Enchanted Dominion: This is Halloween, Everybody Make a Scene!

First off, Happy Halloween Everyone! I hope this day has brought you much fear and happiness!

To really understand me, you have to know I love Halloween; this has always been true. As a child, I did the whole Trick or Treat thing. We also spent each Halloween at my Nana's house, because it was her birthday. This is our first year without her, and it is very different. Although we didn't do anything last year at her home, we still saw her. I miss her, but I know she would want me to live today to the fullest and not be sad on her behalf; she would have wanted me to have fun. So, that is just what I did.

Ever since around November 1st of last year, I've been planning for Halloween. I wanted this year to be so much fun, and it was, to some extent. At much consideration, I decided I was going to dress up as Stitch, from the hit Disney movie, Lilo and Stitch. This year, I went to the hockey game at school dressed up (Friday). I had so much fun. After, I roamed around our dorm(s) and met people dressed up. On Saturday, I was planning on hitting a party of some kind, but it was cancelled do to the fact we had a mini-blizzard. Most of the state was effected badly and we are still without power in many spots. So, while getting ready, we lost power and I was forced to stay in. However, it was exciting seeing everyone and again, walking around. Plus, I love snow more than anything!

Halloween weekend concluded tonight. Because of the storm, we lost school today, which meant a free day to study and catch up. Tonight, our dining hall was running a costume contest and I entered; I'm hoping to hear tomorrow if I won a prize or not. In addition, I spent most of tonight in costume, even when studying and hanging out. To me, Halloween will always be a chance for me to cosplay.

So, as I mentioned, I cosplayed/dressed up as Stitch for Halloween. This decision came after I saw a costume someone made online. It looked incredible and I loved the artistic approaches she used. So, I decided (many months ago) I wanted to cosplay Stitch at a convention. Well, as it turned out, people suggested I do him for Halloween and I'm so glad people did. It was awesome cosplaying in October (as I was missing it) and it gave me a lot of practice. I plan on cosplaying it for at least part of a day at Anime Boston 2011. I'm hoping to hit at least 3 more cons next year because I am running out of time to do these things. Hopefully I'll be able to pull it off.

So, onto the costume. Below I'm posting a rough tutorial for how to do it and pictures of me dressed up. I'll try to be a clear as possible. Please comment if you have questions or have something to say...

Materials

Blue Hooded Sweatshirt
Blue Jeans/Pants
Foam Paper (Craft Paper)
Scissors
Chalk (White)
Needle/Thread
Fabric Glue (Optional)
Blue Light-weight Gloves
Acrylic Paint (Dark Blue, Red, White, Blue, Light Blue)
Fabric Paint (1 darker and 1 lighter than the sweatshirt)
Patterns for Stitch's Ears (I'll provide these)
Sharpie
Compass (Optional)
Fabric Strip (Preferred Red)
Face Paint (Blue and Black)
Hair Color (Blue)

To start, gather all materials. The first step is to prep the sweatshirt. Find an image of stitch that shows the pattern on the front and back. Take the white chalk and outline the pattern on the hooded-sweatshirt.
Once satisfied, begin painting. Use the lighter blue fabric paint on the front. Note that it shouldn't be too much light, only visibly.
Once that is painted, allow about 2 hours to dry and add a second coat or touch it up.
When dry, create the back pattern and paint with darker paint. Repeat the previous step.
While the sweatshirt is drying, you will make the ears. Taking the pattern I have, create Stitch's ears. For more info on this, visit Stitch's Ears Tutorial on this blog. After they are completed, paint them with the appropriate colors. I mixed Cobalt and a darker blue to get the base and used Scarlet mixed with White to get the pink fleshy part. When they are done, use the needle and thread to stitch them into the hood of the sweatshirt. It is best to lay them out to make sure they are even. Also, make sure they are stitched in well.
After the ears are done, it's time to make his name tag. Cut out a circle from the foam paper (I used a compass). Paint the circle red and allow to dry. When dry, write "Stitch". Cut a whole above the words and add the fabric; there should be enough to tie around your neck loosely.
The next step is to create the gloves. To do this, take your foam paper (I used blue) and make nails. To do this, I just played around until I go the right size and shape. Once you get your size, cut out enough so there are ten. Now it's time to stitch them into the gloves; to do this, put the nail onto the material and slide the fabric up slightly; the nail base should be covered slightly. Finally, use the needle and thread to stitch them in. I recommend re-stitching and cutting out extras as they will eventually fall out.
The last step is to apply the face and hair makeup. The goal is to color your eyelids and around the eye (slightly) black. Then, add the blue around the black. The blue should cover your eyebrows and extend over your nose. Also, add black to your nose top for a nose. For your hair, have a friend spray the blue into your hair in quick, light layers. Practice the makeup to get it right and make sure to only apply it after the sweatshirt is on.

In addition, a few tips I have:

Always allow 20 minutes for makeup.
Check ears and nails before use.
Fabric glue might be as good a sewing.
Make sure everything fits first.
Take precautions while painting.
Open windows when painting.
With the hair, protect your clothing and face.
Only spray your hair in AREAS WITH VENTILATION.
Take plenty of pictures!

So that's my Halloween spiel. I hope everyone had a superb day and is looking forward to next year! I can't wait to cosplay this again soon (157 Days)!