Wednesday, May 30, 2012

Suckerpunched by Life: A Babydoll Cosplay

The title pretty much says it all - one of my costumes for the upcoming Anime Expo will be Babydoll from the movie Sucker Punch.  I had such high hopes for this one - now don't get me wrong...the costume for this one is actually coming out pretty good and in a timely manner, which is incredibly exciting, especially given the time constraints I have due to school/work/homework.  I'm fudging a little this year, and also creating Babydoll's white Sailor Costume the night she is supposed to give her dance debut which will be made out of almost the exact same pattern with some very minor drafting differences.

However life decided to knock me with a little sucker punch of it's own and now all my accessories, the gun, the sword - dear God, the wig...are a no go.  My significant other was unfortunately laid off from his place of work, and we are barely making ends meet as it already is.  So plunking down $100 and change on the items I'd need to create the accessories is not gonna happen.  Thankfully I'm blonde already and a dear friend of mine can pull more of the gold out of it to give me a similar hair color (and possibly some extensions so I can have long enough hair for the ponytail.)  Honestly tho, in the way of Hell, this is really only first circle stuff.  I'll manage.

I found some really cool pictures floating around the internet that details the costumes.  Apparently in good 'ole Pasadena that had an exhibit at the Arclight during the first few weeks of the movie.  The chap over at http://hollywoodmoviecostumesandprops.blogspot.com had posted these and it was a real treat as a cosplay to have such amazing reference photos.  Here's a couple but, seriously go over to his blog and check it out.  He's got pictures of lots of the costumes from this movie.



I picked up a medium weight dark denim to work with.  I cut a couple of swatches and tested some methods of hand distressing - that's right people, the costume has wear and tear - none of this brand new denim stuff.  While I was at it, I picked up a light weight silver white denim to make the trim and the sailor collar out of.  A few swatches will be under going some tests on how to dirty it up - india ink is my first go to, we'll see what happens.  If the drape of the collar doesn't work out in the light weight, I'm planning on backing it with the medium weight to give it more body.  I'm planning on adding a lining to it anyway so that none of the stitches from the collar show.

The only things I did not purchase at this stage is the fabric for the tie and hand, and the buttons.  I did not find a fabric that was suitable for the tie, it's difficult since I do not know what the fiber content or even what type of fabric it is.  So I'm having to walk through downtown L.A. seeking the right fabric on sight and drape only.  I should get achievement points when I find it.

I have not yet begun to plan the dance outfit yet.  I need to sit down and watch that part of the movie since there are little to no reference pictures on the interwebz.  I suspected that it was satin but, I think I remember it being slightly see through.  If that is the case, I might fudge that as well - I'm sure peeps at the con don't want to see EVERYTHING - there are some people you wouldn't mind, but I don't think I currently fit into that category, so I'll be one of those rare con-goers that tries to dress appropriately to body type.  I'll post more when I get to that stage.


I've started drafting the skirt and so far so good, no huge snafus.  On the other hand it's just a giant rectangle of fabric, how hard could it be (famous last words I'm sure, why do I tempt the universe in such a way?)  Stay tuned for pictures, updates, and tears!

Tuesday, May 15, 2012

Welcome To Hell.

Probably right off, some of you are wondering why it's called Bunny's Cosplay Hell rather than something like Bunny's Cosplay Paradise or Bunny's Cosplay Heaven, or any number of romanticized afterlife(s).  If you're asking I'd wonder how long you had been in the circuit...or how did you get to be so incredibly lucky that all of your cosplay endeavors have left you basking in the ethereal light of getting it right the first time instead of slamming your head against the desk wondering if the blunt force trauma will kill you before you drown in the pool of your tears and shame.

Okay, so that's probably a little over dramatic...and it probably leaves you wondering why the hell someone does something like this in the first place (and  if I even have enough braincells left to complete any sort of task related to cosplay).  It's another reason it's my personal hell. I'm constantly tempted by such bright, beautiful characters who have such AMAZING clothes that I simply MUST re-create.  I then spend all my free time and money diving into the new project, it consumes me, I think about it constantly, I doodle pictures of it while I'm supposed to be paying attention to my drafting teacher, and then everything goes all wrong and I spend an hour crying in the shower while eating increasingly soggy cake,

And then suddenly, a light comes through!  I have somehow managed to crap out another socially acceptable costume.  I think "I'll never do that again"...then another character is introduced to me and the cycle inevitably starts all over again.

But, you know what, somehow through it all, I love it!  This is my baby and I willing to share it with you.  You will find success stories here but, probably more often than not, I'm going to be real with you - you'll get to see all my mistakes, all the things that I did wrong, and probably more than one picture of me drowning in a sea of sorrow and shame...it could be very entertaining for you, and possibly educational.  I think I learn more from people telling me what they did wrong, then what they did right.  Hopefully my slowly depreciating self worth that will erode quicker and quicker as con season approaches, will help you find a boost of confidence or a little nugget of information that will help you out of your own private hell as you construct your own costumes.

I suppose you'll want to know a little more about me and what it is I do when I'm not frantic at a sewing machine or bored out of my gourd, gluing on a zillion beads to a skirt (keep your eyes open for that one folks, it's an upcoming Babydoll from SuckerPunch project).  I thought I'd go old school and post a Character Sheet for myself a la manga books :)

Name: Bunny
Age: 26
Birthday Day: March 4
Astrological Sign: Pisces
Height: 5'6"
Weight: 145 - let's hope that changes soon!
Blood Type: Honestly, I dunno
Hobbies: Sewing, Designing, Pole Dancing, Video Games
Favorite Colors: Dusty Rose, Champagne, Chocolate
Favorite Gemstone: Pink Sapphire
Favorite Food: Popcorn and Funfetti Cake!
Least Favorite Food: Cheesecake - gross!
Favorite Beverage: Champagne, Lemon Water
Least Favorite Beverage:  Carbonated Sodas - that make my tummy hurt
Favorite School Subject: Computer Aided Fashion Design
Least Favorite School Subject: Draping
Strengths: Perseverance, Problem Solving
Weakness: Procrastinator, Easily Distracted
Physical Description: Currently, blonde hair, blue eyes, pale (all that sewing no time for the summer sun!), with a little extra fluff.

Enjoy the blog, feel free to ask questions and I will try to answer as soon as possible!