Tavern Moxxi - Borderlands 2 DLC

Why this costume:
I love the Borderlands series and when the DLC Mad Moxxi's Underdome Riot came out I fell in love with Moxxi. Her character was really just something written after my own heart. I just knew I had to make this costume at one point or another.
Make-up:
All done with make-up I previously owned, except the base white make-up which is Mehron in Clown White.
Details Construction:
Dress:
So, the most obvious part of this costume is her dress. Luckily, this cut and look is very similar to her original design which I had already made. I took an old version I made for Valentine's Day and started going to town modifying it to include the few differences. The BIG difference was that her top was an under bust this time around. All other versions are NOT and this one finally was! So much easier to draft. The second difference were the sleeves. They are actually not attached. In game you can see it's skin tone on her shoulder, so I had to make sleeves unattached this time around.
After getting the base look down I slowly kept taking it in to get the desired effect. Took about three fittings and I got the look I wanted.
I went with a very nice Sateen cotton they started carrying at Joann's for the base costume. I wanted a fabric that was a strong cloth yet thin as well. Trying to provide a good structure to the design while avoiding bulky fabrics.
Honestly, as much as I want to talk about all the details in the front it's a lot to type. I took a lot of detailed pictures and you can see them below. Basically the front is a faux corset. I went this direction because I wanted to keep the structure of the dress intact and limit layers which add bulk.
Sleeves:
Sleeves I also drafted a couple times, but I already had a "puffy sleeve" pattern I had drafted for my Nurse costume, so I just used that and modified it to fit her design. The cuffs were a heavy weight interfacing covers with purple cotton and yellow bias for closure.
Tails:
Though technically part of the dress portion I wanted to cover these separately because I tried something new this time around and LOVED the result. I found out about this material called Buckram. Though I had heard the name I had never used it, well it was perfect! I used a grey fabric for the lining, my red sateen on the outside and made sure to use the buckram as an interfacing. This allowed me to use heat to shape my curls! They kept the design perfectly too and it was so nice and lightweight. 10/10 would recommend.
Paint Details:
So, if there is one thing we know about Moxxi it's her designs even after the shading look is never simple. I hand painted and detail painted every aspect I could think of to try and add every bit of attention and love she deserves. You can see some of the painting steps in my progress photos below. I made sure I added the floral print design as well. Though it should have come printed on the red, there was no way of finding the perfect print, so I painted it on after I completed my pattern.
Hat:
I tried a lot of different method on the hat and was never quite happy with them when I did it from scratch. So, I took an old Bucket hat I had (Thank you Mistress of Ultra Prison costume!) and used that as my base. I added craft foam to it to give it the shade and then covered it with the same suede I had for the boots. Last details were made with craft foam and painted feathers!
Shoes:
So, I made my boot covers using a fake suede material of the same shade and attaching them to an old pair of ankle boots I had. I drafted the pattern measuring it to fit the boot. I then super glued it to the base of the shoe. Added the cell-shading and...well that's all there was too it.
Other pieces:
Belts/garter/holsters/necklace were all from my previous Moxxi costume. I just gave them a good touch up with paint.The cream stocking were modified Thigh highs.
I love the Borderlands series and when the DLC Mad Moxxi's Underdome Riot came out I fell in love with Moxxi. Her character was really just something written after my own heart. I just knew I had to make this costume at one point or another.
Make-up:
All done with make-up I previously owned, except the base white make-up which is Mehron in Clown White.
Details Construction:
Dress:
So, the most obvious part of this costume is her dress. Luckily, this cut and look is very similar to her original design which I had already made. I took an old version I made for Valentine's Day and started going to town modifying it to include the few differences. The BIG difference was that her top was an under bust this time around. All other versions are NOT and this one finally was! So much easier to draft. The second difference were the sleeves. They are actually not attached. In game you can see it's skin tone on her shoulder, so I had to make sleeves unattached this time around.
After getting the base look down I slowly kept taking it in to get the desired effect. Took about three fittings and I got the look I wanted.
I went with a very nice Sateen cotton they started carrying at Joann's for the base costume. I wanted a fabric that was a strong cloth yet thin as well. Trying to provide a good structure to the design while avoiding bulky fabrics.
Honestly, as much as I want to talk about all the details in the front it's a lot to type. I took a lot of detailed pictures and you can see them below. Basically the front is a faux corset. I went this direction because I wanted to keep the structure of the dress intact and limit layers which add bulk.
Sleeves:
Sleeves I also drafted a couple times, but I already had a "puffy sleeve" pattern I had drafted for my Nurse costume, so I just used that and modified it to fit her design. The cuffs were a heavy weight interfacing covers with purple cotton and yellow bias for closure.
Tails:
Though technically part of the dress portion I wanted to cover these separately because I tried something new this time around and LOVED the result. I found out about this material called Buckram. Though I had heard the name I had never used it, well it was perfect! I used a grey fabric for the lining, my red sateen on the outside and made sure to use the buckram as an interfacing. This allowed me to use heat to shape my curls! They kept the design perfectly too and it was so nice and lightweight. 10/10 would recommend.
Paint Details:
So, if there is one thing we know about Moxxi it's her designs even after the shading look is never simple. I hand painted and detail painted every aspect I could think of to try and add every bit of attention and love she deserves. You can see some of the painting steps in my progress photos below. I made sure I added the floral print design as well. Though it should have come printed on the red, there was no way of finding the perfect print, so I painted it on after I completed my pattern.
Hat:
I tried a lot of different method on the hat and was never quite happy with them when I did it from scratch. So, I took an old Bucket hat I had (Thank you Mistress of Ultra Prison costume!) and used that as my base. I added craft foam to it to give it the shade and then covered it with the same suede I had for the boots. Last details were made with craft foam and painted feathers!
Shoes:
So, I made my boot covers using a fake suede material of the same shade and attaching them to an old pair of ankle boots I had. I drafted the pattern measuring it to fit the boot. I then super glued it to the base of the shoe. Added the cell-shading and...well that's all there was too it.
Other pieces:
Belts/garter/holsters/necklace were all from my previous Moxxi costume. I just gave them a good touch up with paint.The cream stocking were modified Thigh highs.