Sewing

Hello!

Today I just wanted to write a quick post on some sewing books that have been super helpful for me.  Cosplay is an insane combination of skills.  Costumes have garments that need to be sewn, armor that needs to be built, accessories that have to get made.  It's a lot to learn!

For a lot of people who are just getting into cosplay or who are just starting to make their own costumes the sewing part can be really intimidating.  If you don't own a sewing machine you have to either borrow one or buy one, and if you buy one which one is the right one? Even if you're just getting a cheap one from Walmart that aisle has a lot of options!  Then when you get the machine you have to figure out what all the buttons do, how to put the bobbin in;. it can be really overwhelming.  For that reason, I decided to write this post on some of the books I've enjoyed using.These will probably be most helpful to beginner to intermediate learners. There are thousands of sewing books on the market, so these are not necessarily the best.  They're just what's worked for me in addition to the plethora of knowledge on the internet.

1. Simplicity Simply the Best Sewing Book


I bought this book for for my sewing 101 class.  It's a nice book.  It goes over all the basics, pattern reading etc.  The downside is that it's illustrated and doesn't use as many photos as some other books in this post.  The instructions were pretty clear though and easy to follow, so I still think it's a great book for a beginner or if you're like me and you just need a friendly reminder on how to do something.  It's seperated into short chapters and has some patternless projects you can try to get you started.


2. The Sewing Book: An Encyclopedic Resource of Step-by-Step Techniques

This book is great for people who kind of know what they're doing already, but aren't experts.  If you forget how to do a french seam or how to put a zipper in this book has easy step by step guides for everything.  It's kind of like an encyclopedia for sewing.  It's also got more photos than any of the other books, which I appreciate because I find illustrations can be a little confusing.  I prefer photo guides.

The con of this book is it's a little expensive.  I bought mine used at a used bookstore.  DK also makes a smaller version of this book that might be cheaper, it's got the same great information and format, it's just not a doorstop.

3. Me and My Sewing Machine

I don't own this one yet, so I don't have a picture.I came across this book at my public library before I took my first sewing class and I loved it. It's full of pictures, detailed oriented and everything a beginner needs to really needs to get going on their projects.  If you're like me and you prefer photos to illustrations I'd get this over the Simplicity book.  It's got most of the same information, but it uses photos.

4. How to Use, Adapt, and Design Sewing Patterns

I think I checked this book out two or three times at the library before finally deciding to buy it.

For a lot of my costumes I like to start with a commercial pattern and modify it.  Sometimes that gets tricky and confusing; things don't fit right.  This book helps things become less frustrating.

I also like this book because when I'm ready to start drafting my own patterns it's got a lot of detailed information about that too.  It's something I can grow into.

Contacts Review: Freshlook Colors: Violet

Hello!

Today I just wanted to do a review of some contacts that I use for my Raven cosplay.  Whenever I buy contacts I always look for reviews online first. I'm sure I'm not the only person who does that, so I thought I'd write a review on these incase anyone else is thinking of getting them.

I have really dark eyes so finding contacts that show up on them can be challenging, hence why I always read reviews before making a purchase.  When I went to get my eye exam I already knew I wanted purple lenses, so I told my eye doctor and they let me try on some FreshLook Colors in Violet.  I was really skeptical at first.  I didn't think these would show up on my eyes that well at all, but they turned out to be pretty great! 

The base curve of these lenses is 8.6 and the diameter is 14.5. These are sold by the box.  You get six lenses per box and each lens lasts about two weeks after it's been opened.  I prefer this packaging method to colored or special fx lenses that are sold in pairs and last one to twelve months. I only wear my lenses for events like conventions and photoshoots which are spread out throughout the year. Being able to toss them after two weeks and just open a new pair before an event is easier for me.  Plus if I drop one down the drain or something it's not the end of the world.

I bought mine directly from my eye doctor and I encourage you to do the same.  Most likely you'll be able to try on a trial pair at their office and since these are about $40 a box that's probably for the best incase you don't like them as much as I do. 

These are not my first pair of purple lenses, I've tried three other purple lenses before I found these and these are my favorite.

Compared to all the lenses that I've tried these are the most comfortable.  I can wear these for four to seven hours before I need to take them out, and that's mostly because I worry about keeping them in too long, not because they start to bother me. 

As far as the color goes, these are not bright or in your face.  On me they're pretty noticeable in any lighting situation, but that's partially because they're not what people expect to see.  I have medium-dark skin, so anything not brown is going to make people raise an eyebrow.  I've worn these out shopping a few times and people definitely look twice.  In the pictures below you can see them in a couple different lighting situations.  I don't ever use flash, so that's just outdoor and indoor light.





These lenses photograph really well.  I wore them in my Raven photoshoot with A Beautiful Habit Photography.  As you can see below they look great. We were outside, but I'm pretty sure these will photograph well indoors too.

Photographer: Jim Bochenek Cosplayer: Onyx Sky Cosplay

That's all for today!  As always get an eye exam before buying contacts online or in a store. Have a great day!

Phoenix Comicon 2015

Howdy!

This past weekend was Phoenix Comicon 2015!  This is one of my favorite conventions.  I love it because it's huge, there's way too much to do and see, plus there are a billion amazing cosplayers there!

I always go to this con with my sister JadeGrass Cosplay.  Thursday the first day of the con was a slow day. JadeGrass couldn't come until after work, so I went solo for most of the day.

I kind of just wandered the halls looking at all the beautiful costumes for a little while.  I also went to two writing panels, which were super helpful and fun.  Phoenix Comicon always has a great turnout of authors(comics and novels) and they make good use out of it by having a lot of writing panels over the course of the weekend.  I love listening to authors talk about their craft and the industry. I think it's invaluable.


Friday was coslay day number one.  I wore my Raven costume and JadeGrass wore her Miss Martian costume.  I was really happy to see a lot of Teen Titans and a lot of Robin cosplayers at this con!  Long live the Teen Titans!!! Raven was definitely the most popular, but we did see two Beast Boys,a couple Terra's and a few StarFire's.

Friday was also super exciting because JadeGrass and I got to meetup with ThermoCosplay and a bunch of other awesome cosplayers from Heroes and villains of tomorrow!  It was super fun seeing everyone and taking pictures with them.  I don't really have any friends who cosplay besides JadeGrass, so I'm really happy I got to hangout with some other cosplayers! 

Saturday I wore my Jinx costume and was amazed that my hair stayed up all day!  I debuted this costume at Emerald City Comicon in March, but the wig did not look very nice by the end of the day, so I was stunned that it stayed up from 10am Saturday morning to eight p.m. when I got back to my hotel room! Holy smokes! That G2B hair spray and spiking gel are freaking amazing! I would never put that stuff in my real hair after seeing how glue-like it is, but for cosplay wigs I have a new friend! Holy freaking cow that stuff is strong!


Saturday JadeGrass and I did a panel called "Cartoons that got Canceled".  We weren't expecting a huge turnout.  It was Saturday evening and we figured a) people are getting tired, b)some people might be starting to get in line to see the masqerade and c) there must be cooler panels happening at the same time, but we were pleasantly surprised that we packed the house!  People had to be asked to leave because there were no seats available!

This was our second panel, we relied heavily on video clips and trvia because we wanted it to be fun for the audience.  At the end we had a special challenge if someone could sing the Static Shock theme song word for word(google was allowed to be used), we'd give them a special prize.  I honestly didn't think anyone would do it, but some boys agreed to and man was it hilarious! You can find the video on JadeGrass Cosplays facebook page.

Overall PCC was super fun and I can't wait until next year! If you know the name of any of the cosplayers I posted pictures of, please let me know! Shoot me an e-mail at OnyxSkyCosplay@gmail.com or message me on one of my social media sites so I can credit them!

Thanks everyone who said hi and liked my costumes.  I really appreciate it and I'm glad to see so many people still love Teen Titans! 

Walking to get Pizza with ThermoCosplay(Surge)

JadeGrass Cosplay waiting for our panel to start.

Phoenix Comicon Fan Fest

Hello world!

At the beginning of this month I went to Phoenix Comicon's Fan Fest! Yay!  It was super fun!  I was only able to go on Friday and Saturday, but I think that was more than enough con this weekend for me since Comic & Media Expo was just this past October.  I cosplayed as Storm on Friday.  On Saturday I wore my new Wonder Woman costume to go with my sister's new Miss Martian costume, yay DC Comics!


One thing loved about this con was how it wasn't super crowded.  I expected it to be as bad as Phoenix Comicon was on Saturday last year(waiting like fifteen minutes to get in some doors in the morning and not being able to move in some areas of the con without bumping into people), but nope!  The vendor hall was so big that there was plenty of space to walk around leisurely and even take pictures without getting in the way of traffic.

The exhibitors and artists that showed up also brought a lot of cool stuff!  I managed to snag some StarFire and Raven earrings from one booth.  They're not super my style and I don't usually wear much jewelry, but since I doubt I will ever see Raven and StarFire earrings again I have no regrets!  I also got a pair of Kitty Pryde one's since the guy gave me a good deal!

My favorite thing about this con was how many awesome cosplayers I saw!  So many awesome costumes!!!  I found a Robin from Witch Hunter Robin, one of my favorite anime series.  I haven't seen anyone cosplay as her in forever so I was very excited to see her!  On Friday when I wore my Storm costume I also saw an group of girls dressed as other X-Men characters and literally jumped up and down when I saw them and ran over to take a photo with them.  Unfortunately my phone was stuffed in my bag so unless I find the photo online I don't have a copy.  That was my absolute favorite moment of the con.  They were so nice and their costumes were so cute!  I hope I can find that photo later!

Panelwise I went to Four and a half panels. I should have went to more, but shopping was calling to me... On Friday my friend and I went to "It Will Be the End of Us All" which was pretty fun.  Basically four panelist debated whether Vampires, Zombies, Werewolves or Aliens would be the end of humanity as we know it with audience help.  That was fairly entertaining and the panelist did a good job keeping the audience engaged.  After that I went to "Geeky Pictionary" which was awesome!  MS Paint meets finger painting and nerdy topics...yeah.  Our team didn't win, but it was still fun trying to decipher odd stick figures with a group of strangers.  If they have this panel at Phoenix Comicon this year I will definitely go again. 

On Saturday One of the first panels I went to was "Are you smarter than a Stormtrooper".  It was a pretty funny panel and I thought it was very well organized.  I forget the moderators name, but I think she did a fabulous job keeping things in order.  It's easy for interactive panels, especially games to get out of hand, but she kept everything together.  She really did a good job engaging the audience and the contestants.  The Stormtroopers were also very humorous in their feigned lack of Star Wars knowledge, making the panel enjoyable even for someone like me who's knowledge of StarWars is fairly limited(I have yet to watch all the movies all the way through...I only went because Breasa wanted to).

The next panel we went to was "Choose your own Zombie Survival" which was okay.  I think the panelist did a good job, they were definitely very prepared and I love interactive panels.  The only thing I didn't like was that it was too easy to disagree with the point value system as to whether or not you'd survive.  I think a zombie apocalypse is too situational for this kind of game, but if you can ignore that it was a fun panel and I think they did an excellent job.

The last panel/half a panel I was able to see was "PUGS Multiplayer" and oh my gosh!  I never went to it at Comicon, because I just thought it would be nerdy trivia, but NO!  It was AMAZING.  Basically this panel is just people debating very silly topics like "Who's better with a whip? Catwoman or Indiana Jones?".  I'm sure you can imagine how funny this was.  I had to leave before it was over, but I will definitely be going to this panel at Phoenix Comicon this year!

Alright!  Well that's it for now.  I have some exciting news(well it's exciting for me anyway) later this month and I'll do one more post to recap the year/possibly post some WIP stuff from Wonder Woman that I'm too lazy/doubt anyone is interested in right now. 

See-you later!

P.S. If anyone knows the cosplayers posted here let me know so I can tag them!

Comic & Media Expo 2014 & Halloween

This is a bit late. but I thought I'd write about Comic & Media Expo 2014(October 17th - 19th) & Halloween.  There are also now some photos of Raven in my gallery.  We'll be taking more soon, but for now I have two nice ones.

Let's start with Comic & Media Expo. This was their first year and I think it went pretty well!  I had a lot of fun and I am really excited about next year!

One of the things I really enjoyed about this con was how small it was.  Most of the smaller cons I've been to in the past weren't that exciting, but this con was different. I don't know why, but I just really enjoyed the small con feel. It was great not having to run to every panel worrying about getting a good seat because none of the panels I went to were crowded.  I was really impressed with how hard they tried to provide good programming for such a small con.  I also liked their celebrity guest choices.  Riddle's Messy Wardrobe was there, as was Dante Basco!  Can you say fan girl mode???

It was also a treat to cosplay with my friends.  As mentioned in a previous post, one of my friends dressed up as Bumblebee from Teen Titans and Breasa(my sister) dressed up as BalckFire. Getting to be StarFire with a BlackFire(Friday) and Raven with a Bumblebee(Saturday) was awesome! It made me really happy that they love me enough to cosplay from one of my favorite fandoms. Costumes take a lot of time and money so I really appreciate them doing that with my Titan obsession in mind;  it was really sweet of them.  Breasa also just thought BlackFire and StarFire together would be an awesome sister's cosplay and I agree.  It was ^_^.  We're planning another shoot before the end of this month to get pictures of them since I got 2 pictures of StarFire and neither are post worthy.

Speaking of cosplaying with friends, on Halloween I was lucky enough to convince my friends to hangout as Teen Titans.  My neice dressed up as Terra, R. went as Bumblebee, Breasa(my sister) went as BlackFire and I wore my Raven costume.  It was probably the best Halloween I've had since trick or treating when I was a kid. 

We made a really funny Teen Titans CMV(Well, we think it's funny), took some great pictures of our costumes and went to Chipotle for dinner.  It really reminded me why I cosplay: to have fun!  I was starting to think about why I spend so much money on costumes vs. any other hobby and I realized on Halloween that it was nigts like that, that make the whole thing worth it.  We had so much fun running around in the dark dressed as superheroes and goofing off.  I don't think words can describe it adequatly so just look forward to the video.  I'll be posting it on youtube by the end of this month.

Halloween also ended with the promise of a possible X-Men cosplay group with the same ladies.  I'm really excited about that.  I just can't decide if I should try to remake Pixie with moving wings or do the Storm original design 2.0 that I was planning.  Tough choices.

Most of the photos posted here were taken by our cowgirl Monica who you can see above arresting BlackFire.  We couldn't get her a Teen Titans costume in time, so she did us a huge favor by filming the video we'll be posting and taking photos with her phone.  She has agreed to join the insanity and probably cosplay with us for our next group project.