Free Comic Book Day Fun

A couple days ago was Free Comic Book Day! I love it. Sort of like a mini comic con when it's done right. Plus, you walk away with free comics. Win-win! Truth be told, I don't really go for the comics though. The best part for me, is getting to cosplay. To be a character for a while. I haven't been cosplaying much in a while. Between life being so busy with 4 kids and not being able to get away for comic cons.... okay and dealing with the larger body size... I just haven't been able to work up the joy I used to have for this hobby of mine. However, I made the last minute decision to be Wanda aka the Scarlet Witch from the Avengers. I love Wanda's style. The red was a huge draw for me. Love red! Her story might be a sad one, but it ended on a good note. As far as I know. I haven't seen WandaVision. Since I don't subscribe to streaming services, I'll have to miss out on that show. So my knowledge of her comes from the movies. 

Last minute makings

My mom gave me 2 dresses. One maroon, one purple. Both identical otherwise. They are vintage styled. 50's, with empire waist and well flared skirts. I love them both. For the purple one, at first, I had the idea to create a Joker themed outfit. But I haven't had the time to start designing that yet. So my thoughts shifted to the maroon dress. 

I thought of 2 characters: Wanda from Avengers and Jean Grey from X-Men. Of course, for the latter one, that is the Phoenix or Dark Phoenix version. Like from the movie...

                                    After some deliberation, Scarlet Witch won my choice. 

Mind you, this was all configured the night before the event. So I worked in between gaming with my husband. It also meant that the designing was quick and not going to last for a long term cosplay with multiple uses. But that is okay. I like to switch it up. 

Piecing the style together

The dress came with a belt from my mom. The belt was too large for me - even after pulling it as tight as it was made to go. So I had to safety pin it from underneath. You can't see the pins, and the belt stayed in place! If I was to redo this, I'd go find a new belt to use that was smaller around my middle. I didn't have to do anything else to the dress though. 

I had these gloves from another cosplay I had before. They aren't the best, but they are versatile in their usefulness. I pulled them out and promptly forgot to bring them along... But they would have been awesome for this outfit! 

Of course, black boots seemed fitting. I have them. They matched. Good enough. One day I think I'll try to do something to make or get red boots. Especially if I do a Wonder Woman cosplay.... 

Red hair is a must. Scarlet is in her name and blends it all together so nicely. I have 2 wigs (so far). One is this red, and I have a blond. My husband loves them both. I can change my hair up in about 5 minutes without smelly dyes and semi-permanent results!  

I don't have a red cape. So instead I added this sleeveless long cardigan vest I have. I love this piece! And I hope to get another one. In blue this time. They work well with everyday wear as well as cosplay.

So what else is left? 

Now for the hardest part of this transformation. The headpiece. Considering I did this with cardstock and paint, you'd think it was super easy. You'd be wrong. I printed out this template from another cosplayer. She made it pretty simple, really. But it just didn't look quite right. It matched, don't get me wrong, but felt off. I couldn't quite figure it out. However, after making my own adjustments, I decided to just satisfy myself with it and move on. 

I did find another tutorial HERE that I think you should check out too. Pick the one that works best for you. If I do this again, I think I will use this one and make it with the worbla. 

I do suggest having elastic or a headband to attach it to so that you can wear it easier. I did this all the night before, so I just tucked the sides under my glasses. Big mistake. My hair came loose and the mask kept falling. I looked great for a little while though, so I'm not too torn up over it. We even had another cosplayer (Rocking Spider-man) ask for a group photo with us. Which, if you are a cosplayer, you know this is the highest form of admiration.

It's all for fun

Overall, I'm impressed with this get up. It was quick, easy, yet effective. We had fun as a family! My oldest son dressed up as a military/SWAT type guy (he's still piecing it together). My younger son was a Tusken Raider. My oldest daughter was a medieval princess. And my youngest was Elsa (even had some blue hair going on). My sons and I like to cosplay. My girls just want to dress pretty. But either way leads to fun! Sadly, my husband didn't dress up. He has a movie set-grade cosplay that he put together himself as a SWAT guy from the Resident Evil franchise. And he can easily outshine any cosplay I do with that! But this time, it was way too hot and he had another migraine. 

So now I want to hear from you! Do you cosplay? Who is your favorite character? I love hearing and even seeing them! Send me your Instagram details and I'll gladly follow you. Or email me at texanmama08 at g mail dot com. Show me what you have created! 

Guardians of the Galaxy review

Guardians of the Galaxy

This was a super cool movie that I thoroughly enjoyed. It was full of laughter-inducing humor and special effects that, while 3D can be fun, didn't need to be seen in 3D to be amazing. At 2 hours long, it can make for quite a sitting but its worth it.

Each of the heroic characters had something to offer that made them fun and invited you to like them as your favorite. 

Rocket is a sarcastic little raccoon that was genetically mutated in a series of laboratory tests.

He is constantly cracking jokes and pointing out the doom the group is in. He is also heavily into all things destructive with as much fire power as he can muster.

His faithful companion, Groot (voiced by Vin Diesel) is a lovable humanoid tree.

He's always lending a helpful branch and is willing to sacrifice all for his friends.

His only vocabulary is I, Am, Groot. And only in that order. But Rocket understands what Groot is trying to say to the rest of the group. And just wait until you see the moves Groot can rock! 

Peter Quill was abducted by a group of ravager space guys right after his mother dies of what appears to be cancer. 

She tells him that his father was made of light like an angel but doesn't explain further. He grows up with the group of ravagers in space and becomes the self-proclaimed "Star Lord" while attempting to be the futuristic version of Indiana Jones.His love for popular music from the 80's is evident by his constant use of a cassette tape that his mother gave him.

Watching him break into dances at the craziest moments will surely bring a smile to your face if not full-on laughter. He may not be a saint, but he has a good heart and will be ready to take up the challenge of kicking bad guy butt as needed. 

Gomora is a surgically modified, killing machine.

She's been trained to be a warrior that is hired out by her adopted father Thanos.

Thanos loans her and her sister, Nebula to the Kree radical, Ronan the Accuser, who wishes to rain destruction on a single civilization that had made a peace treaty with his people - the Xandarians. 

Drax brings up the rear in this list of heroes.

He wants to kill Gamora for being associated with Ronan, but is convinced to go after Ronan instead. He seeks revenge for the death of his family by Ronan. He does not understand metaphors and takes everything to be of serious value. While he may be fierce, he is also very loyal to those he considers to be his friends.

At first, Quill and his rag tag bunch are only looking to cash in on an orb that Quill took from a deserted planet. Once they realize the dangers that could come from it, however, they decide to work together to save the world. Plans are haphazardly thrown together and alliances are somewhat made. The group is tested, arrested, and bonds are created. It's the craziness of it with the uniqueness of the group that made it worth seeing. I highly recommend it. Even the kids can watch so long as you're okay with fight scenes and a little language, thus the PG-13 rating. Its one of the best super hero movies I've watched so far! And don't forget!!!

While I didn't see what was to come at the prescreening, I was told there was extra footage shown after the credits. All I can tell you is that the friend who saw it says it has something to do with the Collector.

And for fun, I'm sharing the Lego version of the preview!

Thor: The Dark World review

Now that Thor: The Dark World is available to everyone in theaters, I can tell you I saw the prescreening! What. A. Movie! Loki is his devilishly witty self with every part of his scenes rolling the jokes out. Jane Foster, played by Natalie Portman, is a scientist (did you know she really is a scientist in real life?!) who has been mourning the fact that her beloved Thor hasn't come back to her... Even though he did come to New York to save the world. She's as fired up as ever and let's loose on Thor and his brother, Loki. The All Father, Odin, has his hands full trying to return peace to the warring realms since Loki's last attempt at domination went awry.

Odin is played by another favorite actor of mine - Anthony Hopkins. And the Queen, Friga, desperately wishes to find the son she once knew in Loki. He of course has turned to bitter hatred and is dripping with sarcastic comebacks.

So what's the gist of the movie? First we hear the ancient history concerning the Dark Elves. They tried to cloak the entire universe in darkness with a special power that can only be unlocked when the realms align. He attempted such, but the previous All Father (Thor's grandfather), destroyed the vast majority of the dark elves and thought he had completely annihilated the threat. Except he had the powerful weapon they made buried deep where no one could find it. But someone does...
In the present - Loki is now prisoner in Asgard.

Peace is being re-established in the realms. A certain scientist is looking for Thor and can't seem to date anyone else because her mind stays on Thor. She finds a nightmare instead. Thor comes back, ready to rescue his damsel in distress. Only he gets more than he can handle.

Can he trust his brother (whom he'd have to break out of prison)?  Can he commit treason and go against his fathers law? Or will the entire universe be plunged into darkness and overruled by dark elves and the Kursed?

So much to accomplish before the Convergence of the 9 realms!

 The fight scenes are splendidly done. I saw it in 3D and was pleasantly surprised by all the intricate detail. One of my favorite parts? Stan Lee's appearance! He makes a cameo appearance in all his Marvel movies, and Thor: The Dark World was no different. In this one, Stan Lee is in the mental institution with another returning character who was arrested and put in the asylum for running nude through Stonehenge. I won't tell you, but it shouldn't be hard to guess.
 Now I'm no expert and never read the comics, so get mad and say what you want concerning the truth in the story, but so far as I can tell - it's amazing.
Bonus: should you be patient enough to watch past the credits, you will see something that could point to towards the next movie. And leads you to the truth of what really happened to Loki! I won't spoil it for you, but I do want to remind you that Loki is the master of illusion... Also, if you stay for more credits and show the last bit of patience possible... There is further storyline! Can it truly be?! Two lovers just might be reunited....

http://bcove.me/i5l7vvzf

So check it out and tell me what you think!
And just for fun ;-)