For the past hour or so I’ve been scouring Flickr for pictures for my next costume. It’s not going to be Zatanna Zatara, like I’ve mused upon, or even slave Leia, or even Hawkgirl like Baby Jack (the Jack Sparrow that looks about 12 years old) suggested. I don’t think I’ve ever mentioned what it was on here, though I have told a few people on the boulevard about it. I sort of pushed it aside, but after showing my sister a trailer for a certain upcoming big film, it’s on the front burner again. The release date is a lot closer than I expected, and I need to get cracking! It’s also got a bit too much PVC to really be a summer costume, even though it is pretty skimpy.
Anyway, while I don’t have a movie to watch, bootleg or otherwise yet (still too early), no screengrabs either, I do have some high quality promotional stills and shots to sketch off of, and I think I can do this. I think I have all the details drawn out, with little scribbles next to them that I’ll hopefully be able to decipher in a month. What’s more, I could sew it all up myself if I had to. And I probably will . . . as long as I can find yellow PVC lying around. Think it’ll work?
Catwoman and I were debating going to work today, but it’s been raining off and on, and just an ugly, stay at home sort of day in general. Which is good, I needed some time to finish up things. I cleaned both my yellow and white boots, re-blacked the bat logo, and further took in my Batgirl costume so she looks even better. And curvier. 🙂 Plus, I had the time to put on some Nouvelle Vague and draw for a few hours, which hasn’t happened in years. I’d say it’s a pretty good day, even if I didn’t make any money off of it.
Ugh, Old Boyfriend just called again. And he didn’t leave a message, thankfully. Maybe he’s getting a clue. I just hate having That Conversation over the phone, you know?
P.S. If you’d like to know what this new Mystery Costume is going to be before the unveiling, speak up! I can’t read your minds . . . yet.
Tags: Baby Jack, costumes, fangirl, geek, Hawkgirl, Mystery Costume, nerd, Old Boyfriend, Princess Leia, sketches, Slave Leia, Zatanna Zatara
In an attempt to have something fresh up every day — or nearly, I’d like to have some life — I’m going to start sharing more behind the scenes. More costume building, more headaches, more desperate searches for supplies, more obsessive film watching and detail picking. More craziness. It’s only fair I give you the full scope of the mania of boulevard life.
Anyway, today I resolved once and for all to never get another store bought costume. I would like my summer costume to be Princess Leia’s slave costume:
slave Leia
I know there’s a “licensed” version out for sale, and really, I don’t know why they bother licensing those pieces of crap. I would be embarrassed to have my franchise tied in with such shoddily made, overpriced knockoffs, but maybe that’s why I’ll never mass produce my creations. Anyway, I was thinking that I might do my now usual routine of buying the one time use costume, wearing it until it literally falls off of me, and then making a better version. But why do I do this? It’s such a waste of money. I went to a nearby Halloween box store to try on the slave Leia costume:
the knockoff
And that’s when I found out they don’t have dressing rooms. What a stupid concept. I must remember it if I ever open a store that sells clothing. The girl was nice about it, though (not that it was her fault anyway), and took me to a nearby mirror and helped me slip the bottoms over my jeans. I guess the next time I want to try on anything, I should go out wearing a leotard. Just in case. The sample set was a small, and it fit fine over my pants, which probably means I could go extra-small. Yes, hate me, I’m teeny. I just had to sort of hold the bra part over my chest to get the general idea, since the rubber bits wouldn’t lay right and the velcro in back didn’t go small enough to enclose my pretty sunken chest. Eh. I thanked the girl profusely and took off, and that’s when I made my resolution. It’s just a lot of hassle and far too much money for some piece of crap. Roughly $60 for smelly, warped rubber and two drapes of fabric to cover my arse and hoo-ha? Eh.
The only bugger is that I’m not a master of resin casting. I searched a bit online and found some people who cast and sell the resin (what looks like metal on her costume) pieces, but it’s between $200-300 for unsanded, unpainted pieces, and another $100 for the creator to do the dirty work for you. And then there’s shipping. That’s still just the resin pieces, which means I have to fabric shop and match the bra to the boots I would inevitably have to cut up, which is more money. It’s crazy. But I’m lucky and have good geek friends, and one of them set me up with a local lady that will hopefully work out great. I’d love to have a really good slave Leia costume, because I know it’d kill during the summer and be very cool to wear (though I’m going to have to buy stock in sunblock), and I just like the kink factor of having a roleplaying costume around. Guys apparently really dig that sort of thing.
Besides the money factor, I’m paranoid about not being toned enough. A friend of mine resolved to practice yoga every day, and I decided to join her. Not just for moral support, though I do that because I’m a good friend (I gave up red meat as a sign of solidarity with a friend ages ago), but also because I want to be really toned for this costume. Everything will show, even when I make a special pair of underwear so my bits are covered and I don’t get arrested, and my abs in particular could stand to be more granite in appearance. My butt, while getting the Most Improved award last year, could also stand more toning. So there’s all the work that will have to go into the slave Leia costume before I finally get around to wearing it sometime in July (since I’m aiming to spend the entire month of June in Scotland). Wish me luck!
