So, the Gaara costume continues. Plastic Fusion spraypaint + beach balls + really hot, high humidity weather = bad news. But! Regular old craft paint seems to be working fairly well--it dries fairly quickly, covers well, and does not scrape off. I'm about halfway finished with the painting on the gourd, although I still have to glue the cork on. I'm also working on a Third Eye; I haven't decided whether I'll mount it on a thin wire stand (so it'll bobble around on the table), just leave it alone to hold in my hand, or mount it to the back of my gourd so that it's "floating" behind me. (For those of you who don't remember, Gaara uses the Third Eye jutsu to cheat during the first round of the chuunin exams and to spy on Sasuke while he tries to transform into Shukaku in the third round chuunin fight.) I still need buckles for my sling, so I'm going to check the farm supply stores--they carry saddles and tack, so they might have some. I mean, I can always order some online, but it seems silly to have to order sewing notions online. Man, I am a detail oriented, arts and crafts freak, aren't I? I'm contemplating topstitching on the sling. I'm debating adding a pocket to my black pants so they'll be more authentic. I'm scanning the pages for accessories I can add. Somebody stop me!

Also, had an idea for a nice, low-key, comfy cosplay costume, but it's Naruto again, and I'd like to mix up my fandoms a bit more. The idea: a nin-dog. One of Kakashi's pack, to be exact--blue shirt with a heno-heno-moheji face on the back, Konoha hitai-ate tied loosely around neck, ears and tail to match my hair, maybe a dab of black on my nose. Just think of all the fun I could have in playful puppy mode! I could glomp Kakashi and call him "daddy"! I could growl at people (wait...I already do that)! I could sniff people's butts! (Er...maybe not.) I could get hit on by furries! *blinks* Er...you know, maybe I didn't think this costume-idea through enough. But at least calling Kakashi "daddy" would still be fun.

Look, I finally got around to making a Gaara icon with the pics from A-Kon! Tremble before the Gaara death glare!

Since the Gaara outfit was mainly made Saturday morning in the hotel room with great haste and a little duct tape, I'm trying to make it look better for Onicon. So I now have sleeves that aren't trimmed with tape, and one (1) completed shoe. I have to finish the other shoe, add straps to my leather sling, and make my gourd (I am experimenting with plastic-fusion spraypaint and beach balls since I need a gourd I can fit in a suitcase). There are also a couple of...accessories I am contemplating for the outfit. And of course, if I can find a long black coat, I'll do Kazekage Gaara. (To anyone out there who wants to tell me spoilers from the latest chapters: lalalala, I'm not listening to you.)

All the Farfarello costume needed--slight alteration of the blue shirt and a nicer looking fake knife--have been done. So unless I want to get a strait jacket, I'm good to go on him. I've thought about a third costume, but I'm not sure what I'd go for. Kyou? Yuzu? Something easy like that.