Heres A Life-hack For You.Apparently Concentrated Kool-Aid Can Be Used As A Pretty Effective Leather

Here’s a “life-hack” for you. Apparently concentrated Kool-Aid can be used as a pretty effective leather dye. I was making a drink while cutting the snaps off some new straps for my pauldrons and I got curious, so I tried it, thinking, “ok even if this works, it will just wash out.” Nope. It took the “dye” (undiluted) in about 3 seconds. After drying for about an hour and a half, it would not wash off in the hottest tap-water. It would not wash out after soaking for 30 minutes. It did not wash out until I BOILED it, and even then, only by a tiny bit and it gave it a weathered look that was kind of cool. Add some waterproofing and I’d wager it would survive even that. That rich red is only one application too. Plus it smells great, lol. So there you go, cheap, fruity smelling leather dye in all the colors Kool-Aid has to offer.

Houseki no Kuni Wig with TranspArt Tutorial

I just got back from Cosplay America in Raleigh, NC and I’m really excited to share how my Amethyst wig turned out!  I watched Houseki no Kuni after seeing a bunch of lovely pictures of people cosplaying from it, and once I finished the show I started kicking around a few ideas of how I could make a wig that had a glass-like finish like the way the 3D models are rendered.

For a walk-through on how I made this wig, please read below the cut!  (Header photo taken by Coffee_cat_cat on IG.)

This tutorial, as well as future tutorials, will be cross-posted to my Patreon account! It will be 100% free always, but is another way you can keep an eye on my cosplay tutorials and write-ups.

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Paper Mache Tricks and Tips

In the age of thermoplastics and resins paper mache seems a little unglamorous and low-tech, but it’s still worth considering as a material if you’re getting into prop and armor-making.  If you have low budget for your project but plenty of time in which to complete it, it’s worth a thought.

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Some tips to make sewing with vinyl/pleather easier.

Want to learn how to cosplay? Check out the rest of my channel! New tutorial videos every Monday and Thursday with extra bonus content sprinkled throughout the week!

My Website: http://www.koumorinohime.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KoumoriNoHimeCosplay Tumblr: http://koumori-no-hime.tumblr.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/koumori_no_hime

Repainting Faux-Leather bags/accessories

This is a tutorial of how I made my Weiss Schnee satchel , using a bag I got from Good-Will.(photo of Weiss Schee bag for reference)

Top photo: The supplies you will need for this project.

- Rubbing alcohol( I used 50% because its what I had on hand, but 20-90% should work just fine as well)

 -Cotton balls(number needed variety depending on the size of your bag, I used three for this clutch)

-Paint, in the color’s you want your bag to be(in the photo there is tan, black, silver, pearl, and white, to achieve this look)

-Clean make-up sponges(or paint sponges, up to you)

-This wasn’t in the photo, my apologizes, but a seam ripper and/or scissors will also be needed.

 -Another missing item from my photo is a sealer/finish. I used a liquid mog-podge, in matte finish, but that’s just personal preference.

Photo(s) 2-4: (2)Front view, (3)back view, (4)inside view

Steps:

1. Remove any piece that are not wanted for your bags look using a seam ripper, such as a zippers, tassels, handles, straps, etc. I would only use scissors if you have to, because you can ruin a piece by cutting the wrong seam.

2. Soak your cotton balls in the alcohol and clean you fax-leather bag completely. Make sure you get all creases, nooks, seam-lines, and over lapping fabric, any oil/dirty left on your piece can ruin your paint job.

3. Apply your first coat. Your paint needs to be either acrylic/leather paint. You will probably need multi-coats of your base if your are changing the color drastically, like from black to white. Use a very opaque color as a base( I used tan because it’s my most opaque color and its a neutral)

4. Keep layering your base coat until you can’t see the original color of the bag, using your sponges. Let it dry from between 10-15 min. in between coats.

5. Once you achieve complete coverage move on to your main color. Layer this color as well until its fully covered, then let dry over night.

6. Once completely dry apply your sealer/finish to your satisfaction/direction of your finish.

Note: Feel free to use painters tape to cover an area that you don’t want painted, such as a clip/decoration.

A beginner’s guide to choosing and working with fabrics for cosplay

Choosing the right kind of fabric and treating it right when sewing can greatly improve the finished look of your cosplay. Here are a few tips on how to decide what fabrics to buy and how to treat and work with it when making your cosplay.

Deciding what fabric to pick

So you have picked a character and decided to make the cosplay yourself and are now ready to buy fabric for it.

The first thing you need to do is to find a couple of good reference picture of your character from different angles and see how many different fabrics you will need.

The next step is to try to decide what kind of fabric you will need, this step can be really tricky if you don’t have any previous experience with fabrics.

A good way to start figuring it out is to think about what qualities you want the fabric to have. Is the character wearing a formfit catsuit? Then the fabric should be stretchy like a four-way stretch spandex or a lycra. Is the character wearing a corset? Then the fabric should be stiff and a bit thicker. Is the character wearing a light and airy skirt? etc etc Write up the qualities you want the different fabrics in your cosplay to have and start doing some research.

Look at what kind of fabrics other people used in a similar garment or what recommendations the sewing patterns of the similar clothes say.

Another tip is to think what kind of person your character is. Is it a princess? Then maybe the fabric she would wear would be a bit more expensive looking and not just a simple cotton. Is it a hobbit? Then maybe the fabric should be natural and not synthetic.

Difference between Synthetic and Natural fabrics:

There is a lot of different kind of fabrics but they all fall under two main types; Synthetic and natural fabrics.

Natural fabrics are made from either the fibers of plants or animals (wool, hair etc). Examples are: Cotton, linen, silk, wool etc.

Synthetic fabrics are made from fibers made in scientific way and are produced from chemicals. Examples are: Polyester, Nylon, Spandex, acrylic etc.

Blend fabrics is as it sounds a mix of the both fibers to create a textile that has properties from both fibers.

Buying fabrics in store vs online:

If you have access to a fabric store that sells more than just curtain fabrics then it’s a great opportunity to get to know how different fabrics feels and works. Don’t be afraid to take help of the employees of the store and ask what kind of fabric would work for the garment. Bring a photo of your character so you can check how the color looks and if you already have a piece of your cosplay ready and you need a fabric in a similar color take a sample with you so you can check so it match.

I highly recommend bringing a camera (or your phone) to the store and take photos of the fabric you are thinking of buying. Most fabric looks different with a flash and can get really shiny or change color. Since you probably want photos of your finished cosplay it is important to check so the fabric looks good both on and off camera.

This is for example photos of the same fabric taken in different lights:

If you don’t have a fabric store close to you or could not find the fabric you were looking for, buying fabrics online is a great second option. Buying fabrics online can be hard since you don’t have the opportunity to touch it, feel it and see how it flows, it can also be hard to see the exact color of it. I therefore recommend that you order some fabric samples of the fabric you are interested in before buying several yards of it. Fabric samples are often not very expensive and it is a great way to get to see how it looks and feel before deciding.

A tip is to save the fabric samples or cut out a piece of your fabric and write on a note what kind of fabric it is and where you bought it and then save it in a folder. This makes it really easy to later when you are going to make another cosplay to just check the folder and see if any of those fabrics would work for that cosplay.

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