Cosplay Tutorial: Mercenary Katarina (LoL) Breastplate Armor

Also check out: Mercenary Katarina Bracers

Greetings Generation of Cosplayers!

This is an oldie, but a goodie! I created my Mercenary Katarina cosplay a while ago (2 years ago) and I thought I would share it here! This was the first thing I ever made with Worbla. Scratch that, this was the first cosplay prop/armor I ever made. I messed up a lot, but it was such a good learning experience. I've been wanting to remake this but I haven't had the time or money for it. For the mean time, enjoy this old Worbla tutorial!

The first part I began to make for my Mercenary Katarina costume is her breastplate. I should begin by saying that I had never seen anyone actually make an armor piece for this costume. All the cosplays I've seen use a black corset or something made out of fabric.So I had no idea how this was going to come out xD

1. I used Kamui's tutorial on how she makes patterns and breastplate armors. She is an amazing cosplayer and her videos are really helpful!! Basically she uses Worbla, craft foam, and a heating tool. I had never used Worbla before this, but she made it look so easy! Well, I had no idea what I was getting myself into! This is NOT as easy as it looks. It definitely takes practice. But I went into anyways. Armed with a sheet of Worbla, some craft foam and a heating tool, I started to make my breastplate. 

2. If you watch the Kamui's video, you'll have a better idea of what I did here. I wrapped myself with plastic wrap and tape and then drew on the pattern on the tape. Then I removed it and cut up my pattern. I transferred the pattern to the craft foam and them sandwiched it between two pieces of Worbla. I thus created the bottom portion of my breastplate! And yay for the Food 4 Less bag!

3. Then I made the, as Kamui likes to call them, boobie bags! xD

In the video, Kamui uses a PVC globe to shape the breast circles, but I could not find anything like it. So I used the closest thing that I had that was round: a sturdy food strainer. Yup, I used a kitchen item! Haha. But it worked alright. It definitely was not the best thing to use, so for future breastplates I will need to get a sphere that has a smooth surface. I heated up a double layer of Worbla and stretched it over the round strainer to get the desired shape. It was really annoying and difficult D:< Breastplates are definitely hard to make (well mostly just the boobie bags!)

4. After I was done with the boobie bags I put everything together. Worbla is awesome because you can just connect pieces by heating them up! I also added some details, although to be hones,t I messed up a lot. I learned a lot about using Worbla from making this. There are a lot of things I would do differently next time! 

5. Worbla has a rough texture, so it is best to prime it very well and sand it. I used 3 coats of Gesso to prime my armor (I would use woodglue instead of Gesso now).

6. After the primer is dried and you have sanded (actually I was too excited and forgot to sand >_<), you can get to painting! I first used a flat black spray paint to create a base color. I then used Martha Stewart Acrylic paints in a metallic silver and satin black to give it a bit of detail. I have absolutely no experience in painting. ZERO! This was my first time using any kind of paints outside of my kindergarten class xD If any of you have any painting advice for me, please let me know ^_^ I would be eternally grateful!

7.  I decided to go ahead and figure out how I'm going to secure this breastplate. I decided to use D rings secured with pieces of Worbla to make a corset-type closure. I also added some transparent bra straps to the top of the armor to support my chest up as well.

My first experience with Worbla was, overall, really great. It was a learning process that only comes with physically working with the material. It does not matter how many tutorials you watch, you will absolutely learn the most from hands-on experience. If you are thinking of using Worbla, the best thing to do learn by using the material. I would not suggest starting with such a big piece like this breastplate; start with something smaller.

See you next time ^_^

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