand through. I'm really trying hard to get a job at the art store,which will be awesome! I could get discounts for all or most of the cosplay stuff we'll need later on. But anyway. Pictures will be taken and put up tomorrow (Hopefully) as well as another update.

A little update

Still haven't had time to get pictures. Hoping to take in my camera on Monday to see if the game shop (Who buys cameras too) will buy it. If I get enough I will get the smaller camera that doesn't need batteries and will take some pictures of what has been done.

The armature has been covered with a thin layer of clay. The clay gets really gooey and is hard to mold and shape around the armature. So I have planned to re cover the spots where you can see the wire and then pop it in the oven. It wont be as thick as I wanted it to be but after it's been baked I am going to cover the mistakes and fix the shaping with Model Magic clay. MM clay is an air dry clay that is all soft and foam like. It's awesome and I used it for my other prop, the Tsubasa sphere (As pictured below)

 This what MM clay looks like when dry

But be careful because MM clay is VERY fragile when dry. I used two-three coats of clear varnish. It makes the surface smooth and helps the clay from cracking or breaking. I highly suggest using it. When I was creating the sphere I put a coat on before painting and two after. This way the prop is strong while you turn and toss it to be painted. 

Anyway....

The cross is about 3 inches long. I went off of old Gothic rosaries as well as the original design to create something of a mix between the two. Although the details have yet to be applied I am going to add on my own touches. Such as matching pearls and smaller seed beads to make it eye catching. I may or may not use resin to coat it. Although I most likely will be so all the details and beads wont fall off. Plus I really am looking forward to trying out new techniques. 

Which brings me to my next idea. For the pieces of Abel's armor I had decided to try out the gold leaf technique. This involves brushing metal or gold leaf against an object then rubbing off the pieces. It's hard to explain. I've done it only once before. But it gives the object a wonderful metallic look. I'm still thinking about what materials to use for the armor. I'm going to test with the oven-bake clay. I wasn't sure if I was going to use it because of needing to sew it onto fabric. But then I realized if I used beads for the bolts int eh armor I could use beads and sew it into the fabric using the beads. Hopefully it works. I'm going to run a few tests which I will post on here in full detail.

   

  

Armature building

I've started working on the base frame or armature for Caterina's rosary tonight. My fingers are going to hurt like no other tomorrow, I keep sticking  myself with the metal. Making an armature is a helpful way to keep props/objects firm and stiff and creates a great base to work off of. When I was creating the sphere prop for my Tsubasa cosplay (Pictured below) I also used an armature method to keep it strong. It held up perfectly. I have created my own method for creating wire based armatures that is fairly simple and keeps the item together strongly. I don't always use wire but the last two props I have. This prop has to be done in wire because it is going to be covered with oven-bake clay. So make sure the material you are using to build your armature is oven safe beforehand so you don't need to restart and go through all that stress.

The base of the armature for the sphere

This is how I do my armatures. I take florist wire, which you can get for cheap at most art stores. It's much cheaper than getting jewelry wire, which you often get less for the price anyway. The wire I have isn't coated either. 

I take a long section then fold it. Then wrap a new thread of wire around, pictured on the left part. This creates a strong base.

I can't use hot glue like I normally do though since it is going in the oven. Hot glue is great to hold the metal together and for covering sharp tips. But I only do this when I'm using something that air drys  like Model Magic clay. That stuff worked so well with my wire armature. 

With the armature I'm working on now (Which I will upload pictures to later on, no batteries for the camera) I have it basically done. I'm reinforcing the middle which connects the smaller part of the cross together. This will help me when I'm putting on the heavy clay and keep the armature from bending out of shape. 

Trinity Blood cosplay day-1

Here I go again...cosplaying another Duchess.

And so it starts! Hell everyone who is viewing this. Welcome to my cosplay blog. I see a lot more people have checked out my blog in the last few hours, mainly because I had posted a link on my Da journal. So if you are new, welcome. If not, nice to have to you back. If you notice I say "we" I'm referring to my cosplay partner and fiance, Nicolas.


As I mentioned yesterday I am starting a rather large project of two costumes from Trinity Blood (As shown above, both characters are in front, in white.) Today we went out and got the first round of supplies. I happened to be very luckily and the art store we normally go to just moved building (Right down the street) and is having a ton of great sales. We have a lots of coupons that will take us into Nov. We got a great discount for a 1.75 lb of Sculpey oven bake clay today. It was originally 14.99 and we got it for 8.00! Nic did want to get the HUGE box of it but I really had no idea where I would store it so I passed on the offer. We might go get it later on.

Today we bought:

• Sculpey oven-bake clay
• Sculpey clay tool starter kit (I don't know where my tools are. >_<)
• Jump rings (For making jewelry) 
• Lobster claps
• Iridescent silver acrylic paint

What I will be working on first is this...

Caterina's rosary. I can't find a good image to trace so I'm still trying to gather as many as I can and free hand design something that looks close to the real design. It will be made out of clay, baked in the oven and painted silver. Then I came up with the thought of pouring ice resin (Clear resin) over it in order to make sure it will not crumble or break when I wear it. It will also give it a nice shine and make it look as if it were plastic or glass.


This will be the first time I will be using resin so I'm pretty excited I get to use a new technique and will be learning something from this. The chain will be made out of fake pearl beads and or smaller seed beads or large pearls, since rosarys always have a pattern of smaller beads or pearls then a larger one every so often. The piece higher up near the chest will also be made out of clay and will have a coat of resin. I will be making test pieces to see if this plan will work out or not.

While I wait for this to dry and such I'll also be working on pieces of Abel's costumes. Such as the picture to the left (Sorry it is blurry, I blew it up.) The metal bars on his sleeves will also be made out of the same materials as Caterina's rosary cross. But will be painted gold.


I will also be making these (As pictured below)

Gold details on the belt (Once I have the belts)

Metal plate on lapel of coat. 

Since our dead line is in March I'm not rushing these pieces. Although I'm hoping to get them out of the way quickly since I will be starting on the costumes pieces in November. I'm new to sewing (All I know is the basics of hand sewing, and how to sew on buttons) so I will be learning a lot and pushing to improve my skills with these costumes. It'll be a lot of fun so I will be updating often. I may not post right away about the updates due to my camera's batteries being dead and the fact I'm trying to get a job. So please stayed tuned and ask questions. 

Sakura-con 2013 + Trinity Blood cosplay!

Oh yes. It's officially been decided. We have found out (firmly) who our third cosplay will be. And....As listed in the title of this post it is TRINITY BLOOD. It's a favorite of mine. My skills are basic and I don't feel ready to take on a huge project like Seth.

Seth

So instead I remembered another cosplay that I would love to do. Plus it's fairly simple. There isn't any heavy embroidery or big pieces of armor. Nic will be cosplaying as Abel Nightroad. I can't call him "young" since he's still some hundreds of years old. I will be cosplaying young Caterina, as seen as below. These cosplays will be hand made by me. 

This is slightly different from the picture above, which is from the novels. The picture to the left is from the manga. Caterina's dress isn't as full and looks more like a normal nun outfit. Abel's coat is shorter, also not as full. 

I'll be basing them off of the picture on top. 

I'm starting by looking for patterns. I hope I can find patterns that can be combined to create something close so I don't have to create my own. Once I find the patterns and we buy them we will start by shopping around for fabric and ect. Luckily white fabric isn't hard to find. 

                 Abel

•  Long white coat
• Black belts w/gold details
• Knee high black boots
• Black pants
• Black turtle neck shirt
• Abel's cross
• Long, silver wig/ black ribbon

            Caterina

• Long white dress
• Full lacy underskirt
• Low heeled white shoes
• Full curly blonde wig (Found one!)
• Silver cross
• Blue hair ribbons

I'll update more as I start making them. We are starting next month although we will be slowly buying materials this month since the art store nearby is having really good sales right now because they have moved buildings. I am so excited and will update often! Even post pictures. 

All pictures lost

My computer's hard drive died. I lost all my cosplay pictures along with a lot more. It's really heart breaking. Mainly because I lost a lot of writing stuff. Hopefully I can re-find most of the pictures taken at cons and start my collection of cosplay-to-dos soon.