Hello everyone! It's Nash, Dara's husband. She's recently told me that I should start writing some posts on here, and so I shall! You'll be hearing from me more often now, especially in the next few days. In the future I'll likely be posing anywhere from updates on our Instructables page, stories I've written, projects we've been working on and anything that catches my fancy.
As of the past few weeks, I've been blogging on our main page. You can read the past few posts here. Sometimes there might be repeat posts between here and there, but I will try and keep that to a minimum.
One other thing is that sometimes you might catch me ending my posts with something amusing. Or at least something I might find interesting and wish to share. In this instance, it will involve my love of Deadpool and something amusing that went on with this year's San Diego Comic Con. We also hope to start making more costumes, of which you'll likely see future posts in that field.
Alright, last week it was all about the napkin design stage. This week we're back again, but this time with the mock-up, muslin, or fitting depending on which part of the industry you work on. Before I worked in the trades, this was a mostly absent concept, I mean math is perfect....why throw away $50-100 in fabric and hours of time double-checking fit before moving on to the real stuff? It's taken a couple years, but I've come around to the whole measure twice, cut once mentality. The end product just looks SOOOO much better. People have a lot of symmetry to them, but there are often small differences between the left and right sides simply because we tend to use one hand or foot more than the other so one side will have more muscles than the other. The average I've found is around 1/2 inch from dominant to non-dominant hand, but it varies and is a subtle difference worth taking the time to notice. Even if it does add an extra day or two of work in the process. Some things are worth it. It was especially important on this costume where the front is completely asymmetrical. Nothing in the Sparticus show is the same from left to right. A maddening....interesting....time consuming. Still, this is the kind of stuff I live for.
Nash finally had some time this past week to make a few pairs of black leather gauntlets that were so popular at AZ. We actually sold out last month which was a lot of fun. It's nice to see a particular design is well accepted. The smaller size is $18.00 while the larger size is $20.00. Hopefully I will get to see more awesome fights and theater cosplay as a result. Very fun and durable pieces.
Happy July 4th weekend everyone!
May your dreams and fireworks have fun!
After you finish doing the first mock-up or canvas, you have your first client fitting. This is important as especially with unusual body types, you will need more fittings. 3-5 fittings is typical for the industry. The most I have had to do is 12. Robyn required two canvas fittings here and she was pretty relaxed about the whole thing. You can see the first set in her hands. It generally takes 15-45 minutes for a fitting. Typically it takes me longer...I'm weird in that I like to make corrections on the fly and hand them back to the customer when drafting the master, but some clients DO NOT like to wait at all. The major advantage and reason people do this is how much better the finished look turns out. Most experienced patternmakers will bluntly refuse to make high-end garments without fittings. This is where you shave off the extra 25-30 lbs a tailored garment will take off of a ready-to-wear garment and reduce ease for a slimmer and taller look. A shirt you buy in the store will have an extra 4-6 inches to it. A tailored suit will have only 1-2, but move just as well. I'm giving Robyn the master block I created for her so perhaps we will get to see some more skirts on her in the future. I love skirts...I really think that they are something that most women could make at home provided they got a patternmaker to draft the master for them. If you notice the back, I put in side vents to flatter her waist and help her move better. Alright, next up...working in real fabrics.
Alright, I've been really good for weeks holding my excitement and joy about this project in. My favorite comic book characters growing up were Batman and Wolverine. Nash is in the process of expanding the front office with a real drafting table and tools which means I can finally do custom women's clothing, including unusual designs and body types as it gives me space to work out the math. As a result, I hope to show you more beautiful clothing as tailored clothes make people look 25-30 lbs lighter and 2-3 inches taller. My way of adding beauty to the work. For there are many more beautiful women and men in the world than our modern short-cuts recognize. So this week we are showing you a project I loved doing which was making a custom Two-Face outfit for a client who was unusually well endowed. One of the frustrating things for women with larger than average curves in modern times is it tends to make them look fat or matronly instead of beautiful. Or really trashy. Sometimes you don't want to look like a hooker or a blob, but you...a really nice version of you. And that's when you come to see me. First, I take a bunch of measurements to determine your overall bodynshape. This is still an imperfect system as posture requires tweaking as few people stand the same way, but it's always a great place to start. Then I have to draft the master block pattern. There's probably 200 different major pattern systems out there, they all get you through the basics which includes a technical sketch, measurements, rulers, and drawings. You can also drape the piece, but I normally start with the flat pattern math and then adjust it to reality. Next you draw full scale patterns on oak paper in preparation to cutting out the first mock-up. This may also be called a canvas, blank, visual prototype, and several other names depending on what you are making. But the math is the important part.
Once you do the math, you have to translate it into fabric because paper will never be an exact match for fabric. This part is normally straight forward and involves several hours of cutting and sewing to produce a finished piece or pieces. Seam lines will often be marked on them as well as any button placements. In my case, I did not mark the buttons as I plan to put them on last at the final fitting with the client wearing the outfit as it ensure the best possible fit. You see this in higher end outfits, but larger scale operations and lower cost places the buttons are marked and assembled before the final end to save time and cost.
Just a note, block or masters will be saved in large houses and used from decade to decade. They are much easier to sew and change than home sewing patterns. That's why few industry houses ever bother with home sewing patterns. They're just too much work compared to real patterns.
This week we're giving into Nash's geeky side and working with metal. Specifically, he's welding a Super Hero helmet for Loki's wife. While we normally do sewing projects on here, it seems right with DragonCon coming up in a few weeks to do some fun projects for the blog. Many people have been asking for requests to see some design and sample work the office does. So, here ya go. The process for welding sheet metal into a helmet is similar in many ways to sewing if your needle is a spot welder. First you sketch your design. Ideally it should be a technical sketch. I am snagging Heather's picture here because she did such a good job putting this together as a starting point. My friends are awesome. Drawing abilities get you a long way in custom design work. Next, you cut a test cut in oak tag on the model to test how it looks. You can move the pieces around by holding them together with magnets before finishing any corrections. If you like how it looks to proceed to the next step, working in your real substance, in this case Nash is making his sample in steel next. This is mostly because steel is easier to weld than aluminum.
One important part of custom work is the need to make samples to test and discard for quality control. This is a large part of what drives up design cost for me is the fact that I have to go through several iterations before settling on a final design. Nash is much the same way. The whole measure twice, cut once type. It's especially important when your final material may be expense or you only get one shot to do it right. Have a great day! Next up, sheet metal.
Thanks everyone who came out to Animazement this weekend we raised over $600 for the Red Cross which was twice last year and had a really awesome time. For anyone that missed out, we plan to hold more classes next year. :-) I loved all the cool designs people made with different silk painting techniques. I am in the process of posting pictures to facebook now.
Nash and I had a booth in the dealer's room which was AWESOME! Thanks so much everyone who came out and saw us. It was a first and you all made it special. We loved seeing you. Can't wait for next year. While Nash manned the booth, I got to do something rare for me which was kick back and relax going to different panels and guest speakers. It's so nice to see the enthusiasm for sewing at these events and the general fearlessness people approach the craft. A small time to stop and dork out.
My two favorite speakers were of course different master category designers: Jennifer Barclay and Catherine Jones. Both people create costume and custom designs, but from very different perspectives. One thing I like about large events is how you get to see people from different walks of life. As a designer, there's an almost infinite possibility for creation and it's fun to see what other people create for themselves. Because people are interesting and unique. After teaching a lot of art and sewing classes, I've really come to believe that everyone has their own flavor or perspective worth hearing to bring to the table. Ironically, both these ladies are out of Atlanta, GA.
First, Jennifer Barclay who runs the website Idle Ambition. She is a master class cosplayer who besides being quite beautiful, also enjoys the esoteric and rare. The more difficult the costume, the weirder the materials used, the better. This is probably fair as Jennifer works for a modern sleek ad agency called Moxie Pulse. Both of them like unconventional answers. You can tool around the company site if you like. My favorite is the blog which crunches great every day information and spits it out. Very cutting edge, very interesting, very trend following. Her Saturday panel I attended was called "Costumes from Start to Finish" where she reviewed a beautiful Tali costume she had done from Mass Effects. It was pretty educational in terms of looking at flawlessly matching the appearance on paper to a final product. I tend to worry about the guts first and the outside last so it's good to meet designers who remind us to work in the opposite direction. Cosplay is also disposable fashion so there's not the expectations that it will last 20-60 years of my typical customer. I look forward to seeing what else she creates and maybe attending more of her panels in the future. She had this really great piping down the front of her costume that I was tempted to go up and touch to see how she did it as it looked so clean, but I refrained myself admirably. I love touching fabric and clothing to see how it's constructed and always have to do a quick reminder not to offend the person wearing their fabulous creation. Overall, very clean designs, very interesting product, wonderful talk. My other favorite speaker was Catherine Jones who runs a small custom cosplay shop called God Save The Queen Fashion in Atlanta, Georgia. She's a fearless patternmaker who I loved seeing her process and talked both about patternmaking in general and specifically leather making. Favorite speaker overall because we all know I'm a sucker for patternmakers. The piece work on her jacket construction was FLAWLESS in LEATHER. Talk about glutton for punishment. A lot of the basic building blocks of pattern drafting are the same, each designer adds their own flavor to the mix. She did some great math on the fly in both panels I attended which was very respectable. There was incredible substance to Catherine's designs and pattern construction. I've seen masters with 20 years experience in the industry who have sloppier lines and less attention to detail than she did. Very detail oriented. In the good way. I think she's late 20s, early 30s so I look forward to seeing her evolve and grow into her style now. I'll reserve the whole "master" title for when she's 20 years in, not because I think most people wouldn't give it to her, but because I look forward to seeing how high she'll fly. The great thing about designers is they get better with age. She's made so many costumes, I had a hard time figuring out how to show off her talents so I'm linking you to her flickr. The best part about all her stuff is how much better it looks in person and she takes unusual body types. Both irregular and plus-sized. In an industry that ignores 3/4 of it's population for being irregular, her perspective was a breath of fresh air. I look forward to seeing what else she creates. What lovely, lovely pieces of art and women.
Thank you ladies! And to everyone who came out and supported us! Thank you too! Have a great Memorial Weekend!
Wow, can not believe we are a week out from Animazement! So exciting! I will be guest speaking Friday and Saturday in the Artist Section from 1 to 3 pm on making plushie animals and handpainting silk to raise money for the Red Cross. You are welcome to come drop by. We look forward to seeing you. It's been a wild few weeks getting ready for this complete with a custom silk kimono catching on fire. You can also find us in the dealer's room. Nash, Dejah, Paul, and myself will all be there. Can't wait to show you what we've been dreaming up this coming week.
May 25th
Plushie Animal Workshop (1 pm)- Come make a handmade one-of-a-kind plushie animal. We will be making zombie mice, you can also make a fox, teddy bear, and other creations as well. No sewing skills necessary. Learn how to make great gifts for someone you love in your life. Recommended donation is $10 per kit. You can also purchase them at the desk. 100% of the proceeds go directly to charity. Japanese Silk Painting (2pm)- Come learn traditional handmade silk painting as well as a new favorite stone block printing. We will have white silk handkerchiefs on hand for people to practice with a variety of tools. A lot of fun and a great way to make fast and easy custom looks. Recommended donation is $10 per kit. 100% of the proceeds go directly to charity.
May 26th
Plushie Animal Workshop (1 pm)-
Come make a handmade one-of-a-kind plushie animal. We will be making
zombie mice, you can also make a fox, teddy bear, and other creations as
well. No sewing skills necessary. Learn how to make great gifts for
someone you love in your life. Recommended donation is $10 per kit. You
can also purchase them at the desk. 100% of the proceeds go directly to
charity. Japanese Silk Painting (2pm)- Come learn traditional handmade silk painting as well as a new favorite
stone block printing. We will have white silk handkerchiefs on hand for
people to practice with a variety of tools. A lot of fun and a great
way to make fast and easy custom looks. Recommended donation is $10 per kit. 100% of the proceeds go directly to charity.
To celebrate Animazement this year, we have partnered with a local electronics expert to produce fun moving ears for your cosplay needs. Best of all, we made several improvements including the fact that ears are interchangeable so you can be 10 different characters as necessary. A sexy fox one day and a daring wolf the next. The base form with black ears is $60 with free shipping. You can order additional ears sets for $10 each.
You can also pick up your ears at con if you are worried about them arriving to your house in time. Each set is handmade and individually crafted here in our studio in Raleigh.You can watch Kelly playing with her new black cat set on left. We have more videos on youtube. We also have dog ears up. Pretty cool day in my book.
This week I'm pouring through our photos from the shoot to release our new collection: "Lunch Escape." While I do that, I invite you to have fun with me as I catch up on recapping some other projects. Today we're going to be super quiet and visit the museum. As some of you guys may know, Nash has landed his dream volunteer job downtown going through the State's archives. I'm thrilled for him and it deserves a super-shiny pair of white cotton reading gloves as they don't really make white gloves for guy's hands his size that I can find. I see lots of cool weapons and theater costumes in our future.
If you want to make your own, you can do it in an evening with thread and a needle. You just need: fabric scraps, needle, scissors, button thread, and paper.
1. Trace your hand and cut out the master pattern. (See above.)
2. Trace your pattern on fabric with a 1/2 inch seam allowance.
3. Pin and cut your gloves out.
4. Sew together with a basic whip stitch.
5. Turn inside out and voila you're done.
I've put more detailed instructions on Instructables if you would like to check them out.
