Next generation of the catsuit.

Woot! I fixed the fit and am now ready to head into the actual style! There's a tiny bit of work in the crotch, but I think I can fix that in careful sewing. This is a mock up once again, hence the ridiculous fabric. The next iteration will be in final fabric and have the look of the final character. This will be probably the most comfortable cosplay I've ever worn. 

I'm just going to wear this around the house now...

Earrings, Cat Suit and Work Toward an Actual Goal

Project updates, in no particular order - 

Code

I'm getting pretty confident in my ability to create basic web design.   I use Codeacademy.com to learn basic html, CSS and Java. I'll be starting Ruby soon. If you are looking for work in ANY field, I suggest doing this, even if these skills seem completely unrelated to your job. It shows you are interested in building you skills in your downtime and gives you more terms to use on a resume.

Earrings, now in BUNNIFORM!

Plain

Gilded

Costume

Remember I'm making this: 

Here's a bizarre pattern, made from scratch per my measurements:

Here's a cat suit, made from said pattern:

This is the mock-up prior to adjusting the pattern. Note, no side seams, no center front seam. I shortened the crotch extension and trued up the leg seams on the pattern after this fitting. One more mock up, and I can start adjusting the pattern to contain the style lines of the actual costume. 

Nightstand

I threw a few more coats of paint on the interior of the nightstand project while I was patterning. It should be ready for the complete exterior stain and polyurethane coat soon. 

Upcoming Projects

In a few weeks, we'll be making a spice rack on wheels for my kitchen and a set of Roman shades for the living room. 

Another Daily Awesome - Gold Leaf

So, what's going on here? Well, I've made some of my cardboard designs more awesome by applying gold leaf! It was easy enough to follow the instructions on the package. 

Here are some boring bits, waiting for something to make them more interesting. They've been coated with sealant. 

That's a sheet of gold on the left. The earrings on the right are all prepped with sealant and adhesive. 

The earrings on the left are adhering to the gold. on the right are the stages of buffing the leaf onto the surface with the brush. The tough part is getting it to clear from the holes.

Here they are with fully applied leaf!

These are the finished product with sealant and findings. 

Please let me know if you are interested in any of these or a custom product. I'm also happy to share any knowledge on applying gold leaf.

Daily Awesome - Sleep Mask

You may recall that I purchased a paper mache mask a few weeks back. Here's how it went. I used purple quilted fabric and black satin, plus flannel bias binding for the edge and satin ribbon for the ties. This took several days of spare time, but could be done in a day if someone were so inclined.

The mask as purchased.

As it's going to be a sleep mask, I needed to close the eye holes. This is just paper mache made from newspaper and flour/water paste. 

Here I glued some quilted fabric to the interior for padding. 

I stuffed some extra fill into the cheeks to close the light leaks.

Glued and clamped the cheeks to the form.

Same image from the front.

Glued the front fabric to the front of the form and pinned the excess to the back. 

Same view from the front.

Same view, with the fabric rolled down. I next ran glue down the eyes and on the cheeks to make the fabric tight on the face.

In order to smooth the fabric over the nose, I slit the fabric down the length of the nose, then added a triangular piece to cover the hole. 

First was to sew the nose fabric to the glued on front fabric...

...then roll the excess to the back.

Here I am stitching around the edge of the form to keep the fabric rolled away from the face. The nose has a seam where I closed the hole around the nostril edge. It will be hidden later.

The finished edge.

A prettier view on my counter top. The back is still raw. 

I trimmed and tacked the fabric at the back, but the edge won't conform to the interior as the front fabric is not stretchy. I used Fray Block to keep the raw edges from getting too stringy.

 I employed some flannel bias binding to cover the raw edges and decorate the front. Bias tape conforms to curves and flannel is very soft. It was first stitched to the front, then to the back. You can also see that I added in the ties under the bias tape. This is the finished interior.

And here is the finished front, complete with adorable sleepy eye lashes. 

 I slept in the mask last night. It's a bit stiff and there is still a bit of a light leak at the bottom. I think that I'll wear a gel mask under it and see how it feels.

Daily Awesome - Painting a Water Color

Here's a painting of a Bunfish. 

Pencil Drawing with initial orange water color on the belly.

Added in the yellow and orange fins.

Blues and greens on the body and ears.

Blended the body colors and finished the back fin.

Added in the background water. 

Finishing details applied with markers. 

In Which Polyurethane is Applied.

Here's a look at the original drawer front and the refinished drawer with the first layer of polyurethane.I need to sand it and apply the second coat before I replace the handle. This was what I completed a few days ago, before the job search binge.

Pretty Awesome
Great news on the Awesome Front - one of  my friends just got a job using a resume which I formatted for her. Obviously, it was her great history and work ethic that actually landed her the job, but it's very satisfying to know I'm providing something valuable.

Fitness
I ran 45 minutes on a treadmill yesterday. I think the longest I've tried before was 25. As usual, the day after working out, I gained 4 pounds which stuck around most of the week. (No, you do not gain four pounds of muscle in one workout.) The Internet says I'm either eating more OR retaining water due to not drinking enough as a rule. I have a calorie tracker that assures me I'm not eating more calories than prior to the I was prior toning class and elliptical running. So, retention it is. I've started drinking a big bottle of water each day. This should convince my body to stop retaining water after work outs. Today, I'm down 2 pounds. Maybe next week, I'll manage a pound less. This time, I won't freak out and quit before the exercise and diet has a chance to work.

I don't really feel like doing much more than cleaning my house today. Maybe I'll put something on the television and finish my pattern today. That would be Awesome.

The Serious Topic of Internet Hygiene

I'm happy to be judged by the content of this blog. I have an intense work ethic, and believe in using idle time to create beautiful and useful things. I want to inspire others and motivate myself. I feel it my duty to remain outwardly positive, even while facing challenges in my life. These are the qualities that I bring to work; any employer should be happy to have such qualities in an employee.

I bring this up because the past few days have been taken up by job searching instead of making. Part of looking for work is making sure one has a positive web-presence. Therefore, I'm conducting the arduous task of scrubbing my timeline on Facebook.

Recently, Facebook started the practice of linking "likes" on pages to articles that the person may not have read, then posting them to friends' pages with the "liker's" name above it. The site is also generating likes for mentions in comments. Potentially, I could end up seeming to "like" something that goes completely against my principles or those of a company that might hire me.

Here's the full story.

Facebook also removed the ability to disallow sharing of photos by friends from my account, a measure I used to prevent photos of me from being seen by others outside my personal network. While I'm not the kind of person who indulges in beer bongs or naked bike rides, I do feel that people should not be judged on what they share with people who know them in context; nor should people be judged by their profile picture, as it reveals your relative age, race, gender and attractiveness. Employers who "check up" on potential job candidates on such sites need a lesson in ethics and law.

So why do I still use it? I enjoy connecting with my far-flung friends and family. I appreciate the ability to create and be invited to events. I like seeing the news of the world in aggregated form. I have troves of wedding pictures that I would otherwise have missed but for my friends sharing on the site. (I download them and remove the tags.) I love following George Takei. It's nice to "crowd source" when I need help on a project. In other words, Facebook is a tool, and it still has some use when used properly.

I'm happy to share the automated techniques I use with anyone who wants to keep their personal life private while not losing the ability to connect. My advice if you use Facebook mainly as a way to connect with your work network; make sure you take precautions. Always be positive. Never complain about work openly. Keep your politics and religion to yourself. Don't assume that "Groups" or limited posts will always be that way. Be professional, because that is the face you are required to put forward.

Back to work.