Whimsy-Mimsy

Okay, first off, this is not the only way to make a keyblade, nor is it necessarily the 'best'. This is just the way I made mine and I think it turned out quite well! You will need: ~A dowel or PVC pipe (whatever thickness seems proportional for you, mine was 2" in diameter, and long enough to go from the floor to your bellybutton) ~A sheet of styrofoam, as close to the thickness of your PVC as possible. ~Empty toilet paper/paper towel rolls ~Hot glue/Hot glue gun ~Flour ~White printer paper (lots!) ~Paint ( I used shiny silver spray paint and regular craft acrylics, as well as an acrylic spray sealant) ~Shrinkydink paper (This: . It can be found at most craft stores) ~A screw hook (like these: ) ~Big jewelry hook ~Big chain ~Sandpaper Cut out the handle pieces and the 'blade' from 2" thick styrofoam (I drew them first of paper and then, after making sure the proportions were right, transferred them to the styrofoam, here are my pieces: , but remember to resize them to fit you, as I am a tiny person). To make the styrofoam fit the curve of the PVC pipe, use sandpaper to file down the middle parts of the styrofoam bits (on the side they attach to the PVC) to they fit the PVC pipe snugly. Then, hot glue the pieces to the pipe. For the slightly bulging parts on the handle (here: ) I used empty toilet paper rolls cut in half, and glued them to make the shape. Also, cut circles out of the styrofoam the same size as the ends of the PVC pipe (to fit in the hollow bit) and glue them into the top and bottom of the pipe (make sure the bottom one is REALLY well glued, it'll be important for the keychain!). Now, the shape of the key is done! Next it's paper-mache time! Make a batch of the good 'ol goop ( there's a good recipe here: http://www.dltk-kids.com/type/how_to_paper_mache.htm) and use strips of the white printer paper (it paints easier/neater) to paper mache over everything. This is an annoying part, because the more layers, and the more careful you are, the better your key will look. Take it slow, overlap the pieces of paper, and try to avoid wrinkles in the paper. Do at least two or three full coatings. Also, remember to let one layer dry completely before doing the next. Once everything is nice and dry, get the sandpaper out and sand that baby till it's smooth. Don't press too hard, or it'll tear the paper. You just want to get rid of the ridges the paper will leave behind. Now it's time to paint! I reaaaaally like shiny silver spray paint for the blade, and I used just regular acrylic paints for the handle and detailing. I finished off the handle with an acrylic spray coating to make it all look uniform and last longer! The last bit it the keychain. Get the loopy screw thing and gently twist it into the paper mache/styrofoam part at the bottom of your key (if it seems like it might fall out, glue it in!). For the charm, I used the shrinkydink paper to make a charm (here's the pattern I used: , make sure it's this big; it'll shrink a lot!) *IMPORTANT: cut out the part inside the loop BEFORE baking. You CANNOT do it once it's been baked.* If the edges of the charm being kinda sharp bother you, like they do me, sandpaper them (after baking) to give it a more rounded, professional feel. Then paint it using the same paint you used for your key. The chain and hook you can find at pretty much any craft store (you might want to take this opportunity to invest in a pair of jewelry pliers, if not, prepare to bruise your fingers opening/closing links in the chain!). Before you know it, tah-dah! your very own Kingdom Key! Sora's necklace is much simpler: shrinkydink. In the same way the Mickey charm was done; print out a pattern of the piece you want (make sure it's huge!) cut it, bake it, sand it, and paint it! Then I'd probably just glue the chain to the back, since it doesn't appear to 'hang' as a traditional necklace would. Well, I hope this helps! If anything is confusing/unclear, let me know and I'll try to clear things up. Good luck!

My favorite part about this series is that it originated as a gag manga, but then, when it started gaining popularity the authors were like, 'hey, lets give it a plot'!

Oh, I didn't mean that it's only Axel-fans that hate on Xion, it just seems like the vast majority of the people who hate on Xion don't have a reason beyond 'Axel's better'. I know there can be sensible Axel fans, don't worry!

Welcome, welcome! I'm sure you'll love it here.

This is so perfect. Although Lea made some good points, bringing the argument a lil back to Axel's side, I think that so many people are predisposed to hating Xion that they automatically side with Axel, just because he's the eye candy. I love Axel, don't get me wrong, but I loved Xion just as much, possibly because I hadn't been biased by the many Axel fangirls on the internet.

If the monsters are a high enough level that grinding actually makes you feel like you're progressing, then yes. But I've played a fanmade Pokemon game, and there was a part where you were supposed to be battling level 16 pokemon and there was only level 2-3 pokemon to train on. It sucked. Big time.

I'm making Nutella-filled croissants right now. And then I shall do all of the aforementioned things with the Nutella-filled croissants.

I agree with the Link idea. My friends and I made simple multicolored tunics and hats out of fleece ($2-$5), got some leggings ($5) and I found a pair of boots at the thrift store ($6). As a general rule, I'd advise looking at the costume you want to make and start a list of individual articles of clothing in the costume. Once you have your list, print (or have on your phone) a photo of the costume for color reference, go to a thrift store and browse, a lot. Keep in mind that things are much easier to alter to fit you than to make from scratch. If you absolutely have to make a piece of your costume, they sell fabric at thrift stores as well; you can often get 2 yards of fabric for $5 or less, which is super cheap! If not, most craft/fabric stores do weekly 50% off-any-one-item-coupons, so use them wisely and you can save a lot of money (my organization cloak's faux leather went from $55 to $24 after a couple of coupons!) As for wigs, if you need them, ebay is amazing. I'm not sure why, but they're amazingly priced on there. I usually get wigs from China (which is why they're so cheap!), so they take a long time to arrive. Just make sure the wigs say they're made of either 'high temperature wire/fiber' or 'kanekalon fiber'. Both are high quality and won't look frizzy or cheap. You can probably tell I love cosplay, so if you have any costume-specific questions, feel free to pm me; I'd love to help if I can!

I haven't managed to get through it yet. I feel the same way, one minute I'm in love, the next I want to shoot it.

I strive to please ; ) And make people giggle. Mostly the latter.

~Rubber Ducky you're the one; You make bath time lots of fun! Rubber Ducky I'm awfully fond of youuuu!!!~

Gods, I can't get over the Little Mermaid one! his hair....fluttering in the wind majestically....

Welcome, welcome! It's nice to know people like the site enough to pass on the word; soon we shall take over the world by word-of-mouth!!

Haldo! You'll probably be able to find tons of friends who love to blabber about KH for ages, considering that's what brought us all here in the first place! Just have fun and you'll have friendships to last a lifetime!

Once again, a bit far from home for me, but have fun, and post pictures for us!!!

Well, hello there, friend!

I bought them at NDK, a local convention where I live. But I believe there are many available on etsy for sale. Oh! I forgot to mention that I made my best friend and I matching wayfinder keychains.

No. Not at all. The fact that my desktop cycles though 526 different KH pictures, I have two full sized poster boards dedicated to KH art, wear a Roxas necklace and Paopu fruit earrings all the time, and I have cosplayed nearly half of the main characters of the series points to a sincere disinterest in the game franchise as a whole.

I made a Xion cosplay quite recently as well! I wore it to AFW last month (sorry for the blurriness, I have next-to-no pictures of this cosplay): I had a bit of the opposite problem; I spent ages on the coat and kinda threw the keyblade together at last minute... Oh well, there's always next con! Maybe someday I'll see you at one (although considering the geographical difference I doubt it)!

Whew! I can do passionate kisses. And thank you. Just lemme know whenever!

Welcome, welcome! It's always nice to see another Pokémon fan on the site!

Inori, I wish more people though that way, 'cuz I got some hella thighs.

Thank you! That means a lot coming from someone as talented as you! I do like my romance

Woohoo Ducky! Big Booty club high five!

I like looking cute. What I think is cute, anywho. And yeah, girls assume I'm just showing off to get guys, and guys think I'm trying too hard and give me the cold shoulder.