Construction Details:

My friend Limebarb and I made Clamp costumes for Anime Matsuri - she did Sakura's ginormous white and gold gown, and I chose this rather obscure version of Yuuko from XXXholic because I loved the color scheme and the hair. And because it was doable in the limited time I had (seems like every cosplay these days gets made under such conditions :/...). This time around I only had two frigging days to make Yuuko for Matsuri, which meant I hardly slept before the con, yay! About the construction of this costume: I got a heavy black poly/wool blend for the kimono, and a beautiful burgundy silk for the lining and ruffles. After sewing the outer layer but before putting in the lining, I appliquéd about 14 or 15 butterfly shapes onto it. The pattern for the butterflies was just free drafted - I cut them out of a yellow fabric and after spending a few hours stitching down the edges neatly, I got to paint the details onto the appliqués for the next night and part of the morning lol. I remember watching a whole season of CSI while painting the butterflies, and it became quite the surreal experience. O_O As the mariposas dried, I made many yards of ruffles and also did my own gold trim for the costume. Stitched it all together with the lining and a big part of the costume was done. I love the fabrics I scored because they are almost wrinkle free, no matter how much I shove the costume into a suitcase. The waist cincher is made of a burgundy pleather and I plan on remaking it soon. The material was bought in a rush and is not very sturdy. The cincher has a fake lace up front. Lastly I worked on the wig, which took some engineering. The main problem was balancing the weight of the extension loops on my head, but in the end it worked out great and I can bend over and sway my head without things shifting. The bat crown and hairpieces are made of styrene plastic that's been heat formed. I rushed them for Anime Matsuri and they looked so much better at Sakuracon *_*. I hope to cosplay Yuuko more often in the future, she was so fun to pose as!

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