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This costume has so far taken more than a year to actually happen. I first went to an Anime convention in, um, 2001, to AnimeCon UK, which was very small. Small or not, the cosplaying was pretty impressive (to my eyes) and I wanted to do it. Since Lina Inverse, from Slayers, is one of my favourite characters, the choice of character wasn't hard. However, it took a while to actually get round to doing it. This is intended to be a kind of diary thing, partly so that if we are required to show proof that we made our costumes, I won't have to try and remember everything I did two days before the con. It's also because it might be useful - to me, and to anyone else who cares.
This is my first try at costume creation.
Doing the shoulderpads
| Lina wears large black shoulderpads with a red jewel and gold edging in Slayers Next and Try. I'm doing the costume as it is from the beginning of Next, because I like it. | 
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| I started with modelling wire from Heffers Art Shop, with which I made the frame of the shoulderpad. The picture shows a couple of the wires - which were really tough - and a sheet of expanded aluminium. | 
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| I made the second shoulderpad immediately after the first, so that the wires were placed as similarly as I could make them. | 
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| After that, I covered the frame with expanded aluminium mesh. The expanded aluminium started life as a fix for our ancient car, but the car died before we ever got round to fixing it. If you want to buy some, don't get it from Halfords - they charge four times the normal price. | 
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| I then stitched tough canvas over one of the shoulderpads' mesh. This really hurt my fingers. So far I haven't done the other pad, although it's been covered in the mesh, because three days later my fingers are still sore. | 
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| I used glue to stick this lovely shiny black fabric over the wire and canvas frames. I needed two pieces of the black stuff to cover the pad adequately without looking pulled. | 
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| The red 'jewel' is a Christmas tree bauble, both glued and tied in. The gold band is gold fabric. I haven't been able to do the gold ornamentation around the bauble - I'm going to have to work that out somehow. I also need to finish the gold edging and work out how I'm going to attach them to the collar... | 
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Making the tunic
| Lina's red tunic is basically a fitted, slightly long T-shirt type thing, with white edging. | 
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| I started with a red tunic from a second-hand shop. It was originally a suit top, I think. I looked for it for ages and still think I was very lucky to get it :) | 
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| Basically, I removed the buttons and ties, and folded and seamed strips of white cloth to make the edging. I had to hand-sew the sleeves, since I don't think the sewing machine would have fit, but it looks OK now. | 
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| I finished by sewing buttons and poppers so it fastened up the front. | Image to come when I get round to it |
The gloves and leggings
| Lina's gloves and leggings were easiest. I bought them - the gloves, which are long, white cotton, came new from Robert Sayle, and the leggings I found in a British Red Cross shop (I think). Second-hand shops are a bonus for lazy cosplayers :) | 
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| The gloves and leggings - I have actually realised that her gloves have blue-green beading on them, but I'll leave this up until I get round to locating some such beads and sewing them on :) | 
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