Making Of Karlach #2 (Patreon)

Alrighty, my dear Patreon fam,

here's part two of my Karlach making process! In the last part we left off with starting to make the top. So with the top we start this one!

So for being able to continue to drape the leather straps on the manneqin, I needed all the rings and clasps to be done. My partner printed them for me on this printer :) The files are from here. 

I started by applying a base of black acrylic paint, using not a brush but a sponge. Just a regular dishwashing sponge. I personally like this brand of acrylic paint, but I'm sure you can use any. Just make sure that the cheap acrylics are often more watery and less covering than the more expensive ones that you can get in hobby/painting stores. After priming them all, I applied the gold (also acrylic paint) also by tapping it slightly with a sponge covered in a thin layer of gold paint. This way, the black stays in the cracks and it looks naturally weathered :)

Then, I went ahead and slooowly, step by stepp added strap after strap to the mannequin, pinning the straps to each other and to the mannequin with the rings in between. This took about two days and needed a lot of adjustment. After finishing to drape the thing, I cut it on different places in the back in order to get it off the mannequin and onto myself to try it on. I'll show you the exact places I cut and the ways I intend to close it when it's done (in the next part).

The fit was okay. Hence, I sew the straps together along the seams they already had :) Luckily, Karlach's outfit is wild and chaotic, so it's okay if the seams are all over the place as well.

Sewing in between the rings and stuff was very complicated, so some places I couldn't reach I glued with contact glue or used rivets :)

Especially the criss-cross section on the bottom side needed a lot of rivets :)

For the strap ends (since they weren't straight and fell weirdly), I glued a second layer underneath them with thin wires in between so that they can be slightly shaped later :)

Here's the first try on after sewing all straps together :D

Then it was weathering time! I used a small piece of sponge again for this so I wouldn't get brush strokes and because the texture is perfect! You can also do this with the drybrush technique as well though :) I weathered mostly the edges of the straps and sometimes in between, using a brown shade and a lighter brown shade of - again - normal acrylic paints.

Then, I glued the clasps onto the rings they're part of. some of them are worked kinda into the straps, that's the parts where I put the rings into the top beforehand. Some I glued together before putting them onto the top. For this, I used UV resin glue for the first time (since the 3D printed parts are also resin) and it works SO WELL. Then, step by step I glued all the clasps onto the straps and onto the top :) That was it with the top exept one thing: A short, seperable zipper (about 8cm) that's hard to get and yet to arrive :) You'll see a photo of the so far finished top at the end of this post!

When painting the rings, I also did all the vents. Same technique, first use the sponge to paint it black and then slightly tap on it with some silver. After that, for the glowing effect, I glued some rhinestones into them :)

Then, Karlach's last arm accessory! I used the same pleather that I salvaged from the second hand jacket (like you see in the first #makingof post), sew two identical pieces together and glued pieces of the previously made red pleather straps to the edges. To these I added some embroidery details with embroidery thread. Also made new bones from foam clay. Glued a strap to the piece and added rivets to the bones and that's it for the arms!

And let's not forget about the horns! I bought these 3D printed ones from here. Painting/weathering them didn't take that long, since the black was already good to go, I merely added some lighter brown to the edges with the sponge :)

Also made a tail tip out of foam clay!

Alright, last but not least for this post, let's make the pants! For the pants, I bought real leather pants second hand. For the cutout pieces, I didnt want the pants to be too stretchy or too tight. First, I removed the lining from inside. Next, I cut out the pieces.

The red parts on the top of the pants are painted on with acrylics.

After that, I added the details with regular wool. Before sewing, I made sure to mark the spots where the needle goes in so that it's  be even! 

Then, weathering! While weathering the pants, I also weathered and made the rest of the red straps as well as the boots that I got from here. I pinned the pieces to the pants and glued more rings in :) Also, more rivets.

The pants need a bit of adjustment (cut outs are too big, leg parts not tight enough), but that's it so far! 

And here with the top! At this time I only need to add the zipper to the back of the top and adjust the pants. Then I'm completely done with the clothes. Subject for the next #makingof post will be the skin (armsocks, body, LEDs), as well as the tail and maybe a new wig!