How did you manage to throw her in a bucket of water?

Right. For my mum'd birthday I bought her flowers and hid them in my room in a bucket until the day. Because I'm a genuis I put the bucket next to the craft table XD In the interval between my taking the flowers to my mum and moving the bucket I somehow managed to drop her into it XD She spent a week on the radiator though and dried out fine, though she didn't have any legs or hair at that point so it was a bit creepy.

@Averg
No, her markings don't mean anything. I just really love large tattoos like that so decided to give her some. It's just a swirl pattern I made up as a drew it on

Well, I started her long before christmas and in that time I've given up about three times then picked her up again, remade her legs twice, thrown her in a bucket of water by accident and given up on deformed limbs and declared her some kind of fairy thing but she's finished XD




I've got some nicer fabric to work with for the next one (this girl is made from am old very stretchy t-shirt) so hopefully she won't be as much trouble, but this girl is still lovely XD

Thank you so so so much, TPauSilver! I love everything!

Glad you like I've never made a dog plushie before so I was a bit nervous. When I sat down and read your profile though I knew I had to at least try making him. I've been thinking of making a plushie with a pocked for cosplay for years and this seemed like the perfect opertunity. The worst part of a cosplay is always either finding a bag that matches or finding someone to hold your bag when you need to take photos and all the best cosplay are those that come with bags XD Also, is there some trick to working with fur that I don't know? I think I inhaled more than I used <_<

I've been having a finishing up day so here we go -

First, the skirts. This first skirt is made using fabric samples from a curtain sample book. The patern is here, easy to scale up.



And a purple wrap-round skirt. The pattern is here



And, finally, a waistcoat. Pattern is simplicity 2566. (please forgive the waistcoat not matching the outfit under it, I am lazy XD)

I'm so glad you like everything and that it got to you safely! For whatever reason, I was afraid something would happen to Integra's glasses during the voyage, but I'm glad to see they made it. She probably would have sent Alucard after me if they hadn't . . .

I love the doll and journal!! What is she from??

Integra is from the manga/anime Hellsing. It's awesome! It has vampires and werewolves and Nazis and crazy Catholics and French mercenaries and the freaking Ottoman empire(at least I think it was the Ottomans. I can't remember now). Anyway, it's great.

And Zeplins and Nazi-Zombies. You know anything with a Zeplin is great.

And yes, I love it all so much and it got here safely. Glasses are intact. I keep just picking Integra up to hug her. Me and some friends are doing an all-nighter next month and we're going to watch the Hellsing OVAs so I'm going to take Integra along to that so she'll get the admiration she deserves.

Oh my god my package just arrived and it's awsome. Photos in like 5 minutes, I'm just having spasma over how awsome it all is and needed to share them first XD


Ok, edit to add photos. First, yes, I very much love this craft swap, thank you so much angelcallie! Everything in the box is wonderful.

So, here's what I go -

What was in my box:


The items were:


Fullmetal Alchemist sewing kit, perfect to come to cons as an emergency sewing kit!


Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha journal. I absolutley love this. Nanoha is my favourite series and this journal is to lovely.


SAyonara Zetsubou-sensei t-shirt. I'm wearing this now and it's wonderful Though my parents can't work out why I want a shirt that says despair XD


Finally, my absolute favourite, Integra plushie. Words can not express how happy I was when I pulled her out of the box. She's absolutley amazing. I didn't want to spam you with images so you'll just have to take my word for it but she's very detailed, her clothes are lovely and removable, she's just wonderfully really XD


One last picture becasue she's that awsome. Her fingers are posable and angelcallie suggested she could hold a gun or a cigar XD I can't make a gun at short notice but here's Integra smoking her cigar XD

Thanks for this pattern! I just tired it for the first time and my pockets came out a bit wonky because I didn't pin it right but other then that's it's wonderful. So easy to make and a great way to use up my scrap fabric!

I've been only to a con twice, and it was a very very small one... In belgium things like manga are finally starting to get up. There is one larger con that I know of but it's not only about anime but also about comics, sf, and stuff (most cosplayers are from star wars)
Sooo what I was planning to ask... what's a panel?
(for the rest I read the 2nd manga of Dramacon, that's how much I know about cons )
I want to go to one !!! There are more in The Netherlands but it's a bit far for me

A panel can vary. Usually its informative in some way. Like a class on how to make cat ears or chobits ears. Or it can be a discussion or question and answer time with someone important, like ComicCon this year has Stan Lee doing a panel on creating comics. Last September at kumoricon Svetlana Chmakova (author of Dramacon and Night School) did a few panels on character design and getting published. They also had a drawing panel that lasted 20 hours out of each 24hour period I believe. But I think some of the random fun things are also considered panels. The swimsuit cosplay competition was under the panel listing last year and not the events. So maybe it varies. But for the most part I think its informative in some way. Does that help?

I would agree and be jealous about all of the above. In the UK panels are mostly run by people attending the con so they vary massivley from con to con. Normally the people who do them are quite knowledgable, we had a guy for the amecon prop worshop who made an amazing quality full size Al cosplay (From fma) and a set of automail limbs for his girlfriend who was playing Ed and they were do good. I have a friend who's obsessed with Phoenix Wright who did a panel on it showing clips of the Takarazuka musical and the Edgeworth game. So, yeah...

Then we have a yuri panel run by a group who might once have seen utena, but most of the anime they listed as yuri was vague subtext at best and they did a skit which mained me as a fan of most of the shows they included because it seemed they were working of bad summaries rather then having seen the anime. The up side of that is me and my friend are pretty obsessed with running the yuri panel at amecon this year. If we'll get to or not is another thing but we've already done a ton of preliminary research between us and we've both seem Utena, Strawberry Panic and Marimite from start to finish which puts us well ahead of last year's group XD

I went to my first con last september. I have to say that I was actually a little bored. Maybe I missed what you're supposed to do at cons...I will admit though that it might have been more fun had I stayed at the hotel, but since I have two little ones, I just wasn't comfortable with that. I did dress up though. That was tons of fun. But I dont really need to go to a con to do that. I'm thinking that I might try it again this year. Anyone have any suggestions on what I'm supposed to do? lol. I literally felt like one of the oldest people there and I'm only in my 20's.

I do think it would be tons of fun to have a table there tho. But I hear that it's really expensive and having one doesnt allow you to partake in panels. What do you think? Some of you mentioned having tables- is it wortj it? Do you usually come out even or profit?

What people get out of conventions varies. I go almost entirely for the people, a lot of my friends do the conventions, a go to  the big events (the omake and the masquerade, normally) and a few panels, but I'm mostly there to chat and look at other people's cosplay. At the other end of the spectrum, I know people who skip the socialising aspect entirely and go only to use the dealers room, attend panels and watch anime. Most people fall somewhere in the middle. I think the best advice would be that if you want socialising, pick the smallest con you can. If you want events pick the biggest. Look at reviews and try posting on the message boards for the con before you go too. Smaller cons tend to be more close knit and more orientated to hanging out and being geeks, whereas bigger ones end to be more professional and are about the events. Both good in their own way but sometihng to think about XD

Oh, and about the tables, only ever helped out with my fiends but I'd say that if you want to actually take part in the activities like panels etc then don't. If you're more there for the socialising aspect they can be nice to do, I'd certainly consider doing it again but I don't really care about missing anything other then the parties and the omake.

All the conventions in America baffle me, so many of them XD England's great as the convention circuit is pretty small and pretty well contained. London expo is the biggest but that's just essentially a massive dealers room. Still fun but not as much fun. Then you've got ame/aya con which alternate in some strange pattern, then a range of smaller cons. I went to Tokonatsu last year and plan to go again, which is a camping convention where we spend a lot of time shooting each other with water pistols and making running around fields in cosplay.



And yes, I am rambling XD I'm at an awkward part of my large items and dont want to have to do it but I know I do have to XD I'm just going to have to suck it up and go and make the thing. Also, I thought I knew what I was making them I had an awsome idea last night for something else. Not worked out if it's fesable yet but I at least have to try.

I've still not had time to finish my first girl. I'm messing about with her. Working on getting the legs right. I'm kind of intimidated be the hair, I think, so will have to take that on soon or I'll never get any further.