Lawl Wtf do I do with my hair?

This ‘Dunmer’ skin is confusing my brain. The makeup is so light that I keep forgetting that it’s even on. And I look in the mirror and I’m like WHOA.

Karliah (Nightingale Armor) - Skyrim, Cosplay Progress

So my Karliah is preeettty much finished (besides my slow drying archery bow ಠ_ಠ). I have some things to fix though. My belt is out of whack, so I wanna buy a new one and re adjust the side panels of the skirt closer to the front.

I’ll post pictures of my face makeup once I stop being finicky with it.

Putting on all this armor and makeup and then trying to take pictures of myself is very, very difficult.

Incoming 99% finished Nightingale Armor and Karliah makeup pictures…

Karliah (Nightingale Armor) - Skyrim, Cosplay Progress

Quiver & Arrows are all done. This was the progress the last two days. The quiver attaches to my cape now too.

The bow is taking a bit longer than expected. I layered it in paper mache, but it came out too rough even if sanded. So I coated it again in paper clay. Once that dries and I sand it tonight, it can be painted and finished. :)

I also received my makeup in the mail today! So expect too see Karliah makeup pictures tonight!

Karliah (Nightingale Armor) - Skyrim, Cosplay Progress

I made a mold of my ears in alginate (which was a hilarious experience, thank you deb) and then casted them in plaster! All part of the process to make my own latex prosthetic elf ears. 

Next step is to mold the elf ears on top of the casts, and then layer the sculpt in latex. 

This costume is so gonna be done by Monday. Woohoo progress! Feel good man. 

Karliah (nightingale Armor) - Skyrim, Cosplay Progress

All the skirt armor pieces cut, glued details, and mod podged. To dry overnight and painted tomorrow. Should be finished tomorrow. 

I’m contemplating not making knee armor… we’ll see how things go tomorrow. All thats left is to sculpt all the metal pieces, clasp the cape and assemble everything. 

You can see the gold and blue bobbles for Himari (mawaru penguindrum)’s hat too! 

Karliah (Nightingale Armor) - Skyrim, Cosplay Progress

This is the part where I start getting excited!

Solid progress is always the funniest to see. I still have to make the skirt/knee/shoulder armor, make clasps to hold my cape on, sculpt the nightingale seal, finish my bow and arrows and add some buckles to my shoes…

Karliah (Nightingale Armor) - Skyrim, Cosplay Progress

Okay so!!

Here’s my painting process:

1. After cutting out, hot gluing the details and SEALING the craft foam in mod podge, I spray it all flat black. One coat usually covers it really well. 

2. When it dries, I rub in some metallic silver fabric paint. this first rub in is very crude, and cover a bit of everything except for the creases. 

3. The crude silver pieces are misted over with black paint again. I hold the can away at a farther distance than before, and just let the mist of the black paint waft onto the pieces. 

4.  I repeat step 2. Rubbing in some leather on the raised edges and just a few smudges in the center of flat areas. I mist like in step 3 if necessary.

And ta da! Finished worn leather looking craft foam!  It’s a tedious job doing this process piece by pice, and it each mist and weather may only make a difference to my own eyes, but it works! 

Today after class I’ll be fastening all these pieces to my jumpsuit so I’ll post pictures of that later tonight. 

Karliah (Nightingale Armor) - Skyrim, Cosplay Progress

Phew! I’m surprising myself with how quickly things are going! The bracers, mask, and cape are finished. I need to finish the chest pieces, skirts, shoulder armor and knee armor. But then all I have left to do is sculpt the Nightingale seal, the belt buckles, all my rivets, and then I’m done! 

I also have my bow to make though…

I’m pretty sure I can have this costume done by next week. Here’s to that!

Karliah (Nightingale Armor) - Skyrim, Cosplay Progress

Got both of the arm bracers completed! I’m liking the paint job process so far. It’s super tedious, and I gotta really be precise about my layers to get a perfect mute shine of silver over and beneath a black leather texture, but so far so good. 

Of course, I’ll explain more with what I’m doing in pictures, but I’m waiting on some other coats from the chest pieces to dry before I do so.