Sorry for not being very active in both the blog and drawing department. This semester has been my busiest one yet, especially with thesis and package design classes. I have, however, been working on a little special something (since last year actually lol) and decided this would be the perfect place to show it off!
As some of you know, I'm a gaming addict - my Xbox is my child. A little over a year ago, my boyfriend introduced me to this game he had on his phone and Xbox called Plants vs. Zombies. Not only did I fall in love with the game, but I fell in love with the art style, the characters, everything! So much that I just recently decided I will have a Plants vs. Zombies themed nursery (and baby shower) for my non-existent baby.
So for this Halloween, I figured there was no better way to show off my love and my creativity than to go as one of the plants from the game - even my boyfriend liked the idea and decided to go as one of the zombies.
What plant am I? A Chomper! They aren't my favorite, but I really liked their overall look and loved the fact that they had so many different characteristics to work with (teeth, spikes, leaves, spots, etc). They're sort of creepy looking (in a sickeningly adorable way) as well, so they're perfect for Halloween!
(Note: trying to take a picture of yourself sideways and making sure it's focused is extremely difficult)
Interested in how I went about designing and making the costume? I'll tell you.
[ Step One ] __________________________________________________
I knew right away that I wanted to incorporate this costume into clothing somehow because honestly, I think most costumes that are the actual shape/size of the character are tacky and look terrible. Have you seen those Angry Bird costumes they've been selling everywhere? The one where you look like an oversized apple and your face sticks out of the middle? Yeah. Dumb. Terrible idea. Not to mention the yellow one just looks like a fat banana suit. Clothing for me it is!
First thing I looked for a was a purple hoodie. I realized that Chomper had a big mouth with a bunch of teeth, so I thought a hoodie would work and look the best because it goes over my head and I could line the hood with teeth. Adorable, right?
[ Step Two ] __________________________________________________
Chomper has four white spikes on the top of his head, which was what I worked on next. I wanted them to be of a significant size, so I was only able to fit three on the hoodie. Hey, if Popcap can forget to draw the spikes on their own creation, I can modify it to fit my costume correctly :P
To make these I bought some plain white fabric (very thin, very cheap), white thread, and some stuffing (which will be used for a later piece of the costume). Using this cone pattern, I modified the shape to the size I wanted (I think it was already pretty accurate to begin with), cut out the pattern (cone and circle), and traced them on to the white fabric.
After cutting out the shapes from the fabric, I sewed the sides of the cone together, but left the bottom open (important). Then I pinned the circle to the bottom of the cone, which deemed a little difficult if you're somewhat of a perfectionist, like me. You want to make sure that each side is even, so pin with precision.
The final step to the cone was to sew the circle to the bottom, leaving a little hole just wide enough to be able to stick your hand inside and turn the cone inside out. This hides all the stitching and makes the cone look really clean. Lastly, shove some stuffing in there. Keep in mind that you probably want your cones to be as firm as possible so they will stand outright when sewn to the hoodie.
[ Step Three ] __________________________________________________
The next part that I worked on was the leaves around the collar of the hoodie. A Chomper has leaves around it's neck, so I figured the neck of the hoodie would be an appropriate place.
First, I drew out different sized leaves (big, bigger, and smaller) on some regular computer paper, cut them out, and traced them on to the darker green fabric.
Then I cut them out of the fabric and stitched the top of leaves (big, small, big, small, etc) along the line where the hoodie and the back of the sweatshire meet. That line was convenient because it allowed the leaves to be perfectly straight around instead of crooked or all over the place.
After that, I noticed that the leaves were folding up and just generally moving around too much, so I used the double sided sticky tape to keep them down (note: the tape requires that you throw the costume into the dryer after use to help melt the glue to the fabric). The tape worked great and eliminated the messy look stitches tend to do.
For this and the next step, I would recommend fabric that doesn't fray like the kind I used (cheap kind, same as the white). You can see that the edges of the leaves are fraying and just look god awful. If I had the time to do them over again, I would.
[ Step Four ] __________________________________________________
Next was the Chomper's "lips" if that's what you want to call them I guess. Despite what they are called, Chomper's have a green outline around their mouths - I used my lighter green fabric for this because in the pictures it's a green that's noticeably lighter in color.
This step was relatively easy thanks to the hoodie's stitching, which I used to line up the edge of my green fabric. I measured out how wide the strip of green should be and pinned it along the rim of the hoddie, folding it over the edge and pinning it again on the inside of the hood. I ended up using two strips for this, but if I could do it over I would probably try using just one for a cleaner look (because you see where the two overlap). After that, I just sewed as close to the edge of the green as possible, making sure the thread was going into the green on the inside of the hood as well.
[ Step Five ] __________________________________________________
After that I attached the teeth, which surprisingly took no time at all. I used white felt for the teeth because it's more sturdy, allowing the teeth to hold their own. I basically just cut out a bunch of triangles of the same size and stitched them to the inside of the hoodie, along the edge of the light green fabric.
[ Step Six ] __________________________________________________
After the teeth I attached the magenta spots along the Chomper's head. Using the magenta felt I bought, I cut out about four different sized circles and placed them where I thought looked best based on the images I've seen of the Chompers. I had originally bought magenta thread with the intension of sewing the spots on, but initially decided it would look to messy and used the double sided sticky tape/glue instead. Be sure to tape around the edges of the circles, otherwise they will look as though they are coming off.
[ Step Seven ] __________________________________________________
The last part of the costume that requires work are the big leaves that go around the Chomper's stem. For this, I decided to make a belt type of piece with four big leaves attached to be worn almost like a skirt. This is still, however, a work in progress and I have yet to finish making the leaves (I ran out of stuffing!)
Chompers only have four leaves around their stem, which is what I'm hoping I'll end up with. I'll have to see how they end up spacing out though because I don't want too many gaps between each leaf.
Like the smaller leaves, I drew out a large leaf on 13" x 19" paper, traced it on the darker green fabric twice, and cut them out. Pinning the two leaves together, I sewed them together - as close to the edge as possible. Don't sew them all the way together, however, because you'll need to turn them inside out and stuff them like the cone.
Once I have all the leaves complete, I plan on sewing them to the strip of green fabric I sized to fit around my waist. I want to put some velcro on the end of the strip for easy equipping and removing. The only possible problem with this is that the hoodie is going to run longer than the leaves, leaving purple between the gaps and looking stupid. If that's the case, I plan on sewing some more green fabric to the bottom of the hoodie, much like I did for the "lips" on the hood.
[ Last Step ] __________________________________________________
For the finishing touches, I purchased some green full length leggings and green socks. Only problem at the moment is that my socks are a lighter green (like the light green on my costume) and I want them to match my leggings. So if I can find some green socks before Halloween, I'll be set.
[ Conclusion ] __________________________________________________
And that's how I made a Chomper costume! I'm not the best at sewing and I don't have a sewing machine, so it's not as "professional" as I would like it to look, but I doubt people will have a problem :P
When the costume is fully complete, I'll be sure to post some full body pictures. Check back Friday or Saturday :D
Thanks for reading! Don't forget to visit my website at www.kelseykronmiller.com, like me on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/kelseykronmillerdesigns, or follow me on Twitter @KelseyKDesigns
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