Asajj Ventress Cosplay

[NightSister]

Hi guys! =)
I'm planning on making a Asajj Ventress cosplay!! I'm currently watching The Clone Wars and I just fell in love with the character <3

I was hoping maybe you could give me some advice on how to do the two most difficult parts of the cosplays: the bald head with make-up, and the lightsabers.

- bald head with make-up:
Does anyone has any experience in that? I've found some tutorials on youtube, but I'd love to have some tips from a fellow cosplayer! I was thinking of buying the Graftobian bald cap (there is a full set with instruction and make-up). But I'm not sure how easy/complicated it is for someone with zero experience in bald caps and make-ups.
And do you know a place where I can just buy a lot of bald caps, without the whole graftobian kit? Because apparently a cap is for one-use only, so if I'll have to use a new bald cap each time I put on my costume ^^

- lightsabers:
It seems I can't buy Ventress lightsabers anywhere, so I guess I'll have to build them myself! I really appreciate your help for that!!!
I was thinking of maybe 3D-print the hilt, then buy the blade, lamp, etc. I should have access to a 3D printer without much difficulty - but I have never printed anything and I don't know how to make a model for printing at all. I don't know anything about electronics either haha.

I found this awesome 3D model of Ventress lightsabers: http://www.sharecg.com/v/62047/related/5/3D-Model/Asajj-Ventress-Lightsabers
But I want to be able to attach my two sabers together, and I want to be able to put and remove a blade at will. So the model above needs to be modified a bit I guess. It would be great to have an ON/OFF button to turn on or off the light of the blade I guess, but I have no idea how that could be implemented into this.

What do you think, does it seems feasible to edit this 3D model a bit, then print it? Or should all the part of the hilt be printed separately instead of in one piece, then assembled? How easy/difficult would it be to fit the blade, lamp, battery, etc. from SaberForge into a 3D printed hilt?

Or do you have other solutions aside 3D printing that I didn't think of?

Thanks a lot!!!

[chui]

<3 <3 <3
Another Ventress lover! Yay!  I've been working on my Asajj cosplay for the last couple of weeks off and on, and while I don't know anything atall about building a saber, I can tell you what I've seen regarding the make-up. 

*There is a YouTuber named PinkStylist, who both makes and uses his own baldcaps (but they are kinda pricey).  He has extremely good step by step videos on how to apply it, and little tips for how to secure the edges.  I'd recommend using a good quality liquid latex for blending the edges.  No cheap stuff!

*Be careful with your nails poking through the cap if it's a really thin one.  The ones I have are a little thicker, and I honestly don't like them, but they aren't too likely to tear.  Just be sure to get all the air out or you'll have a bubble at the crown of your head.

*Be sure to get your hair as flat on your head as you can before putting the cap on.  If it's lumpy, you will have a lumpy Ventress.  And you know how much she would hate that xD

*Be sure to use a fixative on your eyebrows if you are covering them.  If you don't, you run the risk of pulling them out when you take the latex off. Spirit gum works well, but you can get away with a gluestick.  Just slather it over them, let it dry a little, and repeat the process 3-4 times until you have them flat.  As she has a rather prominent brow, I will actually be building up a few layers of latex here to put the horizontal furrows above her nose. 

*Some people recommend an airbrush for the makeup application.  It's not overly difficult to do an all-over covering of white paint, but PLEASE do yourself a favor and don't use cheap Halloween facepaint.  Get a stage makeup.  It goes on very easily with a brush, and is easy to set.  If you use white paint, you can either tone it with a little black to get her greyish skin tone, or you can use a little black eyeshadow, if you're careful about how you blend it on. 

*If you do contouring, be sure to blend it very well. I personally use a matte grey eyeshadow for all my contouring, because she has such angular features.

*For her tattoos... decide which set of markings you want to use, I'm assuming you want her Clone Wars ones, so she has her permanent eyeliner, the lines at her mouth, the two big ones behind her ears, and the one at the base of her skull.  Cut up one of your baldcaps, trace out the design of the tattoo and cut out a stencil of it.  Then, you can reuse it to make the markings the exact same size/shape each time you cosplay.  Her markings aren't a true black, so I actually use a purple eyeshadow creme stick to draw them, and then pack a black eyeshadow on top of it.  If they get too dark, you can just add purple eyeshadow over it.  Any sort of makeup/creme/liner you use, be sure to set it with a powder. 

I ended up taking my cosplay in a slightly different direction, as I'm a bit crazy over Bounty Hunter Ventress... especially Dark Disciple.... So, I just shaved half of my head, cut the other half into an inverted bob and bleached it platinum.  I do love me some Asajj. 

[NightSister]

Wow, thanks for all your advice, fellow Ventress lover/cosplayer!!! That's so kind of you, and it's very very helpful! <3

*I've seen PinkStylist video, it's really well done indeed! And he manages to put his baldcap on his own, which is very nice because I've only seen videos of people applying the cap on other people before, and I was wondering if it was possible to do it alone. Or at least mostly alone. I may need the help of my sister or someone else for the make-up of the back of the head, but it's nice if I can do most of the work alone and don't need to ask someone to spend 1h on it every time I want to put on the cosplay ^^

*His pack of 8 caps is a bit expensive indeed as a whole, but when I think about it it's just 10€/cap, and I don't think it's possible to find caps of good quality for less than that. Have you tried his bald caps? If you did and liked them, I'll buy the same

*Thanks for the advice on the nails (it's ok I have very short ones) and hair! I'll be careful!

*Thanks for the advice on eyebrows, I'll do that! I've seen PinkStylist's video about it too Does gluestick really works? Cool, why not!! ^^

*I had not thought about latex brow at all! But it's an excellent idea! I have no idea how that works, but I'll look into it it sounds really cool! If you do it soon, I'd love to see a picture of your cosplay!!

*For the make-up I definitely want the best one possible. I've noticed already that the Halloween make-up you can buy at a cheap costume shop is lousy. So I recently bought some Ben Nye MagiColor liquid paint (+ a seal) for a green Maleficent cosplay I'll wear in a few weeks - since this brand was recommended in a few forums of cosplayers. I've just received it actually, I haven't tried it yet. If I like it, I'll buy the same thing for Ventress, and if I don't I'll try to find something else ^^

*Contouring! That looks nice! (I actually had to google this word haha) I never wear make-up actually (except for cosplays). I should definitely try it because it could be very useful for Ventress' features. I suppose it needs a bit of training to do it well. I guess I'll have to buy a lot of make-up stuff ^^

*Yep I'm going for Clone Wars tattoos. The idea or making a stencil is just AWESOME!!!! Thank you so much!! I was really afraid of how I would do the make-up, since I have to rely on someone else for the back of the head, and I don't know if we can erase and redo the make-up easily on a bald cap. Probably not. So with a stencil it's perfect, it's easy to do it right!!

The Bounty Huntress' outfit is really nice too indeed, I've just discovered it a few days ago while watching Clone Wars! Maybe I'll do it too someday *w* But first I'll make the Sith Lord one she has at the beginning of Clone Wars

Again, thanks A LOT for all your precious advice!! <3
Can't wait to see a photo of your cosplay!

[Master Nero Attoru]

Edited your original post, referencing other smiths is against the rules unfortunately.  No biggie, just wanted to let you know.

Looks like you got a ton of useful tips on the cosmetics (not that I could help with that anyway), so I'll address the sabers!  Unfortunately you picked someone with basically the toughest sabers to find/construct... every version I've seen ends up VERY difficult to produce (and the Force FX versions are expensive due to their rarity).  My recommendation would be to try and make them out of sink tube or PVC, then customize them to your liking.  Either that, or go with some Initiates (any version would be fine) and just rely on the costume itself to identify you.  Not like it's a subtle one!

[NightSister]

Thanks!!
Yeah Ventress' sabers aren't the easiest ones to find/make it seems! Still, I'm definitely going to try and make them

The 3D model I had wasn't for printing apparently, but it looks like I found a very kind person ready to 3D-draw all the pieces of the hilt, bit by bit so that I can print each part and assemble the whole thing! <3
It would be really great if then I can buy the other parts of the saber (blade, lamp, battery...) and assemble the two! But then the 3D model would need to perfectly fit the parts I buy. Not sure how to do that yet.

And if I go for PVC hilt, same problem: do you think it's easy to fit a blade, lamp and switch on it?? Maybe other people have tried that already, I'll search a bit on the forum ^^

I am tempted also to buy a Initiate lightsaber, but just because it's so nice to have the real thing, they're so so beautiful *w* For the cosplay though I'd prefer having something as close as Ventress' lightsabers if I can!

[Noctis]

Chui just got a black Mantis, which is similar to Ventress's saber, but it's quite a bit larger.  It looks SO sweet, though!

I've seen some toy versions of Ventress's sabers out there, too.  I'll see if I can remember where I saw them.

[chui]

No problem!  I'm just glad to help <3

I haven't bought his caps, since I live in the US and it's just faster for me to get them made and shipped from this side of the pond, but I do use his advice on how to apply them.  Ventress is the first cosplay I've done where I needed to be bald, so I hadn't played with them until recently either.   
Gluesticks totally work if you are just wanting to cover your eyebrows and paint over them.  I used them a LOT on some of my previous cosplays and even sometimes when I just want to do really dramatic make-up.  Just rub a layer over, let it dry, and repeat the process until none of the hairs stick up.  It takes maybe 6-7 layers and then you can paint over them easily. 
Ben Nye is a really good one!  You'll get really good coverage and it should stay in place once you set it.  Good luck with Maleficent!  (She's probably my favorite of all Disney "princess" movie characters.)  In the live action movie, with Angelina Jolie, they used a combination of prosthetics and contouring to give her those really sharp features.  It's not too hard to do and thankfully, if you use just a little of the product at a time, it's easy to keep from messing it up.  And with a base makeup like BenNye, you wont have to worry about it smudging or rubbing off badly. (I learned all my contouring and eyebrow covering from watching drag makeup tutorials.  and I totally just practiced it with cheap drugstore eyeshadow.)
I can't wait to see pictures of how your cosplay comes out!  As soon as I finish my costume, Nox will immediately force me to take pictures and post them! xD  (And I did totally buy a dark Mantis so that I would have a "real" curved hilt saber to use for cosplay. )

We better be careful.  At this rate, we'll both sound too nice and excited for anyone to think we're Sith! 

[NightSister]

I found an awesome person who said who'd be happy to 3D print and build my lightsabers!!! \o/ Yay!!!! Can't wait to see the result! This guy is so nice!!
It's really cool because I'm not sure I would have achieved a great result by myself.

Now I think I'll spend a lot of money and time on make-up, because I have about zero material and zero knowledge haha. I've hardly ever put make-up in my life before, but I'll need some serious work for Ventress. I need to find the right materials, and to train.
So for the make-up if I understood correctly, first you apply grey body paint everywhere, then you let it dry, and then you do the contouring on top if it, with two different shades of grey eye-shadow (light gray and dark grey) ?

And yeah we sound too nice to be Sith, especially if we have such a 'girly' conversation as make-up advice haha XD

[chui]

I found an awesome person who said who'd be happy to 3D print and build my lightsabers!!! \o/ Yay!!!! Can't wait to see the result! This guy is so nice!!
It's really cool because I'm not sure I would have achieved a great result by myself.

Now I think I'll spend a lot of money and time on make-up, because I have about zero material and zero knowledge haha. I've hardly ever put make-up in my life before, but I'll need some serious work for Ventress. I need to find the right materials, and to train.
So for the make-up if I understood correctly, first you apply grey body paint everywhere, then you let it dry, and then you do the contouring on top if it, with two different shades of grey eye-shadow (light gray and dark grey) ?

Yay on the saber!

The good thing about stage make-up is that it tends to stay workable, even once it's drying.  You shouldn't need to really wait any, as by the time you finish getting your head and neck all painted with the base color, it will be ready to contour.  The only things that you will need to let dry are latex and spirit gum, if you use any.  I do most of my contouring with black and dark grey eyeshadows, but I use black and purple for her tattoos, as in TCW they aren't black like they are in the comics.  The only thing I would say to be sure to NOT use is any sparkly eyeshadows.  You won't want there to be a shimmer to it, so any matte finish will be best.  It will also make it easier on you if you pull up a screencap of her face and look at that while you are trying to do the contouring.  That way you can see exactly where her features are outlined, and adjust the lines on your face to match.   

Somehow, I think that when they made TCW, they should have made an flashback of someone teaching Ventress how to do her makeup.  Cause you know she didn't learn THAT from Ky or Dooku!

[NightSister]

Now I'm imagining Dooku teaching Asajj how to put make-up: "A Sith must look dark and seductive, my young apprentice..."  

So I've bought quite a lot of make-up today!! Thanks for all your advise!  <3
I didn't find purple eyeshadow creme stick, so I bought purple contour eye pencil instead.

I don't have white paint nor latex nor bald caps yet, but I still tried the stuff I had. It's the first time ever I use these kinds of make-up, so there is huuuge room for improvement. I'll need to train a lot I guess!

Here is what my first try looks like:

(I tried to hide my hair with a hood but it doesn't look that great x) It will be much better once I have the bald cap. And the white paint!)

I'm showing you so that maybe you can give me some more tips <3
I think the lines below the lips should be thinner. I have no idea how to make perfectly straight, neat lines though Oo How do people manage to draw with make-up without being messy??? Maybe it's because I used contour eye pencil instead of the eyeshadow creme stick you recommended? If so, I'll try to find the right item.

I also really need to train to put black around my eyes. Again, it's a mystery to me how people manage to do it without making a mess. I used an eyeliner on top of my eyes, and a black pencil below, but the black pencil disappears very quickly :/

And I think I'll try latex to hide the eyebrows

[wargame_insomniac]

A point for the first steps on the road to damnation!

 

James

[Zren Tobas]

Very nice. Can't wait to see the end result =]

[chui]

You have such lovely eyes!  Her eye makeup is going to look amazing on you once you put it all together!  And omg... you have the perfect facial features for Ventress!  Your cheekbones and nose are just akhgkfhakjdfhglkfh AMAZING!!  You won't need much contouring atall.  I'm getting giddy just waiting to see how this turns out once you have the bald cap.  <3

Contour eye pencils work well as long as you sharpen it.  Before you actually rub it on your face, wipe the point of the pencil off on a bit of tissue/paper towel to make sure there is no other product on it.  You'll get a much cleaner and defined line that way.  They work just as well as a creme stick once you get used to them. 

It may sound kind of silly, but I practiced a LOT using a white eyeliner to mark out where I wanted the lines.  I wouldn't go out and buy one if you don't already have it, but I had one lying around.  Part of it just comes with practice.  The more you do it, the easier it will be to make thicker, smoother lines.  You can also use plain Scotch tape to get smooth lines.  Just tear off a long strip of it, put it on your face at the edge of where you want your line to be and then just apply the makeup.  Once you have your liner on, peel the tape off, and voila! Instant straight line.

The black you have on your upper eyelid is great.  It's a smooth line and once you get the bottom lid to connect to it, it will look very good.  With your lower eyelid, are you trying to put the black on top of your eyelashes, under your eyelashes or inside the rim of your eye (waterline)?  If you try to put it in your waterline, any product that is not waterproof will not last.  The product washes away when you blink, and usually wont last more than a couple minutes.  While Ventress does wear a liner on her waterline, you can get away with just rubbing the pencil in your lower lash-line.  Most people won't get close enough to your face to look inside your eye, and if they do, smack them with your saber! 

Now I'm imagining Dooku teaching Asajj how to put make-up: "A Sith must look dark and seductive, my young apprentice..."  

*cackle*  I can just picture him putting on lipstick and telling her "Now, try this just like I did..."  He'd look lovely in a bright red, don't you think? 

[Roband]

Have you thought about trying to use a latex/ rubber swimming cap to hide your hair?

painting it the right color and blending it to your face with makeup may be a challenge, but they are reusable, durable and cheap.

The makeup lines are looking really good. next work on the base layer underneath it. (almost that Geisha white total coverage of face and neck, but in a more grey/lavender tone.

[NightSister]

Thank you everyone for your nice comments!
Chui thanks, I didn't think I had such a "perfect" facial features lol, but it's nice to hear it! I really hope it will turn out nice in the end, when I have the bald cap and full make up
Scotch sounds like a funny, and also very clever idea! I'll try it.
And yes I did put black on my waterline, and it did came off in seconds haha. Now I know that's not where I'm suppose to put the make-up XD thanks!

Roband, yes I'm planning to use a latex bald cap! Not a swimming one though, something more professional that will look better I'll post pictures when I have it!

Just a quick update:
I started buying some fabric for the costume. I don't know how to make the bandages yet but I'll find something.
And last week I tried body paint! It was for a green Maleficent cosplay, I tried the Ben Nye Magicolor liquid paint. It stayed in place very well on the face, and it was ok on the hands. On the arms though it entirely rubbed off and went on my cloak... but that's because I was moving my arms all the time and it was rubbing A LOT with the cloak, that was covering my arms. In the Ventress costume there won't be such rubbing, everything will be attached tight to the body, so it should be ok. I wonder if there is a paint that resist rubbing though...