I do not have a lot of experience with wiring or making various things light
up. This costume is one of my first adventures into light-up features on a
costume, and this was a very simple start. For a tutorial on the light-up
headphones go
here.
This tutorial will be fairly short, because my sleeves were actually very
easy (but expensive!). I have found various websites that really help
explain EL sheeting and how to use it, so through-out this tutorial I will
be linking to those sites to help me explain. I'm sorry, but I don't have a
lot of "in-progress photos" since I bought the EL sheet at the size I needed
and just slipped it into the sleeve (more on that below!)
The sleeve base:
I made each sleeve from fabric as normal. They slide up on my arms and stay
up pretty well, but I suggest adding some elastic to the tops to keep them
up on your arms better!
A rectangle of clear vinyl is sewn on the front of each sleeve - but the top
is left unstitched so that it makes a pocket to hold the "computer panel"
image and EL sheet (which goes under the printed image to illuminate it).
Each sleeve has a button hole under the vinyl pocket to thread the wires
from the EL sheet through.
The light-up part:
This part was the easiest, but most expensive part. I spent close to $60.00
on the EL sheets alone! In the end, I didn't think it was really worth the
money for me since I don't wear my costumes after dark very often. However,
if you plan to wear your costume at night or in the evening, then this is a
pretty cool effect! Do note that many cameras do not pick up the lighting
though.
I used Electroluminescent
Sheets (EL
sheets) aka
EL backlight sheets to make these light up. The light-up panel slides into
the clear vinyl pocket. The wires that power the sheets are each attached to
a 9 volt battery pack (that is rather bulky and annoying to wear). I made
black cases that close with Velcro to hold the battery packs (they look like
little change purses). Each of the two cases have a Velcro strap to attach
them to my arms!
Important: Before ordering
your EL sheets, make sure you have a battery
driver with
it! The 9 volt battery driver that I used has an on/off/flash switch.
The
"Computer Panel" image:
This is where I spent most of my time. I made this image in Adobe Photoshop
myself. It is based from this reference image:
Once I was finished designing the image, I test printed it on normal printer
paper several times to figure out the size that I needed to print it for it
to fit into the clear vinyl pockets that I sewed onto the sleeves. When that
was all figured out, I printed it onto a special plastic made to go through
printers called "backlight film". I can't seem to find the exact website
that I purchased this stuff from, but I have read that it can be found at
various office supply stores. Here is
a great example of what it looks like when you put the backlight film with
your printed image over an EL sheet.
NOTE: Please do not ask me
to send you the image I used for my sleeves- I put a lot of time into it, so
I don't want to just hand it out to everyone. I will not send it to you.
It's up to you to be creative and make your own designs! Just have fun with
it, and make it your own thing- you will be a lot more proud of your
creation if it is your own! :)
Helpful Resources:
|
El Inc. - Information
on what EL sheeting is, how to use it, and specifications. You can
also purchase EL sheets and supplies from this site. |