One More To The List...

Because I'm attending Dragon Con in hot and steamy Atlanta, I've been trying to add more than a few "lightweight" costumes to my repertoire. This means whatever I can comfortably, and in some cases comically, get away with!
After seeing a random clip from the 1970s sci-fi film Logan's Run the other night, and being a Logan's Run fan for years, I've decided to recreate the Jessica 6 costume from her first scene with Logan.
It's shimmery and green, light and airy, perfect for hot humid weather. Although there seems to be a fair amount of fabric covering all the needed areas, it's still barely there.
But why, with the other costumes I need to finish am I adding this one? Because it will literally take me one evening to make the dress, and I nearly have all the other bits and pieces already. As I was entertaining the thought of doing this costume, I stumbled upon an amazingly nice wig at a great deal on Ebay. I was actually stunned by the quality when I received it in the mail the other day. Rarely is an Ebay wig nicer than the photo.
I may trim it a bit shorter, but it's almost exactly the hairstyle and color as Jessica's.
Achieving a natural looking hairstyle that is worlds away from your own cut and color, is often the most difficult and time consuming part to a cosplay. Add to that the often endless searching of wig shops and online sources for something that works. Finding a perfect wig right away cut out 90% of the time it will take to make the Jessica 6 cosplay, and I think it was a big deciding factor to just go for it.

A large gold link chain belt was found on Etsy, and I'll be using some silk Georgette I already have on-hand that has silver threads woven in. It was originally going to be the overlay on a skirt for my Queen Elsa cosplay, before I found an alternate that was better.
Currently the fabric is a pale aqua blue. So, I'll be using a pinch of Sunflower Yellow acid dye from Dharma Trading co. to get that perfect pale pistachio green. I tested a swatch yesterday afternoon, and it turned out a perfect match.

Haha! Well, let's just get right to it, shall we? Oh the 1970s...

The revealing nature of this Jessica 6 dress is all in the cut and type of fabric, with one side of the sheer frock fully open.
There may be some magic involved in either making a nude colored high cut leotard for underneath, or tracking down some great matching flesh tone microfiber (and nearly invisible) boy shorts to wear.
I'll also be adding built-in flesh tone bra cups too.
Maybe even engineering some kind of slingshot bikini? We'll see.

Also including the easiest costume ever; the Sandman caftan. One giant rectangle with grey edging that overlaps like a bathrobe in front and closes with front ties.

Yep. This is happening...because it's Atlanta, and it's a whole other level of humid and hot.

Of all the projects I'm currently trying to finish, I may be posting very few updates between now and the zero hour before Dragon Con. it all depends on how fast I can move on these projects, and what my extra online time looks like.
I will, however; be taking photos as I go, and will likely wait until everything is done and back from DC before making detailed posts about each project.
xoxo

Patterning Wilma Deering

Boots and belt painted, and pattern for pants and cropped top drafted.

Next on the to-do list; dye a bunch of nylon spandex coral pink, and a little nylon spandex ivory.

Stay tuned xoxo!

A Very Long Wait In The Resurrection Tub...

Way back in early March of last year, I had discovered that the sci-fi replica costume company, Anovos was releasing a copy of the infamous red dress worn by the Cylon known as Caprica 6.
Along with this, they also created a stunning replica of her lethally sculptural bracelet and ring.

While I had already made my own replica of the dress, I still snatched up a size medium for myself.
My version of the dress was okay, but I wasn't completely satisfied with it. The fabric I was able to find didn't look or feel quite right, didn't hang or cling nicely to my body, and generally had issues with longevity.
The fabric didn't hold its shape well, and stretched out in odd areas. So, I figured this one by Anovos would definitely be a step up.
My fiance bought me the bracelet and ring set as a gift, since my birthday was only a few weeks away.
Keep in mind that I knew these items were all pre-orders and set for production, so I expected to wait the then-stated time of 5-6 months.
The bracelet arrived on time, but the dress ran into issues with fabric quality and production times slowed to a crawl. One year and 4 months later, they worked out the issues and the dress is currently in transit to me, set to arrive tomorrow. I'm really excited to finally get this sultry frock, and will post photos as soon as I have the chance to model it!

I'm crossing my fingers the quality and fit will have been worth the wait, but the jewelry set is stunning.
My only issue with it, is the clasp is complete crap. It won't stay closed, and I've nearly lost it on at least 3 occasions. The steel metal 'shards' are actually slides mounted on a faux leather (or at least plastic coated) strap. The clasp closure consists of a little tension plate you slide the end of the strap into, and flip the plate over. The underside of the plate has small 'teeth' that are supposed to grip the strap. It does not, and instead flips back open on its own within seconds.
Well, it stays put if you don't move...or breathe for that matter.
This makes me afraid to wear it most times, when it's a piece of gorgeous jewelry I want to wear as often as possible. I'm hoping to replace the clasp with something more secure, like an actual buckle.

Now I just need a better wig, since I'm not about to chop and bleach my hair to death.
XOXOX!

It's A Match (O-Matic)!

As I'm gradually piecing together my Wilma Deering cosplay, I'm also paying attention to her accessories.

I knew she had a small laser pistol during the episode ("Space Vampire"), and I was able to find out which one it was.

Between Wilma and Buck, a few different models of laser gun made appearances throughout the series. The one she uses in this episode against the Vorvon, was actually made from a lighter vaguely shaped like a gun; the Match-O- Matic.

A scene of Wilma trying to fend off the Vorvon with the laser pistol, and photos of some laser pistols from the show...

It's really hard to make out what her pistol looks like, but after seeing the photos of the originals below, it became obvious. The clear vinyl holster is the same, too. Except Wilma's has an ivory band at the top that matches her belt.
The barrel is replaced by a short rod of clear Lucite. This one has a little molded addition of something on the back of the upper cylinder, and a button,,,

and it lights up! This one may have been carried by a main character....

This one is a plainer version...

In the holster...

So there's that. I was lucky to have found the Match-O-Matic on Ebay for a steal at $13. Others were going for  $45 to $60.
I also happily discovered that the barrel unscrews, so I won't need to saw it off. This will definitely make the modification process easier, but I'd rather make a mold of it, cast it in resin, and modify that to my needs.

(Photos of original pistols found on the Replica Props Forum)

Dyeing Spandex - Part II

A bit of a boring post, but I received my samples of the spandex I ordered, and could tell right away that the extra samples just wouldn't cut it.
Along with the white Jumbo Spandex, I gave a few other types a shot. Nope.
But the white Jumbo Spandex is exactly what I need. So I did a little test with some extra Dharma acid dye in Fire Engine Red.
I thought I might get, at best, a soft pink out of this...boy was I wrong!

It's hard to see how shiny the white fabric is in this shot, but it gleams

.

A true red, the color took like crazy to this 90% Nylon 10% spandex. After just 1 minute, I had a rich cool red, and while it was softer than the red pants, it was plenty vivid. The color-fastness is really good, too. It hardly bled color after the first few seconds of rinsing.

I ordered more acid dyes from Dharma in Flamingo Pink, Strawberry Red, Sunflower Yellow and Peach Blush. These should give me plenty to experiment with to get just the right shade of coral blush pink.

A Fantastic Interview With Erin Gray

I found this great video of Erin Gray from last June, doing an interview at the Supanova Expo in Perth.
Lot's of awesome subjects discussed (a new Buck Rogers series PLEASE!!!), and it turns out her favorite episode is still "Space Vampire", the one that inspired me to do a Wilma Deering costume for Dragon Con this year!

Hearing about her experience with T'ai Chi and acupuncture has given me even more reason to try both.
I've been on the fence about it, but given some old injuries that trigger new daily pain, it's good to hear that it does indeed make a difference.

Dyeing Nylon Spandex - Testing Part I

1970s and early 1980s sci-fi was rife with feathered hair, flashy colors and above all; super shiny Spandex!

The costume department for Buck Rogers spared no expense when it came time to buying what I imagine was bolt upon bolt of Nylon spandex that went into the costumes for the show.

Supposedly a 2-way stretch only, the 90% Nylon with 10% Spandex gave us a mirror-like shine that made an outfit appear painted on.

Wilma Deering's outfits were some of the best examples of this, and one of the companies who made this magical fabric is still producing it to this day. It's called Jumbo Spandex.

Color choice in this material, however; can be slim. Pink is in only one or few shades; super bright or very pale...if any pink at all, and primary colors rule the stock found in my online searches. Yet it still comes in white, and Nylon is dyeable!

I suspect the costumers for Buck Rogers ran into this conundrum, too, and in their attempt to get a bright pink with dyes, ended up with that unique pink for Wilma's costume from the "Space Vampire" episode.

Another place we saw this fabric used during the same time period, in the fashion trend of disco pants. On screen and off, I've only ever seen photos and film of people wearing these, but I recently found some on Ebay. Not vintage, but reproduced by American Apparel.

It's the exact same Jumbo Spandex fabric; 90% Nylon, 10% Spandex, in the same weave.
Just like the vintage pants, the 2-way stretch across the grain, actually has a little stretch on the grain, too. Otherwise there would have been no way they could have gotten such a smooth fit across the hips, and allowed for movement without cutting off circulation.

For the most part, modern spandex like milliskin is polyester and Lycra, and not only lacks the ability to absorb dye, but doesn't have the same body and shine as classic Jumbo Spandex.

To prove the dyeable nature of Jumbo Spandex, I did a test today.

The 'spots' on the pants in the background are just caused by the light. Not dye.

I nabbed myself a pair of the red American Apparel disco pants (I not-so-secretly love them!), and snipped a small bit off the inside zipper placket.
I mixed about 1/2 teaspoon of Dharma acid dye in a Caribbean Blue I had on-hand, to about 1 1/4 cups of almost simmering water.
I let the small scrap soak for only 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
After rinsing thoroughly and drying, I had a pretty burgundy scrap, still shiny, with some still-blazing red polyester stitching attached.

Again, this was just after a 5 minute soak, so you can imagine the depth of color if I'd left it in longer.

I'm going to buy a few different shades of pink, neutral base red and yellow from Dharma to mix if needed. Then I'll test scraps from white Jumbo Spandex I'm ordering from Fabrics World, until I get as close as possible to that pink shade on Wilma's ensemble.