Costuming Essentials

One of my favorite costumes I ever put together was for a Victorian themed ball. I started with a evening gown from a thrift store. It was a strapless slightly corset like top and a long skirt. To create a bustle effect I pinned an underskirt just in the back of the skirt. Next I took some fabric I had bought to make a titanic-like gown. I still was hoping to make the gown so I could not sew the fabric to the dress or cut it much. I cut off as little as possible to make some off the shoulder sleeves to give the proper upper body silhouette. I folded under the raw edge and used safety pins to carefully attach the sleeves to the  dress. I tied the rest of the fabric around my waist and then used ribbon and a couple more safety pins to shape the ends into a bustle. Simple but effective… I felt like I stepped out of La Mode Illustre

I have had wonderful luck using the thrift store as a starting point for my costumes. With a little creativity and flexibility a found garment can be turned into a great cosplay costume. There is a vintage store in Southern California with 5 orange puffy suits that a little detailing would turn into perfect Narutos… one would be astounding enough but 5… The easiest style I’ve found to create from thrift store items is sweet lolita. This styling is in alot of anime, just think cute little girly dresses. I used found dresses at anime expo to be Chii from Chobits(I was even in the mascarade). The two best sources I have found for this look are square dance dresses and 80′s dresses.

This is basically a square dance dress. It just took a bit of taking in and making an apron and Chii ‘ears’.

I’ve been preparing to make a website about my journey in costuming for quite sometime. I wanted to create a custom web design. I haven’t had the chance yet (this is a pretty nice template though) but the site must launch now! Enjoy and be patient as this site will be changing and updating rapidly.

40's hair

Proper hair and makeup are essential to really creating a character or costume and having it be effective. I love playing with hair in particular as it can have a dramatic effect on a costume. In this photo I am sporting a 40′s doo known as Victory rolls. Also I have tried to achieve a 40′s look to my makeup.  A surprising and wonderful resource I used to find out about both of these is YouTube.

Here are a few videos I found helpful

Victory Rolls

40′s Makeup