Creating accessories from remnants and found materials
By the time I have finished paying for the fabrics and materials, there is nothing left in the budget for accessories. I usually use remnants left over from another project. For example the red lizard accessories which were made to go over a black Lycra jump suit.
The wrist protectors were made out of vinyl remnants from recovering the kitchen chairs. Naturally it was not the black and red lizard skin. It was brown. I first painted the entire wrist protector red. I use three coats to get a good base color. I then made the black markings which simulate the red lizard skin. Some of the black markings were painted only once, while others for painted a second and third time. It gives the impression of fading from one pattern to the other. I always seal my painted vinyl with 2 coats of varnish. This stops them to sticking to each other and from leaving paint on other parts of your costume. This must be done with and gloss paint or metallic.
The bootstraps which were mounted on old stirrups, are used to break up the long expense of black leather when worn over black thigh high boots. The black leather which holds the stirrups onto the boot, is made of a thick black leather cut out of a dead handbag. Again I painted it to match the red lizard skin theme. The straps that go up the center of the boot, are made from remnants of the red lizard skin vinyl. The back claw which is mounted on a stirrups, is made from a strip of red lizard skin vinyl over some batting and duct tape which was painted black. I originally had the back claw made of high impact plastic, but it caught in the carpeting on the stairs, sending me for a tumble more than once. The duct tape only mushes, and resumes its original shape.
The lizard head painted on an extra dorsal spine piece made of a vinyl placemat, was painted with a high-gloss black acrylic paint, and the red spots were painted over it. A pair of plastic cat eyes were inserted. It is held into place by a piece of black elastic sewn to the vinyl under section.
The small claw still needs a gold cap to enclose one end. The claw section was made from a novelty necklace. The toe section is actually a left over cut off finger from a pair of vinyl gloves. A small slit in the end allows the claw to poke through. It was then filled with batting, and painted to match the red lizard skin. There are three claws per boot, they hang off of cords from behind the knee. They swing as you walk, creating a visual interest.
The knife sheath simply has some red lizard vinyl glued to it. The small latex lizard head, appears on shoulder pads, and bags or pouches. It is painted to match the lizard skin and gives it and overall 3-D effect when they are in place.
The necklaces are made from remnants and found materials. The black, gold, and red necklace is made from fishing spoons(or blades) sewn onto a black wide collar. The red diffraction tape hides the manufacturer's name on the fishing spoons.
The diffraction tape, is used to make fishing lures. They can be readily found in Wal-Mart, Kmart, Canadian Tire, in the fishing section. The adhesion on these tapes will stick to anything, and stay there permanently. The second necklace is made of a silver metal which was scratched up and dented in some spots. The blue diffraction tape gives it added depth and hides the flaws.
The third necklace is made of metal mesh of a jewelry grade. In other words you can wear it next to your skin without fear of being scratched by the backing. I have worn it over my head piece when it got damaged in transit. It hid the fact that the paint had been scraped off. I used it for a long time on my head piece, because it simply looked good.
Accessories can often hide construction details like the invisible zipper in the back of my duty uniform is covered by the dorsal spine. The wrist protectors have hidden the fact that I didn't have time to hem the sleeves of my costume before the costume competition. The thigh high boots have hidden the fact that I didn't have enough fabric to go below the knee with one Lycra jump suit.
Accessories can also be functional. A place to keep your keys, credit card, and makeup for touchups. I use small vinyl pouches for tissues, brushes, and other necessities. I make plastic containers to hold my makeup and adhesives. Both of which you don't want leaking onto your costume. I then cover them with vinyl or other fabric and make them attachable to my belt, my boots, or strapped onto my sleeve.
Accessories are like a frosting on the cake. It can be thing that holds your costume concept together and take you over the top in costume competitions. And you don't have to cop to the fact that your pant legs aren't hemmed.
For metal mesh collars check out Working With Metal Mesh for construction techniques and patterns.
Pictorial of the construction of a metal mesh collar
Construction and Patterns for the basic collar necklace.
Construction and Patterns for Worf's and Dax's collar/necklace
Gallery of collar/necklaces from various Trek sources