Weekly Update #1!

Various Papercrafts - Omanyte

So, I've always been into Origami ever since I was in first grade (thank you ms. timpson, wherever you are). This has always just been a given for me. Recently, though, I stumbled upon 4chan's /po/ board looking for some stencils. I love stencils. Anyway, upon arriving for the first time, this little guy popped up. He'd just been finished. I thought, "damn I need to get on on that. It's wonderful!" I found out about his website there, and went absolutely nuts. I have so many papercraft templates downloaded now just sitting, waiting to be done. I figured I should start small, but not too small. I'm currently making a papercraft omanyte.The pokemon, you understand. I keep a large piece of cardboard under my bed, and I just slide it out and use it as my cutting board. Omanyte's something like 22 pieces across 4 8.5"x11" sheets of paper. It doesn't sound like much, but the final product is supposed to stand 14" tall, and there are a lot of awkward shapes for its shell. I've cut out all the pieces that make up its face, the eyes and all the blue stuff. I'm using an exacto knife. But, I don't want to touch the shell yet... >_< I have lines printed on the omanyte since it's my first attempt, and I have the .pdo files for pepakura viewer so i can see the directions, but it's really intimidating. The guy wo made the life sized link recommends coloring all the tabs that match up the same color, and then going through and gluing everything, but... I'm not so sure about going through that many steps. Ahaha...

Snorlax Cosplay
Well, I've got a rough layout, and I've purchased the main pattern for the costume. It's going to be one of those humanoid pokemon cosplays that are so popular right now. I know it's mostly females wearing goth-loli dresses (typically with their fat spilling out), but i'm a firm believer in cosplaying for your body type, and a goth-loli dress requires the waist to be pulled in! That's no good for me, a dress size 16ish. So, I'm going with a more male version. I picked up this at a 99 cent sale at Handcock Fabrics (where I've applied for a job). It needs a lot of altering. For example, the hat's gone completely; The jacket needs to split in the back and come down in two points on either side of the leg. The vest needs to be cut lower, like a proper vest, and I'm considering either a bolo tie or a cravat. To pull of the snorlax look, I'm going to have one of those novelty hats with ears, snorlax's eyes, and maybe his tooth poking up. I'm also going to try for those stupid furry gloves that turn hands into paws, but snorlax style. Maybe with my feet, too. I also want to integrate the PokeFlute somehow, but first thing's first: costume.

Making/purchasing a simple corset 
Well, I'm certainly not making the thing myself. I'm waiting on Corn Pirate (she's from arrrrkansas) to have some free time, and then I'll commission her help. I purchased the pattern at the same 99 cent sale I got the snorlax base pattern. One corset is like $100, which I don't have right now. I owe my parents about $1,000 for a fender bender I was in earlier this week. >_<


Katt's Amazing Dance Mat
Well, I'm taking an online P.E. course this semester, and to do so, I need to keep my heart rate within x and y bpms, then upload the data taken from a heart monitor. I play DDR to achieve this, but recently, my one game of mario DDR has gotten really boring so I downloaded Stepmania. Well, it's fun, but I have no mat to play with! Currently, I just put it on autoplay and pretend. However, I'm going to convert my xbox mat (matching game long lost) into a usb mat using the technique described in the next project... And that was going to be it. But, I hit a snag. The xbox mat is off-brand, and is made of some sort of high performance synthetic material that slips and slides under my feet and across my carpet. Tape is ineffective. So, what I want to do is take an old broken mat, preferably an old Mario DDR mat since those have a rubber, textured bottom and a very textured and gripable top, gut it, put the xbox mat inside, and use that. But first I need a nonworking Mario DDR mat! Using a working one would be silly. :\

Homemade xbox to usb adapter
I'm going to be learning XNA soon for a video game design class I'm taking in school. Aside from that, I've always wanted a controller to hook up to my computer, and I always loved the original, giant xbox controllers. Originally, it was just so I could play stepmania, but I soon found that my xbox dance pad plugged directly into the xbox instead of using a connector piece like normal controllers only after I began the project, so I'm going to just repeat my steps on the mat later.
I'm following this tutorial as a guide. So far, all i've done is take the plastic casing off the connector piece. It's really tricky, but i did it, and it neatly snaps back in place. I also have the USB cord I need already severed. It has not been striped yet, though, as I do not own a soldering iron. It's driving me nuts, not having one. I intend to go the Robotics Team build site and use the iron they never use during the next meeting. >_>

Leviathan's Flash Dress Up Game for Maya and Jenna
So I babysit two girls who live down the street, and they really like flash dress up games. I took a look at some tutorials and they're not that hard to make. I got Ruby to use her wondrous drawing skills to make a model. I've been asking friends for clothing ideas, but I've made zero progress. I don't even have a copy of Flash. My grand master plan: Have .psd files of the model, plus a .psd for each of her pieces of clothes and accessories together, then throw the whole thing together on the trial version in one afternoon. But first! I need to get the model colored... And I need a bald version of her so I can make her more hairstyles. Then I need more clothes...

Zombies in the School: A Java-based vis novel Yaoi game by Leviathan
Well... I say Java-based, but most likely it'll be in C# or XNA. Java's just my first language. I have the plot drawn out. It's kind of short, and I want to add more, but not to the extent that it's like fate/stay night or something. Currently, you play as a teacher's aid, and can either wind up with your childhood friend who's also a teacher's aid, a dominating man Biology teacher, the star Football player who constantly disrupts class, or the quiet, brooding goth kid. After I get the main code laid out, I plan to start up a forum to get people to draw CGs, proofread the plot, write new pieces of plot, and help with the code.
 

Male Kaftan
Got the pattern at aforementioned 99 cent sale. Little brother Charlie wants one. Thinks they're super cool hippie. Pattern is female and needs a lot of fixing and up-scaling. Tissue pieces are cut out, waiting for emma to be free so she can help me edit the pattern. After that, it's smooth sailing.


Stenciling the back of my Cell phone
A simple task, really. I just need to paint a layer of clear nailpolish on the back, print and cut a 2"x3" stencil, paint it on in black nail polish, and seal it up with another layer of clear nailpolish. Problem is finding the time to do it, and finding a stencil that'll still look good and can be cut that small.


Stenciling T-shirts using screen printing ink
This one's essentially the same as the cell phone. I won't be using an actual screen printing machine. I've got a tutorial lying around somewhere... I already got the bottle of ink and two test shirts, but the ink was damn expensive! I saw some fabric dye at Michael's, though... I wonder if that'll work better, since screen printing ink cracks if it's too thick. One thing at a time!


Entering writing contests (alllllways entering)
Entered the PTSA Reflections contest with a translation piece in Chinese to English for the theme "Beauty Is..." Currently awaiting results.


Applying to Colleges
Ugh... SO long and difficult! I'm almost done, I just need teacher recs, to revise my first essay, and to write an essay for Georgia Tech. That's it. Then I'm done. Just the anguish of waiting for April...