So, Halloween. Last year I was too busy with Victorian stuff to make anything, so I went with my usual pirate standby. So, this year I wanted to do something. Went with Elsa for a few reasons:

1. It’s pretty. Sometimes I enjoy being a pretty pretty princess!
2. Recognizable. A few people at work recognized my Dalek, but not a whole bunch. I get that I can only geek out about my historical stuff with a very specific group of people. But hey, while I costume *mostly* for me, it’s nice to get the admiration of others, amirite?
3. It looked pretty straightforward and I wouldn’t have to do anything super difficult! Sometimes you just want something low on the effort-to-result ratio.

So I started with a pinterest board for research. It’s mostly filled with fabric ideas, plus a few tutorials and pictures of other cosplayers.

The source material:

So, we’ve got:

1. A bodice that looks like it is covered in rectangular sequins
2. A fairly basic skirt with some shimmery vertical action. A slit over the right leg, and a bit more fullness to the back
3. A long sleeve top that goes under the bodice
4. A giant snowflake-y sheer cape
5. Blonde wig with snowflake ornaments

For the bodice, I decided to splurge on this fabric covered in sequins.

For the skirt, I was shocked to find that Joann of all places had the *perfect* fabrics. I layered this blue crinkle chiffon over Casa satin (color Radiance). It’s hard to photograph, as the colors change in the light. Which is perfect for this dress!

For the cape, I bought this snowflake fabric from etsy. While I greatly admire the people who have studied the exact cape pattern and made the snowflakes in glitter, or thousands of swarovsky crystals, I’m not a cosplayer at heart. I’d rather put that kind of detailed work into an embroidered coif or hand-sewn stays, not a one-off Halloween costume.

Still iffy on the shirt. I’m debating between throwing money at the problem and buying this top and adding some glitter, vs using a bit of the snowflake cape fabric, vs actually buying some stretch mesh netting.