I had never intented to cosplay the Mad Hatter on my own, as it never dawned on me to do so. Then comes along a group called "Clockwork Angel" and...the madness began.

The striped suit was the only choice, when attempting the Mad Hatter. Distinguished, eye catching, and HARD. My scouts were sent out to find the striped material, and find it they did. On sale to boot! Four months were spent just finding materials, ranging from linings, to feathers, to shoes.

The coat was the most tedious adventure for this costume, as the pattern I used required four extra seams. To prevent obvious seams on the front of the coat (thus messing up the stripe design), I had to cut all the material out in larger pieces, and size down accordingly. Not only that, but had to make sure every time it was sized down, to make sure all stripes still matched exactly. Unfortunately, the back had to keep its seams, so everytime I cut/stitched, measurements were taken to keep all the lines matching. All the work paid off, not one line does anything that the exact matching line doesn't.

The hat was a chore. I was able to find an oversized mad hatter hat (disney), and made double layered covers for the top, sides, and rim. All said pieces were then hand stitched with clear thread (NOT FUN), until the entire hat was covered in matching material. With the wig on, the hat fit my head perfectly.

On to the cape, which I cut out a semi-circle for both the outer material and lining. I wanted the cape to lack seams, but have it flow when I walked. It was my first attempt, and came out rather well.

Last, but never least. "Bob" the umbrella. A small umbrella I had gotten at a local $1 store, with a pound of feathers individually glued from the edges to the center. This wasn't difficult, but more tedious, as I had to do both the inside AND outer part of the umbrella. That little umbrella became rather large, and heavy...after all this.

All was said and done, the Mad Hatter made her first appearance on stage at Otakon 2004. We won't discuss the happenings there. She was then re-worn to Anime Weekend Atlanta in 2005, and took the award for Best Attention to Detail. I guess I did something right after all!