PsyCos tip! Removing superglue from your skin!

I finally managed to finish part of my Sora Naegino cosplay this week but it was not without sqealing as I kept thinking that I would glue my hand to my head or something.

All of us have gone though this multiple times; the annoying numb sensation because you have a thick layer of Superglue on your hand! It is not very practical at all!! It keeps flaking and you could barely feel a thing. It is not a clever idea to bite it all off as it could cause more trouble than before.

The quick solution? NAIL POLISH REMOVER!

That is right! By using an Acetone based nail polish remover you can soften the glue. The Acetone creates a reaction to the cyanoacrylate by softening it,

Be sure to soak you skin in soapy water as it would help loosen it a little quicker. Then simpy apply the nail polish remover after lightly drying your hands. Acetone degrades the polymer and gets rid of the icky feeling.

Acetone dehydrates your skin so be sure to treat your hands to some moisturizer at the end. You may want to wash yor hands too as it smells icky!

Whatever you do do not use cotton be it be buds or whatever. Cotton contains cellulose that would fizzle and burn in reaction to the Cryanoacrylate.

Cosplay hacks! Masking/duct tape and cling film

Happy New Year guys!

I secretly had this tutorial prepared for you guys since Boxing day as I couldn't help but to want to start the New Year with new content. Thankfully I had most of this written already considering I have been nursing a hangover today.

The patten I made for Hikaru's bodice using this tutorial

I know it sounds odd but masking tape and cling film are pretty handy for certain cosplay techniques, especially if you are make form costumes such as non-stretch leotards and maybe even corsets. Here are some examples to how to make your costumes easier to make.

Sometimes normal pattens can be hard to come by or a deadline is getting close so you cannot even consider buying one so you will have to improvise. You come up with a draft but its not going to plan. It needs to be close fitting and it needs to be perfect. Try wrapping yourself in cling film! I know it does sound kinda awkward like some creepy BDSM practice but it is a very handy and accurate method getting patterns quickly. I am defiantly not a fan of maths and measuring tapes but I can reassure you that they are really easy and you can alter and reuse the patterns. Sadly I didnt have any photos of the process a few months back so Ill do my best to explain :'D Sorry guys! However I did manage to save the patten I managed to create using the method. 

These methods are really simple and the materials are as cheap as chips and easily found in many shops! You will need the following for all of them:

• Cling film
• Masking/duct tape
• Permanent marker
• Scissors (make sure they are thin!)

1) Pattern making

Say for example you want to make a bunny suit (a classic example for this method). Unlike most leotards they are often made out of a none-stretch fabric such as PVC in the cosplay world and they would often have complicated pattens if you were to go with the usual design. It can be possible to do this alone like I had to with my Hikaru cosplay but if you have a friend to help you it would be much easier.

1. To do this, you begin by wearing whatever underwear you plan to wear on the day (this is important as shapewear could alter your figure slightly). 
2. Wrap your torso with a few layers of cling film in the areas you wish to pattern on your body. Make sure you add a few inches as masking take can get annoying with contact to skin.
3. Repeat step 2 with masking tape.
4. Get your marker pen to mark where you would like to cut. Think about the best places to add the seams.
5. When you are happy with that, carefully cut yourself out along one of the marked seams. It feel likes you are removing a suit of armour at this point.
6. Cut the rest of the seams.
7. You should now have a patten! Draft it onto some spare fabric to make a mock first to ensure you are happy with the measurements. Don't forget to add seam allowance!

2) Making a cast

If you have a lot of complicated bits of thermoforming to do for some accessories but the heat would be a bit much and you may need somewhere safe to put them in between making them. 

Arms and legs are much easier to add clingfilm and tape on than torsos. You can easily do it yourself. Taking the arm for example:

1. Wrap your arm with cling film.
2. Repeat with duct tape/masking tape
3. Draw a line from one end of the arm to the other. This will act as a line to cut your arm free.
4. Once it is removed, get some additional tape and reconnect the cut to make a tube.
5. Carefully seal one of the ends but try not to distort the shape. 
6. Using any scraps you can fun (paper, fabric, even bits of tape) stuff the hell out of it!
7. Seal the other end.
8. DONE!

3) Duct tape dummy

Just imagine the steps above but it concerns the body from the neck down (or just your torso). I already have a second-hand mannequin so I never really had to take this step but I feel that is it very handy to know should you feel it is of use. If you have no access to a mannequin (they are pretty expensive) they are a much cheaper alternative and you can be sure to get the measurements right. The end result should resemble a shell-like bodysuit with stuffing.inside.

Due to my lack of experience and your safely, I will cover the basics but I'd suggest looking into researching proper ways to make these. You will need a friend or 2 for this so it will be a good laugh! Be sure to use the bathroom first as the process may take a while.

1. Get some old clothes that covers every inch of your body. Painter's coveralls are ideal and really cheap. Please note whatever clothing you wear will get destroyed in the process so old and unwanted clothes wiil work best.
2. Cut the tape into short strips! Make sure it is heavy duty tape. Begin at the torso around the stomach.
3. Make your way around the body and keep going.
4. Once you are done use a marker to mark out any costume construction details.
5. Carefully get cut out and use some additional tape to repair the cuts.
6. Stuff the turkey!

Sticky fabrics are hard to work with! HELP!

Today I wish to share some simple tricks while working with sticky fabrics.

Some fabrics such as leatherette and vinyl can be quite challenging to sew through with a machine as they tend to have a slightly sticky surface. As a result they may now flow through the machine as well as cotton would. There are ways around this.

Before you start you may want to ensure that you have suitable sewing needles. Your usual ones may not be strong enough to pass such materials with ease and may result in a number of skipped stitches and worn out needles. Sadly vinyls and pleathers are not able to heal once punctured but thankfully there are needles that are designed for such projects and are widely available. Denim and Leather needles work fine. 

One way to reduce friction is by using a Teflon foot. They basically replace your usual metal foot and work the same way. They are pretty cheap and easy to access. Highly recommended that if you plan to work with a lot of such materials.

Alternatively, you can separate the foot and the fabric with a layer of tissue paper. You can reduce wastage by cutting it into strips and you can simply tear the paper off without disrupting the stitching.

My method when I worked on the belt for my Suzaku belt is simply covering it with talcum power. Most households will have it and can be accessed quickly but it may cause a bit of a mess so you best be prepared to bring towels and clean the machine and the sewing area when you are done. I just simply got a wet cloth and washed it off when I was done. Sadly not all fabrics are suitable for washing so be careful!

While on topic I wish to address that while cutting and patterning these fabrics it is not advisable to use pins on areas that will eventually be shown on the costume. I try to use objects nearby to weigh them down. From experience PVC in particular grips to quite well when cutting with the reverse sides facing outside. Rotary cutters tend to be better than scissors when it comes to straight lines. Be sure to use a large cutting board and a ruler.