Hera – Lore Olympus

Made for: Dragon Con 2019

Background: I read all of Lore Olympus in one sitting and when I got to this panel of Hera I immediately decided “Imma make that”

Journal Entries: Read more at my Hera tag

Patterns Used:
None

Jacket:

So originally I did buy a pattern to modify for this – but after getting the pieces cut out I decided it was going to be too much to modify and instead decided to just draft it myself. I had some scrap material I’d used for Bespin Leia patterning year before last, so I pulled that out and started pinning it on my form and getting the shapes figured out. I ended up with two front panels, a back panel, a collar pattern, and a sleeve pattern.

I bought one fabric online that came and was just way too thick for doing all the pleating details. (Bummer cuz it had a cool pattern to it). I ended up buying a crinkle cotton locally instead, which I knew wasn’t going to be stiff enough to have the “flounce” I wanted, so I also bought some black taffeta for flat-lining, and some cotton for any other lining I needed. I made the front panels based on my mockup pieces, then once I had those pieces pleated and hand-tacked down, I used them as a pattern to cut out my taffeta – though I deviated a bit. For the taffeta backing, I added a waist seam, and added extra fabric horizontally from the waist seam down. I just pleated to end up the same size as the outer blue piece. I hope that makes sense. LOL. I didn’t want the excess fabric above the waist line, but having the pleated “skirt” of the backing taffeta helped add the “flounce” below the waist I wanted.

Repeated the process for the back panels, and then lined the whole thing in cotton just for a clean finish. Also added a pocket! The sleeves were a bit of a pain; I made a first pair and I wasn’t happy with them. I had just enough to recut a new pair, and did… and wasn’t really happy with them either at first, but they end up OK! LOL. I hand-tacked the sleeve pleats in place and then cut out a lining using the black taffeta – since the lining would be much more visible on the sleeves, I wanted to stick to the black taffeta and didn’t use the cotton. They ended up being too long so I just rolled them up and sewed them “cuffs” in place. LOL. Lazy.

Getting the closures set was a pain. The first step is a sort-of waist stay, it’s anchored at each side seam and closes center front with a swimsuit hook. That helps keep the side seams sitting close to my body. Then there are two snaps on the inside that cross over underneath – one at the shoulder and one at the waist. Then the outer closure crosses over and snaps in the same spots – shoulder and waist. It took a lot of tinkering to get everything placed correctly.

The collar ended up being a little less “polished” than I would have liked, but trying to set it in to he actual neck opening was just way more drama than I wanted. So I ended up just attaching it in one spot in the back and when I have everything on, I just flip it on over my head. It’s made of a taffeta base, and then the outer blue fabric is cut taller than the taffeta so it will drape while still having some structure.

Lastly I added some crystal and deep blue stones to the shoulders and upper sleeves to recreate the look of the art.

Gloves/Boots:

I didn’t have any reference for the lower half of her outfit, so I decided to go with something similar to what the gloves looked like – fitted and same fabric. I picked up a navy blue 2 way stretch on amazon to use for the gloves and boot covers – it arrived and was a bit duller than I really wanted. Once everything was done, I sprayed it down using Design Master Floral Spray Paint in deep blue to get it a bit more saturated.

I bought a pair of heels online and then built boot covers around them. Pretty simple, had them done in an afternoon. I added a hook at the center top of the boots, and an eye on the navy blue leggings I bought to wear underneath, so the boots can hook to the pants and won’t slip down.

For the gloves, I made a basic arm shape, then cut it apart and used it as a pattern – I wanted some seams on the gloves, I ended up with 3. They’re just one layer of the vinyl, and at the bottom I added two “cuffs”. I tried to make gloves out of the vinyl so they’d match exactly, but trying to make gloves out of 2 way stretch was just… ugh. After 3 tries I gave up and bought some navy blue spandex gloves on amazon.

I also made a belt. The costume in the art doesn’t have a belt – but I misinterpreted her arm in the first panel as a belt and decided I wanted a belt anyway. I mean, I can always leave it off. It’s just a tube of the vinyl sewed up at the ends with a hook and eye closure in the back.

Wig/Jewelry/Etc:

The wig I bought in an arda clearance sale! I was worried it would be too dark but ended up being ok. Yay! It’s a long-ish wig, when I wear it, I put on a headband and then just tuck the hair into the headband to create the “bob” look.

I made the crown using a piece of blue wire, with 3 stones super-glued in place. This was actually crown #2 – the first one I added a TON more stones, and I decided it was too clunky and made a simplified version. Glad I did! I like this one better. I also made earrings using some of the same stones, clip-on bases.

The makeup was Ben Nye – I ordered a bright yellow and a slightly darker “mustard yellow”. I started with the darker yellow and then added the lighter yellow on top. Used some Nyx yellow lipstick and brown tones on my eyelids. Had a hard time keeping the Nyx lipstick on, though – may switch to something else in the future.

History: I really love how this turned out. Though it’s been a LONG TIME since I wore such high heels LOL… I had a hard time in them when I wore this Friday at Dcon, I kept feeling like I was going to roll my ankles. When I rewore it Sunday I wrapped my ankles and arches in athletic tape and it made a huge difference. I also just need to wear heels more often. I’ve kinda stopped in the last few years. Need more practice LOL
I can’t wait to wear this again!

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