::scarlet cosplay :: catherine deane, victim bride ::

I admit. i liked this movie, despite the fact that i loathe j-lo. i especially LOVED the costumes. Eiko Ishioka, who did the costume work for Dracula, also came up with the insanity for this film.

that being said, i love this costume. of all the choices i've ever made in picking what to embark on, this is my favourite, despite the fact i've never worn it to any event. it's only four pieces, but all are extremely difficult to recreate in their own way.

i do not consider this one finished, and am constantly on the lookout for a better way to make the collar, re-make the headpiece, and create a better-fitting gown.

::the hairpiece::

human hair wefts sewin onto padded rectangle/tapered pillows. the ends were bleached and dyed a neon-burgundy red.

:: the mask::

this was a bit of a hassel-- at first, and my first experiment in using paper-based clay. it's an aluminum armature base, wrapped in mesh, with silver ball-chains in varying levels atttached. the base was well-covered in the clay, varnished, and painted when dried. i then silverleafed it using an extremely shiny chrome gift wrap tissue. it was the shiniest i could find.the greatest benefit of this method i've found is that the mask is still adjustable, so it can recover from being packed up and bent, and can go easily on and off the head.

::the dress::

the bottom layer is a flesh-toned rayon, and the overlayer's a hand-painted chiffon. lots, and lots, and lots of fabric paint. i have plans to remake this dress, salvaging the overlayer, because i have since found skin-toned mid-weight spandex.

::the collar::

ugh. three test runs and i STILL don't like this. at all. i ended up going with a layer by layer build of paperclay, with a snap back.

know what's hard to do by yourself? cast your neck. just so you know.

on the upside, this collar is very close to the shape i need so that when the day comes, i can add additional clay and use it to create a mold. hopefully.