cosplay process 2

next plan

using my drawing for a reference but aspects may change based on resources and new ideas.

vax’illdan

foam armour, belts, wings feathers

the most challenging aspect of this outfit will be the articulate wings

I intend to use a basic mechanism to allow the wings to open and close using faux feathers and thin foam to create the feathers, with the feathers to create the smaller details and the foam to create the larger, outermost feathers, however I will not make the same mistake of not sealing the paint on the foam as the paint can ware off very easily.

the main challenge with this element will be making a mechanism that can support the wight of the feathers as well be durable enough to withstand wear and weather, in addition to this I don’t want the feathers to interfere with the mechanism

The materials I will have to use will need to be lightweight but also strong, therefore I am considering, pvc, fibreglass and wood. fibreglass is the strangest and thinnest material however it is quite expensive, while wood is the opposite being cheap and the weakest. as a result of this I will most likely be using pvc pipes.

in addition to

foam armour

Leather spaulders

Inspiration for these came primeraly from the way birds wings fold upward when being drawn down in flight, however I wanted to express this in a more scale like pattern to allow it to fit the form of the foam spaulders that fit over the shoulders and upper arms. To achieve this I have used a selection of items I can find as cheaply as possible, these consist of: 2mm foam sheets, plastic tea spoons, 1mm diameter wire spray paint and a glue gun. The first step in making these was to prepare the spoons to resemble feathers/scales by cutting them off from the handle while taking care not to crack the plastic on the concave side, I then coated them with black spray paint. The foam and wire section was shaped around my shoulder using trial and error to find the idea fit, the wire itself is shaped similar to a 'U' but more angular, I then glued a sheet of foam onto the wire using hot glue, after this I cut a line from the centre/outside (the side where wire is absebt) to the true centre before overlapping the section of foam to make it more conical from the centre downward. The final part of the assembly involves attaching the spoon ends to the
spaulders, to achieve this I used hot glue alone for the edges and then I cut slits in the foam and inserted the spoons to give a more seamless transition and hide the hot glue on the underside.

The primery issue with this is that the materials are clearly diferent therefore I could use a varnish to give them the same surface or use more primer on both the surfaces before applying paint. I am also conserned about the security of the spoons since it is only hot glue holding them down, however I'm not sure how to deal with this problem other than being careful and using belt bags rather than shoulder bags to avoid damaging them.

lower arm armour 

to give the appearance of runes I used a pressing stick, this is one of the reasons why foam is ideal for this along with being cheap and flexible as it can be pressed to create patterns.

to colour them I layered them with primer and black spray-paint, followed by using a sponge to lightly apply silver to the edges, making the runes significantly more visible and giving a metallic appearance.

an issue with this process however is that the paint cracks if the foam is bent, this is a major issue as these items will be worn and will have to have a good range of flexibility.

belt
leftover pleather from previous outfit, may apply thin layer of spray paint if it looks too light against the rest of the outfit.
use liquid latex mixed with acrylics to paint centrepice, use thread to attach




dagger
use the same process as the sword, 
core options: wire, fibreglass, metal pipe
inlaid with resin, add extra stability

boots
pleather over foam, since card board caused blisters
foam trimming like on gloves
use of faux fur