Stats
CHESHIRE CAT
 Alice in Wonderland
Steampunk Design

Costume Stats:
Costume Completed: 2009
Debut: Cosplay Tea Party 2009
Convention History:
ConnectiCon 2009
Dragon*Con 2009
Dragon*Con 2010
PortCon Maine 2011
Dragon*Con 2013
Events:
Cosplay Tea Party 2009
Photo Castmates:
Alice: Lolita
White Rabbit: Courtney
Queen of Hearts: Crazy Flower
Photo Credits:
Sketch
ChibiRinoa
The Cheshire Cat is an intelligent, mischievous, and ultimately mysterious character who features heavily in most adaptations of Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. While taking the physical form of a cat with an exaggerated grin, the Cheshire Cat can speak, dislocate his head from his body, and appear and disappear at will, either wholly or partially. While the Cheshire Cat's appearence varies between adaptations, he is most often associated with the pink and purple color scheme from the 1951 Walt Disney version. The Cheshire Cat often perplexes or annoys Alice, spouting philosophy, speaking in riddles, and sometimes even attempting to help her or cheer her up. Ultimately, however, the Cheshire Cat most often takes pleasure in misdirecting or confusing her.

Construction Notes:
Ever since throwing together a Cheshire Cat costume for the Wonderland Cosplay Tea in 2006, I'd wanted to redo it. In 2009 the purrrrfect purple and pink striped fleece fabric appeared at JoAnn's and Lolita decided to revisit the Alice In Wonderland theme for the 2009 Cosplay Tea, this time with a Steampunk twist. I grabbed the entire bolt of striped fleece because it was only 99 cents a yard and I figured I’d keep the excess to redo the costume from time to time since I planned to be the character a lot. I started with a black steel-boned corset which I covered in the fleece fabric for the top. I then ripped off the skirt from my old Cheshire costume and added a Victorian-style bustle made from black casa, adding pickup tucks. Another section of fleece was used to made a huge tail which I stuffed with quilt batting, and attached to a belt which could be worn under the corset. I made a large Sailor Moon-style bow from black lace to attach over the tail. I also made the leg warmers from the fleece when went over black Victorian-style boots. Finally, I stuffed small pieces of fleece with batting for the ears, adding white “fur” accents and sewing the ears onto a headband. I bought a cute black Victorian fascinator hat and added feather accents and sewed little pocket-watch gears onto it. I also found a Steampunk monocle online and found a black lace Victorian choker necklace to complete the ensemble. I loved the end result much more than my original Cheshire Cat; it was more comfortable, more flattering, and more true to the character. While the "Steampunk" aspect was weak, I still like the major elements of this costume and would love to remake it at some point.

Photoshoot Pics: