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Even though its a simple costume, I really wanted to do something different and unique with the character, and Chris and I worked really hard to come up with a design that was flattering and practical.
Wanting to use a material that we felt Felicia Hardy would use, but rather than using lambskin, instead we went with a 2-way pleather, which was mixed together with some remaining matte sheen lycra in the joint areas. Originally the concept we approached it at was that since Black Cat has no powers that she would rely on tools to help her burgle with the best of them. We faux in the lines to give the illusion of a Swiss seat (what climbers use) into the mid section so she could hook into when she is climbing. We added sculpted finger pads with ridges and claws which would assist in climbing, the finger pads were cast in a black silicone and the nails themselves were cast in resin with iron metal powder. Additional lines we also added to the suit to joint areas so it would look more reinforced in the areas that would wear faster than others from all her late night prowling. We took extra wig hair we had and blended various colors to create the ‘fur’ look for the arms. I disliked the silhouette the fur create on the legs so I omitted that completely. The fur on the collar is just a faux fur you can get at most fabric stores, but someday I would like to replace that with fake monkey fur.
The boots were purchased and altered to be a bit shorter to give my legs the look of being longer. These boots were chosen because of the trend on the bottom made them appear more functional then an average heel.
Gloves were purchased from Macy's and added a decorative look to attach them right to the body suit.
The wig was its own hurdle. I wanted the 60's bump which is surprisingly hard to find in white (off), and after trying to attempt it on my own without much success. GSTQ recommended Steve Hightower to style it.
We were prepared to sculpted the mask but then saw the XtremeFX Superheroine mask and thought they had done a perfect job, why reinvent the wheel.
This simple costume was a surprising challenge, it was the first time we had to design a bodysuit, and we learned a lot from it which we applied to later costumes like the wasp. Taking the designs we came up with to Sean and working with him to draft a pattern and tailor it was a real learning experiance. Our work with him was about 90% of the suit. I would also like to thank Holly Fry (Making Mischief) and Cathy Jones (God Save the Queen Fashion) for their additional asistance. |
