I have always been fascinated with cosplay. I find it so interesting to watch people turn simple materials into ornate, intricate designs that mirror some of their favorite themes and characters. For this project, I decided to construct Ranni's hat from the game Elden Ring.
I love building things by hand, but also love developing programs to make physical objects come to life. Therefore, I decided to combine these two interests into Ranni's Hat. I wanted to begin developing some basic cosplay-making skills, and found that this hat exercised many of them. I was inspired by and followed Jessica Nigri's tutorial that can be found on her YouTube channel of the same name. This project was incredibly meaningful to me, as I was able to dedicate a great deal of time to a skill I have always wanted to practice. It was also nice to portray a character from a game that I admire.
Both the hat and staff were made with EVA foam/other common cosplay materials, and were painted and formed to recreate the weathered appearance of her hat. The wand was inspired by other in-game weapons that the player can procure.
The wand holds an Arduino Nano and accelerometer/gyroscope sensor that detect movement, causing the hat to change color when certain thresholds of movement are met. The accelerometer/gyroscope reads three values: yaw, pitch, and roll. It will change colors based on these values to the three colors below...
The Hat
To make the hat, I first begin by cutting and forming EVA foam. I used a heat gun to warm the foam to create the folded top of the hat. From there, I covered it in PlastiDip to make the hat more rigid, and filled any cracks with foam clay. Next, I painted and shaded the hat with acrylic paint before gluing aluminum foil under the brim of the hat to help with reflectivity. I also added cinnamon to the paint to give it a more fabric-like texture. Then, I added NeoPixels in a circular pattern around the inner portion of the hat before covering them in LED foam to disperse the color.
The Wand
Like the hat, the wand was also made from shaping EVA foam. I used foam clay to give the wand texture. I then painted it, added shading and dimension, and then attached an Opalite crystal to the top to add to the celestial aura of the project. I made the wand wide enough to store my breadboard and electronic components.
Materials used: EVA foam, air dry foam clay, PlastiDip spray, ModPodge, hot glue, wire, opalite stone, Arduino Nano, MPU6050 accelerometer/gyroscope sensor, acrylic paint, aluminum foil, and hot glue.
