When you work with delicate and rare fabrics for costumes you soon realise that some fabrics are indeed very “burnable”. No matter how much care you take it will end up happening. And I do have a solution to fix your iron which doesn’t involve buying a new one!

I tried with things like salt, bicarbonate soda and aluminium paper and it didn’t really work for me. The solution was more accessible than you think. You can buy an iron cleaner stick! But do not think it is going to be so easy. The instructions for the stick were really scarce, and it didn’t work as well as you would have expected.

How to clean a burnt iron

First of all, you have to set your temperature to medium. The cleaner stick is going to melt when you use it on your iron and you don’t want it to melt too quickly. Then, you have to rub the stick on your hot iron using a circular motion in order to clean the burnt part. And here is when I tell you something they don’t. The stick melts very fast! Which means you want to have the iron on top of an old rag. Otherwise it will stain your iron board, which is where you use your iron, right? As me why I know this. Nevertheless, you will have to clean the excess every so often. It is basically similar to candle wax.

I kept rubbing the stick for quite a while but my stains were old and very stuck. I found out that if you used the stick with quick motions it worked better, as it scratched the surface before it melt. In the end, I gave up with the stick and I went to the extreme methods.

My solution was a sanding sponge. I will have to warn you here. This may damage the non-stick surface of your iron (the irony) so be very careful! I figured out that as it was I couldn’t use my iron anyway so I risked it. Together with the iron stick and the sand paper I got rid of almost all the burnt areas.

Last, but not least, if you have a steam iron you want to use the steam when you are done. This is because the wax like substance will get inside, and you don’t want it to get out on top of your lovely clothes, do you? Use the steam several times and iron an old scrap piece of fabric to make sure your iron is completely clean.

One extra note. Since I cleaned the iron I have only melted one other fabric. I used the iron stick on the burnt area as soon as it happened and it actually worked! If you don’t have one of these sticks at home you may want to get one, just in case, not like you are clumsy like me. Or are you? Have you got any other tips to clean a burnt iron?

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Don’t get me wrong, all of these tools can be scary and they can hurt you. However, most of the time, you would be surprised of how safe they actually are. The most innocent tools are the ones that should scare you the most.

I am going to divide this article in two parts, dangerous tools that won’t hurt you and “non-dangerous” tools you should be afraid of.

Dangerous tools that won’t hurt you (much)

I know, some of this tools look scary, I have been there. When I started using these tools I used to ask my dad for advice. Many times, I asked him to cut or drill something for me because I was afraid of hurting myself. Very soon after I started I realised they weren’t so scary. The following tools ARE DANGEROUS but less than you think.

Soldering iron

This is one of the tools that really scared me when I started building circuits, I had seen my dad many times leaving the soldering iron swinging from a table. He wouldn’t even look at it when he picked it up! Scary? Not really. I have grabbed the hot part of the tool several times with my bare hands. My hand didn’t melt, I barely felt it for a second. Not a single mark from it. It hurts, but no more than burning yourself with a candle.

Drill

First time I needed my drill was to build some wings. I really thought I was going to drill my hand and bleed to death. I was wrong. Noone is stupid enough to put a hand in front ofthis tool. Furthermore, most drills will only work if you keep the button pressed. If you stilll slip it won’t hurt more than a graze when you used to fall on the playground.

The sand belt

Another tool that will barely touch you. I have sanded my finger many times. I am clumsy like that. You will feel the heat and move your hand straight away. Not scary at all. Again, if you are using a rotary tool to sand something, most of them come with buttons that will stop it as soon as you let go. It will barely touch you.

Sewing machine

You may laugh, but some people still believe you can sew your finger with a sewing machine. Don’t get me wrong, it can happen, but chances are really slim. Unless you have an old machine with no protections, the gap to put your finger under the needle is really small. My finger doesn’t fit underneath! My worst fear is getting a broken needle in my eye, and still, that is highly unlikely. The thread would stop the broken needle from getting anywhere. You are pretty safe.

Non-dangerous tools that will hurt you (a bit)

We talked about the tools that scare you. They may look like dangerous tools building a cosplay but they are not so bad. Now we are going to talk about the tools that seem inocuous but will hurt you. Be careful with these tools, they may seem safe but that doesn’t make them hurt less.

Glue gun

The best friend and worst enemy of a cosplayer. This tool won’t scar you (probably) but you will feel the pain when a drop falls on your skin. If you are not careful you may even get blisters from it. To be honest, people overuse it, there are other adhesive methods which I prefer and don’t hurt.

Needle

Small but deadly. You will prickle your finger. If you are sewing a white dress it will get stained with your blood. Sometimes you will prickle yourself so often that the police won’t be able to distinguish your fingerprints. Maybe not so dangerous but it still hurts.

Scissors

You may think these are harmless but they aren’t. The danger comes when you are trying to cut something that is too thick for them. They will slip, and they will hurt you. Also, be careful when you cut that last piece of fabric between your fingers. I have snipped my finger or the skin between my fingers so many times I can’t count. It hurts, and it will for days.

Iron

It will hurt you when you don’t expect it. This tool will attack you when you are distracted. I’ve had friends with scars that lasted weeks. It hurts. Keep track of your hot iron at all times and never leave it on when you are away.

Also, I will give a honorable mention to the heatgun, which acts the same way and is also a danger when you have long hair, and to worbla, which is a material that will burn the tip of your fingers no matter what you do when you heat it. Always remember where you put your hot tools. Don’t touch them.

Craft knife

This is by far the most dangerous tool. Unfortunately, it is also one of the most useful ones. From light cuts all over your hands to deep bleeding wounds. They are as dangerous sharp as they are blunt. When they are sharp you won’t see them coming and when they are blunt, you will have to use extra strength and they will slip and stab you. I will include the rotary cutter in this category, a hellish tool indeed.

Conclusion

As you see, the real dangerous tools building a cosplay are usually the ones you consider safe, mostly because you leave your guard down. You should be careful using these tools and never take for granted something won’t hurt. Potentially, even a piece of paper could hurt you, but you shouldn’t be afraid of using big tools just because they look big and scary. They are in general pretty safe. The only way to feel comfortable with these tools is using them. Always remember to be brave, but also to be safe and use the appropriate protections as some of these tools can hurt you on different ways. Think about fumes, dust or flying pieces that they can create and use glasses and masks appropriately.

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The ruffler foot

This little machine is called a ruffler foot. It helps you ruffle your fabric easily, it only costs 5-10$ and will save you a lot of time! The machine has two settings you can adjust, the number of stitches and the depth of the pleats you want to make.

This foot is very easy to attach, yet somehow different to others you may have tried. You just need to unscrew your foot and position the ruffler foot. Make sure the hook is attached to the bar and you screw it back in position tight as it tends to become loose.

Depth of the stitches 

The depth of the pleats depends on the little setting on the bottom of your ruffler foot. You will get several numbers and you will get different results, from very deep pleats to very shallow gathers. 

Here is an example of several settings of the ruffler. The length of your finished piece will vary according to these setting. All these pieces started as a rectangle of cotton fabric 30cm long. I can’t guarantee that all the pieces will end up being the same length. On the contrary, I found that small pieces and light fabrics ruflle much more than their counterparts.

Number of stitches

The number of stitches is exactly that, how many stitches the machine will do before it ruffles the fabric. Number 1 could be seen as 1 stich, 1 ruffle, 1 stitch, 1 ruffle. Number 6 would be 1,2,3,4,5,6, ruffle, 1,2,3,4,5,6 ruffle. You can guess what happens if you set it to 12. Keep in mind that if you are using a long stitch your ruffles will be further appart as opposed to using a short stitch.

The star means you can do a straight stitch as if the ruffler wasn’t attached, basically means the machine will work as if you had a normal walking foot. It is very useful when you need to finish the stitch or have to fix a little mistake before you keep ruffling fabric.

Remember that this machine also can sew two fabrics together at the same time, one straight and one pleated. This feature will save you a lot of time if you need to add gatherings to the end of a garment.

This little tool is very useful and will help you sew your projects much faster. However, the foot has its limits and the pleats are not very deep. Unfortunately. you won’t be able to do a pleated skirt with this tool but it can become your best friend if you are doing a project with lots of ruffle details llike a petticoat or my burlesque bustle skirt.

Like my tutorials? Remember you can support me on Ko-fi, there are no subscriptions and you will help me create more cosplays and more tutorials to share with you! Also, if you are looking for patterns and cosplay related downloadables make sure to check my collection!

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Eyelets are cheap, useful and easy to attach but many people don’t know you can attach them at home. You just need the eyelets and an eyelet punch, there are different types, but these are maybe the easiest to find. The eyelet plier is itself a cheap tool. You can easily get one for less than 10£ with the eyelets included. Very often you can buy them in a pack that includes a revolving hole punch.

Los ojetes son baratos, útiles y fáciles de poner, pero mucha gente no sabe que los puedes poner en casa. Sólo necesitas los ojales y unos alicates para poner ojales. Hay diferentes tipos de ojetes, pero estos son quizás los más fáciles de encontrar. Los alicates para ojales son una herramienta barata, la puedes encontrar fácilmente por menos de 10€ con los ojales incluidos. A menudo puedes comprar un pack que también incluye unos alicates sacabocados para hacer agujeros.

How to attach eyelets step by step

Follow this steps to attach eyelets succesfully:

• Mark the spot where you want the eyelet
• Make a little slit, just big enough to get the eyelet through. You can do this with scissors but a revolving hole punch is a better option.
• Insert the eyelet. It must be tight.
• Make sure that the part with the spiky part is facing the back of the eyelet. Otherwise, the punch will get stuck and you may break the fabric.
• Press very hard until the piece feels secure.

Sigue los siguientes pasos para poner ojales:

• Haz una marca donde quieres insertar el ojal.
• Haz un pequeño corte, solo lo suficientemente grande para que pase el ojal. Puedes hacer esto con unas tijeras pero unos alicates sacabocados son mejor opción.
• Mete el ojal en el agujero. Debe quedar ajustado.
• Asegúrate de que la parte que tiene el pincho mira la parte de atrás del ojal. Si no es así, los alicates se engancharan y podrías romper la tela.
• Presiona muy fuerte hasta que la pieza quede segura.

Further notes

Occassionally you may press the wrong part of your eyelet. This will cause your eyelet to get distorted. If that is the case, use some pliers to remove the faulty piece and insert a new one.

En ocasiones es posible que presiones el ojal de forma incorrecta. Esto hará que el ojete se deforme. Si este es el caso, usa unos alicates para quitar la pieza e inserta una nueva.

Traditionally, you may want to use your eyelets in a decorative way or to insert cords. Corsets are a typical example. On the other hand, a good idea is to use them combined with clips. This will make the pieces movable but will prevent the material from getting ripped. This is the method that I used to make Asuna’s wings

Tradicionalmente, querrás usar los ojetes de forma decorativa o para insertar cordones. Los corsets son un típico ejemplo. Por otro lado, una gran idea es usar estas piezas en combinación con clips. Esto hará que la pieza tenga movimiento pero evitará que se desgarre el material. Esta técnica es la que usé para hacer las alas de Asuna.

Now that you know how to attach eyelets there are plenty of possibilites to use them. Is it going to be a corset, a belt, bracelets? Your imagination is the limit.

Ahora que ya sabéis como poner ojales tenéis muchas posibilidades para usarlos. ¿Váis a hacer un corset, un cinturón, brazaletes? Vuestra imaginación es el límite.

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