Saturday, January 29, 2011

Foam Head Tutorial - DEAD

I decided to cancel this tutorial for several reasons.

1) I needed to use a band saw to cut the wig-head. Using a knife and it was far too difficult. I want to keep my tutorials as crafter-friendly as possible, and using heavy machinery won't make it.
2) Try as I might I couldn't get a clean look. Too many bumps and bits made the adjusted head look like someone had taken a sack of doorknobs to it.
3) There are pre-made alternatives.

With a bit of looking you can easily find a Wig Block. A wig block is nothing more than a canvas or wooden knob roughly the size of a human head. It doesn't have a face like the Styrofoam heads that are everywhere. You only have a general noggin shape. However they come in various sizes so you can easily find what you need. They're sold by the circumference of your head (the tape measure will cover your eyes). I personally am a 23 (fyi, the average Styrofoam head is a 22).

You can find them at most theater/wardrobe supply shops, but it's doubtful you'll find them in the everyday costume shop or Halloween store. Average price is around $40. Make sure you get a canvas wig block since I'm pretty sure nails are a little hard on wigs.

Friday, January 28, 2011

Ichibancon January 7-9, Charlotte NC

This was my first time attending Ichi. It was only the second year for the con, but man is it going places!! It had all the growing pains you'd expect (not enough space, too few volunteers), but they tried really hard. It was held at the Marriott Executive Park, which is the same hotel ConCarolinas used to be in before it got too big.

I arrived on Friday with my beau. Reg was very fast (we walked by the table twice without realizing it), and then found our roomies. I didn't take any costumes, something I regretted quickly. It was a very costume friendly con. I wandered a bit and ran into quite a few con friends. One nice thing about hitting as many local cons as possible is that you see the same friendly faces.

Saturday was a MAD HOUSE. There wasn't enough room to breathe much less walk. Considering the economy it was nice to see the con packed even if it was annoying. I stayed in the room with a few of the roomies for most of Saturday night. There wasn't enough room to see the Costume Contest and all the panels were full. It was still a good night though. It always is when you stay with friends. :)

Sunday was another day of running into familiar faces and hitting a few panels. Sundays are always mellow and this was no exception. I wish I could have stayed longer, but with a 4 hour drive and work the next day I wasn't in a position to stay.

All in all I had a good time and plan on returning next year.

Next Con: Roundcon - February 18-20, Columbia, SC. I'll be doing panels as well as running the costume contest.

Changes for the New Year

This would have been better if I had posted it sooner. Ah well!

I've been in an organizing frenzy. Hopefully it will all come to a head this weekend. I have storage tubs ready to go, boxes filled with goodwill donations, and more bags of garbage than I care to think about.

I've also done some trimming with the articles and tutorials I've been trying to write. A few have become more trouble than their worth, specifically the foam head tutorial.

Anyway, I'm going to make every attempt to post as much as possible. :)