Cosplay Wish List: Basch

I was stricken with sudden inspiration to make a gender-swapped Basch fon Ronsenburg (Final Fantasy XII) cosplay at some point in my life.

He has one of my all-time favorite Final Fantasy outfits. It fits the series in that it's both ridiculous and non-utilitarian. That being said, wouldn't it be super killer?

Let's just add this to my overwhelming desire to cosplay Ashe in spite of the fact that ain't nobody got time to make that costume.

Progress: Daenerys and Lightning

I've got almost exactly one month before St. Louis Comic-Con, which means it's time to put my cosplay crafting into high gear!

I'll be cosplaying Lightning from Final Fantasy XIII and Daenerys Targaryen from Game of Thrones. There may be a third costume, depending on how much time I have before the con. If I do a third, it will absolutely be something simple and fun.

As far as Daenerys goes, I dyed the top with Rit. The color ended up being different than what I wanted (the brown is a reddish tint rather than a bluish one), so I'm toying with the idea of trying to spray another color of dye over the top. I don't know how well it would show up, but then again, I'm only looking for a tint. I've also got to finish the detailing. The challenge with this costume is that Dany wears so many different versions of it throughout the course of the first two seasons of the show. The versions vary in color, detailing, structure...just about everything that one looks at when making a costume.

The other challenge is restraining my chest. I've got a large one, and halter tops aren't exactly my thing. Thus, I think I'll end up making a bandeau top out of dark brown fabric to wear underneath. That will smash me down a little and also provide a safety plan if something should come undone at the con.

Lightning is coming along, too. I bought two curtains at Goodwill ($8 total), both of a fabric resembling a tie between linen and duckcloth. One was white, and the other tan, to make the vest:

I used a vest I own and traced it onto the white fabric. The lining doesn't go throughout the whole vest, mostly because I planned so poorly. The fit is absolutely terrible. I've got a lot of adjustments to make for it to look any good. Of course, I've still got to do all of the detailing on this as well.

I've also started on the pauldron and the gunblade, but I'll do a separate post for those, likely in a tutorial fashion.

A Year?

I can't believe that it's been almost a year since I've updated.

I take that back. I can absolutely believe it. I've had no time over the last 11 months for costuming, but I'm very happy to say that I'm back!

I'm currently at work on two things: finishing Daenerys (poor, neglected khaleesi) and beginning a new challenge.

I tend to overspend when I'm crafting. The thing is that I'm broke right now, and I would like to change my habits anyway. Thus, I'm challenging myself to stick to $40 for my newest adventure (and one of my cosplay dreams!): Final Fantasy XIII's Lightning.

Lightning is going to mean some magical adventures to Goodwill, but I really think I can make it work. Of course, that means wig, boots, supplies, and gunblade (weapon) all for $40 or less.

I've already got a turtleneck that I'll be re-purposing, and I may have a skirt. I'm also toying with the idea of cutting up an old prom dress to make the cape. Either way, I'll keep you updated on my adventures.

As for Daenerys, I just dyed the top today. Once it dries, I'll do the detail stitching on it. Then, I'm going to weather the skirt. The biggest challenge for Dany will be styling the wig, as I have no experience doing that.