Costuming Wonder Woman Fan Art (Pinspired)

As a huge fan of the recent Wonder Woman film (2017), I had already made Diana Prince’s blue gala dress and Amazon villager, but this Wonder Woman fan art pin by mushroomtale on Pinterest…this called to me as a woman and as a costumer. I’m fit, but nowhere near Gal Gadot, no matter how many half marathons I run. What a lovely alternative to the legs-for-days costume we’re so used to seeing. And I tend to love the classics more anyway (I mean ancient classics). I was inspired to duplicate this fan art, and so I hit the fabric store and sourced patterns right away…

This post contains affiliate links. If you click an affiliate link and make a purchase, Red Shoes. Red Wine. will earn a small commission for the referral at no cost to you. Read more about affiliates & disclaimers here. We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

I used Epoch Echo Cosworx’ eagle crest pattern, as I’ve become a huge fan of their patterns from thier Amazon Sisters of Themyscira group on Facebook. The eagle crest corset top pattern, made by Epoch Echo Cosworx, can be purchased from The Evil Ted Channel’s shop. The tiara pattern can be purchased from Epoch Echo Cosworx’ Etsy shop. I *think* the armband pattern is included free with either purchase. I made the eagle crest corset top and tiara according to Epoch Echo Cosworx’ directions, including Performix Plasti Dip Black and spray paint (Rust-Oleum Universal, Metallic Pure Gold as the main color with Rust-Oleum Universal, Metallic Champagne Mist and Rustoleum Universal, Aged Copper sprayed lightly as accent) and sealed with Rust-Oleum Clear Shellac Spray. Once cured, I hot glued Wonder Clips (Clover Wonder Clips) where the eagle would be attached to the corset (hidden under the chiton/toga, explanation below), adhesive felt (Darice Felties Sticky Felt Sheets) to protect the foam from any corset rubbing, and Velcro (VELCRO 4 Sets – Black) on the sides to overlap/attach front to back.

The dress or toga that Wonder Woman is wearing in the fan art is a modified chiton, a garment worn in Ancient Greece. I spent quite a bit of time making togas out of curtains in college for fraternity parties so this was child’s play for me. A chiton is basically a rectangular piece of fabric (watch out, curtains!) pinned at the shoulders, and tied at the waist with a chord. For this costume, her chiton is strapless. So I simply made a fabric tube with a drawstring, with slits at each leg, and tucked the top of the tube into an overbust corset (Corset Story Long Black Brocade Expert Waist Training Corset) below my breasts. I’ve included a simple pattern guide with dimensions below, which you’re welcome to duplicate or modify for your measurements (I’m a size 6-8, for comparison). I bought 3 yards of 58-60″ wide blue taffeta and 3 yards of 58-60″ red taffeta and used every inch with minimal cutting (only leg slits). An optional accessory is a pair of black dance briefs (Capezio Big Girls’ Brief, Black, Large (10-12)) in case of a windy day. I had leftover gold trim from a prior costume that I used as trim at the hem and cording at the waist. I think any gold or goldish cording or tri-fold bias tape would work just fine.

Not pictured in the fan art are shoes. I wore my Batman v Superman Wonder Woman Boots that I bought for my Diana Prince costume (the blue dress!). If you’re ordering these boots, get a size smaller. I wear a 9.5-10 and originally ordered size 10 (there are no half sizes) and sent them back in exchange for size 9, which ended up being quite comfortable. Also not pictured in the fan art but worn here are Wonder Woman’s armband and vambraces, both patterns can be found in Epoch Echo Cosworx’ Etsy shop. Onto the FIRST dress rehearsal…

I brought the costume to Cabo San Lucas last month hoping for some good photos in front of those gorgeous rock cliffs on the Pacific side of the peninsula, or even around the resort. Everything about the costume was great except on the last morning of our visit when the humidity was stupid high, my hair was being extra stubborn, like full-on screw-you frizz. I was so upset with my hair and realized I’d have to give in and buy a long wig to really honor the fan art. My hair is just too short and stubbornly curly. I tried to retouch the hell out of them and almost didn’t share the photos above, except I saw an unexpected 1970’s Lynda Carter Wonder Woman vibe in the photos. As a little girl in the 1970’s and 1980’s, I idolized her Wonder Woman and decided to share these anyway…for 6 year old me. But I still made a trip to the wig store when we got home…

There’a little bit of a spear shaft showing in the fan art, so I took this “opportunity” to make a proper prop. I purchased a cheap Rubie’s 300 film spear (Rubie’s Costume Co Spartan Spear), which is only 4′ tall as mentioned in the reviews, specifically for the butt and spearhead parts. I sanded and repainted the parts (Rust-Oleum Textured Spray, Black and Rustoleum Universal, Aged Copper), and glued them to a 6′ long 1″ diameter dowel rod that I stained with 2 coats of walnut. I also used a scrap piece of sheep leather wrapped around the shaft as a handle. With these new additions, it was time for a redo…

I took the newly improved costume to Big Bend National Park hoping to find a good backdrop for photos. We hiked about 5 miles before finding a light colored canyon wall that would work. I had my costume in a backpack, spear in hand, and full makeup on my face (diva!). I changed clothes in Tuff Canyon and styled my wig using only a compact mirror. It’s probably one of the more ridiculous things I’ve ever done. I’m so glad we had privacy on this trail, because we were able to take photos and change back into hiking gear undisturbed.