DIY Pikachu Fan Ears

     I know last week I said I would give you a post about writing your own Choose Your Own Adventure story, but then Pokemon GO introduced the Pikachu Fan trainer costume and I couldn't resist making my own Pikachu ears.  With GO Fest Chicago right around the corner, I figured some people might be interested in making these to wear to the event.  The Choose Your Own Adventure story writing tips are still in the works and I will likely post them next week, so stay tuned for that.
     Pokemon GO just released a Pikachu Fan costume in honor of the game's two year anniversary.  The costume is adorable.  I still don't have the gold Pikachu Fan medal, so I couldn't get the whole costume, but here's my avatar wearing the ears, shoes, and shorts:

     I thought the ears were super cute and decided to make a set of my own.  I may try to make a variant on the whole Pikachu Fan trainer costume, but I have a busy summer ahead, so we'll see.  For now, here's how you can make some Pikachu ears of your own, whether you want them to wear out and about or for a Pikachu Halloween costume or cosplay.

Materials:

*Yellow felt
*Black felt
*Black thread
*Needle
*Brown or black headband
*All purpose adhesive
*Metallic marker
*Stuffing

Directions:

*Print out a copy of the Pikachu ear template below:

*Cut out the ear shape and trace four copies of it onto the yellow felt, two traced with the template right side up and two with it facing down.

*Cut the ear shape in two along the diagonal line and trace two copies of the resulting semi-triangular shape onto the black felt, one right side up and the other facing down.

*Sew the black ear pieces to the yellow ear pieces like this:

*Take two of the ear pieces and place them together, right side in.  Sew their edges together, leaving about an inch at the bottom unseen.

*Turn the ear right side in and stuff.

*Glue the ear to the headband.

*Repeat with the other ear.

Felt Pokemon Magikarp Plushie

     Looking for a DIY holiday gift for a Pokemon fan?  Why not try this felt Magikarp plushie?  For other DIY Pokemon gifts, check out my Meowth plushie, Snorlax plushie, Zubat plushie, and Vaporeon hair bow.

Materials:

*Orange felt
*White felt
*Yellow felt
*Black felt
*Pink felt
*Needle
*Black thread
*White thread
*All purpose adhesive
*Stuffing
*Metallic marker or chalk

Directions:

*Print out two copies of the Magikarp pattern below:

*Cut the various pieces of the template out and trace onto the appropriate colors of felt corresponding to the picture at the top of this post.  For everything except for Magikarp's "crown," bottom fin, and the oval shape that's separated from the rest of the template (which is used to make Magikarp's mouth), you'll need two copies, one for either side of Magikarp's body.

*Using black thread, stitch detailing onto Magikarp's fins, as shown below:

*Sew on Magikarp's eyes, side fins, and whiskers (not pictured) with white thread.

*Place the two Magikarp halves together, right side facing in, with the crown and bottom fin sandwiched in between, the pointy sides of the fins facing one another, and sew together from the top of Magikarp's mouth to the beginning of its tail, and the same thing from the bottom of Magikarp's mouth to the beginning of its tail.  Do not sew the mouth or tail closed.

*Fit the black oval inside Magikarp's mouth and sew it on.  You may have to trim the oval a bit to get a good fit.

*Turn Magikarp right side in.  It should look something like this:

*Add stuffing.

*Place the two tail fins inside the orange outer tail piece and sew closed.

*Glue on pupils.

*For Magikarp's lips, I started with the lip shape that is faintly outlined in the template at the top of this post.  I traced two lip shapes, meeting together in the middle.  I then cut this out and glued it to Magikarp's mouth.

Legendary Pokemon Articuno Paper Earrings

     This past weekend Pokemon GO released the first of the legendary Pokemon, including Team Mystic mascot Articuno.  Articuno is my favorite legendary bird, so I knew I had to make some craft to mark this event.  These earrings are made from cardstock, so they're not the most durable, but they're great for a costume or party favor.

Materials:
*Light blue cardstock
*Dark blue cardstock
*Ear wires
*All purpose adhesive
*Pencil
*Coin (I used a half dollar, but my earrings are pretty large, so you may want to use a smaller coin)
*Scissors
*Needle

Directions:

*Using the template below, cut out two Articuno shapes from the lighter blue cardstock.  This will work a lot better if you have a Silhouette CAMEO or other die cutting machine, but you could cut and trace.

*Trace your coin onto the darker blue cardstock to create two circle shapes.

*Cut out the circle shapes and glue the Articuno silhouettes to the circles.

*Use a needle to poke a hole in the top of each of the circles.

*Slide the ear wires through the holes.

Pokemon Vaporeon Hair Bow

 
   Whether you're planning on celebrating Pokemon GO Fest from Chicago or in your own neighborhood, make one of these adorable bows to keep your hair off your face as you play.

Materials:
*Medium blue/teal felt
*Darker blue felt
*Off white felt
*Metal hair clip
*Scissors
*Paper
*Pencil
*Metallic marker or chalk
*All purpose adhesive

Directions:

*Cut a strip of the medium blue/teal colored felt as thick as you'd like your bow to be.

*Glue together the ends of the felt.

*Sketch out Vaporeon's ears.  Alternately, you can use the template I give below, although I didn't scan it before I cut it up, so it's a bit messier than usual.  I originally tried drawing both ears on the template, but I couldn't get them symmetric enough for my liking, so I just used the half of the template that's complete.  That rectangular spot in the middle is where the bow will be tied.  Make sure when you're cutting out your ears that you include that, or else you might bot be able to tie off your bow properly.

*Cut out the entire ear shape from the off white felt and cut out only the uppermost segment from the darker blue felt.

*Glue the darker blue felt to the cream colored felt.

*Cut a strip of the medium blue/teal felt as thick as you want your bow's tie to be.

*Pinch the thick strip of medium blue/teal felt that you're using to make your bow in the middle such that it becomes a bow shape.  Center the Vaporeon ears at the center of the bow.

*Take the thin strip of medium blue/teal felt and glue one end to the back of the bow at the location of the pinch.  Carefully wind it around the pinched part of the bow and ears.  Glue down the other end at along the back of the bow.  You may also want to slip the metal hair clip piece under this strip of felt as well to better secure it in place, but I didn't think to do that.  Once you're done gluing down the thin strip of felt, your bow should look something like this:

*Cut a piece of scrap felt into the shape of Vaporeon's fin.  Make sure to round the bottom a little.

*Glue the fin onto the top of the bow.

*If you haven't done so already, glue the hair clip to the back of the bow.

DIY Pokemon GO AR Trading Cards

     One of my favorite features of Pokemon GO is the AR (augmented reality), wherein the program superimposes an animated image of the Pokemon you've clicked on over the image of your surroundings displayed by your phone's camera.  It enables you to take all sorts of cutesy or humorous photos with your favorite Pokemon.  But what can you do with these photos once you have them?  Why not fashion your own trading cards using your AR images?

Materials:
*Printed AR Pokemon photos
*Letter and number stickers (I used my Silhouette CAMEO to cut out the letters and numbers.  It was cheaper than buying packs of stickers, but gluing down every letter took quite a while)
*Blue cardstock
*Red cardstock
*White cardstock
*Black cardstock
*Mounting tape and/or all purpose adhesive
*Scissors
*Pencil

Directions:
*Attach printed photos to blue cardstock and then trim off the excess cardstock around the photo.

*Using stickers (or letter cut outs), write the Pokemon's number in the Pokedex and its name across the top (or bottom) of the photo (see e.g below).

*Print out the Pokeball template given below and cut out the pieces.

*On black cardstock, trace the large circle shape.

*On red cardstock, trace the shape corresponding to the upper half of the Pokeball.

*On white cardstock, trace the shape corresponding to the lower half of the Pokeball and the smaller circle.

*Cut out the various cardstock shapes and assemble the red and white cardstock pieces over the black circle to create the Pokeball shape.  Glue down the pieces.

*Glue the Pokeball to the center of the back side of the card.

*Using stickers (or letter cut outs), write Pokemon along the top of the Pokeball, curving with the shape, and GO at the bottom of the Pokeball.  Now you have your very own Pokemon GO trading cards!

Further tips and ideas: if you have friends or family members who are also fans of the game, you can exchange cards with one another to get your favorite Pokemon/complete your Pokedex, or you can give them out as gifts.  Wondering where to store your new trading cards?  Find a plain photo album that will fit your cards (mine I printed on 6 x 4 photo paper and then bought 12 x 12 sheets separated into 6 x 4 segments) and decorate it to look like a trading card book.

Pokeball Glitter Ornament

     Show off your love for Pokemon and add some sparkle to your holiday season with these fun Pokeball glitter ornaments.

Materials:
*Red ultra fine glitter
*White ultra fine glitter
*Glitter-It glue
*Plastic or glass ball ornament
*Black duct tape
*White duct tape
*Scissors

Directions:
*Layer your work space with newspaper.
*Uncap your ornament and pour in some Glitter It.  Swirl the adhesive around until it has coated the entirety of the inside of the ornament.
*Pour excess adhesive back into the bottle.  Let the adhesive drain out for about 15 seconds.
*Pour a small amount of white glitter into the ornament, being careful so as to keep it from hitting the sides.  Slowly swirl the glitter around the bottom of the ornament until it all sticks to the bottom of the ornament.
*Add a little more glitter and swirl it around, slowly working your way up until the bottom half of the ornament is covered in white glitter.
*Add in some red glitter and swirl it around the top of the ornament, until the top half of the ornament is covered in red glitter.  Inevitably, some of the red glitter will mix with the white at the bottom and vice versa, but it should only be a minimal amount.
*Cut off a strip of black duct tape slightly longer than the circumference of your ornament and from that cut a strip about 1/2" in width.  Tape this around the equator of your ornament.
*Cut out a circle of black duct tape and tape that over the strip of duct tape running along the equator.
*Cut out a white circle of duct tape which is smaller than the black one and tape that over the black circle.

Pokemon GO Trainer Costume (with Belt Tutorial)

    Here's the finished costume!  I've written about where I found the shorts, cami, leggings, and cap in this earlier post and how to decorate the cap in this post.  The shirt was one I found at Goodwill.  It's not a perfect match to the trainer jacket, but I didn't have the time or sewing skills to make one and so I just grabbed something that was close enough in color and in cut.  I rolled up the bottom of the shirt to make it look more like the trainer costume.  The sneakers my sister gave me as a souvenir from her trip to England, but you can find black sneakers from most clothing stores.  For the choker, I safety pinned some blue ribbon around my neck.  The costume would not be complete without a buddy Pokemon.  If you're looking to make your own Meowth, Snorlax, or Zubat buddy, I've got you covered.  If you're wondering how to make the belt, keep reading.

For reference, here's what my in game trainer looks like.

Materials:
*Blue ribbon
*Black ribbon
*Blue felt
*Black felt
*Sewing machine
*All purpose adhesive
*Scissors
*Chalk or metallic marker

Directions:
*Cut off two lengths of ribbon, one blue and the other black, that are about as long as your hips are wide.

*Place the two ribbons together shiny side in and stitch together along one of the edges.
*Unfold the ribbon.  You may need to iron it or press it under a heavy weight for a while to get it to stay flat.

*Cut out a circle from black felt.  I traced around a drinking glass to make the circular shape.
*Cut out a shield shape from blue felt.  I just freehanded it.

*Glue the shield onto the circle and set aside to dry.

*When it has finished drying, place the belt around your hips and overlap the ends until you have a comfortable fit that sits on your hips but will not slide off.  Mark where this position is and then take the belt off and glue the ends together.  Note: this step works best if your hips are relatively wide in comparison to your shoulders.  If this is not the case, you may have to use some sort of fastener, like Velcro, so that you can actually open it up to get it on and off.

*Glue the felt shield/circle over the part of the ribbon where the two ends meet.  If you need to open it up to get it on, make sure to glue it to one side of the closure or the other, but not both.

DIY Stencil Cap

     Want to add a design of your choosing to a plain baseball cap?  Here's an easy and relatively cheap method for doing so.  I've been making a Pokemon GO trainer costume for Halloween and made this cap as part of it.  If you're working on a Pokemon GO trainer costume of your own, check out this earlier post for ideas about how to get started on the costume with basic pieces from your wardrobe, and tune in next week to see how I piece mine all together.

Materials:
*Baseball cap
*Fabric paint in a color of your choice
*Waxed paper
*X-acto knife
*Painter's tape
*All purpose adhesive

Directions:
*Size the below Pokeball template (or whatever template you are using) to the size you would like it to be on your cap and print out.

*Glue the white space around the outside edge of the Pokeball shape to a sheet of waxed paper.

*Using your X-acto knife, carefully cut out the Pokeball shape, cutting through both the waxed paper and the paper.  Cut off some of the excess paper around the shape as well, making sure not to cut through the glued part.

*Tape the waxed paper with the Pokeball shape cut out of it to the cap using painter's tape.

*Fill in the Pokeball shape with fabric paint.

*Once you are done painting, carefully peel off the waxed paper.  Fill in any uneven areas or areas you missed with some fabric paint.  Let dry, following the directions given on the paint packaging.

Getting Started on a Pokemon GO Trainer Costume

     We interrupt your regularly scheduled Facebook browsing to bring you an important announcement: Halloween is coming!  If you have not set foot inside your local crafting store lately, you may be unaware of the influx of ghoulish goodies alerting you to the fact that October 31st only about 70 days away.  No but seriously, I welcome the onslaught of Halloween crafting items and decor.  Halloween is the most fun holiday when it comes to decorating, hands down.  Plus, there are no decoration intensive holidays between now and the end of October.  This isn't like the Christmas creep, which has absorbed Thanksgiving, is making inroads against Halloween, and, with all of the Christmas in July hullabaloo, will probably soon devour Independence Day.  Without Halloween items, you'd be stuck looking at aisles of end of summer clearance stuff, thinking about all the paradise beach vacations you didn't get to go on until mid-September, and who wants that?
     Anyway, today we're talking about Halloween costumes.  Summer clothes are at steeply discounted prices right now and will soon be vanishing from stores, so if your costume calls for shorts or other summery attire, now's the time to start looking.  This year I'm planning on dressing up as a Pokemon trainer, specifically my Pokemon GO character:

Some people are making really awesome costumes that match their trainer down to the last detail.  I, however, do not have that level of ambition (nor the sewing skills), so I'm trying to approximate mine as best as I can with more common items.  Here's what I've found so far:

     As you can see, it's not a perfect match, but I think these pieces are a decent approximation of some elements of the costume.  (I'm still looking for something to use for the jacket.  I imagine that's going to be the most challenging piece to come up with.)  For me, the ideal Halloween costume is one primarily constructed from clothing items that I can wear for other occasions.  Instead of going with a romper, which is what it looks like my character is wearing, I've opted for shorts and a camisole.  The cami is one of several that I already own. The shorts came from the Macy's clearance rack and cost about $13 and the leggings also came from Macy's clearance and cost about $10.  The hat I picked up at Joann and, with a coupon, it cost about $2.50.  I intend to embellish it further and will let you know how that goes.
     So that's what I'm starting with.  Hopefully it gives you some ideas for your own costume.  Expect more to come as I continue to piece mine together.

How to Design Your Own Pokemon Plushie Template

My Meowth plushie template.  For instructions on how to make a Meowth plushie, see this post.

Materials:
*Image of desired Pokemon
*Painter's tape
*White copy paper
*Pencil

Directions:
*Choose an image of the Pokemon you'd like to make a plushie of in the desired pose.  I chose one of my AR photos of Meowth and cropped it.

*Resize the photo to be approximately the size that you'd like your plushie to be and print.  It's okay if it looks a bit pixelated as long as you can distinguish the outline and the various features of your Pokemon.
*Decide what features you'd like to include in your plushie.  If your monster is rather complicated, you may want to pick specific features to concentrate on while ignoring others.  Think about whether you'd like to include the limbs (assuming it has limbs) as part of the body or separately.  If you'd like to stuff them, it's probably easier to do them separately, but otherwise you could do them together.  What facial features and markings will you use?  Are there ears?  You'll probably want to do those separately from the body.
*Tape the photo to a sunny window (the sunnier out it is, the easier it will be to see the details of your monster) using painter's tape.

*Tape a sheet of white copy paper over your picture, again using painter's tape.

*Trace the "body" piece, which should include the head and torso, plus limbs if you choose to keep them connected.  Trace the facial features you'll be using as well.  (I had to darken the photo a lot to make the pencil lines visible.)

*Move the paper and trace each of the remaining body parts separate from the body.  (You could trace it all as one piece, with e.g. the ears extending partway into the head, but that necessitates printing an extra copy or so of the template when you're done.)

*Now your template is done.  See my previous Pokemon plushie tutorials to get an idea of what supplies you'll need for your plushie (felt, stuffing, needle and thread, etc.) and how to construct it.  Also, feel free to contact me (in the comments below or at hathaway.amber@gmail,com) if you have further questions.