Retro Catwoman Part 2: Bustier and Accessories

The Catwoman costume is done, and in a very short amount of time; maybe a weekend tops?

I used a Burdastyle pattern for the bustier. I should have made a mockup, because it is a little large for me. Also, when the pattern instruction tell you to cut the boning shorter, you should do that, because the bones interfered with the top stitching. And maybe hot pink lining wasn't the best idea. Despite this, I'm very pleased with my first cupped bustier.

 It's not a Catwoman costume without some kind of cat ears. I used pleather scraps to make these ears, then glued them on to a head band. 

To complete the costume, I bought some goggles from ebay seller asvpshop. 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/251052896650?var=550261164716&ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2649

I order a pair with red lenses. I was actually surprised that they came with two pairs of lenses: one black, one red. The lenses were a bit dirty; I think I need to scrub them with glasses-cleaning spray or similar.

 They fit very well, and are great for this costume,though I think I will wear them up on my head because seeing everything through a red haze is quite strange.

Retro Catwoman: Part 1: The Shorts

Sometimes it's good to take a break from a project and work on something else. Currently I'm taking a quick break from the Rat Queen costume, and I'm making a quick Catwoman inspired costume. The idea is to create a 50s pinup look, similar (but not identical) to the one I saw in Heroes of Cosplay (side note: I love Harley Quinn's skirt. It's the cutest)

I wanted to make hot pants and a bustier, but to make the styling of the costume rougher, more like a biker girl than a classy Catwoman.

I happened to have the perfect material for this project:

 Presenting what is probably the world's most ugly dress. I found this in New Look during the spring sales. It was a size 18 (UK) pleather tent, and I don't think it would suit anyone, but I figured that there was enough material there to make a dress or a corset, and that buying the dress would be cheaper than buying fabric.

I used a lingerie pattern from Burda style to make the hot pants. The pattern looks a bit like granny pants, but it lends itself surprisingly well to hot pants. It would probably be good for a Wonder Woman costume too.

The pleather is very stretchy so it was perfect for this pattern. I cut out all the pieces, which only used up the front of the dress. Next I sewed the front pieces together. I used a narrow zigzag stitch on almost all the seams, and leather needles just to be on the safe side. I added a side zip (the pattern calls for an invisible zip, but I used what I had). Next I sewed the other side seam, then the crotch seam.

Once I checked that it fitted (it fitted beautifully; Burda patterns have very accurate sizes), I finished the leg holes, then added some elastic to the waistband, and top-stitched it with a narrow zig zag stitch.

These look great on, but off they look a bit crumpled. You'll just have to trust me when I saw the fit is gorgeous; I really recommend this pattern (go look at Burda's website - you'll find it easily).

Next step: the bustier, the cat ears, and the goggles.