A while back Katie and I decided we wanted to dress up for the premier of Watchmen since we are both big fans. We decided that I would go as Silk Spectre II from the comic and she would go as Silk Spectre I from the movie (lets be honest, the movie version of Silk Spectre I is a lot more awesome). Unfortunately due to family emergencies and other unexpected life projects our costumes had to take the back seat. Now that doesnt mean we arent doing them, it just means we are met with and unbelievable challenge…most people spend months on their costumes but we are doing 2 outfits in less than 3 days…all while maintaining our normal jobs and life responsibilities. Can we do it? Lets see.
Day 1 Monday: Planning
Silk Spectre II- My Costume
This last weekend I finished buying the fabric for my costume (Katie got hers the weekend before). Mine was fairly difficult to find because it needs to be sheer, but not too sheer and a chiffon/silk material. Most Silk Spectre IIs that I have seen dont nail the fabric and either have not sheer enough fabric or use mesh which looks all wrong. I finally found the perfect fabric although its a hair too light, but it will have to do. Thankfully Katie has a bathing suit which is almost identical to the black under layer so that will cut down significantly on my construction time. I also picked up a pattern that I will be able to alter. Im taking the poofed sleeves and the round neck bodice and just making the skirt really short. After that all I need to do is attach black ribbon to the wrists and make a waist tie…simple right? I also found the perfect wig yesterday which is another thing most girls don’t nail. Most girls buy a brown pageboy bang wig but if you look at the comic, Silk Spectre II doesnt exactly have pageboy bangs! She has some short bangs pushed to the side, not a blunt cut all the way across. So I bought a decent quality wig with no bangs and cut the bangs in and pushed them to the side. Perfect! If you cant tell Im a perfectionist, I dont ever cosplay but if Im doing it you know damn well Im doing it correctly so Ive been obsessively analyzing the comic. The only thing is Ive noticed some inconsistencies with how she is drawn! Sometimes her yellow overlay attaches to her choker and other times it doesnt, the color of her shoes and belt also change…so I’ll just have to pick one version and roll with it. Oh and bonus, I have a freckle in the exact same spot she has a mole…so all I need to do it enhance it with some eyeliner!
Silk Spectre I – Katie’s Costume
Katie’s is going to be simpler in some ways and more difficult in others. Unlike my costume she doesnt require sleeves, which always cuts down on time. However, mine doesnt have to be perfectly fitted because it will tie around the waist but Katie’s has a mock corset that needs to be fitted. Thankfully we found the perfect fabric for hers (slightly less sheer than mine) and she has a few pieces that she can wear under the yellow to create the under layer. Yet again Im going to be taking a pattern an altering it to create the dress. Now this pattern may look nothing like Silk Spectre’s dress but actually the top is fairly similar as is the neck piece, I’ll just have to create some extra slits but it should work fine. The only real snag we’ve run into with Katie is finding the wig. She thought she could get one online but that fell through and unfortunately the clock is ticking so we cannot bank on getting one shipped in time. After checking several party stores we came up empty. In a pinch I think we could just style her hair up in a retro fashion and it will be close enough to at least create the effect of Silk Spectre I’s hair. Other than that all she really needs to get are the thigh highs and possibly one elbow length black glove.
So that the plan. Katie comes over tonight to help with construction and fitting so we will actually only have about 2 nights to work on the costumes since we’ll be lining up early on Thursday for the showing. Can we do it? I hope so! We’ll take pictures along the way and let you see the final products! Wish us luck!
<3 seanalyn
Domestic Geek 
OMG! Good lucky lady! I definitely want pictures to see how everything came out! Good thing Katie had that black swimsuit – I was going to suggest Target because I think there’s one like it there (not sure though)!
oh boy, we have so much to do and such busy schedules! luckily i have found some time this evening after my tuesday night class. after the fitting meeting, seanalyn will have some work cut out for her. wondering if i can temporarily die my hair red and somehow recreate the 50’s pin up hairdo? anyone have any other suggestions or advice?
Hey! I think there’s a line of temporary hair color called Jerome (and I think it’s at local grocery stores and Walgreens). I cannot vouch for if it works, but I think you could find something. Check Sally’s if they have those in San Francisco too :).
As for hairdos, I only know one, down. I wish I could help though, sorry!
There are actually a fair amount of temporary colors…you can get them at Walgreens. Maybe we can get some fake hair (you can find that at Walgreens too usually) to add to create the up do. There is a costume and party store somewhere by your place…I know ive walked past it but I cant think of the name.
I did just look up this place which might have a wig for cheap
http://www.yelp.com/biz/new-hong-kong-fashions-san-francisco#hrid:7Ro-q-JkrUr-MmOumtksxQ/src:search/query:wig
Wow, good luck! I’m looking forward to seeing people’s costumes at the midnight showing I’m going to almost as much as I’m looking forward to the movie itself.
i think i am going to be creative and try to make my own hair as close to the real thing as possible. i will be searching for some temporary red hair dye (not the super bright red crap!). we’ll see what happens! :)