Cosplay time! Cosplay time! Time to talk about Cosplay!

Well hello there!  It's that time of year again - Con Season!  Not that it isn't always Con Season because there are Cons all the time, big and small, and such . . . BUT I am now working on my cosplays hardcore, all day, err day!  So here is a an update on the one with the most progress.

I actually had to change my plans up because my close friends are pregnant (we were doing a group thing, but she said she won't be comfortable doing it any more because of the wee baby).  So I decided to cosplay she who is, arguably, one of my favorite characters of all time: Harley Quinn.  Now I love all of her costumes, but when I was a kid watching Batman The Animated Series for the first time . . . I just loved how whimsical she was.  Yes I know she is a homicidal maniac and loves a homicidal maniac and is just all around insane, but I found her antics so goofy.  With this in mind I decided I didn't want to do one of her more sexy outfits, but I didn't really feel like doing her harlequin jester outfit . . .  I had always wanted to do a hoodie for her, but, being inadequately skilled in fashion sketching, I could never get a full physical visualization of what I saw in my head.  This really annoyed me because as a cosplayer I come up with stuff in my head all the time, but for some odd reason I was just stuck with her.  After hunting around for a bit . . .

Source HERE.  And my sincerest admiration to the artist, Helen Chen.

This is almost exactly what I was seeing in my head.  Suspenders are amazing, the ears/horns on the hoodie are not outlandishly large or small, just a hint of sexy, the whimsy is there . . .   There are some minor adjustments to be made such as the mallet, the gloves, maybe a shirt underneath the hoodie, but . . . I'm just so happy.  So have some progress pics!

The pants!  I took two sets of jeans and ripped them to pieces.

So much thread!  Hand for scale.

The headpiece.  As you can see, it still needs to be attached and needs white on the ends.

Attempting to make a pattern for the neck frill (?) when this happened . . .  Kind of creepy . . .

Finally got that figured out :-)

Thus far!

The only thing I have really had a problem with at this point is the jeans.  I got them too big so I would have room to adjust the sizing, but I am having issue with the crotch area . . . It is not too long at all, but too baggy - it looks like I've got some random skin flap from my belly button down.  I attempted to fix that and it looks good, but there were some flaws in the fix that are bugging me.  Everything else seems to be going swimmingly . . .  Now for that mallet . . .

Geek Girl Con 2014

Hello everyone!  So I went to my first GeekGirlCon over the weekend and had quite the blast so I thought I would give a big ol' shout out :-)

I decided not to cosplay this time around (actually had a meeting at the con and wasn't sure so . . .), but I present you with a Harley Quinn "Bound":

At first I wasn't sure about doing Bounds, but it seemed to be well accepted - I had a few people approach me for a photo!  So heads up to all my cosplayers, wannabe-but-too-nervous-cosplayers, budget cosplayers, or, really, just whoever, Bounds work and are fun!  I even found something to add to my Bound while wandering the Con.  Check these out:

(Photo is courtesy of Espionage Cosmetics!)

These are nail wraps.  You put them on your nails rounded part pressed flush to your cuticles, trim them and voila you have this:

(Photo is courtesy of Espionage Cosmetics!)

These beautiful babies are all products of Espionage Cosmetics.  They sell many nail wraps, all themed from Legos, to superhero masks, to just straight colors.  They also sell lip serums and eye shadow, including single colors and collections like the Borderlands 2 Collection and the Gamer Girl Special Edition.  Awesome Fact:  Many of their eye shadows can be mixed with their lip serums to create beautiful lip glosses.  AND the lip serums smell delicious - I was almost tempted to eat some (no, I don't recommend or encourage the eating of lip gloss!).  Check out more of these awesome products here!

Espionage Cosmetics

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Continuing forth, I typically don't go to panels at Con's (I prefer to wander and meet people and talk shop), but I went to a panel!  I sat in on the Cosplaying While Fat panel and was very pleased at the information I received.  Here are some helpful links :


 - Atomic Cosmetics - PLEASE NOTE: The site has a different name than the name of the product(s)! Now during the panel one of the speakers made a point I hadn't thought of: if you want to know how to do amazing make-up look to Drag-Queens!  Think about it, have you ever seen a professional Drag-Queen with bad makeup?  And they usually do it themselves!  I was then directed to Atomic Cosmetics and their foundations.  I think it may be a specific product (I am not sure, but I think it is the Spackle?), but I recall the speaker said you can put it on underneath your regular foundation (or theirs!) giving you a flawless finish and it WOULD NOT come off until you wash it off.  Sorry for my uncertainty - I made the mistake of not bringing a notebook!  Anyways, Atomic Cosmetics is a local company so check them out in person or in the link!

 - We Love Colors - OMGosh!  Tights and leggings and thigh highs!  In a ridiculous amount of colors!  And plus sizes!  I don't know about you all, but I have the thick thighs.  Most tights/leggings products that are supposed to be built for a woman at my weight DO NOT fit me AT ALL.  My thighs are always too big and end up ripping the product or being dug into :-(  This glorious site gives me options for this!  And the best part, they don't charge more for the bigger sizes.  The Cosplay, and just in general Clothing, Gods smile upon this site.  Check it!

 - Bandalettes - Prevents chafing.  Nuf said.

 - Sock Dreams - Glorious socks.  I love knee high socks.  That being said, they typically don't fit me right and cut off my circulation.  This site provides socks in bigger sizes :-)  The prices range, but they don't appear to charge much, if at all, more for larger sizes.  Yay!

Overall, I'd say the panel was very successful, I mean I got a bunch of information to use and share so hooray for these speakers!

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So I met awesome people, found useful information, and enjoyed myself.  This equals a successful con in my book!  If you'd like more information on this Con then please check them out here!

GeekGirlCon

Did anyone else go to GeekGirlCon this year?  GIVE ME YOUR STORIES!  O and enjoy this photo of me and my SO on our 3DS's

(Photo courtesy of Michael Smith)

Look at that Figure!

*WARNING* I was feeling particularly thoughtful today :-)

Hello everybody; I have things to comment on!

Today's topic, FIGURES/STATUES!  While I certainly don't want my writings to have a "Look at me and my stuff!" kind of tone, I was looking around my humble abode and realized I have a lot of figurines and statues.  I've got POP! figures, character statues, busts, pearler bead art, Legos, Buddhas, and some other random little things here and there.  All these things got me thinking about quite a few other things.

First, it got me thinking about collections.  Everybody has something they collect, right?  Coins, trains, stamps, video games, TV shows on DVD - it seems that if it exists then someone collects it.  Why?  I think they make us feel good, not just the "Hey everybody check out my collection!", but the "I like these things; they make me happy.  They should make you happy!  Be happy with me . . . NOW!"

And second, it got me thinking about the portrayal of the sexes.  Both sexes are present in the media we geeks love (obviously), but the variation in their physical appearance is very marked.  For example(s) I have a lovely Bombshell Harley Quinn statue and a POP! Harley.  Harley Quinn made her debut appearance in the Batman Universe wearing a not-revealing-whatsoever, though definitely skin tight, jester outfit.  The Bombshell version of herself (which I ABSOLUTELY LOVE!) involves a bra, daisy-dukes, knee highs, and a bomber jacket - everything is on display.  See photos below (of statues) for comparison.

                    

And then I have a Joker figure who, for some reason, has DEFINED muscles!  I don't know about you all, but originally Joker seemed like a . . . hmm, well, he wasn't a hand-to-hand combat type fellow.  He was more of a "I will blow you up and if you somehow survive I will use tricks and if that fails then RUN AWAY!"  How in the world did he end up with bulging, albeit small, thighs?!  I would provide a photo, but I don't think the details would be that visible . . .

And, last one, I have a bust (thighs up?) statue of Storm.  The statue itself is beautiful though a bit strange anatomically speaking.  Her stomach comes in under her rib case, gaunt looking, but then she has some of the fullest hippest I've ever seen.  In the original X-men comic series storm was very curvaceous, I mean seriously, look at this.  I see a bit of a tummy, not a size nothing waist, and  . . . well, yeah.

So, what am I getting at here?  Well clearly everyone likes to look at the aesthetically pleasing and clearly our characters have changed just as the definition of "aesthetically pleasing" has changed.  It's a sign of the times I suppose.  The definitions of femininity and masculinity, beauty, fashion, and a whole bunch of other ideas are constantly changing.  Naturally, comics and video games would change too, but it still interesting to see the changes clear as day.  This isn't really good or bad, but certainly a point of conversation.  Go forth and converse, go go go.

So that is my bit for the day.

Oh and have some Taskmaster because he's my man's favorite.  Look at those thighs, LOOK AT THEM!

Harlequin (you'll understand if you read ;-) )

So how many people here know this photo?

This is Mad Love by the talented Alex Ross and it is probably my most favorite piece of comic art ever.  As for the subjects of the piece, well I have a fixation with this particular couple.  For those of you who don't know, the woman is the most insane Harley Quinn (aka Dr. Harleen Quinzel) and the man is the most notorious Joker from DC's Batman.  Ms Quinn made her debut in the Batman world not in comics but in Batman: The Animated Series.  She was supposed to treat the Joker while he was in Arkham Asylum, but somehow ended up hopelessly in love with the man.  Nowadays, she follows Joker most devotedly, willing to do pretty much anything to win his favor.

Harley Quinn has made quite the mark in the Batman universe.  She has been in multiple installations of Batman cartoons and comics, makes guest appearances in other comics, has a few standalone comics, has her own comics, makes appearances in the amazing Batman video game series, and has a steadily growing fan base.

I'm not sure what it is about her.  On one hand, I think it's a bit "meh" that a strong female villain character is so easily controlled by a male character.  However, while she is fully devoted to Joker, she doesn't need him to do most of the crazy stuff she does.  From what I've seen Harley Quinn  is more than capable of going after Batman on her own steam.  Heck, she gets mad at Joker every so often and that's when she comes up with some of her best plots!

Anybody else have any thoughts on this character?

Oh and have some photos:

Wanna ask them to put the hammer down?  Bad joke, couldn't resist :-)

NOTE:  All figures and art belongs to their respective creators.  Batman, Harley Quinn, The Joker, and any related characters all belong to DC because they are amazing :-)

Oh and BIGGER NOTE: GO SEAHAWKS!!!!