Shiny Objects

The Abhorsen’s Bells

My biggest project for Geek Girl Con this year was creating Sabriel’s iconic bells, the magical tools she uses to battle necromancers and lay the dead to rest. Since the bells are such an integral part of her character, I knew I wanted them to be both aesthetically pleasing and sturdy enough to endure lots of handling. (And unlike her sword, this was a project where I could use actual metal!)

OK, so… halp.

I need asari makeup.

I know that the stuff we used for DCon last year (that I can’t remember the name of but it was a powder that needed an activator but I’m dumb and just used water -.-) MEHRON is supposed to be goooood shit for body paint coverage.

I need blue and white, and I need recs on what kind of activator to use, as well as application.  Like… I know brushes, or sponges, but what gets me zero streaks?

Also, what kind of sealer is good? Do you apply sealer before and after? like a coat over the skin then the make up then seal that shit?

Waaaagh halp meeeeeee -.-

I don’t want this to suck and I really don’t want the blue to rub off on the costume. -.-  I’m already remaking the shirt (thank GODS the shrug and skirt are fine.)

Still gotta fix the hat though… guuuuuh

PS: This is the outfit I plan on wearing

Second: Usual disclaimer about how I’m only a keen amateur and there are folks out there who have real training & knowledge. But I’ll share my experience.

I have a group of friends who have painted themselves blue on occasion over the past 10 years. Sometimes I felt like they were purposefully trying to find excuses to not get an airbrush and do it properly ;-) So airbrushing is probably the best way to go for shading / artistry, speed and coverage; I still don't have any experience with it myself. Eventually, one of them got an airbrush and they used alcohol-based paint and they loved it but I didn’t see the process so can’t help.

Past efforts also included:

Graftobian & Ben Nye creme-based foundations: both are about the same. Clean skin, apply cream, powder (colourless / neutral-set) between layers, needs a couple layers to get coverage. Spray with sealer. (FinalSeal by Ben Nye or Green Marble’s Sealr. Green Marble’s is probably the harder working one -- it can also be layered so you could throw down a layer to begin with, but I haven’t tried that myself. Worth a shot). Powder again to finish. Great for faces but could smear off hands / necks etc.

MagiCake Aqua Paint: water-activated cakes. They couldn’t put this on hands because it smeared and washed off too easily. But they liked how it felt and went on. Pretty much same process but I’m not sure you should powder between layers (clean, test a starting layer of sealer?, paint, dry, layers, seal then powder). You can add a product called “LiquiSet” (Ben Nye) to this to make it more water- and smudge-proof.

PAX: Pros-aide (prosthethic adhesive) & liquitex acrylic paint - more info here (http://fx.wikia.com/wiki/PAX). Historically-used stage makeup (I’ve seen production-used PAX bottles leftover from Star Trek TNG :-) ) that was honestly the one that stuck on the best and gave them the best coverage. PAX is not without some controversy because the acrylic paints used might not be FDA-approved. It is also a hassle to wash off and might not give you subtle control or shading. Same process (clean, paint, powder between layers. Powder to finish. Powder is especially important because this paint sticks to itself, but you have to wait for each layer to completely dry before powdering or adding more make-up. Sealer might not be necessary).

For the most part they used sponges for application, but brushes can be faster although streaky. So maybe brush then sponge your last layer.

98% of my grad class had glitter dresses. There was glitter EVERYWHERE during rehearsals, so I went to my resident costumer for the drama department and asked what her secret was … and it’s called spray adhesive.

But not just any spray adhesive, guys, get one that’s fabric-safe and heat-activated!

Examples: Therm-o-Web, Heat’n Bond Lite Spray, 606 Spray Adhesive

Then what you’re gonna do is test a bit of the spray on a part of the dress that’s not going to be seen. When it doubt, test it out. If your fabric reacts well to the adhesive and low to medium low heat from your iron, go ahead and start with the lowest part of the dress that’s covered in glitter. Apply a thin coat of the spray, cover with a slightly damp cotton pressing cloth, and iron. 

Repeat until you can press against the dress without sparkles coming off on your hands. 

ATTENTION COSPLAYERS:

I would like to make the paint brand “Angelus” known. It is a special paint that is for leather, faux leather, rubber, and similar surfaces.

This is literally the best paint you can buy if you love a pair of shoes, but they aren’t in the right color for your character.

This stuff coats VERY well AND the coats of paint bend with your shoes. This means no cracking!!

In the photos above I took black rain boots and painted them with Angelus Turquoise. As you can see, they don’t look black any more! It’s so good!

I managed to paint two boots with a little one ounce bottle of the paint, and I still have a third of the bottle left over!

The paint dries very fast, so you can put layer on top of layer on top of layer without it streaking.

You can get the paint on Amazon and it comes in every color!

Since the Merrill bracers themselves were probably going to be out of most people’s price range, I’ve gone ahead and posted the pattern for free, because I luv u nerds.

Didn’t have time to make proper, printable scans, but it’s laid out on a 1" grid so it should be easy to figure out. The straps are riveted to the back piece and then criss-crossed such that the rivets don’t show, tacked down temporarily with contact cement and then stitched around the edges to keep everything strong & tidy.

I used 4-5 oz veg-tan leather for this, but craft foam would probably make a decent (if more delicate) substitute. The straps for the wrists I riveted on at the A3/B3 holes, and the straps for the forearms are riveted at A9/B9, then both are included in the edge stitching. The length of those straps should be arm/wrist circumference + 4".

That pattern gives you way more length than you need for the palm strap, so figure out how much overlap you want, cut off the excess, and stitch it down.

Uhh, I think that’s everything. More angles of the finished bracers here.

This one is probably my favorite from my shoot with @thejaykid7! Involved lots of cloak tossing and a pretty sunset. Yay for feeling and looking powerful!

Selling my personal Meg dress: $300 including USA shipping.

Bust 34, Waist 28, Hips 36, Height 5'4" - some size alterations possible!

Worn once for DragonCon. Hand pleated all across the top and stomach panels. Hidden zipper. Silk and pleated cotton. Very comfy, but also sexiest I’ve ever felt in a cosplay! Will include matching hair band.

Tips for my fellow cosplayers: regarding powders to seal lipstick, Ben Nye rocks and Mehron sucks.

I have been using the Ben Nye sealant pictured above to seal my lipstick for years. It’s quick to apply with a qtip, and quick to remove the excess powder with a qtip, too. It completely seals the color in, even with eating, drinking, and all day use. After 12 hours or so it can start to get a little less-than-perfect, but it lasts a long time. And it’s colorless. It’s a miracle worker when I’m cosplaying Lalondes because the black lipstick doesn’t lose its color after applying the powder. It might be barely duller, but is still a vibrant black, just comes off as more matte than shiny.

Liberty dress ca. 1912

How2Andersbag, part 2! This is for the square-ish bag he wears on his belt, which I think kinda looks like a granny purse, but it’s a useful size for carrying cellphone+wallet, and a useful technique to know because it’s so ubiquitous. I think everyone in the DA2 crew has at least one bag constructed this way, adjusting the colors/proportions as necessary.