Evenstar Designs

We finally got into the Marvel Cinematic Universe. I don't know why it took this long because I have so many friends that are into Marvel. Maybe it's just because there are so many movies that we didn't know where to start, but this summer, we've jumped in head first. And I love Bucky Barnes. :) Soooooo, I decided to do a cosplay. First things first. The arm. Whether it's a silver arm designed by evil Dr. Zola or a cool vibranium arm (happy punch in the feels - Steve's shield and Bucky's arm now match 💖 ) designed in Wakanda, I needed to figure out how to make a convincing metal arm. My sister has done a lot of research in the world of cosplay armor, so I went to her first to get help with making the arm. After looking at several other costumers recreations, we decided to make the arm out of EVA foam. (other options included warbla, or painted fabric, but we chose not to do those because warbla is too expensive, and painted fabric... not very realistic...

I finished my freshman year of nursing school, and am free for the summer, so I've  had some time to get back into sewing/costuming! First, I made a thing. It's a Middle Earth thing. My inspiration was Eowyn's house of healing dress. It's very plain, but still so beautiful. (If I had gotten whacked by the Dark Lord's mace-on-a-chain thingie, I would want to wear this dress while I recovered too.) The dress laces in the back with handsewn eyelets. I really wanted this to feel like something from Middle Earth, so a zipper just didn't fit the mood. I wore an elven necklace my sister got for me,  and the ear cuffs from my Arwen cosplay. The skirt is *so full* I can't even.

I'm not dead!! I started college, so sewing has kinda taken a back seat to nursing school. But I got a nice long Christmas break, so I decided to whip up a new gown. It's inspired by the Sissi Movies like my pink one . I think I might decorate it more when I come home again in the summer, but I didn't have enough time to hem yards of ruffles and bows. Also, my mom got me a "Sissi Star" necklace from Vienna for Christmas. Empress Elizabeth was known for the star jewelry she wore in her hair. Jewelers in Austria make star hairclips, necklaces, brooches, and earrings to commemorate the Empress. I was hoping for snow to take pictures, and two days before I left, it did! Oh, and I finally cut my hair! I donated 14 inches on New Year's Eve.  New Year, new hair.

Ever since I new about our beach trip, I decided that I wanted to make a romantic flowy gown for a photo shoot. I had a general idea of what it would look like, but no definite plan. When the dress was finished, I realized that it looked a little like Elizabeth's nightgown (from Pirates of the Caribbean Curse of the Black Pearl), which was perfect for the beach! So here's an overload of pictures of my simple yet romantic fairytale gown.

Kristi and I have been planning this since Christmas time: We wanted to make dresses from the Titanic movie, and do some sort of photo shoot on the beach this summer (because the beach was the closest thing we had to a cruise ship). We had the plan, but I didn't actually do anything to make it happen until about three weeks before our trip. As soon as I realized how little time we had, I quickly ordered the pattern and fabric. We decided that Kristi would have the red and black gown for when Jack saves Rose, and I would have the pastel gown from when the ship is sinking. We used simplicity pattern 8399, purchased fabric from Fabric Wholesale Direct, and I got a "Heart of the Ocean" necklace from amazon. Guess what? I was able to sew my dress in ONE DAY!!! New record!! Kristi's took a little longer because it took forever to add all the glitter, sequins, lace and fringe. Anywho, we did our little photo shoot on the beach, which was difficult with the wind,...

Tailgates at Taco Bell, near collisions in the intersection reel, and lots of fandoms oh my!  The 2017  Homeschool Ball was definitely a night to remember!  This year's gown was the easiest to make yet, and also was the most comfortable!  I actually wasn't overheated once whereas in years past I felt like  I was on fire. This year's theme was "An Evening at the Library" so I chose to go as someone from the Lord of the Rings. Because the book isn't overly descriptive about costumes, and the movie has some amazing interpretations,  I decided to make Arwen's gown from the dream scene in LOTR the Two Towers: The hardest part was finding the right colored fabric, but after a day of searching through three fabric stores, I found something that would work. I used a lavender shantung taffeta and some lavender chiffon layered on top of each other, and it turned out very nicely! Kristi got me Arwen's Evenstar necklace for Christmas, and I purchased elv...