No Strings Attached

Posted By Kathleen David on September 2, 2013

Hi there, when we last left our story I had finished the 1st day of DragonCon. Well a heck of a lot has happened since then. As I type this I am sitting at Peter’s table while he takes care of some business in the dealers room. The con is winding down although there are still a lot of people milling about.

I can’t post this until later this evening because I have no wifi here but once I get it to the room, I will put this up.

Saturday was Meet the Winners of the Workmanship contest which was fun. We had the winners talk about what they created and we answered questions about the judging itself. But in between getting up and that panel we went to the Walk of Fame and got to talk to some really spiffy people. I was able to tell David Warner how much I have enjoyed his performances in many different venues over the years. I met Kelly Hu because of Caroline. Kelly met Caroline when Caroline was at one of the recording sessions for Young Justice. So Caroline introduced me to Kelly and we got her Cheshire Mask signed by Kelly. We had a lovely chat with Ed Asner about a number of topics. He and Peter have Harlan as a mutual friend. Caroline told him how much she enjoyed his vocal performance in Up. Maurice LaMarche and Peter finally met and much hilarity ensued. I wish I could have taped him and Rob Paulsen asking Caroline if she wanted to help them take over the world. The rest of the day was getting things to and from places and meeting up with people.

Saturday night was the banquet where George Takei won the Julie award. Peter was the Master of Ceremonies for the evening and was his usual witty self. I had to go and take a phone call during dinner. I came back and no Caroline at the table. I ask where she was and was informed that she was backstage with Peter. I figure that he did that since I had to take the call. I went backstage and found Caroline very happily chatting away with Lucy Lawless. They were talking about Fearless the novel that Caroline wrote with her father. Lucy was very gracious and a lovely person. Caroline told her that she would bring Lucy a copy the next day. We arranged to meet at her table at 11:15 the next day. After the banquet we talked to George and Brad and a number of other people that we knew.

After that we went to my brother’s Speakeasy party and had a great time. I caught up with various friends and met some new people as well. I did leave the party at a reasonable time since I had things to do on Sunday.

Sunday Peter and Caroline went to the Walk of Fame as I dealt with various things we needed for that evening. I watched Peter’s table during his 1 pm talk on the Hulk. Once artist alley closed Peter went to get the chicken and ribs for our annual get together and I got the room set up. The shingdig went very well. I got to spend some time with my friends before having to go to my 8:30 panel on oversized costuming then onto the puppetry slam. I didn’t have a show this year for many reasons so this go round I went outside with some of my friends and entertained the line. It was fun to screw around with the con-goers for over an hour. I watched the slam and helped with the clean up. I got back to the room about 3:15-3:30.

This morning I got up and did a panel on puppetry on a budget, which was fun. I said good-bye to my friends that were leaving off to before the end of the convention. After that I went back to Peter’s table so he could go to see someone in the dealers room. Managed to see a number of friends who just happen to come by which was nice.

I packed up what was left from my art show table. I sold both Phluzzies, which was nice. I helped Peter finish packing up his table. Then back to the puppetry track I went and had the grand good luck to run into Karen Prell who I have admired for years. She was Red Fraggle on Fraggle Rock among many other puppets. She is just an amazing woman. We got to talk a bit and were occasionally interrupted either by her fans or, much to my surprise, my fans. I was thanked a lot for all the information I had given in my panels on various topics. It made me feel good.

I went to Peter’s last panel for the convention at the Trek Trak which was fun as always. We said good bye to our friend Graham and headed to my parents for my birthday dinner. I had gazpacho, steak and baked potato and cake which brought back so many pleasant memories. I got to see my sister and brother and my sister-in-law. It was nice. We were all wiped from the convention.

I am now in the hotel room and getting ready to started on the trip back room.

It was a great Dragon Con. We had a lot of fun and got to talk to many interesting people.

I am very tired but I am feeling good.

I am grateful for this Dragon Con which brought some stuff into focus.

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Posted By Kathleen David on August 25, 2013

And Secret Project #1.

So two days left to build since Tuesday is packing day.

Next on my plate lions, Phluzzies, and monsters…Oh my!

(For the VI: These are the two Rumpelstilskin puppets in profile. To the left is Mr. Gold. He has brown hair and blue eyes and is wearing a grey suit. There is a light brown blanket across his shoulders. On his shoulder is a golden hand of the puppet to the right which is Rumpelstilskin as the Dark One so his skin is gold and his eyes are green/yellow He has a red cape with a brown stripe around the edge. He is wearing a red shirt covered with a brown lizard skin patterned armor.)

(for the VI: Same puppets next to each other. You can see more of the Dark One’s armor.)

Off to create monsters.

I am grateful that I got these two done.

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Posted By Kathleen David on August 23, 2013

I have been part of a discussion on the Official Dragon Con Facebook page that started with this sentence Are professional cosplayers ruining what are supposed to be amateur costume and masquerade contests?

Honestly I have heard this phrase back when I started entering costume calls and I still hear it to this day.

Recently there has been more discussion because of the SyFy channel called the “Heroes of CosPlay”. On the show more than one of the participants have stated that they want to parlay their wins in cosplay and Masquerade into a business. They want to make props for a living. They want to design costumes for a living. They want to do professional make-up for a living. Now among these people is someone who has turned costuming at conventions into a business, which is Yaya Han. She has worked hard and for years to sell her look(s) and her costuming skills to create a business. I know she has worked as a model for a number of my comic book artist friends. She is professional and a great costumer.

Now I can count on the fingers of two hands the number of people I know who turned their convention costuming into a business for them. A number of them went onto film, TV, and theater and have good careers there. They honed their skill set on their convention costumes.

I have taken things I learned from making costumes and used it to earn money by making puppets and puppet sized costumes. I also don’t compete anymore or rarely compete and don’t expect any form of a win. I know that I am held to a much higher standard than a novice or a journeyman and, in many cases, my fellow master class entrants because my work is know and judges against my previous work in many (not all) cases.

One of the reasons that we have novice (never entered a contest or may have entered one or two with no wins or places), journeyman (entered a couple of contest and may or may not have a win or two under their belt), and master or professional class (has a number of wins and has shown a skill set above and beyond most costumers). I went from journeyman to master class during a contest which I was informed afterwards I had been place up. Since then I have competed at Master Class because it wouldn’t be fair to do otherwise.

Yes, there are sandbaggers who try to go for the win by placing themselves in an “easier” level. But they don’t stay there long because the costuming community is not the largest of groups. In the Friday night costume call (workmanship) we have bumped people up a category or two based on what we have seen and what we know outside of the contest or that they are that darn good and need to be competing on a higher level.

Yes, some people have access to vacformers and other tools that some of use only dream of using. Personally I am expecting to see 3-D printer work this year at Dragon Con. Would I like to own a 3-D printer? Yep. Do I have one or do I have access to one? Nope. Someday I hope to. You take what you have and what you know and create. I find it more interesting when someone finds a way of making something on the cheap or recycling materials and can make it look like the expensive professional costumes. I have seen cardboard and paper mache used to create armor that looks like it is metal or fiberglass. I have used cardboard and paint to make an axe that looks like it is stone. So you work with what you have and do the best you can.

I don’t think there are that many costumers who are going around and making a living by entering and winning contests. I don’t think there are many people sandbagging. I do know from experience that there is an ebb and flow to the costume contests. You do have a group of people who seem to win all the time but they do eventually go onto other things and a new group becomes the group or person to beat.

If you just in it for the prize, then I think you are missing the point. Hearing the audience react to what you have done is a reward. Hearing the groans and laughter from the room when you hit your punch line is a reward. Meeting other costumers and making new friendships that last a lifetime is a reward. Learning new skills from other people is a reward.

I am grateful for all the people I have met through costuming.

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Posted By Kathleen David on August 22, 2013

This random stream of though came into my head while working on the clothing for the puppets and working on the Friday Night Workmanship contest as the same time.

Puppets don’t care about what fabric you put next to their “skin”. Puppeteers and actors do care very much. If it is itchy or hot or uncomfortable you will hear about it from the humans.

Puppets don’t care if their seams are pressed. Workmanship judges do.

For me, I try to get as exact as I can when recreating a character but I have learned that I can “cheat” for things that can’t be seen on puppets. I look at the character and figure out what HAS to be there and what would be nice to be there. For humans I try for as close as I can to the original influence.

Unless the puppet needs to be redressed, they don’t need button holes. They don’t need working pockets. Humans need these things especially pockets.

Building shoes for puppets is a pain.

Trying to find the right fabric one has to make a choice between what one sees on the screen or what the color really was (see the 8th Doctor’s frock coat debate).

It is much easier to recreate things these days than it was even 7 years ago. We have a whole set of new materials to use including 3-D printers but let us not forget the old materials that we used. Sometimes the old ways are best. I have to remember to not over think it and not always go for the shiny new.

The longer I have been doing this, the faster I have gotten. However I have hit the wall of limitations because there is no way to go faster that this point.

Today is suit jackets and winged lions and monsters not necessarily in that order.

I am grateful that I have learned so much over the years.

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Posted By Kathleen David on August 19, 2013

I will be wrapping up Dragon Con in 2 weeks.

Also Caroline starts school in three weeks.

A lot happening in the next three to four weeks.

There seems to be an uptick recently in people who are taking money for people for commissions and not delivering on the products promised. Also people who are changing art that they bought or found and calling it “new” since they did something to it that makes it not the original. Not cool on both fronts. If one takes a commission then one should put the money (minus supply costs) and set it aside until the commission is done. I know there are exceptions but I think there would be a lot less grief if more people thought that way. Also taking more commissions to pay off refunds for commissions they didn’t do is not the way to build a business. Just my two cents.

Recently a young artist who is pretty good refunded a bunch of people their money because art wasn’t fun any more, it was a job. Well, if one is to take money to create specific images or objects for people then it is a job even if part time and not everyone is cut out for it. Bravo to her for figuring that she was in over her head and getting the refunds out as promptly as she did. I talked to her and suggested that may be she should do what she wants to do and then sell it to others since that seems to work for her and others do like her art.

We had to explain to Caroline a bit more about copyright and fan art/one offs. She saw some Star Trek stuff in the art show at Shoreleave and wondered how they could be sold since Star Trek is copyright CBS. So we had to explain one offs and limited use. She extrapolated that into original drawing done in artist alley were OK so we knew she understood the concept. Pretty good for a 10 year old. I will say that the commercial about taping movies being illegal has made an impression on her.

Today I finish building Rumpelstilskin’s jerkin. I have had to stop looking at pictures because I keep finding details but I have hit the point that I have to go forward because no way anyone is going to be looking for those details unless they looked as carefully as I did. The overall look is the thing not those exacting details that I would look for if I was judging it in a costume call. The devil can be in the details.

I am waiting for eyeballs to be delivered. I can’t find my second box of eye part for puppets but I am continuing on because I can put those in last if need be.

Limited to the amount of time I can sit at a sewing machine anymore. Use to be able to do marathons of hours at it. Now I am luck if I can sit without having to get up in a half hour span. Getting old can be a pain but it beats the alternative.

Need to find my vampire fangs or make another set. We are doing a tribute for Marty at the Friday Night Workmanship contest.

Fig just rolled off the couch and came up with the cat “I meant to do that” look on her face.

Back to sewing.

I am grateful for everything that allows me to be me.

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