Taking Over

Sooorrrryyyy, I have forgotten about blogging again. Bad Michelle.

So as a little surprise for you all I promise to post lots of photos of my projects that have kept me from the devious world of blogging. Soon to come!

So, are you wondering what the hell is a candy corn-set? Well, I am about to show you. Today, I embark on one of my Halloween costume constructions—a waist cinch that reveals panels of candy corn, sandwiched between two layers of clear PVC. I am also making nipple pasties made of satin and decorated with candy corn and mellow pumpkins. And lastly, decorating a pair of black knickers with halves of mellow pumpkins. Mind you, I do not intend to wear this ‘trick-or-treating’ but it will be one of my costumes for a massive London Halloween weekend in the fetish scene. This idea really came out of my mum sending me two jumbo bags of candy corn and pumpkins and not being able to eat even half of the stock. Too much sugar for a vegetarian, I reckon.

My second costume is going to be purely body paint, Dias Des Muertas style. But more on that later.

So anyway, if you would like to make your own candy corset and are around a UK size 8, you will need

1 metre of clear or coloured PVC (I got a grey tinted clear PVC). If you live in London, I found that the Cloth House has some fantastic textures and the price is not too bad. If you are on a VERY tight budget, A-One fabrics on Goldhawk Road has some super cheap, but it is not as gentle to the touch and I did not find any tinted colours. If you need extra support (I do NOT with an embarrassing A/B cup) a heavier weight may be necessary.

Corsetry busk 25 cm if you have a fairly long waist, you may need to go up to 30, or go down if you are very petite. I am about 70.5 cm tall, and I got a 25 cm. You can order these online, or again if you live in London, MacCulloch and Wallis has them in increments of 5 cm and their staff upstairs is very helpful in habi.

Steel coils now you can either buy these pre-cut at MacCulloch and Wallis or wherever else, or you can cut your own with wire cutters if you are quite strong. I preferred to cut my own, and if you are in the states, Farthingales LA has a good mail-order stock of bulk steel coils you can cut yourself. I like steel coils for this project versus regular steels because you will be able to see them through the PVC, so the coils have a more industrial feel. But in the end, it is up to you.

Coil tips These are essential if you are going to be cutting your own coils. Even if you buy pre-cut coils, you may need to cut some down and these will basically tip off the end of the coil so it will not poke through whatever you need. Don’t forget to buy TWO for every coil if you are cutting your own! These, too, are at MacCulloch and Wallis and Farthingales.

3-5 metres of cording this is for lacing up the back. The length depends on which way you prefer to lace your cinch. I usually tie off the ends and leave the ‘bunny ears’ at the waist, Victorian style. But it is up to you if you like the bow at the top or bottom.

Eyelets the amount depends on how intense you want to lace your corset. I will probably do 7-9 on each side, meaning I would need 14-18 eyelets.

Drafted Pattern sorry, I am too lazy to teach you how to draft your own pattern for a waist cinch. But I can reccommend some books to you if you are interested, or you can always buy a pattern online. Corsets and Crinolines by Norah Waugh is a good one, Period Costume for Stage and Screen 1 & 2 by Jean Hunnisset are good for all sorts of costumes and underwear, Corsets: Historical Patterns and Techniques by Jill Salen is quite good. You may want to pick up a basic pattern cutting book as well such as Metric Pattern Cutting for Women’s Wear by Winifred Aldrich if you are unfamiliar with pattern cutting and drafting.

More of my endeavours tomorrow.

We always thought life outside of earth was preposterous. Then we thought there had to be ‘something out there’ other than us.

Well, read these two articles and decide for yourself…

http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2003/02oct_goldilocks/

http://news.uk.msn.com/in-depth/space/special-photo-galleries.aspx?cp-documentid=154814750

I repeat, man has found another earth! Fascinating, really. Let us just move the sensible people there, and leave the moronic ones here.