River Song Remix

After watching a few more River Song episodes of Dr. Who, I decided to steampunk this concept instead...

A lucky shopping trip at the Goodwill this evening yielded an awesome jacket and leather belt for $10. So far I have this pulled together.

I'm going to run three lines of black ribbon on the side of each pant leg and I'm currently ripping the zippers out of the two pockets of the jacket: not sure if I am going to sew the pockets shut or have them functional. I'll tack down a corner of the collar to mimic how one of River Song's collar flops down, and I need to get a hold of a holster. Her double-barreled gun will be a bit of a challenge, but I got some Rub N Buff today which apparently works well for steampunk modding. My goggles are entirely too plain and need some cool modding to work for this costume, but I am not sure what other steampunk elements to add. Suggestions? 

The fluffy, chubby thing in the background is sulking that I am messing around with costumes and not paying attention to him. Cold weather tends to make Erasmus frisky and today all he has wanted to do is play. When I ignore him, he gives me very reproachful looks. 

Today's shopping adventure also included Hobby Lobby which was having a 99 cent pattern sale. I finally bought this pattern I have been eyeing for months. 

I also picked up this pattern here, partly based on a costuming panel at Octopodicon. The presenter recommended going to the fabric store after Halloween and purchasing black and white prison stripe fabric. Make a skirt out of it, and arrange the pleats on the bottom so that one side is black and one side is white - that way, you "pop" color as you walk. I think that could be nicely arranged for the costume on the right. 

Of course, this is assuming my sewing skills are up for the challenge! I've decided I am begging my parents for an adjustable dressmaker dummy for Christmas: I'm doing enough sewing now to justify having one, I have a sewing/craft room, and I do not want to attempt either costume without a form to adjust since I never fit patterns cut to a single size. 

So far, I am at 7% for my Kickstarter project and I am investigating more options for advertising. Today I started a Facebook ad campaign for my Steamy Girl Publishing page after receiving a coupon for $50 in free Facebook ads. We'll see what happens. I have a posting on The Steampunk Empire about my project and I am hoping to connect with many people through this forum. I finished hanging up all my signs around Omaha - down to 5 signs from 100. The newspaper article should be out sometime this week, and I really need to contact local TV stations to see if I can get a spot. Anyone have any other advertising ideas? I'm hoping to make good connections at Emerald City Steampunk Expo since it will be bigger than Octopodicon. Maybe my River Song costume will be popular enough that I can really capitalize on it. 

Well, it is drawing late and I've done enough writing for now! Good night, all!