31 Days of Halloween! Day27- Made: SteamPunk Costumes

I am changing the topic for today to COSTUMES, with the emphasis this year on steampunk.

The Tweedles

We attended a steampunk convention this year. Today is the last day of the 'Con, which is why I've gotten behind on my posts. What can I say? ... I got really distracted  ; ) .


Today's post is just a feast for the eyes and simply covers some ideas for steaming yourself up steampunk style!
This year I didn't get a lot of pictures, I was busy with "candy for strangers", more on that later too ; ) , but I will post pics from previous years too.

First, some friends...

A Tweedle, All Alone

 






 

My Flying Monkey!

OutBack Punk...

Protection from Con'flu?

Friends... From Around The World

DeWyk gets Assistance from Natives...

and Recommendations on Footwear...

Vamped Up!

Lovely.

'waaay OutBack

A Wicked? Witch of Oz-tralia ; ) and her Flying Monkey (a sister witch of mine)

Guest of Honour ~> Professor Elemental Interviewed by Father.

Modeling Lovely...

Research.Explorer.Imagine.

Studying Gods and Monsters

UnCovered.

Baggage!

S.M. Stirling Interview

There may be more images from the "Around the World" Fashions , but here is a look at Drew's Angels (Andrew Dyrdahl)

Too much to post here, more posts on this may show up later!

Enjoy! 

DeWyk

31 Days of Halloween! Day19- Make: Basic Frogs & Baldrics!

There are many types and designs of baldrics and frogs, we will discuss the topic in general and give simple directions for A) altering something you likely have in your closet for an easy costume baldric and frog and B) making a baldric and weapon's frog from scratch.

~ Baldric (n) ~ First known use in the 14th century; the modern word derives from Middle English (baudry and baudrik) and Middle French (baudré), originating in the Old French (baldrei). The baldric is a belt worn over one shoulder and slung diagonally across the body, generally worn to carry a weapon (frequently a sword) or a small musical instrument (like a bugle or trumpet).
~ Frog (n) ~ The source of the word is uncertain. The frog is a scabbard, used to suspend an item (generally a weapon, tool, or musical instrument) from a belt.

A) A simple costume baldric and frog can easily be made from a long scarf (or 2) or a couple belts.
A1) Simply drape the middle of the scarf or the buckled joining of the 2 belts over your right shoulder if you're right-handed (left if you are left-handed) A2) then tie the scarf ends to a plastic loop or/buckle the other end across your opposite hip. A3) You may need to adjust the top buckle of the belts in front of your chest to lengthen or shorten your make-shift baldric. The scarf's loop or/lower buckle of the belt is used like a frog to hold the sword. A4) A simple felt or felt and cardboard disc can be made to buffer the top edge of you "sword".


B) Leather frog and baldric
Making the frog: (simple frog)
need:
-leather
-1 large O ring
-2 small O rings
-2 buckles, 1"
-rivets and/or Chicago screws

1. cut 1 strip leather ---" long and 1" wide
2. cut 1 strip leather ---" long and 1" wide
3. cut 2 strips leather ----" long and 3/4" wide
4. punch holes in 1" wide pieces at ---" and ---"
5. punch holes in 3/4" wide pieces at -----" and ----------
6. set buckle

Sorry, something just came up, hopefully I'll have a chance to revisit this!


from the desk of D

31 Days of Halloween! Day2- Recipe: Severed Fingers

I really love these, they look creepy and taste incredible!

Severed (Witches') Fingers 

Ingredients
1 cup butter, softened
1 cup powdered sugar
1 egg
1 tsp almond extract (or alternate flavoring extract)
1 tsp vanilla
2 2/3 cups flour
*1/4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
3/4 cup almonds, whole 

**red frosting/ gel

*** red jam or jelly (especially raspberry)

****cocoa powder or finely ground coffee

Beat together butter, sugar, egg, almond extract and vanilla in a bowl. 

Beat into the mix flour, baking powder (*frequently I don’t use any baking powder, which makes the fingers denser/less puffy), and salt. 

Cover mix and refrigerate 30 minutes. 

Work with one quarter of the dough mix at a time and keep remainder refrigerated.

Scoop out a slight tablespoon of dough, roll and shape into a finger for each cookie > gently squeeze dough to create knuckle shapes to either side and use a toothpick/knife to make knuckle crinkles.

Press an almond firmly into rounded end of each "finger" for a fingernail.

Bake at 325°F (160°C) on lightly greased cookie sheets for 20-25 minutes or until lightly golden. 

Allow to cool for ~3 minutes. 

** I've used red frosting to stick down the almonds and then put cuts into the fingers and line them with frosting.
Remove fingers from baking sheets and let cool.

*** Red jam or jelly can be heated to melting and used as a dip to make the ends of the fingers look bloody.

**** Cocoa powder and finely ground coffee can be used in the dough to flavor the fingers or mixed with a little water and brushed onto the fingers to antique them.

This shortbread recipe has a similar taste and consistency to biscotti and goes great with coffee or tea.

I've made this (approximate) recipe every year for over 10 years and have experimented quite a bit with it. This particular recipe has worked best for me, holds the finger shape, the flavor is great, and the base recipe is very easily altered.

 Enjoy! 

DeWyk

31 Days of Halloween!(+1) Day1- Make: THE Skirt. DeWyk

Hi!

Welcome to DeWyk's "31 Days of Halloween! (+1)", this is Day 1 of a 3-day-long cycle. 

Day 1 of the cycle will be = "How to Make ____", 
Day 2 of the cycle will be = "Recipe for ___ ", and 
Day 3 of the cycle will be = "Look What we Made!". 
All of the posts will focus on the Halloween season.

Now, here's the first of our "31 Days of Halloween! (+1)"...

The Skirt...


 

The Spin...

The Makeable...

...here is the pattern I used as a base...
  

  

Right click on the pattern back image to open it in a new window and enlarge so you can see the list of preferred fabrics, notions list, and measurements. 

I did make alterations to the pattern; the pattern was generally easy to work with and alter. Alterations I made to the pattern are posted below.

... the fabrics I considered...

 I wanted a dark main color with flashes of complimenting bright colors in the godets. I used the fabrics from the image on the right. Fabrics were purchased at JoAnn Fabrics and Pacific Fabrics.

... a few of the specialty items needed...

       


iron on fabric stiffener









zipper foot for the sewing machine

... and here are some more pics of the finished skirt  ; )

 

Pattern alterations I made:
> no twill tape, piping, or ribbon was harmed in the , errr... I mean used, in the making of this skirt ( ;
> added 2 godets ~ one added on each side, creating an every-other alternating pattern of dark and bright (the pattern was, imo, oddly missing these 2 godets);
> made godets of 2 complimenting fabrics, alternating them, so overall I purchased a bit more total fabric (~2/3 of the normal skirt total for the waist band and main skirt and ~1/4 more of the total for each of the godet complimentary fabrics) ;
> used 9" zipper, rather than 7";
> changed zipper placement to the front edge of the godet added to the left side;
> added small pocket inside the edge of the left godet;
> slightly altered depth of skirt waist, creating a broader waist band (my model has a long waist);
> and corrected pattern, generally, for size (pattern construction ran a little small compared to measurements).

I made this skirt over the course of 3 days. Pins and your iron are definitely your friends while making this piece! (2 items i don't tend to use a lot).

Enjoy! 

DeWyk