Rey was one of the best parts of The Force Awakens and her three knob hairstyle has become instantly iconic. Me being me, I a) regretted somewhat recently cutting most of my hair off and b) immediately tried to see if I could get her hairstyle to work. What I figured out isn’t an exact replica but it is easier to do than the actual style and it actually holds up really well in the gym. I can honestly say that I’ve worn this style at least five times to the gym and it’s lasted through an hour of cardio. And hey! Why shouldn’t we get to be geeky while working out? Another benefit is that I’ve found that this hairstyle will hold up decently well regardless of whether you style your hair while it’s wet or dry.
All you need for this style are four things: 3 hair ties and a clip.
Step 1: Brush your hair out and start to gather the top part like you’re doing a half ponytail. Gather less than you usually would so there’s about an inch of hair above your ears that you’re not gathering.
Step 2: Pull the gathered hair through the ponytail holder twice. On the third pull, only pull it through a tiny bit– just enough to form a small loop that’ll be about an inch wide. Leave it like this.
Step 3: Pull hair from the sides and back again. We’re repeating exactly what we did above. Try to make these top two knobs smaller than you think they need to be so you’ll have more hair left for the bottom. It’s up to you how much of the hair left from the first knob you want to put into the second one. Any that you don’t use will just go under and can be used in the final one.
Step 4: Make the second knob by pulling the hair through the elastic twice and leaving a loop the third time. Again, this will be exactly what you did for the first loop.
Step 5: Now you’ll want to gather any hair that you have left. If you can, try to pull from the sides and the bottom and go over the hair that was a part of the top two knobs so that it won’t stick out.
Step 6: Pull the hair through the elastic twice. Now you’re going to make the third knob but this should be more of a longer loop that hangs down. Pull your hair through as much as you can without any layers sticking out.
Step 7: You’ll be left with some ends. Tuck what you can under the hair between the middle and bottom knobs and clip it place if you’re working out. You can also take the hair and wrap it around the elastic to hide it and then bobby pin that hair in place. I don’t recommend this for working out as the bobby pins went flying when I tried.
And that’s it! You now have awesome Rey hair and can take on the First Order! Don’t worry if this takes a little bit of trial and error. I almost always have to redo at least one of the knobs when I’m putting my hair up but it’s a fairly fast, easy, and cute way to style your hair! Plus, because the first knob starts relatively high up, you won’t have to worry about quite as many fly-aways in your face. Experiment with this style and see what works for you!
As always, you can check out our previous hair tutorials and be sure to tweet us pictures if you try this one out!
I love painting my nails as much as the next person but I usually just stare when people pull off these crazy complex looking manicures. When Rebels first premiered in the fall though, I decided to try and paint a basic Mandalorian helmet on my nail and it sort of worked? The best thing is that it’s fairly simple to pull off even if you’re not at all artistic like me.
Step 1: Pick a base color for your nails.
Step 2: Once it dries, grab a black sharpie and draw a T on your thumb nail. You can do this on whichever finger you’d like or even all of them. I just use my thumb since it’s the largest.
Step 3: Pick your helmet color and paint a straight line along the top bar of the T.
Step 4: Continue to outline the T with the helmet color but go out a little further in the corner. (The final picture at the top shows how this should look a little better.)
Step 5: Paint one last horizontal line along the top of your nail so you can still see a strip of the base color between the two helmet colors
Step 6: Apply a clear top coat.
And that’s it! It takes a little practice but it gets easier!
Laura Kinney’s had our hearts for years now (we’ll never stop loving NYX or the New Mutants) and the Death of Wolverine has brought her back to the front of our minds again. The convention season may have wrapped up for a bit but it’s never too early to start thinking about costume plans for next year or even to put a few ideas in the back of your head for the costume that you totally weren’t going to do for this con but OH WOULDN’T IT BE GREAT TO PULL TOGETHER A COSTUME IN THREE DAYS?
Tank Top
You’ve definitely got a few options here as Laura’s changed her look over the years with different variations so don’t feel too locked in if you can’t find something that matches the artwork exactly.
Cropped + Black Tank + Striped Tank
Pants
Leather-esque pants or leggings are your best bet here and thankfully, those are getting easier to find in stores. If you’re not quite as comfortable with the tight and leather, black cargo pants are also a good option!
Cargo Pants + Calvin Klein Leather Pants + H&M Leather Pants
Boots
Combat boots combat boots combat boots! (Come on, this was an obvious one!
Option 1 + Option 2 + Option 3
Miscellaneous Items
Now you just need to find a few more things to finish the look. You’ll need a longish black wig if your hair doesn’t already work, black fingerless gloves, and a metallic circle belt. (If you’re feeling crafty, the belt is likely something you could make yourself and you could work in an X logo somewhere.)
You’re on your own for the claws though. Those you can’t really find in your closet.
Happy Kamala Day! Today marks the launch of Ms. Marvel #1 by G. Willow Wilson and Adrian Alphona. The book, in case you hadn’t heard, stars Kamala Khan, a young Pakistani girl who can shape shift and who also happens to idolize Carol Danvers.
The good news is that it’s pretty easy to stealth or closet cosplay as the newest Ms. Marvel. It definitely helps that she’s a fangirl just like us! Best part is that this is all comprised of things you likely already have in your closet or that you can acquire easily.
Step 1 is the shirt! WeLoveFine has specially made one for sale but if you need one fast or if you’re a bit pinched for cash, it’s simple enough to make one. Just get a plain black t-shirt from somewhere like Old Navy or Forever 21 and put the lightning bolt shape on there yourself with something like fabric paint or an iron on transfer or even an appliqué if you’re feeling bold.
Step 2 is the bottoms! The easiest suggestion would be a pair of jeans. If you want to invoke Jamie McKelvie’s design a bit more, I suggest either a dark blue denim skirt or shorts with either red leggings or tights underneath.
Step 3 is shoes. Short boots are totally the name of the game here.
Step 4 is possibly the most important step: the scarf! Kamala is sporting a totally gorgeous red/purple/orange mosaic patterned scarf on the cover of Ms. Marvel #1 and has a thin red one as a part of her superhero costume. Either type definitely works here! Remember this is about stealth and closet cosplay, not necessarily page accuracy.
Step 5 is accessorize! With something like this FREAKING PERFECT MARVEL RING. (It was too perfect not to share with you all!)
And that’s it! Now get on out there in Kamala Korps style, and be sure to swing by either your local comic store or a digital retailer today to snag Ms. Marvel #1 for yourself!
We’ve all felt that con season fever, and for first-timers wanting to whip together a little cosplay something with limited time and skills — well, comic book Black Widow is the perfect place to start! With a simple black base and only a few key components that speak to Black Widow’s visual makeup, you’ll be a leading lady Avenger in no time.
Black Catsuit & Gloves
Plenty of dancewear and theater companies will be able to supply you with a black zippered bodysuit. But for those without access, a pair of matching black leggings and turtleneck can do in a pinch — Black Widow’s belt comes in handy for hiding the separation!
Black gloves are an easy find — less easy, though, is matching the sheen of the gloves to your catsuit. Readily available are satin costume gloves, and little else. One solution? Go for the more practical movie look, and suddenly fingerless dancewear gloves become an easy option.
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Full Body Unitard* + Cotton Spandex Yoga Leggings + Long Sleeve Turtleneck
*this is actually the unitard we use for our SHIELD costumes!
Black Widow’s Gauntlets
Feeling a little crafty? A bandolier of toy bullets offers the perfect base — prime and paint gold, cut to fit the circumference of the wrist, and secure the ends together with black elastic.
Feeling a little less crafty? Gold bracers. They’re in, they’re everywhere, grab a pair and go.
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Costume Belt Bandolier + Mirrored Hinge Cuff + Double Gold Cuffs
Belt & Boots
Want the easy belt inspo? Go for the movie equivalent and drop the golden circles. A simple gold buckle will do the trick, but if you’re feeling a little DIY or Etsy, you can always add the Black Widow insignia!
Any basic black boot can finish off the outfit, but visually optimal would be knee high and without laces. And while heels can give you an extra sexy lift, also consider a low heel or flat boot if you’ll be doing a lot of legwork on the convention floor.
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Stretch Belt + Belt Buckle (Movie) + Cagliara Boot
Red Wig
And last but not least, Natasha Romanova’s signature hair! Whether wavy or straight, remember to match the red to your skin tone — it’s very easy for the wrong red to overwhelm or clash. There’s some resources online for advice, but image googling somebody with similar skin tones as you can help immensely too.
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“Ferrari” in Maroon + “Hestia” in Dark Red + “Dionysus” in Apple Red
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This week’s launch of leading lady Natasha Romanova in her own Marvel Now! title pleases us greatly, and we’re kicking off the new year by going Black Widow for the celebratory Widow Week, hosted by the ever excellent Fuck Yeah, Black Widow of dot tumblr dot com.