Hello and welcome to my first non-introduction post on this blog!
So where to begin, where to begin? Let's start with con crunch for Supercon 2017!
One of the characters I've been working hard to finish is Tracer from Overwatch. I've wanted to cosplay her since I found out about the game, and while she is not the main character I play as, she is definitely my favorite.
I knew that I couldn't make a leather jacket with my time/budge/current skill set, so I decided to thrift one! Originally I bought one from Depop that was a more accurate color, but it had a weird fit so I ended up purchasing a different jacket with a more accurate fit from my local Goodwill - except this time, it was black and dark brown leather. 😓 Fabric paint to the rescue!
So where to begin, where to begin? Let's start with con crunch for Supercon 2017!
One of the characters I've been working hard to finish is Tracer from Overwatch. I've wanted to cosplay her since I found out about the game, and while she is not the main character I play as, she is definitely my favorite.
I knew that I couldn't make a leather jacket with my time/budge/current skill set, so I decided to thrift one! Originally I bought one from Depop that was a more accurate color, but it had a weird fit so I ended up purchasing a different jacket with a more accurate fit from my local Goodwill - except this time, it was black and dark brown leather. 😓 Fabric paint to the rescue!
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| The original thrifted leather jacket. Note the weird alternate patterning of dark brown and black leather. |
I ordered a 4 oz bottle of Angelus Leather Paint from Dharma Trading Co online. I was recommended this brand by popular cosplayer Maid of Might and this purchase was my first time ordering from Dharma and using Angelus paints! Overall, I'm really happy with how they came out. The 4 oz was more than enough for me to get 2 layers (3 in some sections) of paint on the jacket.
I choose to get Cognac, which is a shade that's slightly more redder than Tracer's accurate color. (According to Blizzard's Overwatch website, it's #8c684e on the Hex Color chart.) I spent a long time on Dharma's website comparing 3 shades of brown, but I figured that under harsh convention center lighting, the cognac would be able to give the jacket a rich color that would stand out. And considering that her leggings are yellow/orange and her Chronal Accelerator chest piece is bright blue, something with a orange-y red undertone would compliment it nicely.
After giving the whole jacket a new paint job, I decided that the clean look wasn't good enough for me. So on to detailing we go!
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| Hand painting all the wear "stains" to mimic weathered leather. |
I tried to replicate as much of the weathering and tear marks on Tracer's jacket as much as possible. Of course, it doesn't looks exactly alike because it's not torn leather, but it does look like rips and tears from a distance. I went in with a small brush and light brown acrylic paint.
As for the patches and the fur lining, I glued and hand sewed both of these to the jacket. Not very exciting stuff, but very painful for my fingers. This leather jacket was really not about me sewing fur and patches on it.
Tracer's jacket is done, yay! I'll make another post detailing my work on her harness at another time.
