- A 16th century Venetian courtesan -
Non-SCA Costumes and Projects
updated ?
Elizabeth Swann (Pirates of the Caribbean)
Sophie Hatter (Howl's Moving Castle)
Video Game Myka (Warehouse 13)
Donnie and Alison Hendrix (Orphan Black)
Rococopunk party
I've been sewing since my mother started to teach me when we made our Halloween costumes every year. ​While I would only consider myself at an intermediate level, joining the SCA has enabled me to learn all sorts of new techniques from lots of different people. Here are some of the other projects I've worked on, from before and after joining the SCA.
Elizabeth Swann (Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl)
I was a big fan of the first Pirates of the Caribbean movie, and for some reason I decided it would be a great idea to try and make a replica of the gown she's given by her father at the beginning of the movie for the opening of the third movie in 2007. This project was only possible due to a huge amount of help from my mother.
I drew a lot of inspiration and used references from The Costumer's Guide to Movie Costumes' page and Anna Osterwald's site (now gone), the latter of which had a fabulous diagram of the stomacher embroidery that we traced onto some tear-away stabilizer to do the stomacher for my costume. We used the Simplicity 4092 pattern. The brocade fabric, if I recall correctly, was from Jo-Ann in the upholstery section, as were most of the materials (although the gold satin that went underneath the stomacher embroidery was cut from a cheap top).
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The replica medallion was from Claire's, I believe.
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Nami (One Piece)
For our first ever convention, Anime Mid-Atlantic 2007, my friends and I dressed up as the 3 primary protagonists from the beginning of the manga/anime series One Piece. I made the shirt out of an old sheet, strips of blue fabric from my mom's stash, blue satin ribbon, and a zipper up one side - which I put in upside down. Sigh.
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I got some yellow knit fabric for the skirt, some white and burgundy felt, and a yellow zipper. I had some ankle boots (black, not brown) and didn't get an orange wig for years - luckily the costume is fairly distinctive, especially when combined with my friends' costumes of Monkey D Luffy and Roronoa Zoro.
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Sophie Hatter (Howl's Moving Castle)
For our second Otakon in 2009, I decided to make a cosplay for Sophie Hatter, the protagonist of Howl's Moving Castle. I got the fabric, buttons, lace, and pattern from Jo-Ann Fabrics. The pattern was Butterick B4939 Gown C, a nightgown. I adapted the sleeves by adding cuffs, and added the elastic waist channel. In an effort to make sure it wasn't too tight, I used a size up (medium) which ended up being extremely baggy on me.
I used an apron we already had. For the hat, my mother had a few on hand, so I cut about half the brim off of one. It didn't fit on my head, so I cut a slit up the back so I could expand the crown. I cut triangular and trapezoidal shaped pieces from the bits of brim I'd cut off, and I held them in place with duct tape and staples (hey, if it works it works!). I bought some ribbon from Ben Franklin Crafts, along with some pink pom-poms. I pinned all of these materials to the hat.
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Miss Valentine (One Piece)
Otakon 2010 was my third Otakon and also the first time I attended a convention for multiple days. I don't recall how I came by the dress, it was either a hand-me-down or a thrift store find. Regardless, I thought it reminiscent of the dress worn by Miss Valentine in the manga/anime series One Piece. I got the earrings from a Claire's store - they're black with little yellow smiley faces (I think in the farthest left image below I was wearing similar earrings which are white with limes).
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I ordered the gloves, hat, and umbrella (link no longer working) on Amazon, and used blue electrical tape to make the stripes on the umbrella. The only thing I was missing were her heels - but I wouldn't want to walk around a convention all day in those anyway. I wasn't really going for an accurate cosplay so much as a readily identified "inspired by" kind of deal.
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Teacup fascinator
In 2012 my cousin had a "Mad Hatter's Tea" themed bridal shower. Everyone wore fascinators. I decided to make one actually shaped like teacup. I used a plastic ice cream bowl from Walmart as a base, and covered it with purple satin from my mother's stash. I cut the rim off of a small paper plate and covered it with the same satin. The ribbons and lace were also part of the stash. The "handle" is just a bit of wire with ribbon glued to both sides. (I believe the whole thing was glued using hot glue) The whole thing was glued to a brown satin headband, which has to be held in place with several bobby pins to keep it from sliding off my head. I'd found the dress I wore in a thrift store and it was a fantastic match.
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Art Deco Society of Virginia
In 2013, we decided at the last minute to attend the Art Deco Society of Virginia's Annual Gatsby Afternoon Picnic. We have since attended several of their picnics and their Annual Jazz Age Preservation Balls.
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Most of my clothing and jewelry for these came from thrift stores. The dress I wore to our first event was one I bought at Limited Too - yes, it still fits! The hat was my sister's, the sash and pin were my mother's, and the beads were thrifted. All the dresses I subsequently wore to picnics were thrifted, as was the gown I wore to the first ball I attended.
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At the 2015 ball I wore this gorgeous gold satin gown I got from LuckyDryGoods on Etsy. I love it so much I wore it two years in a row. Then in 2017, I wore another thrifted dress. The fashion layer is sheer and the lining only reached to mid-thigh, so I had to get some material and add panels to cover the rest. There are slits up both sides in the front. I also wore this beautiful headdress from AyaLovelyJewelry on Etsy.
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To see more photos of the ADSVA events, check out Lynn Redmile's website!
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Dragoncon 2014
At the invitation of some friends, I attended Dragoncon in 2014, and brought my partner along with me! I was most excited to attend the panels for Warehouse 13, one of my favorite shows. I thought it would be fun to try and recreate Myka's costume from the episode "Don't Hate the Player" (S3E6) for Saturday. I got to meet Joanne Kelly while wearing it and she loved it!
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I bought this corset, these boots, these hair extensions, and a white face paint stick (link broken) from Amazon. I ordered this cloak in red and these arm guards from Ebay (I have to take them in a bit as they were too loose). I got this crossbow toy from English Heritage. I found the black jeans at a retail store and the belt was thrifted. I got some faux leather and buckles to add the halter straps to the corset from a craft store.
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Meanwhile, my partner wore a costume I'd made super fast of a priest of the Temple of Set from the movie Conan the Barbarian. I'm not super happy with how it turned out, but it did the job. I used white bed sheets, orange cotton bottomweight, and a black permanent marker to make the markings on the hood.
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On Friday, my partner and I wore our Alison and Donnie Hendrix costumes from the scene in the Orphan Black episode "Things Which Have Never Yet Been Done" (S2E9) where they're burying a dead body. I ordered these leggings, these gloves, these fake bangs, and a silver cross pendant (link broken) from Amazon. I actually found this hoodie she wears on Ebay. The fuchsia T-shirt was thrifted. My partner got these hearing protectors and this denim shirt. We got some yellow rubber gloves, and I got some red nail polish to add the "blood."
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On Sunday I wore the Belle costume my mother made for a local high school production of Beauty and the Beast. It was a little loose on me but it was so fun to have excited kids wanting to get photos with me! That day my partner wore an Incredibles T-shirt under a button down shirt to make it look like he was Mr. Incredible in everyday clothes.
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On Monday we went as Gnomeo and Juliet. I already had the bodice, blouse, and apron, all I needed was the skirt and hat. I found a red maxi skirt at a thrift store and got some red felt to make the hat. I got blue felt to make my partner a hat and vest. I used a strip of faux leather and some craft foam to make the belt and pin, and a jumbo chenille stem to make the beard.
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The Nieces of Lady Bumbleton: An English Country Ball
The Nieces of Lady Bumbleton: An English Country Ball was a Regency-themed blend of a theatrical performance and a historical ball on June 12, 2015. We had only a week or two's notice before, so there were some major issues with my gown that I didn't have time to fix. I ordered the Butterick B6074 pattern, which was less than ideal. I started drafting a pair of stays using this tutorial, but didn't end up finishing them. I got a sheer dotted fabric and a silky fabric from Jo-Ann, along with some gimp braid trim and some buttons.
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I made the button placket too wide. I used the sewing machine buttonhole stitch to do the buttonholes. The sleeves are set wrong - you can see how they're oriented too far to the front the way they ride up. I had to do pintucks in the front to get the neckline to lay right, since the pattern tells you to finish it before you even know how it's going to lay. The widths of the waistband and sleeve cuffs are all over the place. So overall I am not very happy with how this one turned out. Whether or not I will eventually go back and try to fix things remains to be seen.
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You can sorta see in the photos how I tried to do my hair like Lizzie Bennet's in the 2005 Pride and Prejudice movie using those pearl spiral hair twist thingies, but it didn't work so great. I also tried curling my hair a bit in the back, but sadly my hair is staunchly resistant to any attempts at texture.
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Lucy Wells (Harlots)
Many members of the KWC watch Harlots, a TV series about sex workers in 18th century London. There is a particularly memorable scene involving Lucy Wells, one of the protagonists, walking around in her chemise and stays. For Halloween 2018, I decided I wanted to try and do this outfit. I had purchased a set of gold 16th century stays which would have worked well enough, except that they apparently disappeared off the face of the earth. So as a last minute replacement I got this corset from Amazon and removed the lace. I also got these stockings. Teal grosgrain ribbon was unfortunately the closest I could get to the ribbons on the show, which I think were silk taffeta.
I made the chemise out of an old bed sheet (the neckline was too big, as usual), and used some gold satin ribbon from my mother's stash as the garters, which had to be pinned in place to keep them from falling down. Lastly I bought this curly drawstring ponytail from Sally's. I used the ponytail over a mesh bun donut, with my hair pulled over them, held in place by a bunch of side combs, bobby pins, hair elastics, and hairspray. It took over an hour and did NOT want to stay up.
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Rococopunk party
Friends of mine threw a fabulous Rococopunk themed party on April 8th, 2023 and I had a blast coming up with an outfit for it! I made this Pinterest board to plan my outfit. I decided to do as much as possible in blue, purple, and pink, which are the bi pride colors.
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Clothes: I had already purchased this pink and blue jacquard corset to wear for an SCA "period pajama" themed gathering. I got this set of purple panniers and ruffle shrug, this hot pink lace cardigan, this purple tulle overskirt, these hot pink "pettipants" bloomers, and these blue stockings. I also already had the garter belt.
The panniers come with ribbons which you tie together to form the "U" shape. In order to wear the panniers with the tulle overskirt, I would have had to cut holes in the layers of tulle to pass the ribbons through. So instead, I used wire to hold them in the "U" shape, and tied the ribbons in little bows to keep them from dangling.
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Hairpiece: originally I was going to try and replicate the kind of artistic hairpieces made with visible bird cages I saw on Pinterest, but after experimenting I decided to just use this pink bird cage as a base for a hairpiece completely covered with this curly ponytail I'd gotten for my Lucy Wells costume. My dad cut a hole in the bottom so I could set it on top of a bun. I put a black shoelace through the sides of the bird cage and tied it in the back, then bobby pinned it in place. I put the drawstring part of the ponytail over the top of the cage and arranged the curls all the way around the sides. Then I pinned the dangling curls up along my hairline.
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I used a string of costume "pearls" to make the swags, inspired by some photos I saw on Pinterest. I added the little satin ribbon rosettes for interest. I used a combination for fake flowers we had and ones I grabbed from Dollar Tree and pinned them in place with the aid of some bits of wire. Finally, I pinned a pink ostrich feather we already had on the side.
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Jewelry and accessories: I got these hot pink and blue earrings, and these "Sapphire" bracelets, and I already had the two long pearl strands and the brooch. I got this pink necklace and earring set and this blue necklace and earring set, and combined them - the necklaces were on gold cords cinched with beads when they arrived, so I attached them together and gave them a sturdier clasp. I used beaded chain from a necklace I found on clearance at JoAnn. I got this pink and white ring, this blue purple and pink ring, and this blue and white ring, and I made a couple more rings with wire, adjustable ring bases from JoAnn, and the earrings from the necklace sets. I also wore three rings I already had and carried a pink feather fan from our costume stash.
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Makeup: I got Maybelline Super Stay Matte Ink Liquid Lipstick in Romantic from Target to match my cardigan. I also got these face gems to put around my eyes.
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Shoes: I got these black heels, and these shoe buckles. I couldn't figure out how they were meant to be attached so I used wire. I also got this satin ribbon in Shocking Pink for bows, which I attached to the shoe buckles and stitched to the tops of the stockings.​
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