Confession time: I wash my costumes at little as possible. I always make sure I’m clean and awash in antiperspirant when I put a costume on, I take it off as soon as I’m done and rely on airing out and strategic spritzes of Febreze to keep things fresh. But, sometimes, sooner or later, something’s… Read More »
Disclaimer This is a high-level overview for newbie costumers to give an idea of where to start and what to avoid. Once you’ve read this, I suggest you visit the resources page to hunt down the in-depth information you’ll need to create a complete ensemble. Renn Faire season is always around the corner, and you want… Read More »
What colors are these actors wearing? In these pictures, they’re wearing the same costumes, but in different lighting conditions. On top of that, post-production adjustments to photographs and video will alter the color even further. Determining color can be one of the biggest headaches for a cosplayer. Comics and anime have the advantage of a regulated… Read More »
Two things determine a fabric, the yarns used and how they’re assembled into fabric. Here’s a quick glossary. There are many more ways to weave and knit than are listed here, and I’ll add to the list over time, but these are the most common methods. Essential Terms Warp and Weft Warp yarns run the… Read More »
Disclaimer This is meant as a quick-and-dirty overview for newbie costumers. If you want to get into the nitty-gritty, check out the resources page for some good places to go. Oh, and you probably want to read why foundation garments matter. What’s Covered The 19th century saw several major fashion trends which, for the sake… Read More »
Using the right needle for your project is important. If you use the wrong needle, you might end up with messed up fabric, dropped stitches or even have the thread break off when you’re in the middle of sewing a seam. In the absolute worst case, you can blow the timing to your machine, which… Read More »
Just like Kleenex has come to be the generic term for a tissue in the US, or Coke for any cola beverage, so Spandex has come to be a catch-all term for any shiny fabric with a four-way stretch. However, Spandex and Lycra are both brand names for elastane, which is a very stretchy synthetic fiber… Read More »
Acrylic is another synthetic fiber made from various polymers that I can’t even spell, let alone pronounce. It was invented in 1941 by the chemical company DuPont, who promptly trademarked it under the name Orlon. It wasn’t widely produced until the 1950s whereupon it got used in practically everything, because it’s strong, warm and takes dye… Read More »
Simply put, polyester is plastic. Actually, Wikepedia tells me that the word polyester applies to a “category of polymers that contain the ester functional group in their main chain”, whatever that means. Around here, polyester refers to the synthetic fiber that is woven into a yarn referred to by the same name. Polyester gets a bad… Read More »
To paraphrase Wikipedia, silk is a natural protein fiber produced by certain insect larvae to form cocoons. The insect most commonly used in silk production is, obviously, the silkworm. Silk fiber has been used since prehistoric times. An individual strand of silk is smooth but not slippery (unlike its synthetic counterparts) and it’s strong for its… Read More »
Fabric For Cosplayers