We have two costuming panels in store for you this year and each one will have different examples of costumes from the movies. These costumes have been made by fans with a deep love of LOTR and wonderful talents in the field of costuming. Here’s what is on the slate for these two sessions.
Saturday 10 am
Session 1: Hobbit Hippies and Elven Elegance This panel is made up of experienced costumers who have created and altered patterns for the gowns and clothing worn by the ladies, elves and hobbits in Middle-earth. This session will offer tips and resources on research materials, planning and construction of costumes as well as ideas and hints for Elf and Hobbit make-up and hair.
Quimbie Olmstead: – Arwen’s Chase, Haldir’s jacket
Topic: Choosing and researching a costume for you, and making it suit you
Quimbie’s costuming bug was fueled by her discovery of her talent for sewing in junior high home economics classes. She began to foster her love for sewing just out of Junior high, with Star Trek alien girls wrapped in modified sheets stitched on lame’ panels for a movies opening night. Her newfound love of costuming developed over the years into many genres including everything from Gothic/Vampire attire to fantasy Lord of the Rings garb. She has done some replica work, drafting patterns from photos or drawings. Her costumes have garnered her awards at costume compactions, both big and small. Quimbie prefers to create her own costumes based on the general look of movie or genres Her true love lies not in reproductions but her own creative slant on recognizable costumes. She’s also known for her economical prop building. Her costumes are to numerous to list, many evolving from one genre to another, with a little inspiration, needle and thread. Always on the lookout, she’s just waiting for that perfect moment of inspiration to strike.
Mindy Dupler-Singer – Eowyn’s Traveling Dress and Coat
Topic: Choosing fabrics
Mindy started sewing in 7th or 8th grade home ec. and started designing clothes she was 12 when she began exploring ideas and using creative problem solving skills to achieve the end result I wanted. As a senior in high school she became involved in theatre and in college developed a love for costuming. She has explored many techniques and created costumes for classic theatre, children’s theatre, dance, personal designs, and SCA costumes out the yen yang. For three years she has been involved in a I.A.T.S.E. Local 174 (International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees) and in SCA: Barony of Rivenstar/Sternfeld 12+years as well as various weaving and knitting guilds. Online she participates in the LOTR costuming group, the Qui-Gon Jinn Discussion list, the Madame_Malkins- Harry Potter Costuming Group and Indyknights. As a costumer she would like to explore more dyeing techniques, and textile crafts such as felting. Eventually she would like to complete a Master’s degree in costume design and technologies.
Maggie Masetti – Arwen’s Chase, Rose, Mourning Dresses
Topic: Altering patterns
Maggie has no professional costuming experience and her real life job is at NASA. But she has been costuming since after The Phantom Menace when she and her friend decided to make authentic Jedi costumes for a Halloween party that October. Since then, her interest in costume and sewing experience has grown. She and her friends have started an unofficial costume group called “Team Padawan” that attend conventions together. They recently won “Best Presentation” and “Best in Class” at Balticon. Her online activities involve active membership in the Alleycatscratch Yahoo LotR list, The Star Wars Jedi Council costume Forum, and the Yahoo Harry Potter and Ever After lists, and running the “Padawans Guide” Star Wars Prequel Costume website.
[Maggie’s personal costume page]
[Maggie’s Star Wars Prequel Costume page]
Sean Patton – Frodo’s traveling outfit
Topic: Pattern drafting from scratch
Sean has been costuming since 1991. He once worked as a theatre major in the costume shop at Winthrop University and was a fashion design major at the American College for the Applied Arts. For the last three years he is the shop foreman, in house designer, cutter and stitcher for the Atlanta branch of a national theatrical supply house. He has made one Lord of the Ring costume but has created many other costumes from other venues. On line he has been participating in the Alleycatscratch LOTR Yahoo group.
[Sean’s website]
[Sean’s other website]
Rebecca M. Jordan (Neume) – Arwens Blood Red Dress, Arwen’s Chase Dress, elven dress inspired by Galadriels Mirror dress, and Legolas costume.
Topic: Make-up and finishing touches
Rebecca graduated with a degree in Psychology from Belmont University in 1994.Where she dabbled in Clay, throwing pottery and simple sculptures. She is currently employed by a Foreign Language Audio magazine Publishing Company in Nashville, TN. When not at work, she spends most of her time working with her two horses, and serves on the Tenn. State Appaloosa Horse Club’s Board of Directors. Her first costume endeavor was in 1994. Over the next four years she made quite a few outfits always seeking to improve her level of authenticity and found that the feeling of having made it herself was really fun and rewarding. After a few inactive years Rebecca was inspired by the elven dresses in The Fellowship of the Ring and then joined the online Lotr costuming group and recently joined a SCA group.
Sunday 10 am
Session 2: Middle-earth Warrior Wear Not everyone has access to a foundery or leather workshop, and creative solutions are a must when constructing armored costumes. This panel will demonstrate how to create templates for armor and leather work from scratch, discuss the wide variety of medium options, provide resources for tutorials and obtaining materials, give construction techniques and explain a how to process for making your own orc skin.
Shan Green – Eowyn’s Shield Maiden, Legolas jerkin prototype
Topic: Working with suede and leather (or their substitutes)
Shan teaches music (violin); and an occasional college level courses. She is a self-taught costumer who experiments and learns from other costumers in her endeavors. She has been casually costuming since 1986 but became much more fanatical since 1999. To her experience she has created, Obi-Wan Ep 1 (two versions), Obi-Wan Ep2, Barriss Offee from Star Wars Ep 2, (helped with Luminara Unduli, same movie), Gandalf the Grey, China Doll can-can dancer from Moulin Rouge, Neo from Matrix 2, various and sundry ‘Renn Faire’ outfits, quite a few Jedi robes (O and Q styles) and an extra Jedi tunic/undertunic or two. Her future projects include: a second Neo jacket, Eowyn Shield Maid, perhaps TTT Elf armor outfit. Shan is a member of the Alleycatscratch LOTR Yahoo list.
Julia McGee – Galadriel Mirror and Helm’s Deep Elven Armor
Topic: Armor templates and choosing materials
Julia was a Fine Art Studio Major with an emphasis in sculpture and ceramics. Currently she is a stay-at-home mom for her two small children. She had always loved creating low scale costumes for halloween but didn’t become seriously at costuming until she became involved in a forum for a website called Obi-wan’s Jedi Academy about two years ago. She has since made several Star Wars costumes including an Episode II Obi-wan Kenobi and a Mini Jango Fett. When FOTR was released she ventured out of Star Wars and set herself to making a Galadriel costume and from that was inspired to make a Boromir. With the release of The Two Towers and all the experience she had gained from other costumes, she found the confidence to start on a costume that she never would have imagined possible a few years ago: The Helm’s Deep Elven Armor.
[Julia’s Personal Website]
[Julia’s Helm’s Deep Tutorial website]
Kevin Zabawa: Ring Wraith
Topic: Basic Armor Construction
In the four years Kevin has been costuming with the 501st Empire City Garrison, he has created four Star Wars costumes, including a Darth Vader with a working sound effects system. Recently he ventured into a Fellowship of LOTR fans to construct a Witch King costume. As an audio Visual Technician, his background in Basic electronics, Puppet construction and puppeteering and scale model building have contributed to his costuming endeavors.
Jason Gallo (Darth Goat) – Urak-kai skin
Topic: Orc Skin
In the two and a half years Jason has been costuming he has created six costumes with two more under construction. He has used vacuum-formed plastic, some latex, resin and metal. He is a major coordinator of the Star Wars fan club, the Rebel Legion, having been a member for two and a half years, and has been a member of the 501st for the last year. He is a software engineer and uses his engineering background when confronting and solving costuming problems. To see more of his work and some upcoming tutorials you may visit [here].
