Special Feature: Another Elf of Mirkwood

'Sup, friends and followers! ;)

Sooooo last Sunday, I got together with my wonderful friend Karis to have a little "sewing party." She's been wanting to make a Mirkwood elf costume to wear to the midnight premiere of The Desolation of Smaug as well, (which is only 23 days away!!!! :D :D :D) and since she "says" she's not very creative, I invited her over to my place to see what we could create. (*rubs hands together* mwahahaha!! ;D)

Now, concerning the costume she's making... Karis decided she didn't really want to make any *specific* costume from the films, but rather do a "Mirkwood inspired" costume. She bought this gorgeous olive-colored suede fabric that reminds me SO much of the material used in one of Legolas' costumes, (this one) and with that, we're making a below-the-knee, long sleeved dress, with an eight-paneled split skirt. It'll end up being similar to the elven guard's uniforms.

The bottom left picture is of hers and my dress - which is, btw, completely finished except for a zipper in the back!!! :D I'll try to post another update soon concerning that. So, I just need to put in the zipper, add the grommets and lacing in the leather bodice, and then whip up a pair of armguards and Tauriel's cosplay will be officially complete!! I'm so close, I can almost taste it!! :D

PS - You can find Karis at her blog, The Meanderings of Me. Go check it out! Lots of fun stuff about horses over there. ;) And you can also follow her on Pinterest!

Tauriel Cosplay - Dress Partly Completed

Hullo all my lovely friends!

I have been quite busy as of late. But I better start from the beginning...

So, first of all, I have successfully altered the color of the leather bodice! It is now a gorgeous and pretty much perfect color, darker than the original. How did I achieve this, you might ask?

My secret weapon: black shoe polish. Shhhh... don't tell anyone... ;D But hey, it turned out great! I think it has faded some by now, as I did it almost a week ago... but I could be wrong. If it has indeed faded, that's easily fixed; I'll just touch it up a couple days before the premiere -- which is, by the way, only THIRTY FIVE DAYS AWAY!!! :D :D :D

(And also btw, has anyone checked out my snazzy little countdown over here? <<< :D)

Top right... that was my hair during this process. Like the pencil? xD

Next... do you recall the fabric I mentioned in my previous Tauriel cosplay update? That I didn't think was quite the right color? Well, after much improving the color of the bodice, (which btw now matches my boots almost perfectly!) I decided this fabric doesn't look nearly as bad against it. So, I decided to go ahead and make the dress with this fabric! So far it has turned out lovely -- but you can judge for yourself of course. ;)

Of course I couldn't be wearing it for the picture! Saving that for when it's finished... not to say I haven't tried it on yet of course! ;)

Like I said, the color isn't exactly perfect, but I still think it's very "Mirkwood," and it compliments the bodice color really well.

So, that's how it's going so far!! I'm so excited for you guys to see it all completed... but that's still a little ways to go. I need to hem the skirt, sew it to the bodice, alter the sleeves (they're too big. :p), and then put a zipper in the back. And I still need to make those alterations to the leather bodice... but anyway, I'll save that for another day. ;)

30 Day Middle-earth Challenge

Suilad, friends and followers! :)

The sweet girls over at The Splendor Falls on Castle Walls and Lianne Taimenlore are hosting a blog challenge - entitled "30 Day Middle-earth Challenge." I've been wanting to do one of these for a while, and I figure now is the perfect time to do it!

The challenge begins November 1st - yes, tomorrow! I'm planning on doing it over on Pinterest, on this board: 30 Day Middle-earth Challenge. So make sure you follow it, and watch for a new pin every day until December!

Also, anyone and everyone is welcome to join in the fun! So check out this post for all the details on how you can do it too!

I'm so excited about this! See ya'll on Pinterest... ;)

UPDATE: How silly of me - I didn't even post the questions. xD Here they are!

FINAL UPDATE: I have officially completed the challenge, and didn't miss even one day! I had SO much fun doing it. If you're reading this now, you can still do the challenge! Just choose a month, and have at it! :)

 Follow Beth P.'s board 30 Day Middle-earth Challenge on Pinterest.

Tauriel of the Mirkwood Guard Sketch

Sooooo now that I'm done with the bodice, and I still need to find fabric for the dress, production on my Tauriel Cosplay has gone on hold.

(In relation to fabric, however, I did buy 3 yards of almost perfect fabric at a thrift store - for only 3 bucks! - BUT I keep staring at it, and the color is just off. It's more teal than I want. So, the search continues. :P)

But anyway, long story short, I got bored, and decided to attempt to draw Tauriel. ;) It's modeled mostly after Weta Workshop's mini-statue of her, with just a couple changes. I made it over the course of a couple days, drawing the majority of it one night, then adding to it the next few days.

So anyway, here she is. Hope you like it! ;)

Tauriel Cosplay - Bodice Complete! (Mostly)

Hullo peeps!

It's been wayyyy too long, I know, I know. I don't really have an excuse, except that I wasn't feeling motivated to work on le Tauriel costume... xD

So, here's the story. ;)

The leather bodice has been at a state of half-finished-ness for the past several weeks. The only work done on it in those weeks was about 2 weeks ago, when I sewed the back sections on. But I just left it at that.

The days ticked by... until... last night.

It's about 8 o'clock, and I've got nothing of real importance to do. So, I'm like, mkay. I need to just sit down and finish this thing. My reasoning: I've only got a month and a half until the Desolation of Smaug premiere. (EEEEPPPPP!!!!) If I want to be done by then, I should probably finish this bodice now, before I start work on the dress. (Which I still don't have fabric for.. :p)

So, here's the result of last night's work. :D

It looks kinda bad in the pictures, but I promise it looks much much much better in reality. :D

The only things left to do on it are the grommets for the lacing in the back! Oh, and I'm gonna make the sleeves just a bit shorter/thinner, and the neckline lower as well, I think. But I'll make those adjustments after I make the dress, so I can see what looks right.

So yeah! See ya'll on the flip side! (or until my next post. ;)

Tauriel Cosplay - Leather Bodice Progress!

Hey friends and followers!

So, as I said in my last post, some fun stuff has been happening lately in relation to my Tauriel cosplay. About a week ago, I received the faux leather vinyl for the leather bodice/armor, and I've been doing some work on it! :D

The leather I bought is actually upholstery-grade, but it's turning out really well. I decided to buy that kind because it's thicker than apparel-grade leather (and cheaper :p), so it'll look more like real leather (without having to use craft foam underneath.) But let me tell you, though. It is a pain to work with... my sewing machine hates it. xD

But, like I said, it's turning out pretty well! Here's what it looks like so far:

Yes, obviously it still needs some work done to perfect it. (Oh, and btw, the actual color is closest to the top right pic.) The princess seams are a little off, it's an inch or two too long, and also a bit too large overall. I also need to figure out what I should do about the edge... "To hem, or not to hem. That is the question." ;)

So, yeah! That's what's been going on lately in my little world of cosplay. ;) I have the two back panels cut, and so just need to sew those onto the front, make the minor adjustments I mentioned previously, and then of course add the grommets and lacing in the back. I'm getting close! :D

And one more thing before I head off - DID ANYONE ELSE PRACTICALLY DIE YESTERDAY DUE TO THE NEW DESOLATION OF SMAUG TRAILER THAT RELEASED????? EEEEEPPPPPP!!! :D :D :D It was just so good. Oh. my. word. :D My very favorite-est part of the entire trailer? "Well, thief. Where are you? Come now. Don't be shy. Step into the light!"

A Lovely Hobbit Day

Hullo, friends!

As I'm sure many of you all know, Hobbit Day was yesterday, the 22nd of September. This is the birthday of Bilbo and Frodo Baggins - so I had to celebrate, right? Of course! :D

My Hobbit Day was simple - but still quite fun and very hobbit-y! ;) The celebrations centered around "good food, a warm hearth, and all the comforts of home."

So here's a little run-down of my Hobbit Day:

I read "The Hobbit" while listening to the soundtrack from the first Hobbit movie; wore my elf ears and my hobbit-hole door necklace; posted a "No admittance except on party business" sign on my door; and finished the day off by watching An Unexpected Journey with a friend!

All in all, it was a very happy Hobbit Day! What about you guys? Did anyone of you celebrate Hobbit Day? :)

PS - Some cool stuff concerning my Tauriel Cosplay has been happening around here recently... a new blog post all about it will be coming soon! :D

Tauriel Cosplay - Updates and Accessories

Ok, let me just admit it: I haven't done much work on my costume. There. I said it. Moving on! ;)

I have been rather busy with a few other things, though... Getting ready for my second dual-enrollment class that starts tomorrow... and slowly but surely starting all the other subjects. (I'm homeschooled, if you haven't guessed by now, so that's how why my school schedule sounds so odd...lol!)

But, don't worry - I won't be *nearly* busy enough to forget about this blog and my latest adventure! :D

So, just yesterday, I started working on a PVC pipe bow using this tutorial, which is specifically for re-creating Tauriel's bow! I'm really excited about making it and how it will turn out. :D However, this project has gone on hold for a little while as my helper (my dad!) will be working for the next couple days. But, hopefully, the bow will be done soon! :)

A few other items regarding my Tauriel costume that will (hopefully!) happen over the next couple of weeks:

I plan on ordering some gorgeous faux leather that is a *perfect* match to the boots I purchased several months ago for the costume... (pictured above - aren't they just superb? :D)

Another thing that will (most likely) happen is a shopping excursion for the fabric to make the dress portion of the costume.

And one last thing: to the left is the finishing touch to my Tauriel cosplay - elf ears! :D

My Trailer for The Desolation of Smaug

Perhaps some of you guys are curious about what I was up to for the last weeks of my vacation. Well, I can show you! :D Actually, though, I didn't work on this the whole time. I made it over about three days. But regardless... ;)

So, basically, what you're watching is a fan-edited version (by yours truly! ;D) of "The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug" trailer. The background music is the official DoS trailer music that Audio Machine composed, and the clips used are selections from the "Desolation of Smaug" trailer, the first and second "An Unexpected Journey" trailers, and from the movie, "An Unexpected Journey."

Alright, enough talking, right? Here's my version of the Desolation of Smaug trailer! I hope ya'll enjoy it!! :D

Tauriel Cosplay - Dress Mock-Up #2

Well lookee here, I got Tauriel's dress mock-up fixed! Not that you ever thought it wouldn't happen, right? Of course not. ;)

So, this one turned out *much* better than the first mock-up. Of course, there's still a couple little things I would need to do to perfect it, I'd say it's close enough... :)

The majority of the dress is just pinned together, but I ended up running out of pins so I had to hand-sew the sleeves... which wasn't exactly fun. :p Needless to say, I appreciate my sewing machine (which I unfortunately couldn't fit in my suitcase.. xD) much more after that... ;)

Not sure if you can tell very well from the pictures, but I did end up making those alterations I mentioned in my post about the first mock-up: the taller collar (hehe rhyming.. :D), different bodice seams, and then of course the added sleeves. These changes really made the dress look a whole lot better. I am *much* happier with this version! :)

And of course I couldn't help trying the mock-up on with the leather armor/bodice mock-up... ;) With the right fabrics, I'm thinkin this'll turn out pretty cool... :D

There's really nothing else I can do on this costume until I get the real fabrics... so that's the next thing on my to-do list! Hopefully it won't be too long before that happens. :) Oh! and when I get home, I'll post some pics of the epic boots I got for the costume about a month ago. They are *perfect.* :D

Until then! :)

Tauriel Cosplay - Leather Bodice Mock-Up

Tadaaa!! Let me just say, this mock-up turned out 100% better than the dress mock-up I did a couple days ago - this is, of course, due to the fact that I spent a whole lot more time on this one, but regardless, here it is. :D (click image for larger view)

I'm seriously getting really excited about this costume. If all goes as planned, I think this thing is gonna turn out pretty epic... :D But anyway, back to the mock-up!

So, this bodice/armor/whatever-you-want-to-call-it took me about 2 days to complete (obviously I didn't spend all my time working on it, but you get the idea). As I'm currently on vacation and don't have a sewing machine, it's only pinned. Hopefully when I'm back home I'll get around to sewing it... but no promises. ;)

As you can probably tell, it's made of denim, as I figured this would mimic the leather that I will be using for the real bodice better than the thinner fabric I had on hand.

The front is made of 8 separate panels, 4 on each side. The two in the front form princess seams. As a side note, I seriously adore the shape of this... it really is very flattering. No wonder Tauriel wanted to wear it. ;)

Anyway... For the real version, I'll put a corset in the back. I've got a fairly good amount of experience with grommets, as I had to put in alot for an Arwen (fromr Lord of the Rings) dress I made last year... (maybe one day I'll take the time to upload my journal entries for that adventure. Buuuuut not today... ;) I'm not really looking forward to getting acquainted with grommets again, but they look so awesome that it'll definitely be worth it. ;)

Another thing that I'm leaving for when I make the real version is the two little extra panels at the top of the neckline. Not even sure if I'll end up adding those, but we shall see. :)

Tauriel Cosplay - Dress Mock-Up

SOOOO my first draft of the mock-up for Tauriel's dress is COMPLETE. Take a look:

Ok, so, as you can see, this is obviously a very rough draft. Like... VERY rough. I was even too lazy to make sleeves. O.o See, I was really feeling the urge to get something done on this costume, but today I was kind of short on time. As you can see, I ended up doing it anyway. ;)

There's a couple things I plan on changing with the new mock-up:

First, I found a new way to pattern the bodice portion, so that I can get the collar like Tauriel's, which stands up and looks quite nice. Second, I'm going to have a seam between this new bodice piece (and also the back) and the skirt. That sounds kind of confusing...but don't worry, I'll show you what I mean soon. :D

Tauriel Cosplay - Dress Design

This elven princess has been rather busy as of late, so work on my latest adventure (making a costume inspired by The Hobbit movie trilogy's Tauriel) has been slow. Actually, it's been non-existent - hah!

But never fear, I haven't been completely idle in the past month since my decision to make this costume!

Obviously, you can't just jump into the creation of a new cosplay. Well, I can't anyway. ;) Thus, I've been doing alot of research on patterns and fabrics lately.

Research - complete. Yay!

Next thing I needed to do was create an artistic rendition of just exactly what I was planning on making. This always helps me collect my thoughts and get ideas for patterning.

Speaking of patterning, I've decided to free-hand this entire costume. Yup - this girl is sayin' adios to expensive patterns! Oh yeah! :D This will be my first time sewing something without a pattern, so I'm pretty excited - and scared. But that's besides the point. ;)

SO obviously now I've got even more reason to draw out just exactly what I plan on doing on paper - or rather, in this case, computer...

So without further ado, here is my virtual mock-up of the dress portion of Tauriel's costume. Hopefully this will become a reality soon! :D