Monday, January 7, 2013

DIY Les Miserables Cockade/Rosette


 
In case you are one of the few people on Earth that don't know, I love Les Miserables. So of course when I saw the rosettes Marius, Enjolras, and the others were wearing for most of the movies, I was thinking "I could totally make that!" Here's the way I made mine. If something is unclear, just drop a comment and I'll see how I can help!


Here's what you will need:
  • red, white, and blue striped ribbon: I used 7/8" ribbon. I wouldn't go much thinner, but you could go thicker. I got 4 cockades out of a 9' spool. The cockade was 2.5" wide, which I thought was perfect.
  • a place to anchor the ribbon while making the ruffle part: I used another ribbon spool
  • felt or other fabric for backing
  • hot glue gun with hot glue sticks
  • pins
  • safety pin or pin back
  • needle and navy blue thread
  • scissors
  • small button
  • something round to trace for the backing
  • pencil
 Let's Begin!

1. Follow the first 3 steps of the cockade instructions on the American Duchess blog found here. Make sure you sew carefully! These stitches are the most important factor in holding the cockade together.


    2. Glue the ribbon ends together with a small dab of glue.
    3. Put some glue onto the back of the button and press it onto the front of the cockade over the stitches.



    4. The round object should fit the back of your cockade with a little room to spare. Trace the object on the felt and cut it out.
    5. Put glue on the backing and press it onto the back of the cockade.


    6. If you are using a pin back, glue it onto the backing and skip steps 7-10. If you're using a safety pin like I did, put a line of glue as about as long as your safety pin on the backing.
    7. Press the pin into the glue. Hold it upright for a few seconds while the glue cools so the pin doesn't fall over.



    8. Cut a strip of felt that fits inside of the pin (a little less wide than the pin).
    9. Spread glue over the strip.
    10. Open the pin and press the felt over the bottom part of the pin.


     11. Wear with pride! And why don't you start a revolution while you're at it?


     Hope it went well for you! Just be warned, the button fell off of one I made for a friend, but she said she was playing with it. If you're careful you should be fine.

    Best of luck!
    Alison

    14 comments:

    1. I made it!
      http://erevia.deviantart.com/art/Les-Miserables-Rosette-359994857
      Thanks for the tutorial, it helped a lot <3

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      Replies
      1. Looks great! I'm glad the tutorial helped. Good luck with your cosplay!

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    2. Thanks for the great tutorial! I'm hosting a Les Misérables party and I'm glad I can make these rather than ordering expensive ones!

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    3. Question: Where would you suggest the ribbon be bought?

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      Replies
      1. I bought my ribbon at Joann Fabrics. I did a little investigating and I found some at Michaels and Walmart. Worst case scenario, you can probably find some online, but I wouldn't know where to look! You can use any striped ribbon, but I wouldn't go any skinnier or it might be hard to fold. Good luck!

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    4. Hi! Did you use the ribbon being use for medals? Whenever i inquire in stores they always ask, *what kind of ribbon am i looking for because i seem having trouble looking for it*.... i hope by this week i can buy that ribbon, feels like i'm dying softly because of excitement.. haha...
      -i'm so glad i found this blog... I will be a certified les mis fan as soon as i get this...thank you

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    5. I don't know too much about ribbon so I'm going to try my best to answer your question! The ribbon feels like fabric (I know some ribbons feel like plastic). It has blue, white, and red stripes. It is 7/8 inch wide (about 2.22 cm). Some ribbon has wires in it to keep its shape, but this ribbon does not have wires. Let me know if you need any more information! I hope it works out for you and you get to make it.

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    6. Hello! I'm going to be attending a showing of Les Misérables the musical in a couple of days and I was looking for something simple to do for me and my date to wear for kicks to the show. Luckily I found this lovely tutorial! It turned out beautifully and I'll post pictures of it soon, just thought I'd tell you thanks for this!

      It was by far the cheapest idea I have seen. It was only $4 for the spool of ribbon and I already had everything else sitting around the house! Once again thanks and I'll be sure to glance around your blog some more.

      ReplyDelete
      Replies
      1. Hello Anon! I'm so glad this was helpful to you. I love it when I already have most of the supplies for a project. As you can see, I don't have many tutorials up but I would love to make more. Thanks for checking it out!

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    7. This comment has been removed by the author.

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    8. Hello! May I just ask if it is possible to use the glue gun instead of sewing it?

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      Replies
      1. Hi! I haven't tried it yet, but it would probably work. You would just have to make sure you glued very well between the folds. Let me know how it works out if you try it!

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    9. It worked really well thank you

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    Let me know what you think! I'll answer any questions as soon as possible (usually within 24 hours).