#fullmetal alchemist tutorial

For your convenience, here is a list of links for all pieces of the Edward Elric Cosplay tutorial.

Black Coat: https://capriciouscosplayerposts.tumblr.com/post/163731002904/edward-elric-cosplay-part-1

Red Coat:  https://capriciouscosplayerposts.tumblr.com/post/163948619924/edward-elric-cosplay-part-2

Hand: https://capriciouscosplayerposts.tumblr.com/post/164384119459/edward-elric-cosplay-part-3

Part two of my Edward Elric cosplay, here I will be covering how to make Edward’s signature red coat.

  I couldn’t find any simpler way to do this that would fit my needs so I used a pattern that has been circulating the internet. The only problem: it is in French, and I can’t speak French.

I used a picture of a pattern, a grid to put over the picture, pattern paper/a really large sheet of paper, a ruler, and mathematics. I put the pattern I was using on a grid for the purpose of scaling into life size.

You can do this with any pattern you find online if it is drawn to scale.

You are probably thinking, “But how do I know how what size to cut the fabric?” This is when we use the paper, ruler, and mathematics. Measure from your shoulder to how far the coat will go down. This will be divided by 14 (the number of squares) and will tell us how big each square is. Let’s say that my measurement is 42 inches. That means that each square is 3 inches by 3 inches. We can get the size of the pattern and it will fit you. Draw out the pattern on your pattern paper or large piece of paper to scale. Add half an inch for seam allowance. Pin your pattern to your fabric; I used a lightweight red cotton. If decide to wear it more often or do strenuous activities in it, go with a more durable/heavy duty fabric. Cut out your fabric and follow these instructions which I roughly translated into English.

The Original

assemblez les 2 panneaux du dos. Repassez bien couture ouverte. Faites un ourlet en bas de la veste

Faites un ourlet sur le bas vos manches. Assemblez les devants de votro veste et coudre les manches.

Faites un ourlet sur l'ouverture de capuche. Assemblez la capuche à la veste. Coudre les 2 boutons dorés de chaque a coe.

Pour faire le logo dans le dos vous avez plusieurs posbilities. Peindre le logo en noir sur votre tissu avec de la peinture acrylique ou de la. Peinture pour tissu. Imprimer le logo sur du papier transfert et le repasser sur votre veste. découper le logo dans de la feutrine et le coller sur la veste

In English

  Pin and sew the 2 back panels and iron well open seam. Make a bottom hem on the jacket, make a hem on the cuffs your sleeves.

Pin and sew the front panels and back panels of the jacket and then sew the sleeve.

Make a hem on opening hood. Pin and sew the hood onto the jacket. Sew 2 gold buttons on each side.

To make the logo on the back you have several possibilities: paint the black logo on your fabric with acrylic paint or fabric paint, print logo on the transfer paper and iron it on your jacket, or you can cut the logo in the felt and glue it on the jacket.

I printed and cut out The Elric Crest, pinned it directly in the center of the back and traced it with a black marker. After I took off the pattern, I checked for imperfections. After I decided it looked accurate, I took out my black acrylic paint, a thin paintbrush, and some cardboard. I slid the cardboard inside the jacket (like the cardboard is wearing the jacket). I filled in the crest with the black paint and didn’t get any on the front of the jacket because the cardboard acted as a barrier.

I bought “Fullmetal Alchemist Edward Elric's Wigs Long Warm Blonde Cosplay Braid Hair Wigs” on Ebay. It was $15.98 USD (including shipping costs) and the product preview looked like this.

It required some styling and it was tangled when it came out of the bag. I simply brushed it out and re braided it. Here is a reference picture that shows his hair in detail.

This is what it looks like on a wig head. I don’t have it braided because it is easier for my storage method.

This is the inside of the wig and as you can see it is a typical cosplay wig. (not a lace front wig)

It can get rather itchy and uncomfortable after wearing it for a full day so be careful. There are some ways to make it more manageable but I haven’t had time to test them. Some ways that i have heard about are sewing lace onto the headband or soaking the whole wig in a vinegar and water solution. I can’t promise that these will work so be cautious; you don’t wanna damage your wig.

Base Clothes, Half Coat, and Coat Clasp

I cosplayed as Edward Elric at the AniMinneapolis con in 2016. Here is how I did it.

I wore a base of a black short sleeve shirt and some simple black pants. I forgot about this, but you should put a belt around your stomach like Edward does. Then it becomes a bit more complicated. I went to my local goodwill and bought a black men’s suit coat that was slightly bigger than what I would normally wear. Make sure that the coat doesn’t have a pocket on the breast. I also found some wide white fabric ribbon. I used Offray brand ribbon that was 1.5 inches wide and it worked wonderfully.

I cut the coat to make a half coat and hemmed the bottom so it won’t fray. I also hemmed the sleeves because I am rather small. I used the large white ribbon and went around the bottom edge, the collar, and over the front buttons and button holes. (cut off buttons before putting ribbon on). Iron the collar so it stands up.

To make the metal clasp that holds the collar of the jacket together, I used oven bake clay, googly eyes, gray/silver spray paint, E600 or super glue, and lingerie fasteners (similar to the ones on bras).

I put on the jacket and measured the gap between each sides of the collar. Roll out a rectangle of clay slightly larger than the gap and bend it slightly so it can reach each side of the collar. Bake according to the clay’s instructions, once it is cooled you can spray paint it. But while it is in the oven you can spray paint the googly eyes because will make them look like rivets. When all the paint is dry, you can assemble the clasp. Use the super glue to glue the googly eyes on the painted and baked clay. Also use the super glue to attach the hooks (male part) into the back of the clasp. Sew the eye (female part) onto each side of the collar on the jacket. Ta da! The clasp is done!

This part will contain instructions on how to make Edward’s Automail hand. I did not make the arm because my black half jacket (that I made in part one) covers it.

For this project you are going to need your pattern pieces, some plaster wrap, masking tape, some metallic silver spray paint, a clear top coat spray, thin craft foam, 1/4 inch black elastic, hot glue, and googly eyes. I wore a very thin black elbow length glove so you can’t see my arm underneath.

I printed the pattern out from this fabulous website, Amethyst Angel, http://amethyst-angel.com/armormaking_automail2.html .Simply just print out the pattern for the hand and finger pieces on some printer paper and cut them out according to the directions.

Making the Finger Pieces

After you cut out all of the finger pattern bits I suggest trying a couple of them on your fingers and adjust their size. After you find a size that fits, use some tape and secure them to your plaster wrap. This stuff is normally used for making masks or art pieces so it can be found at any craft store. Cut around them and make them a bit bigger than the patterns. Make sure to cut it big enough so the wings on either side fit around your finger. Plaster wrap comes in large amounts and is relatively cheap so don’t be afraid to make them a bit bigger than they need to be. I suggest you work with it and practice using it before making your final project.

This next part is gonna get pretty messy so you should put down newspaper or plastic bags down where you are working. Cover your fingers with plastic wrap and tape on your right hand so you won’t get the plaster stuck to you. Don’t worry about the plastic wrap being too bulky because your black glove should take up the extra space. This is why I didn’t use a latex glove to protect my hand. Make sure you read the instructions to using your plaster wrap. Now take the pattern pieces one at a time, working from knuckle to finger tip, and plaster wrap them onto your fingers. Smooth them out really well so the finish product will look like smooth metal. You’re going to have to work rather quickly because it dries rather fast.

Wait until they are all dried, a fan helps with this. I suggest watching some Fullmetal Alchemist/ Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood until they are dry. Wiggle off as many as you can. For the ones who won’t come off, cut a through the back and make it a little wider with more plaster wrap after it is off your finger. Be very careful and work slowly so you don’t hurt yourself.  I suggest letting these set overnight before painting them. 

The finger pieces are gonna need multiple coats of silver spray paint, so you can recycle the newspapers or plastic bags from earlier. Follow the instructions on the can and make sure you are in a well ventilated area. The first time I wore these I only did two coats of paint, and that didn’t go well. The finger pieces would rub up against each other and slowly started to come apart. Make sure to use around 3-4 coats of paint and a clear top coat. Remember to let the paint dry before adding the next coat.

The fingers pieces need to be connected to actually form a finger so I used my black elastic. It works very well because it can stretch really easily. You can move your hands around as much as you want and it makes the fingers easier to take off after a long day at a con. Put the finger pieces on where they fit comfortably on your hand. Hold up a piece of black elastic to your finger and mark out where the middle of each finger piece is. Cut the elastic so it can go down to the middle of the back of your hand.

Making the Rest of The Hand

To make the part that covers the hand and palm, I used craft foam as the base. I used the patterns from Amethyst Angel and cut out the foam. Try on the foam around your thumb and make sure it fits comfortably. Use hot glue to secure the base pieces of foam together.

This picture was taken from    http://amethyst-angel.com/armormaking_automail2.html   and is not mine

This picture was taken from    http://amethyst-angel.com/armormaking_automail2.html   and is not mine.

The way I created the knuckles is really simple. Just cut out the indents drawn in the picture and glue a large rectangle underneath. You should glue the elastic that comes down from the fingers in between the knuckle parts. The rectangle of foam inside will protect your hand from the glue and create depth in the knuckles.

I made the larger circle out of foam and glued it in place. To create the line in the middle, I used a hot glue gun with a clean tip and slowly dragged it across the surface of the foam. To replicate the two rivets, I made the the exact same way I made the rivets for the jacket clip; I spray painted googly eyes. So the hand doesn’t slide off while you are wearing it, I suggest attaching some black elastic to the side opposite your thumb. It should blend right in with your glove.