Fabric Store Surprises

[ladyofthethread]

Cards were mailed out yesterday, along with holiday wishes stuff for a few people. ^_^

Also, yesterday, I finally went out and got the extra fur I needed to finish my T-Chan plushie. This required a trip into the city since the only place I’d seen the shaggy orange fur was Pearl Paint. So, I bought two more panels to be sure I had enough and then went to browse through some of the fabric shops near there. And guess what I saw at the first one I went into? An entire bolt of the shaggy orange fur! *falls over* When I was looking for materials for this thing, I had gone into lots of shops in the fashion district and couldn’t find the stuff in orange. If I’d known that place had it, I could have just bought a yard and cut out pieces normally instead of trying to put the plushie together from little 9”x12” panels! -_-;

Next surprise was that I went to P & S Fabrics (www.psfabrics.com) and found that they were planning to close the store and liquidating. Not sure if anyone else on the friends list shops there but it might be worth a look if you’re going to be in NYC. It’s the largest fabric store I know of downtown (2 floors) and the stock doesn’t seem much lower than normal so they probably only started the sale recently. Fabric is going for 25% off if you buy 1-5 yard pieces and 50% off if you buy 6 yards or more. They also have lots of trim, which is 50% off. Address is 355 Broadway; it’s a few blocks south of Canal Street. It’s closed Saturdays and closes early on Fridays. I asked how much longer the store was going to be there and they said maybe 2 months.

I don’t buy fabric there that often but I’ll be kind of sad to see it go since it was convenient for some things like notions and certain fabrics. Looked around and picked out a satiny light pink for the Sora costume I want to make. Got 6 yards of it for $12. Also bought a couple of yards of organza but my color choice might have been a bit off now that I’m at home and have reference pictures. Will have to go back with references sometime and see if I can get any other stuff good for my planned costumes.

I’ve got a few ideas for Sora tumbling around in my head now. I actually want to make the poster artwork version with the extra designs on the borders and some additional bows. I’d change the bluish stuff at the neckline to a ruffle though since the triangles sticking out look weird to me. And I’m thinking of adding in some designs on the solid color areas with crystals or sequins since it is supposed to be a circus costume. Anyone ever use hot fix crystals or sequins before and know how well they work?

Comments

[cutewishes.livejournal.com]

SORAAAA! I might do that version sometime too, but for right now...I want to do May's "Swan Lake" outfit XD;;.

[ladyofthethread.livejournal.com]

That would be neat. ^_^ I don't think I've ever seen a May cosplay yet.

[haruhi-chan.livejournal.com]

Wow, I love the character design! I think sequins sounds about right, since circus costumes are supposed to be flashy, since they are viewed from a distance. Sorry, the only method I've used for sequins is handsewing them on, with or without delica beads.

[ladyofthethread.livejournal.com]

Yeah, normally, I'd prefer sewing over adhesives since some iron on stuff I've seen hasn't been very good about sticking. I'm thinking designs like swirls and sunbursts though and wondered if the iron-on sequins might be more convenient since they're going to be scattered and not in large patches like the flowers on my Terra gown.

[thimbles.livejournal.com]

What a nice sale! I've only ever done sequins by handsewing, but that works really well (if a little tedious).

[ladyofthethread.livejournal.com]

Yeah, that's what I'd done on a previous costume but I wanted to do a scattered design this time and wondered if iron on would be better for that.

[novaraven.livejournal.com]

You mean there's a way to attach sequins without hand sewing? *head desk* That horrible prom gown still haunts me...^^;

[ladyofthethread.livejournal.com]

Well, I've seen bags of sequins at a couple of shops labeled as "hot fix sequins." Never tried them out myself though so I was wondering if anyone had and how their results were. ^_^;

[novaraven.livejournal.com]

Um, I have a question. Do you take comissions? You seem to have better acess to supplies than I do.

[ladyofthethread.livejournal.com]

Well, I haven’t done any commissions so far but I could consider it. What did you have in mind?

A possible problem though is that I don’t have a dress form so if I’m sewing an outfit for someone else, I won’t be able to check how well it fits. :-/ I could probably manage something unfitted like a kimono but trying to do something fitted might be hard. ^_^;

[novaraven.livejournal.com]

Oh, that might be hard then. I was thinking of having one of my summer costumes comissioned since I always have so little time between cons but always find new ideas.

Perhaps a kimono would be nice though. I was going to wear Sesshomarus mother at some point. I'll spend all my time making armored Narku and Inutaisho to go with her that I won't have time for her outfit. ^^;

Do you think it's even worth making her? She's very pretty but not well known. And people like Izayoi, inuyashas mom much better.

[ladyofthethread.livejournal.com]

Hmm… I really can’t give a good opinion on the character because I don’t know Inuyasha. Like several other popular series, I’ve never gotten into that one since I don’t have cable and haven’t been interested enough to look into it much. ^_^;

Yeah, time can be one of the problems when putting together a costume. It seems like this year I’ve been bad about getting things done ahead of time and ended up sewing right up to a day or two before the event with my last 3 outfits. x_x; Most of my more elaborate costumes probably take somewhere in the 40-60 hour range to make so my late winter and spring are already going to be pretty busy with the outfits I want to make for myself next year. The latest con I know I’m definitely going to next year is in early July so I’m a bit iffy on whether it would be enough time for a commission since I tend to be slow at sewing. I assume the costumes are planned for CNAnime in August? How many pieces would the outfit need and how complex are they?

One other concern is cost. One of the big reasons I haven’t really tried commissioning is that I don’t think many can afford to pay enough for labor to make it worthwhile; a few hundred dollars is a lot of money! ^_^; I try to make my costumes to a high standard; I usually line garments or use French seams or seam binding so that the insides are nice. Judges seem to think my work is good since I consistently win craftsmanship prizes for my costumes, usually best in division although I’ve gotten the top prize in a couple of smaller contests. Haven’t had a chance to compete at a larger con yet but I’ve reached Craftsman level, which is usually the highest used at American cons. (I think this would be the equivalent of Artisan level at Anime North.) For that quality, I feel I should ask more than minimum wage. But even at minimum wage, even a relatively simple costume is probably going to cost at least a couple of hundred American dollars, after adding in material costs and shipping. ^_^;;

[novaraven.livejournal.com]

Yes, you're right about cost. I tried doing comissions once but when my flat rate sewing fee was 200$ plus materials and shipping no one was interested. And to me that was very cheap considering the kind of things people wanted me to make for them.

The problem is the costumes I know I will definitely need for myself are all fitted, like Sister Paula from Trinity Blood or Black Saber from Fate Stay night. They're things I'd rather do myself but don't know if I'll have the time for this year.

You're right, the inuyasha stuff will be for CN anime in August. I don't think I can get it done on my own. I seem to end up sewing my friends costumes and leaving my own for last so I don't have one. I would save up for it if it would let me worry less and concentrate on the other costumes.

My only new costumes this year have been for Count D because I can get them done in a week right before the con out of things I already have and I can usually wear him on my own and still have the cosplay recognized. And also not look like a total freak while walking down the street. I just look like I'm dressed up for a formal occasion. I end up being sent out to pick up food and run around doing errands for the people who won't leave the hotel with their purple hair. *lol*

As for Masquerades, I avoid them like the plague. There are no prizes to be won here and they always happen right over the dinner hour and long into the evening so we get no chance for food unless we send someone out, and then you just know it will spill right before you go on. It's all a big hassel, even lining up to get seats to watch the masq takes three hours. I have never seen the one at Anime North and I've been going to that con for six years now. It's just never worth it. I'd rather be in the hot tub back at the hotel relaxing than going through that much stress.

[ladyofthethread.livejournal.com]

Yeah, it can be hard to find people willing to pay what a custom-made costume is really worth. I think people are just too used to inexpensive prices for mass produced clothes due to cheap labor overseas. And as a result, don’t fully appreciate the time and work that goes into making something. :-/

LOL Yeah, I generally try to avoid wandering too far away from the con if I’m dressed strangely. I tend to like obscure stuff so I don’t worry much about whether people will recognize me anymore. I just try to have a mix of more recognizable (like Ayame) with the obscure (Twelve Kingdoms stuff) so that I don’t end up unrecognized the whole weekend. ^_^; I was actually a bit surprised that a bunch of people recognized me as Count D when I wore the peacock dress for a little con focused on manga. I wasn’t sure how many people would know it since Petshop doesn’t seem to get cosplayed much.

Ah, I’ve actually only been in a couple of masquerades for walk-ons when I wanted to show off my costumes. I’m not good at performing so I usually enter hall cosplay contests instead. ^_^; That way, I can just go in for craftsmanship judging during certain hours, leave after I finish talking to the judges, and that’s it. There’s usually not too much of a wait and takes much less time than a masquerade. I like getting costumes judged for craftsmanship but I don’t like lots of stress either so I’d be unlikely to enter masquerades at large cons where people are jumping on online pre-registration the moment it opens. O_O;

There are no prizes at the Toronto cons? I’m a bit surprised. At various contests around here, I’ve gotten trophies, bags of sewing notions/supplies, Cosworx gift certificates, anime DVDs. Or, at least, a certificate saying what I won.

3 hours to line up just to watch the masquerade at Anime North? o_o; Eep, that’s a long time. I usually like to watch masquerades to see what other people do but I don’t think I’ve ever waited that long. Food does tend to be a bit of a problem though. I usually have some kind of snack beforehand and then end up eating ramen in my hotel room at midnight. ^_^; Ironically, the masquerade at Otakon this year (largest anime con I’ve been to) was the one where I was able to have a real dinner and then walk in shortly after it started with no wait because they had rented a whole arena for it! o_o