Alice in Wonderland - Apron & Accessories

Here's the last post on my Alice in Wonderland costume! ;D

...Which I thought was a perfectly recognizable character, but one or two people asked me if I was some character from an obscure anime's alternate outfit from another dimension... No. I really wish I knew what character and anime they were referring to that I so uncannily resemble. Really.

But making Alice was a good learning experience, and a joy to wear! 

If you want to know how I made the dress go here. If you want to see how I made the petticoats go here.

 Once again, you can see the whole photoshoot here!

The apron was by far the easiest piece to construct for this whole costume.

I started with the front panel: a piece of fabric that I double layered--because it was a tad see-through. I attached the the 2 pieces at the top and folded it over to get a nice finished edge. I attached a piece of lace trim to the top edge. I used a zig-zag stitch to finish off the remaining edges.

Then I made 2 straps that would go over the shoulders on a slight angle. These were tubes that were then turned right way out and pressed flat. I had to make sure they would be long enough to go all the way from the waistband at the front to attach to the waistband at the back.

I sewed the straps to the front panel, and then attached a lace trim to the straps.

I made another really long tube and flattened it. This was the waistband  that would tie at the back. I wanted the bow to be nice and long.

This was attached to the front panel first, then I measured and made sure the straps were even before attaching them at the back.

Then I finished off the ends of the bow.

Once the top part was done I set about making the bottom. The bottom piece is 2 rectangles sewed together and turned inside out to finish the edge, to which I attached more lace trim. The top edge of the rectangle was left open to do this. I gathered the top with a basting stitch to create a ruffle effect and sewed it to the waistband.

Pockets were added last. They were just rectangles with the edges finished and turned over that were superficially attached to the bottom of the apron. And of course: more lace trim. ;D

Now let's talk accessories! These are of course the last thing on the priority list when making a costume, but help to really complete the overall effect. As you may know, I have an unhealthy obsession with pocket watches, so naturally I equipped my Alice with one from my collection. I picked up the 'drink me' bottle at Otakon. So cute! :D

For the ribbons, worn in the hair and at the collar, I chose to go with a dark brown as opposed to black, because I thought it gave a softer, more natural look than a harsh black. I picked those up at Sussman's Bridal Accessories on Queen, which is my favourite place to buy lace trim, ribbon and feathers because they have such a good selection.

The shoes were a last minute purchase. Shoes are always the most difficult part of cosplay. Decent shoes can be pricey, and the perfect shoes can be near impossible to find. I decided to pick up a pair of plain black flats at Ardene. Are they comfortable? No. Are they good quality? Hell no. But do they do their job? Yes.

Ardene has a really good selection of cheap women's shoes (flats, lace-ups, etc.), and if you are looking for something for cosplay that you are either going to destroy, modify or only wear for the weekend it makes sense to your wallet to buy something cheap. If you want something that will last a long time, these probably won't be the best for the job. (Unless you buy multiple back-ups on a two-fer deal). The best location I know of in Toronto is the one on Queen as it has the largest selection of their shoes I've seen, in pretty much every colour.

The tights were also pick up for cheap downtown. But I really need to invest in some better quality ones as I totally put a hole in them on the first wear... :/

The last touch is the wig. After much deliberation I picked this colour of blonde, although it was not my first choice (which was sold out). I also decided on curly as opposed to straight hair because I decided it would look best.

This wig is actually exactly the same as the one I wore for my Steampunk Lolita, the only difference is the colour.

The reason they look different is the styling. I brushed the bangs to the opposite side, and took sections of the hair from the front and pinned them back before tying the ribbon. This made it look like there were more curls higher up at the sides.

Thanks for reading my Alice posts! Overall this costume was fun to make and fun to wear. It was refreshing to do my own take on Alice. I received many compliments. I would say this costume was best received at Otakuthon. ;D Much obliged Quebec! Thanks again to Mike for the awesome photoshoot, you guys should definitely check out his cosplay gallery, the pictures--and of course the costumes--are awesome!

Alice will probably make a few more con appearances next season. ;D