Haraegushi or Onusa is a wooden wand used in Shinto rituals. It is decorated with many zig-zagging paper streamers it is waved left and right during purification rituals. In Senbonzakura, The Haraegushi uses the shape of cherry blossoms to replace the zigzag streamers.This tutorial will show you how to make Hatsune Miku’s Cherry blossom Haraegushi. For my tutorial I used various types of pink fabrics to create a look with more depth instead of the original with one colour. Feel free to just stick to one colour or experiment with various.
What you need:
Various shades of light pink fabric [if you want a dynamic look]
Light pink flower petals. This can be purchased off ebay if you can not find it at the stores. You will need over 300 petals
Sewing machine
White fabric [felt]
Red wool
Wooden rod around 70-100cm
White Ribbon
Steps
If you wish to create the dynamic look start at this step if not continue to step 4. Cut4cm wide and 40-50cm long strips of pink fabric. It is up to you how many strips you want.
Sew a straight line straight down the middle of the stip and cut petal shapes into the strips.
3. The darker pinks will be on the inside of our wand so sew all the pinks together at the top. When sewing it together lay an extremely long strip of white ribbon under. This will help you hold the strand easier.
4. Now we sew the petals together. So, start with one petal and overlap it with another at the end. Continue sewing petal after petal until you reach a similar length to your strips or a length of 40-50cm.
5. Once all the petals have been sewed , continue to attach it to the ribbon strip we have above.
6. When all the petal strips have been sewed together they should form an extremely wide curtain of flowers. Wrap the darker end first to the wooden rod. If you don’t have the darker pinks just wrap either end.
7. Cut a small square that will be able to fit around the top of your bundle of petals with extra space to spare.
8. Grab the red wool and tightly coil around under where the ribbon is, this is the thickest part of your bundle and make many knots. And we are done!
Nail polish. It can be any colour (we will use spray paint after) or the colour of your desired horns (if you want to skip spray paint)
Spray Paint of desired colour (Spray Paint will help with an even coating)
Hot glue
2x Alligator clips
Small cup of water
Steps:
Cut the foam ball in half. Using the cross section of the ball will help you keep the horns the same size.
Take a small pinch of clay and cover one half in a layer of the clay. It is best if you keep the remaining clay in a zip lock bag as you work so it does not dry out.
Slowly add a bit of clay at a time and shape it until you reach a desired height. I recommend it be around 3cm in height.
Use water to smooth out the clay to create an even surface.
While it is still moist, bend the horn to create a slight hook.
Repeat the same steps for the other half of the ball.
Let the horns dry out over night.
Once both horns are dry coat the horns in a layer of nail polish as a cheap varnish alternative and let it dry. It is up to you if you want to coat the horns in the colour desired as this will save you the next step of spray paint. However I still advise you use spray paint to get an even coat. You can skip 10 if you do not want to use spray paint.
Now using hotglue, stick you horns onto the alligator clips. Make sure you have the clips reversed when gluing the horns on so that you have a left and right horn.
Now coat the clips and horns in a layer of spray paint and a second layer if desired. Let it dry and we are done!
This photo is submitted by one of our customer Mixiao. The costume is purchased at Miccostumes.com. Mixiao will be rewarded with a $10 cash coupon by Miccostumes for the photo.
From Ninja, to Pirates to Sailor Moon, where is our adventure of to next. What the heck does he mean by the title? Miku is not a Singer in a box, what craziness is this.
Well, I decided to find the roots of one of the most famous non-living Singers in the world. Little did I know that this was not all that it seemed. This lovely lady – Hatsune Miku – actually started out as a simple Singing Synthesizer. It was later development into a software called Vocaloid. This is where we get the name of ‘Singer in a Box’. Not only was it produced in Japanese and English, but you can now get it in Korean, Chinese and Spanish.
What was cool with this was that a new character was created for each version. They just didn’t stop at one Vocaloid, but decided to set out to form a diverse group of them. I think this was a smart call as it really showcases the way you can market a product without that much capital. Seriously, so many people have fell in love with these characters, that it just makes one of the greatest promotional series. If you want, you should check out the numerous figures that have been designed and sold of them. Even I want the VN2 version figure so I can start at it’s awesomeness.
Why the heck is Miku sometimes pictured holding a LEEK and carry it around for that matter. Why would this vegetable (sort of spring onion on steroids) be such a draw for this character. I guess it is to whack all the fanboys away from her – LOL.
Now lets not leave out cosplay of Hatsune Miku which has exploded across the conventions. I think this is one character that anyone who saw it would recognize her immediately. You can even check out a great blog review right here of Gloria (Sweet Angel) showcasing one of the many cosplays you can find here.
What’s up for the next blog form yours truely, well lets just say my son will be helping me as you ‘Gotta Catch them All“.