Sailor Mercury/Barbie Cosplay

[kenaiqueen]

So I thought I'd put my pics here as I go about making this Barbie into Sailor Mercury. I got her today and I'm torn between using her body as is or swapping her body for a made to move body. I have one left, and it's not a bad match, but I think I want to keep the MTM as she is. (I like redheads!) I picked this girl for her blue hair because I knew it was the one thing I couldn't change. I will probably repaint her eyes and lips. I'm terrified to cut her hair because I'm not good with hair at all. But I'm going to try! Meantime, I'm going to try and make a sloper for her dress. I need to decide if I want to give her a gathered skirt or a pleated skirt. I've been looking at references and they seem to use both interchangeably. Any Sailor fans who have an opinion?

BluBarb1 by Kenai Queen, on Flickr
BluBarb2 by Kenai Queen, on Flickr
BluBarb3 by Kenai Queen, on Flickr

[SetsunaKou]

oooh! Good choice! Love her color of blue hair!!!!
Yes, go for it! You can do it!!! Just cut in layers so it's full and rounded.

Original and Super Mercury have pleated skirts; Eternal Mercury has sort of roll pleated skirts.
Which are you aiming for?

Love the visor, too!! Amy wears that often!!! And a little mini computer! (like a calculator thingy)

Is that a microscope and lab coat she's wearing? Do you know that Amy/Mercury wants to become a doctor like her mother! WOW!!!

:hugs:

[maywong]

I can't wait to see her done up.

[Kirahfaye]

Cut the hair longer than you need at first and take it from there. I look forward to seeing your updates!

[DollyKim]

I'd go pleated for the general sailor aesthetic. Have a waistband, at least for a guide, to know how wide you want the skirt. Use some scrap fabric to play with the thickness of the pleats. I wouldn't go wider than 1 cm. Hem the final skirt before pleating it and use plenty of pins.

I've made doll kilts, having something inside the waist edge to sew the pleats to will make everything easier.

[kenaiqueen]

I'd go pleated for the general sailor aesthetic. Have a waistband, at least for a guide, to know how wide you want the skirt. Use some scrap fabric to play with the thickness of the pleats. I wouldn't go wider than 1 cm. Hem the final skirt before pleating it and use plenty of pins.

I've made doll kilts, having something inside the waist edge to sew the pleats to will make everything easier.

Thanks for hints. I did make some pleated skirts recently, so that won't be as scary for me as cutting her hair is!

[Tam I am]

I've heard of people bringing their dolls to their hairdresser, though I think it was usually bigger dolls.

[kenaiqueen]

I've heard of people bringing their dolls to their hairdresser, though I think it was usually bigger dolls.

LOL! Since I can't afford to get my own hair cut, I don't think I'll be taking Barbie for one. Just got a book from the library to help me some tho.

Sorry I've been AWOL lately, but I'm having teeth issues and can't get into my dentist for another 2 weeks. Pain varies by day but it's definitely enough to make it impossible to concentrate on anything some days so I'm not making much progress. Yesterday I did a search thru my stash to see if I had fabrics I could use and I found right colors, but wrong types. The white is woven and silky and shreds like crazy. A bit too see-thru too. The blue is crushed velvet and would not make for great pleats. I am planning a trip to the nearest thrift store to see if there is anything there I could use.

I am going to trim her hair down a bit and then do a perm to give it some body/curl before I continue cutting. She's clamped into place for me to work on her hopefully today.
fabs by Kenai Queen, on Flickr

[kenaiqueen]

Sorry no updates for the last week, but we had a grandnephew from Anchorage come to stay with us while he attended a football camp. I finally have my sewing room back altho I'm working on Ami's hair in the doll room for now. As I have said, I don't do hair well and I salute any of you who can style Barbie hair! OMG. What a slippery mess! I got in enough curlers to stay so I could do a boil perm and it's drying now. I'm too embarrassed to post a picture, it looks so bad. Lord knows what it will look like when I take the curlers out. (End papers, straws with pipe cleaners & pins) I will probably have to do it again but it's a start. I'm also working on sizing down a pattern to make the base leotard which I'll make up in an old tee shirt til I get something that looks good.

[Kattriella]

I'm so excited to see how she turns out!