Dragon*Con 2011 Video!

Beat Down Boogie posted their 2011 video!! And guess who made the cut!! *happy happy happy*



You may see some familiar faces. Such as 4 of the 6 ponies from my group! My friend Rob from My Wicked Armor is Garrius from Mass Effect is at :19, My pony friends are at :26 & 2:07. My Haruko is at 2:30, and my friend Melanie is Cassandra from Soul Calibur 4 at 3:33.

Although I must say, my favorite moment goes to the Buddy the Elf. (1:00) I love how in character he is :D

Dragon*Con Part 3

My Sunday of Dragon*Con was probably my favorite day overall. I had so much fun and had a lot going on that day. I started my day off as Haruko from FLCL. I was walking around and met the guys from Beat Down Boogie. They made an AMAZING video of Dragon*Con last year and they filmed my costume for their new 2011 video! I was really excited! I hope they use my footage. If your curious what Dragon*Con is like, check out their video below. It's incredibly well done. :)



Next I set off to the Star Wars costume contest. Every year I tried to enter my Jedi Barbie costume and every year it fell at the same time as somewhere else I was committed to be. When lining up I met the owner of Nocturne Armory. He was really nice and good company to keep while we waited for the contest to start. While we were waiting he gave me a pair of his handmade lightsaber earrings! (pictured below) I was so surprised! It was extremely nice of him :)


I was entered in the Star Wars Infinity division. Which means things outside of the immediate licensed Star Wars Universe. There was a Princess Leia in my category though that threw us all up for a loop. We had no idea why she was put in infinities. :\ The contest had guest judges! Youtube stars Chad Vader, the voice of Ahsoka from Clone Wars Ashley Eckstein, and Chewbacca himself Peter Mayhew. It was a good show and I had fun participating. Well.....



I placed! :D I was awarded Staff Favorite. I was sooo thrilled! I was awarded a fancy metal (haha..It's the ceremony medal from the end of A New Hope!) and a certificate. See all the winners from all the categories here. The staff that ran the event were so friendly and nice. It was a very good atmosphere. And they made the medals themselves! Hats off to the crew who ran this event, it was fantastic!

I can't believe how many people remember Jedi Barbie from the past few years I've bringing this persona. I met my biggest fan! I can't believe it either, but I have fans. It was a good feeling. That my costume can excite and brighten up someone's spirit in such a way. :)

If your curious about my saber, it's made by Alan over at Vader's Vault. He does exceptional work! I really love my saber! And check out how bright it is!


That was taken with an iPhone. It really turns red sabers a pale yellow. It's amazing! :D That's the power of PINK! Muahahaha! Read a full break down of my costume over on my cosplay.com Jedi Barbie page.

Well, later that night I met Chad Vader! He found me in my Dalek dress cause like me, he's a bigger Doctor Who fan than a Star Wars fan. I talked to him for a while and he is a really awesome guy. He even featured me in his 2011 video twice! Oh yeah!!



I had a great year at Dragon*Con. I met so many amazing people and had the best time! I can't wait to go next year. It really is my favorite time of year. And there's no con quite like Dragon*con. :D

(All borrowed images link back to their respected owners/sites.)

Dragon*Con Part 2

Dragon*Con Day 2 was full of Ponies and Photoshoots! I was really happy to be apart of this My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic group. We seriously rocked it! Special thanks goes out to Apple Jack who made everypony's costume except mine. That's some serious pony commitment. Everyone's costume was so true to their pony and this group was so fun to be apart of. And thank's to Lionel and Eurobeat King for the photos! They came out beautifully!


I'm really happy with how my Twilight Sparkle turned out. I kept a good balance between my original concept and what I could complete in time. I think the school girl look ended up being perfect. The cutie mark on her tie was a fab touch if I do say so myself. And I love how you can see my violet contacts in my solo shots :)


The icing on the cake HAS to be my Elements of Harmony book. I got so many complements on it. This is by far the most useful prop I own to date. It doubles as a purse and held all my things. I started off by hollowing out an old math book (HAH! Take that Math!) but then I found this perfectly sized decorative book box at Micheals. Gave it a couple coats of blue spray paint, and then had the Elements of Harmony printed onto a sticker to cover the book. The inside is lined with felt to protect my phone from dings. And it's held closed with 2 magnets in each corner. Voila! Perfect Pony Prop.


So who's ready for season 2 to start on Hub tomorrow night!!?! *this pony* I am so stoked! And the promo image for Twilight (above) makes her look like a bad ass. Haha...she just got 20% cooler. ;)


On top of my pony shoot (which was most of my day Saturday) I did attend the Georgia Aquarium which was AMAZING! Take a look at the particular hallway above. It has WHALE SHARKS and MANTA RAYS larger than you! It was amazing. I highly recommend going. I wore my Dalek ears and pink wig to the Aquarium and it was soo worth it! You see, I LOVE whales and I was really happy about seeing the Belugas. Well, they were off being unsocial until I turned my headband on. And right over they swam to investigate. It was an extraordinary moment for me. The same happened with the aquarium's new dolphin habitat. The dolphins were away from us until I turned on my headband. One of them swam right up to me. We were face to face. I can surely say the Georgia Aquarium changed my life. Haha. There is really no feeling like it. So moral of the story kids! Bring something light up and interesting to the aquarium! lol

More Dragon*Con Adventures in Part 3! Stay Tuned!

Dragon*Con Part 1

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Twilight Sparkle Wig

Progress Report! I have 2 more working days before we leave for Dragon*Con. One major thing on my list to get done was Twilight Sparkle's Wig. I've been putting it off for days. I followed Kukkii-san's Tutorial for making wefts over on Cosplay.com. I bought two packs of Silky Straight Kanekalon in the closest colors in stock. Making the wefts was the easy part. I do advise taping them in place before sewing them to the tulle. It makes it so much easier and the tape can be removed. Styling and cutting the wig took longer than I anticipated. I had to sew my wefts in where they wouldn't easily be seen. This was tricky. Then I had to cut the wefts and bangs. I ended up having to heat my bangs with a blow dryer on a low setting to keep them from sticking out like crazy. Long process but good first experience. Overall I really like the outcome. I must say, if your going to use the Kanekalon for wigs, soak your wefts in a solution of luke warm water and hair conditioner. It will work wonders on this hair. Otherwise they tangle easy and can be a nightmare to brush out.

More progress soon. It's caffeine time!

Dalek Ball Process!

Weekend Process! I started working on my actual Dalek balls this Saturday. I bought 14 packs of these clear plastic spheres from Joann Fabrics. I may have to get more just in-case I have a wardrobe malfunction. :P My boyfriend sanded off the little lips intended for hanging. Once they were all finished it was time for some painting! I gave them coat of grey primer then I used a nice silver car paint. Its usually referred to as Diamond Dust. It has some really nice shimmer sparkle in the paint, instead of it being one metallic color.


Last I coated them with a clear gloss. There is a clear difference in person, but hardly noticeable in the photo. The one up front has been coated with clear gloss. The sparkles became so apparent it was like night and day. It made the overall paint job a bit darker, but it was definitely worth it. It now has a nice slick texture as apposed to a cold powder like touch.


Haha...I still have quite a few to gloss. It takes some time since they get sprayed one at a time to insure I get full coverage. I hope to post more progress soon. 9 more days till DragonCon!! WOAMG! CRUNCH TIME!

Dragon*Con!!!!

It's that time again! Dragon*Con 2011 will be here in a mere 16 days! It hasn't hit me yet that I have very limited time left to finish my panned costumes! I'm at the point where very day counts...so I cannot let myself waste anytime! It's difficult to get things done quickly when you work full time and try to keep a regular work out regimen. It doesn't sound like it will suck your time...but it really does. I've been working out like crazy this past month and half and I'm seeing very limited results. I was really hoping I'd see a change much quicker than I have been. Anyway, onto my plans!


Firstly, Twilight Sparkle from My Little Pony:Friendship is Magic. I joined a group for Dragon*Con so this MUST get finished! I have 5 others relying on me. It puts an extra bit of pressure but it will be well worth it once our group comes together :D The costume is based on a cosplayer dressed as Sheryl Nome from Macross frontier. I really loved her uniform and felt it was perfect for Twilight. I recolored it in photoshop and with feedback from the other ponies this was the end result. I'm a bit heavier than the gal in the photomanip, but I hope I can pull off this look none the less.


Next we have my Pink Dalek dress. Haha, everything must be pink with me. I drew this up last year after the con because I fell in LOVE with all the Dalek dresses I saw. I hope to have this finished this year...but Ponies comes first. So we'll see. I have all the fabrics and my boyfriend can help me with the electronics. If your not geeky and are curious what a Dalek is...haha...click here. Since I am no longer blonde, my Rose Tyler costumes are staying home. I want to represent Doctor Who since it's my favorite show on Television. And I think there will definitely be a Tardis there this year!!! 16 days and counting! Wish me luck!

Exciting Weekend!

I'm back from AFO and I'm really happy with how my costume turned out. :) I took my time on it and made sure everything was to the best of my abilities. I arrived at AFO late and wasn't able to sign up for their contest during the hour allowed. So I decided to be there bright and early Sunday to see if maybe they had cancellations. Despite some unexpected drama I was able to secure a spot. So to pass time a good friend of mine was nice enough to take some photos of me and boyfriend. He was a good sport and was my Naota for the day. :D I have decided that this will be my last summer Florida convention. It's just to damned hot outside especially if your wearing winter wear.


The bass is built to scale and was made by a friend of mine. It has a few actual guitar pieces on it which helps shape the illusion especially from a distance. It's quite heavy though...significantly heavier than an actual guitar. So as a prop goes its kinda impractical. I am hoping another friend of mine can clean it up and make a mold of it. Then it would be a lighter plastic rather than wood. We'll see what he's got time for. Either way it won't be done before Dragon*Con.


The contest was good experience for PariahCon and I'm glad I was able to get a spot. I was so surprised and happy when my name was called. I placed 2nd in the intermediate division. It was my first contest ever, so it really made my weekend.

I'm so proud of how my Haruko turned out! If you are curious about my costume breakdown, you can read full descriptions over on my Cosplay.com page. This costume will definitely be coming with me to Dragon*Con!! Depending on their Cosplay Contest time, I'm planning to enter that one too. 22 more days until Dragon*Con and I've got so much to finish!! Wish me luck!

Costumes and AFO!

It's been a long couple of weeks. I've been working on Haruko for about a solid 3 weeks now. Whether it be sewing or searching the bowls of the internet for costuming pieces I've been working on it quite a bit.


My vest is complete! I used Simplicty pattern 2341 and added a few mods to it. I added quite a bit of lenght and the small sleeves. The collar is a bit tall, but I like how it turned out considering this is my first jacket. If I feel the need I will re-do it before Dragon*Con. The black lines are actually hidden pockets. If you dabble in costuming, you know pockets are essential. You can see the outline of my phone in the pocket, but I don't mind. I'll put on the side covered by the scarf :)

My gloves were a very pale yellow color when I purchased them. (Auction photo, I wish I had taken one myself) I liked the shape and decided I would dye them. I mixed rit dye sunshine yellow and tan. 2 tsp tan to 1 tsp yellow. I ran out of tan from testing the dye combos otherwise I would have liked them to be a tad bit more brown. All in all, they are in the appropriate color spectrum for Haruko and that's all that matters.

Next on my plate tonight is updating my boots. The white boots I purchased are good for Haruko but were to small around the cylinders to fit me. So I sewed an extra panel into them. Tonight I will put tops on them to make them taller and more accurate. AFO is this weekend. So expect at least one more update this week before the con. :D

Holy Updates Batman!

It's been a few months since I've updated. I have not abandoned you blog! So many things have happened and I've been super busy!



Firstly, PariahCon 2011! It took place June 11-12 in Lakeland, FL and was super fun! It was our first year and I'd say we had an overall success! My Miss Pokemon Universe Event went very well also. We have 13 entries and it was a blast! :D


Lucario (contestant wearing blue on the right) was crowned Miss Pokemon Universe and we also gave out 4 other shashes for best costume, best personality, judges choice, and MC's choice. Overall wonderful turn out for year one! :) I'm really looking forward to next year's Miss Pokemon Universe. I have also taken over the Costume Contest Event for next year. Yep, that's right! I'll be running this puppy! So I've been hitting the con-circuit watching the costuming events and doing my research!


A week later I attended MetroCon in Tampa, FL. I must say it completely killed my convention high from Pariah. :\ I've realized that while Metro is big, Metro was kinda lame. Maybe it's just not my kind of convention. And that's right. I put myself together a quick Rose Tyler costume. It was fun to walk around in. I wasn't to recognizable, but the people who did know my character really appreciated that I made a good Rose. :)



Never fear! I've gotten back into my convention groove! I have started planning my costumes for AFO and Dragon*Con! I'm not much for anime, but I do plan on entering AFO's costume contest. So to do that I needed to make an anime costume. After much debate (since I dont watch much anime) I have chosen and started collecting! Here's a sneak peek! Can you guess who I'm working on :) Stay tuned for more costuming and crafty updates!