More arm

Elastic makes things so much easier @_@

So I think I mostly finished the mock up of the arm. The shoulder rig didn't hold up nearly as well as I had hoped, but it did at least stabilize the upper arm a bit. I didn't have to hold it any more, so that I'm happy with. Anyhow, without further ado, I present the newly improved arm!

I did identify one problem area, which is the area where the upper and lower arm cross paths. I'm not sure if it was due to the shoulder rig, but the two parts kept getting caught on each other.I think this could be solved if I pad my upper arm with something. That combined with building the shoulder a bit further out from my body should hopefully give the pieces enough room to pass without hitting each other.

I really love the lower arm, though. If it didn't make using a computer impossible, I'd still be wearing it :P

Well then...

So apparently not only has the only craft store I can get to without bussing over an hour one way closed, but the Zellers at the closest mall is finally closing to make way for the Target that's going in there next year. This means their stock, while nicely discounted, leaves something to be desired ಠ_ಠ

Anyway, while I didn't get as much as I was planning, I did pick up some elastic and velcro at the fabric store. I don't really need it now, but since I was in the area figured I might as well save a trip later. Also picked up some poster board at the local dollar store so I can make a mockup of Soundwave's head when I get the design sketched out.

Can't wait until I can get a ride to the local Home Depot, though, so I can pick up some insulation foam. I worked with it briefly years ago and after checking out various cosplay sites, it looks like it's the best stuff to work with for anything that needs to be durable (and several layers of wood glue/tissue paper paper mache is supposed to reinforce it pretty well while not adding much weight and being sandable). It's probably also cheaper than crafting foam >_>

Initially I was thinking Wonderflex would work pretty well, but that stuff is way too expensive to do something as big as this. Soundwave's arms alone would likely cost upwards of $200. Though if I had the money I'd likely go that route and do the EL sheets for all the glowy bits, but I'm not going to spend $500+ on a costume which I still don't know where I'd wear it to >P

Anyway, I'll see what I can do with the helm design tonight so I can possibly work on it tomorrow. Don't know if I'll do that or work on the arm some more now that I have proper materials for it, but I'll do something.

Rough chest design and why multiple screenshots work best

(hey, I actually remembered a title this time!)

Alright, so I finally managed to sit down and stay focused to figure out Soundwave's upper body. It's not the most accurate (or symmetrical -- the left is the "good" side) but I needed to figure out the best way to adjust the proportions so that they actually fit. Soundwave has very broad shoulders and a tiny waist and I... don't really have either. So that needed to be dealt with.

And as you can see, I'm currently doing Soundwave without Laserbeak attached. Depending on how things go, I may make a Laserbeak I can attach and remove when I want. Or maybe have a mini-Laserbeak I can stick on my shoulder like a robotic bat-rat parrot. Maybe get an eyepatch to stick on the helm when I want... Damn, I kinda want to make a pirate Soundwave now ._.;;

Anyway, hopefully I can get foam and/or posterboard soon so I can get working on the real deal (or at least a mock-up that I can put on and test), though I should probably work out the proportions of the legs and diaper first. Same with the head/helm. That thing is a lot more complicated than I first thought, and it doesn't help I'd need to make sure it has enough room for my glasses.

I nearly made a horrible mistake with the chest, however. One of the clearest screenshots of Soundwave's chest that I could find comes from Master & Student when he releases Laserbeak to follow Starscream. The problem is that in that shot, the prong-y things on his chest (blue on my drawing) were up since they are apparently articulated (despite having no visible joint) and point up when he releases his drone ಠ_ಠ

Made a basic (and rather bad) shoulder rig to test an idea. I'd post pictures but the camera batteries died and I haven't gotten new ones yet. But it seems to have mostly solved the problem of the upper arm not staying straight and/or hitting me in the head. Up/down movement will likely end up being limited, but forward/back should have a good range and allow some rotation.

Using a shoulder rig also let me try out moving both arm pieces at once, which felt both odd and cool. It will take some getting used to when I make a more solid arm, but it should hopefully work out well with practice. Even better if/when I get to work on articulated fingers.

I'll get pictures up when I can, but for now I'm trying to figure out the best way to do Soundwave's chest and legs. Looks like I may need to use stilts to give the lower leg a bit more length :S

A wild potential cosplay has appeared!

Wow, has it been a year since my last art post already? Yay procrastination, art block, and some other stuff?

Anyway, decided to update this for a project I started working on: a Soundwave (from Transfromers Prime) cosplay. Not sure how far I'll get or what I'll wear it for, but I figure that it's more productive and engaging than sitting around much of the day.

Right now most of the ideas are in my head with a few sketched out, but I did make a mock-up of Soundwave's right arm out of cardboard, bamboo skewers, tape, and a cheap sheet I was going to use for a different project. Elastic would have been better and kept things on without me having to hold them up (the upper arm/shoulder especially) but I didn't have any on hand.

Pictures kinda suck since I had to put the camera on a bookcase and use the timer, but they ought to give a decent idea of it. (the lower arm is actually longer than it seems, as apparently I can't take a picture without having it at an angle that makes it seem shorter).

Elastic will definitely make things easier and I'll try to get some soon and  replace the regular fabric to see how that works out.

I did some range of motion tests since I was worried that the upper and lower arm will catch, but surprisingly that didn't seem to be a problem. Granted it could be because the upper arm was so loose when I didn't hold it straight (and would hit me in the head...) but I think as long as they're at slightly different angles it won't be a problem as long as I'm mindful of it and don't make quick movements.

Brief update

Alright, haven't done much art at all recently but I'm making this post in an effort to guilt trip myself to do some. Luckily for me several glitches in Skyrim have given me ideas for some comics, so we'll see how those work out. Got some sketches going already, it's just a matter of scanning them and doing some work on them...

Almost there

It's the home stretch now. Mostly it's just the background, and maybe a few small things here and there. Should finish it tonight or tomorrow.