CraftingGeekeryMALwearUncategorized

What is a cross Between a leotard and a TARDIS? A LeoTARDIS!

Some ideas are just too good to pass up. No, really, they are.  Even if the person who originally had the idea thinks it’s a horrible idea.

Well, we at Mad Art Lab have never been stopped by something possibly being a horrible idea. What’s the use of having a blog focused on science and art if you can’t experiment with art?

So, consider this my most recent experiment.

It all started with this.  A couple weeks ago The Bloggess had an idea as she woke up.

“a leotard… with a TARDIS on it. A LeoTardis.”

Now, when she woke up more, she decided this was actually a bad idea. This didn’t stop her from making a photoshop version of this bad idea and really really wanting it to be a good idea.

Of course, this being the internet, we know better. A leotardis is  not just a good idea, it is a FANTASTIC idea. The fact that there wasn’t one already is the source of roughly 90% of my disappointment with Pinterest. What use is a picture-based social network if no one has made a swimsuit based on a TARDIS to show me?

This was a sad, sad situation, and I pouted. I considered breaking up with Pinterest for good.

Then I realized that sometimes I can’t pin my happiness on anything else. Sometimes, I just need to solve my own problems.

So I decided to make a leotardis of my own.

There aren’t going to be detailed, step-by-step instructions in this post. This is for two reasons:

  1. I didn’t think I was going to succeed, so I didn’t take the time to document each step.
  2. Before I started, I had margaritas. Plural margaritas.

First (vague) Step:

Make leotard, or swimsuit in this case. Since I’m not really sure what the difference is. I could do gymnastics in this. Well, I could if I could do gymnastics without falling on my face. I suppose you could buy a swimsuit too, but what is the fun of a project if you aren’t swearing at your sewing machine at some point?

This was actually easier than I thought it would be. Stretchy fabric is forgiving. I took my favorite swimsuit and traced the fabric shapes onto the blue fabric and a lining. I didn’t really worry too much about getting it perfect, since I knew I would alter it to fit better once it was on me, or my dressmaker’s dummy in this case.

 

Second (vague) Step:

Draw TARDIS.

No, really. I don’t have better instructions. I used fabric paint markers and freehanded it. I’m not really a pattern person. There’s a reason I went into anthropology and not chemistry. Chemicals explode when you don’t mix them in the right quantities. Humans don’t.

Third (vague) Step:

Consider how to get a picture of the LeoTARDIS without your neighbors thinking you’re even crazier than they already do. Procrastinate for a week while you worry about this.

Fourth (vague) Step:

Realize that your neighbors saw you take out your trash in a Marvel Girl costume last week and stop worrying.

Ta-da! Leotardis! Now, I don’t have to break up with Pinterest. And it’s all thanks to The Bloggess.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to go steal myself a Doctor and run off to see the universe.

Seelix

Seelix, aka Emily, is a Science Communicator, Forensic Anthropologist, Costumer and QA Analyst, sometimes, but not usually, all at once. Emily can usually be found lurking in dark corners of the internet as Seelix on Twitter, on Google+ and even occasionally at her blog This View of Life.

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12 Comments

  1. This is adorable. I’d probably cheat and just buy a blue leotard 🙂 You’re an amazing seamstress. It looks fantastic.

  2. GiGi – I fully endorse cheating! I would have probably cheated myself for this particular design, but I wanted to see if I *could* make it. It’s all about the challenge for me.

  3. I wash items with any paint decoration on the gentle or hand-wash cycle. They will fade eventually, but at least they won’t run. The packaging said you could wash in the cold cycle, but I tend to be overly conservative with homemade items.

    One thing you can do to test it out is put a mark on the inside of the leotard on a rolled seam (so the paint doesn’t run through) and wash it before doing the whole design. It won’t give you a durability standard, but at least it will show that you can or can’t wash that particular combination of fabric + paint before you’re too invested in it.

  4. I’ll be honest — I’m not a Doctor Who fan. But I am a fan of unabashed geekery, which is why I kind of love you right now.

  5. Very cool work on the project, and nice picture, BTW. Note, I kinda _like_ crazy (outside of politics).

    “Chemicals explode when you don’t mix them in the right quantities. Humans don’t.”

    Actually, I’m not sure I’ve heard a better explanation for the existence of war. Humans. Mixed in the wrong quantities. Be careful with your anthropology!

    😉

  6. After the first photo and the title, the first question that popped in my mind was: “Why is Carmen Sandiego wearing a LeoTardis?”

  7. I’m going to get hit if I ask if it’s bigger on the inside than out, aren’t I? I just won’t ask, then.

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