While I started this site to chronicle my interest in typography, it has morphed into a receptacle for all interests design. With Halloween around the corner, my focus has shifted to costume design and construction.

Partner and I are headed to 2 parties, one of which is dictating the theme of our costumes (cards of the Major Arcana, or other mystical-ish ideas). Which is cool since I know nothing about tarot cards or their meanings. The second party is circus themed and coincidentally, we are going with a friend who is dressing up as a fortune teller. Perfect.

A few months ago, a coworker had sent my partner a picture of a tarot card illustration that looked exactly like him. Which means, his choice for costume was easy. He is going as  The Emperor (or Authority, in the psychic tarot deck).

While his choice was quick and easy, essentially served up on a platter, I was at a loss for what to be. I’m in between jobs, so I wanted to use the time to make a badass costume. It has been a few years since I went all out and made costumes to be proud of, like…

And none of the major arcana cards that were the female equivalent of The Emperor were really calling out to me. I prefer evil, dark, and scary. Which lead me to the Death card, XIII.

I’m opting for Death sans horse, but I will bring in the white rose to embrace both styles of art. What made this card work for me in particular was that it would accommodate the addition of a Plague Doctor mask, an image I’ve been drawn to for a while and felt like it would be a perfect addition to the costume.

The past two weeks have been spent on paper mache and making my partner’s costume. I had scrap fabric that was perfect for his Authority tunic, and found some nice purple velvet for a cape. While being a large dude, he is still a very boxy shape and his costume was easy to design. I did use the opportunity to improve on my finishing techniques. Selvages were done, I ironed obsessively for crisp seams, and I finally got the hang of properly finishing a neckline with bias facing. Partner is sourcing his own hardware for his belt and cloak fasteners, and the last touch will be pairing my paper mache laurel leaves to a wire wreath and painting.

All good on The Emperor front, but I’ve been dragging my butt on getting Death started. I’ve sourced all my fabric and notions but aside from getting the paper mache parts 75% of the way done, I’ve not cut a single pattern. That will (have to) change tonight.

The paper mache has been going very well, a separate post is coming up to show how it was done. But here’s a checkpoint on what I’ve got so far. Quite pleased with how it turned out.

I’ve got a staff and scythe blade in the making as well.

Hopefully by the end of tonight, I’ll have my patterns drafted for my cloak and corset. I’m debating incorporating feathers as epaulettes, as I was inspired by some pinterest posts. Pinterest is the würst, so many pretty things, so little time.

So there you go. This month’s material will totally not be about typography, definitely not about graphic design, but about this other design-related hobby that I am profoundly passionate about.