I put the STRESS in seamstress.
The year is moving into sewing season, aka Halloween, and to start the year with a bang, I offered to make a Babylon 5 costume for a friend of mine who is helping run MountainCon this year. It looks like this:
I was actually supposed to do it a year ago, but health-wise I wasn't doing so well this time last year and I put it off. This year I was determined it would be finished. And despite the universe trying it's best to stop me (you know...emergency room visits, raging stomach flu, vehicle breakdowns...the usual), I managed to make it wearable just in the nick of time (thanks to being awake for 49 hours straight). So, here is my version:
I started with a pattern for a zippered front coat like Neo wore in The Matrix. Then I chopped the pattern to pieces, cut parts that were unique to this costume and re-sized several pieces to get a custom fit. The trim was impossible to find so I ended up making it. It's still not as gray/blue as it should have been, but it worked. I also had to embroider the texture on the triangle of fabric on the chest. I don't have an embroidery machine so I used a satin stitch and was very careful. I was pretty happy with the results. BTW, you're seeing this modeled by my very own "Julie" duct-tape dummy. (Yes, we duct taped my friend Julie. It's the price she paid for the costume.) I hadn't ever made one before. It worked really well and I may never work without one again. Besides, it was so funny while we were doing it. I must demoralize all of my subjects from now on. :)
Additional costumes coming: Jacob needs something for the Egypt fair is this week at school and Ben has decided to be a space-man for Halloween. Trying to figure out where to buy a clear plastic globe to make a helmet out of.
I was actually supposed to do it a year ago, but health-wise I wasn't doing so well this time last year and I put it off. This year I was determined it would be finished. And despite the universe trying it's best to stop me (you know...emergency room visits, raging stomach flu, vehicle breakdowns...the usual), I managed to make it wearable just in the nick of time (thanks to being awake for 49 hours straight). So, here is my version:
I started with a pattern for a zippered front coat like Neo wore in The Matrix. Then I chopped the pattern to pieces, cut parts that were unique to this costume and re-sized several pieces to get a custom fit. The trim was impossible to find so I ended up making it. It's still not as gray/blue as it should have been, but it worked. I also had to embroider the texture on the triangle of fabric on the chest. I don't have an embroidery machine so I used a satin stitch and was very careful. I was pretty happy with the results. BTW, you're seeing this modeled by my very own "Julie" duct-tape dummy. (Yes, we duct taped my friend Julie. It's the price she paid for the costume.) I hadn't ever made one before. It worked really well and I may never work without one again. Besides, it was so funny while we were doing it. I must demoralize all of my subjects from now on. :)
Additional costumes coming: Jacob needs something for the Egypt fair is this week at school and Ben has decided to be a space-man for Halloween. Trying to figure out where to buy a clear plastic globe to make a helmet out of.