Cosplay Guide | Getting a Sewing Machine

Hello Everyone ! （*´▽｀*）

Today I would like to share about the types of sewing machinery that I'm currently using ~ I do get lots of messages asking me what type of sewing machine do I use , how much is it or what sewing machine do I recommend ~ well I hope that this post will answer all your questions ! 

(｡´∀｀)ﾉ

I have two types of machine at home , this is my sewing machine !

It's a SINGER , model 8280 which I think is the most basic and cheapest portable machine available at Singer's. This precious sewing machine of mine has been following me since 2008 when I first started making cosplay costumes. I got it for RM 700 , brand new. (　´∀｀)

( she even flew over to KL with me from my home town ! )

All the cosplay costumes that I made so far , is by this sewing machine. I'm surprised at how well she can hold up. ( Yes , my sewing machine is a she lol ) So far I only fixed her once , when I overworked her when making Luka's gown years back.

One thing about thing about this sewing machine is that it can only be used for light sewing projects. You can't really use it for long hours or else the motor will " explode ". Replacing a new motor cost me Rm 200. /sigh / (╯︵╰,)

Here you can remove the small compartment ( where you can keep your sewing supplies ) and this part is used to sew armholes. It's really convenient and useful for me because the armhole part of a costume is extremely difficult to sew lol. ( ≧Д≦)

There are different types of sewing machines , and some are more expensive because of the number of function and stitches that the sewing machine can do. For example , mine can do 7 types of stitches and also button holes.

For me , I don't think other stitches other than a simple straight stitch is important. I do use the button hole function quite often , when I make my costumes. But if you are lazy , you can always bring it to sewing shops for it to be professionally done ! （ｉДｉ）

This is a video of my sewing machine doing one of the stitches !

Here are the examples of the stitches that my sewing machine can do. 

But honestly , I don't find it useful. A straight line stitch is all you need ~ ♥

The second machine I have is the Overlocking Machine or also known as a serger.

This , is the best thing in my life !!! 

Do you know how the fabric would fray if you do nothing to the edges ? Well this machine can do the edging for you and ta-da you will have nice , clean + neat edges !

An overlocking machine is twice the price of a sewing machine. The brand new one would cost RM 1 300 but I am a super lucky girl because the day I went to look for it , they had a second hand one for sale ~ got it for RM 650 !! ＼（＠￣∇￣＠）／

With this , I can make costumes faster now because I don't need to trim the edges myself using scissors nor I need to go to a sewing shop to get it done.

It's really convenient and useful for me ! (＾ω＾)

Portable Overlocking Machines have two type , one with 3- thread and another one with 4-thread . The difference is that a 4-thread machine can do edging for stretchy fabric like t-shirt.

This is how an over-locked edge look like. Of course , you can also change the color of the thread for the overlocking machine to match your fabric color but a gentle reminder - An overlocking machine is very difficult to thread lol.

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Commonly asked Questions + Answers

Q.What sewing machine should I get if I want to start making my own cosplay costumes ?

A. If it's just for making cosplay costumes , I think the most basic model / portable sewing machines would be good enough. Unless you want to make 100 costumes in a week , then you can opt for an industrial sewing machine that can work long hours ! (*≧▽≦)

Q. What brand would you recommend ?

A. I am a SINGER user and I'm pretty happy about it. Once in a blue moon , it does need servicing but it will make it last much longer ! Some of my friends uses BROTHER because the basic model is cheaper compared to SINGER. I think both are reputable brands !

Q. How much is a sewing machine ?

A. For SINGER , the most basic model is RM 700 ++ , and more expensive ones can go up to RM 2000 ++ . While for BROTHER , I think you can get one for RM 500 ++.

If you are tight on budget , you can always source online for a second-hand unit. It might work just as well ! 

（*´▽｀*）

Q. Do I really need an Overlocking Machine ?

A. For me , I make costumes regularly and I need it for my college assignments too so it's worth buying. But if you don't sew much , you can actually get your edges done at any sewing shops for maybe RM 8 ++ for a costume , depending on how big your costume is ! So it's entirely , optional ! 

Q. How long can the sewing machine last before taking a break ?

A. Normal portable sewing machines shouldn't work more than 4 hours ? You might overheat the motor if you sew for long hours non-stop. It's best that you sew for awhile let it rest , and resume your work again. (°∀°)b

p/s : never ever rush your costume overnight , the sewing machine " might " fail you lol

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Is this post useful for you ?

Hope that it's beneficial to you ! ＼（＠￣∇￣＠）／

With Love ,

YingTze 

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Weekend with Pinky and Orochi X

Spent last weekend meeting Pinky and Orochi X who came over from Indonesia for a short getaway ! They were here for a day or two ~ then went to Penang for sight seeing. Anyways I'm really glad that I am able to catch up with Pinky again and meeting Orochi X for the first time ! ❤

I was really nervous because . . . 

It's like meeting someone that you admire and look up to for many years ? ( and lots of fangirlings ) * cough cough *  \(//∇//)\

I first get to know about Pinky during the earlier days of my cosplay. Back then I was searching for cosplay make up tutorial and Pinky's blog came up ! I was really amazed with her cosplays and she happen to be in a team called " The Endless Illution " alongside Orochi X. 

The rest is history. ❤

Do you know that Pinky is an amazing costume maker ? She makes all of her costumes herself and in her team , she specializes on fabric-type costume. I love her attention to details and her creative use of different types of fabrics in making a costume. ❤

* cough cough we like similar things so we click instantly lol *

When I first met her in AFA Indonesia 2013 , I can't stop touching her costume. It's so beautifully made ! ヾ(。◕ฺ∀◕ฺ)ノ

As for Orochi X , she is also a great costume maker and she specializes in armor-type costumes. ❤

( and extremely bishounen arghhhhhh )

She is so cool. (‘∀’●)♡

Making weapons and armor seems so beyond somewhere over the rainbow for me lol.  I am really impressed with Orochi X's skills in costume making. (ﾉ´ヮ´)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧

This is my favorite cosplay of Pinky and Orochi X , Lineage II Wedding Elves. Back then I was like " Wow , they really look good together. "  Their costumes are so beautiful and this set of photos gives out a romantic aura ~ ❤

They are such an inspiration in many ways. Pinky and Orochi X are great costume makers and in real life , they are so down to earth and friendly ! I'm truly blessed being able to meet them in person and finally cosplay together. (｡♥‿♥｡)

And so .. fast forward all my fangirling stories !

Super honored that Pinky fell into my Dangan Ronpa trap and we finally cosplaying it together ! If I had more time I would have made Naegi's costume so that Pinky , Orochi and I can have a triangle love situation lol.

( or Genocider Shou so that I can openly fangirl over Byakuya-sama lol )

As you can see I can't even keep a straight face when having a selca with Orochi X because I'm wondering - " Why is she so bishounen ?? " /LE SHY

Thank you Soo Weai , Kenneth and Blur for organizing this photoshoot ! It was a quick one but a nice bonding / get-to-know-each-other session ~ ❤

Kirigi X Byakuya X Junko + Monokuma.

Upupupu ~ ( ˘ ³˘)❤

A little sneak peek of our photoshoot together ! 

♡｡ﾟ.(*♡´‿` 人´‿` ♡*)ﾟ♡ °・

The very next day , we met up in KLCC for Kinokuniya. 

( we had BKT the night before and Madam Kwan for some Malaysian food lol )

BIG LOL.

It's not that Indonesia doesn't have Kinokuniya but I think as an anime / manga / games fan , we would enjoy some book shopping together at the Japanese section ? ❤

Orochi bought a Toki no Kizuna artbook and I got myself the latest issue of COSMODE ! 

（´ω｀♡%）

Playing with Kenneth's Fish Eye lens. （。ˇ ⊖ˇ）♡

Soon you will see us all cosplay together !

Really excited for our team cosplay ~ it will be another challenging costume for me but it'll be another achievement if I can make it into reality . ❤

Can't wait you see you all again ! ( ˘ ³˘)❤

With Love ,

YingTze

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Cosplay Tutorial | Beading on Felt

Hello Everyone !

I'm getting quite a lot of costume making tips / tutorials lately from my readers and also on my page. Costume making is not really that difficult once you understand the right techniques. It's just like Mathematics for me. I don't like maths but once you learnt the formula on how to solve it , it actually gets easier. 

I still don't like Maths but I love Costume Making okay ? lol  (ﾉ´ヮ´)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧

Today I will be sharing about technique that I learnt recently , which is to do " Beading on Felt ". 

Currently I'm working on a new costume , Ayane's  ( Dead or Alive ) iconic Butterfly Default costume. The costume is quite simple design wise so I put lots of thoughts in the smaller details like the obi/bow and also the butterfly design in front. 

At first I wanted to paint on it using fabric dye or acrylic but I don't want to accidentally ruin my dress just in case my painting fails . So I've decided to make the butterfly pattern out of felt + beadings.

It's a simple technique and inexpensive , all you need is a little bit of patience !


What Do You Need ?

1# Felt  ( You can get good quality ones from Daiso )
2# Beads
3# Gems
4# Matching Thread and Needle

First I drew the pattern on a piece of white paper ( roughly based on the design ) and cut it out. 

TIP = You can try pining the paper pattern on the dress to double check whether the size is proportionate or not.

Then , you can place the paper pattern on the felt and trace it out. I used an Artline Pen to lightly make my markings. 

Cut it out using scissors.

You can start beading !

Any kind of beads will do , depending on you budget and preference. I chose gems + these cockcroach eggs like beads because it's bigger and it will look more obvious in pictures. lol

A mixture of different types of beads would look nice too ~ ヾ(。◕ฺ∀◕ฺ)ノ

You can do beading while watching anime / tv shows. I did mine while watching Log Horizon and it took me bout 2-3 hours to finish beading Ayane's Butterfly. It's really simple and quick !

This is roughly my end product ! Ｏ(≧▽≦)Ｏ

For me , I always pin it on my dress / mannequin and try looking at it from afar. This way you can visualize the costume as a whole better.

Here I think that the butterfly is a bit too plain so I added some gold colored glass beads to complement the obi color. Might add more beading to it soon ~ ❤

Of course there are many other ways to make the butterfly pattern but I chose beading on felt because this way I feel that the butterfly would stand out more. Plus it's a little bit of 3D , not totally flat , much more interesting , no ? 

Hopefully this quick tutorial is useful for you ! 

Any questions can drop by in my comment box below. ヽ(=^･ω･^=)丿

With Love ,

YingTze


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2013

Hello My Lovely Readers !

In merely hours , it'll be end of 2013 and another brand new year.

( be warned , this will be a super wordy + image heavy post ! )

I feel that I should reflect on things on the last day of 2013 so I've prepared myself to worm at home and celebrate new year with my cat family instead ( with my PS3 and lots of chips ) while writing this blog post !

Gosh , it took me few hours just to sort out the photos in my laptop and planning what to write about. Looking back , I think that 2013 is a wonderful year for me. No complains except the fact that my hair isn't growing fast enough lol.

For the last blog post of the year 2013 , I will be sharing about all the wonderful and interesting things that happened throughout the year. There are lots of good memories ( also sad ones but no need to mention la ah lol ) that I will treasure forever. I am happier and more positive now than ever.

Let's start !  (((＼（＠v＠）／)))

Chop off my super long hair into a super short bob cut.

I always love having long hair but after a bad hair straightening job , my hair never grow thick anymore. #sadtruestory

Couldn't bear looking at my thin hair so I made a decision to cut it short for my hair to grow again. I regret cutting too short because now I'm having a hard time growing it back lol.

(´；Д；｀)

During CNY , don't know what hit me , I went to dip-dye my hair.

My mother was complaining about the color and I re-dyed 3 weeks later. ( ≧Д≦)

Earlier this December , I dyed my hair red.

My friends are shocked and asked me if something is wrong with me lol.

Actually I was feeling random and I stumble upon a hair dye review and just wanted to try it out. I really like the red color but I find it hard to match my clothes so I re-dyed again before Christmas !

Now , it's back to Dark Brown.

No more playing with colors already , later I become bald.

I tie my hair up in a ponytail everyday because it's at the annoying shoulder length. I think one more year and I'll have pretty hair again. ヾ(。◕ฺ∀◕ฺ)ノ

That's the end of my hair story.

One of my new year resolution last year was to do well in my studies / college.

I think that's one of the few resolution that I managed to fulfill. 

Two more semesters to the completion of my Fashion Design Diploma.

I will continue working hard next year too !! ヾ(@°▽°@)ノ

As for my cat family , I have 6 cats now and they are all well and happy !

Whitey is born last year but still a precious miracle boy in the family. 

Whitey is officially the fattest , furriest and biggest cat in my cat family.

Laziest too ! (⊙︿⊙✿)

Thank you God for blessing my cat family with good health and happiness.

Follow my Instagram for their latest pictures ! >> YINGTZE

I moved over to a new house too !

I have more working space now , a room just for my sewing / costume making / studies and assignments.

Wheeee to more crafting space !!

Last year , I took a 8 months break on cosplay .

This year , I resumed my costume making and cosplay again.

One of resolutions from last year which is to focus on the quality of my costumes instead on quantity. I took my own sweet time making costumes and I find it much more enjoyable this way.

Started making small props too because my new home has a balcony for me to spray my props ! ヽ(=^･ω･^=)丿

Much love to Blur from Naneee? Photography and Kenneth from KennTee Photography for supporting my cosplay projects and working alongside me this year !

Thank you very much guys ! ヽ(＾Д＾)ﾉ

I'm also blessed with abundance of opportunities this year , being able to travel to conventions as guest cosplayer.

Funan Anime Matsuri @ Singapore was my first event as a guest cosplayer !

I've always wish to meet cosplayers from different countries and my wish came true this year.

Every cosplayer has different set of skills which make them unique , and I'm really happy being able meet them and learn from them. ＼（＾▽＾）／

Then it was Anime Festival Asia Indonesia 2013.

I was a guest cosplayer and also meido again @ Moe Moe Kyun Maid Cafe !

I was blown away by the awesome performances by Indonesian cosplayers during ARCC.

You guys are so inspiring !

I'm also very happy meeting people who supported me all the way back since MMK 2012 till now. Thank you for visiting Moe Moe Kyun Maid Cafe and supporting my cosplays as well.

Thank you very much !! (´；Д；｀)

I was invited by Comic Fiesta to give a talk on Costume Making during COSMART 2013.

It was an honor for me to share about costume making because it's something that I really enjoy about cosplay !

Then I was invited again to Jakarta for Japan Matsuri @ Pluit Village !

I am very touched by the overwhelming response , great hospitality and the friendliness of Indonesian cosplay lovers !

I really enjoyed my time here with you !

Also met Pinky Lu Xun my dear cosplay inspiration and Naru , also a great cosplayer from Indonesia. Honored to be judging competition with you !

I've never received so many gifts in my life before.

Thank you for all your love , every gift , every artwork and every letter.

Thank you ❤

I was a guest cosplayer for Anime Festival Asia Singapore too !

Very happy to see my friend , Shevonne whom I knew since the early years of my cosplay.

Thank you for coming , it really means a lot ! ❤

Met Dempagumi Inc. ＼（Ｔ∇Ｔ）／

ALSO MET ONNIES IN FLESH.

We don't need the same language to communicate ...

Because we know what we like in common LOL.

Onnies is a very friendly and funny cosplayer. Can't stop laughing when she's around ! ❤

AFA Singapore 2013 is where I debuted my most elaborate costume ever made. Queen Esther from Trinity Blood  ❤

It's super crazy making this in a month while juggling my studies but .. I made it. It's my most expensive gown ever and difficult to wear too lol.

Also met Hana and Baozi from China.

These boys are so good looking. Hmmm ❤

A great honor to be judging for the ARCC Finals.

Congratulations to all the contestants because everyone is already a winner by representing their own country. ❤

It's my fifth time being a meido @ Moe Moe Kyun Maid Cafe.

I am the old maid donald has a farm eyooo eyoooooo. LOL.

As long as you are not bored of my face , I will always be back. （；￣д￣）

( Plays Terminator theme )

With my lovely MMK X AR Team !

It really feels like home here. Everyone is so caring , helpful and loving towards each other.

Can't wait to meet them again. ❤

To Sir Jim who made everything possible.

Thank You Sir  (ﾉ´ヮ´)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧

Some of my favorite costumes made this year !

Enjoyed experimenting on different types of fabric , embellishments and sewing techniques. Hope that next year I will improve even more ! ❤

My best project this year ❤

To all the lovely people I met this year and all the friendship made .

Love you all.

ヾ(。◕ฺ∀◕ฺ)ノ

(((＼（＠v＠）／)))

❤

AND !!!

My wish to see a real Christmas Tree is fulfilled. It's everywhere in Publika. LOL

Though I didn't get to see real snow or have a White Christmas , this year I got myself a Christmas Tree !

It's happy enough for me ❤

Thank you for everything guys.  ❤

This year has been nothing but amazing. I'm looking forward towards what next year have in store for me ! ヾ(。◕ฺ∀◕ฺ)ノ

Happy New Year !!!

With Love ,

YingTze

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