So this is my current masterpiece, which I have been working on since September and which I debuted this year at Sac-Anime 2008: the Princess Zelda cosplay. It won Best Costume!
The armor weighs about three pounds and is made on a frame of 16g steel wire and aluminum foil, shaped with Super Sculpey modeling compound, and covered in 36g gold aluminum embossing foil; the crown and other metallic accessories are also made this way. The inside of all these parts are lined with suedecloth.
The top is made of moleskin, is fully lined, and laces down in the back with a ribbon.
The dress is peau-de-soie satin and is hand-embroidered along the skirt and is also fully lined in satin.
The gloves are hand-embroidered and made of gabardine, and lined on the inside with the same fabric.
The heraldry panel is painted in watercolor and gouache on heavyweight cotton, and the black outlining is hand-embroidered. It is also lined on the back with satin.
Hello! I wanted to let you know that this was featured in #projecteducate's Artisan Crafts Week as one of the most notable examples of artisan crafts. You can read the article here: [link] and feel free to be a part of the Artisan Crafts week, we have lots of activities and a contest going on!
Keep up the good work!