Sorry it took so long to get part three out! I had the hardest time finding buckles, of all things! Anyway, here it is!
Let’s start by making the back pieces, and the thigh pieces. You can use foam or leather for this. I used some faux leather because I had some lying around and I didn’t have any foam on hand. If you use foam, make sure you seal it, add a fabric backing, prime it, and paint it. I actually made all the pieces, then decided I’m not going to use the back pieces. First, because they won’t show with the jacket on. Second, when I tried everything on, it rubbed the back of my neck really badly and I knew I’d be miserable. Why be miserable for a part of the costume than won’t even show?? On to the tutorial!
First, you are going to need a dress form, or a body form that you’ve made. Otherwise, you will need a very crafty friend to help you out. I used a dress form. Make sure it’s set to your size. Mines a bit dirty from a Daenery’s chestplate out of paper mache (that didn’t work). Ignore that :-p
Now, pin some newspaper onto your dress form.
Since this needs to be a mirror image, I recommend putting the fold down the middle and only drawing half. The next step is to draw your outline. I free hand drew it with a reference picture up on my phone.
Fold newspaper in half and cut out your pattern.
Now, pin this pattern back onto your dress form, because we need to extend the shoulder straps.
Try it on and make sure it fits.
Now, for the lower back pieces and the thigh pieces, I just kind of eyeballed it. Cut it out, and just keep trimming until the size looks right.
Back
Thigh
Now, trace and cut out your patterns. I used chalk to trace.
Put your harness on the dress form. Put the back piece over it and see if it fits. Make sure you try the back piece on yourself as well. To make the slits for the straps is a little tricky. What I did was measure to the center (fold in half one way, mark; fold in half the other way and mark; line up marks to find center).
Measure equidistant from the center for your slits. Mine need to be 2″ because that’s my strap width. Don’t make it too small, but don’t make it too big either. I kind of just played around with it until it worked. Use chalk so your marks are easily erasable. Make your marks for the ends as well.
If it looks like you want it to, cut. I used an exacto knife. Now,weave your straps through.
It should look something like this. Now, as for the lower back ones, I’m not really sure how you would attach those. Sew them, rivet them? Not sure. But I’ve decided not to do them. I may add them later on, but I’m not entering a contest and no one’s going to photograph my back, so they’re not really needed for me.
Now, basically the whole harness is complete except for the two thigh straps. So let’s make those. You should have 4 short pieces of thin strap. 2 are slightly longer than the other two. Those are your upper thigh straps. First, attach your buckles.
Once all four are attached, wrap the straps around your thigh and mark where the hole for the buckle should be.
Using a grommet tool, cut a hole at your mark and install a grommet.
Make sure the finished, nice side is facing up. Repeat on the other 3 straps. Next, take the leather or foam thigh piece you made earlier and match it up to see where to cut your slits. What I did was put the leather straps on, then set the leather over it. I drew in chalk where the straps needed to enter and exit. Then, use exacto knife to cut.
Weave your straps through. And that’s basically it. Personally, if you are not going to attach these thigh pieces to your harness (like me), I highly recommend using either velcro or double sided tape in order to keep the straps up. Otherwise, they tend to fall down your thigh as you walk.
And now, as promised, here is a link to the tutorial videos for putting your harness on. This tutorial may not work if you purchased a harness online. I’m sure there are tutorials specifically for those. However, if you went through my tutorial and made your harness yourself, this video will definitely help you put it on. Unfortunately my camera card got full during the first video, so I had to split it up into two. The first one is the harness, the second is the thigh straps. Enjoy!
Until next time, keep cosplaying! Any questions, comments, or request, leave them below!
Anna Stasia Cosplay 