To be honest, I was quite surprised by the number of compliments I received for my Poison Ivy costume as such - generally, it's an easily made costume (up to the point that some smart-asses tend to label it as "lazy cosplay") that basically requires just a trip to your local florist for some artificial vines and you're good to go. And yet, people said my Ivy looks exceptional, for which I'm humbly grateful. So, in case there are other wannabe Poison Ivies reading this, here's a brief tutorial on how I made the costume - overall, it took less than a week of work, and if you really plan well your crafting session, you can make it in a day.

1) The vines. A common mistake I tend to notice with Poison Ivy cosplay is that people select only one type of artificial vines and stick to it, which makes the costume look too tidy and monotonous. Nature is not tidy. Pick several types of vines, with leaves of different shapes, sizes and color, and mix them - the result will look much more vibrant and natural.

2) Base. Basically any body shirt can do the trick, but if you really wanna get that sexy yet classy pin-up look, with the feminine curves, opt for a corset instead. Just get one of those inexpensive plastic-boned Chinese corsets off the internet - they have them in the appropriate shades of earthy green. For the lower part, a pair of granny panties will do - of course, you can always go for high-cut undies, if that floats your boat, but I wanted my outfit to look less like lingerie and more like a costume. Remember: sex appeal comes from the inside, from the way you look and you move - you don't need a skimpy outfit to pull off a sexy cosplay.

3) Hot glue. We cosplayers are all hot glue warriors, right? The crafting part consists of patiently hot gluing the leaves onto the base. Be careful not to burn your fingers, work with gloves and tweezers. Pro tip: given that the panties stretch when you put them on, and you don't want any holes between the leaves, make a "model" of your bottom so that you can work on the lower part of the costume while the material is stretched - I made my model by taping two small pillows together, so that their circumference matches my hips and bottom measurements.

4) Styling. Add some pzazz to your Ivy to make her more glamorous. I boldly used a red lace cape to accentuate the colors and contrasts. On the upper part of the corset, to make my chest bigger and additionally emphasize the hourglass figure, I put some red crystal beads (stolen from my mom's supply of jewelry crafting material), and artificial red flowers I bought in my florist's shop because they reminded me of trumpet vines. Add bling, lots of it - my lips are coated with layers of red and copper glitter, to properly portray the "poisoned lipstick". With styling, you can really get creative - all these details will make the costume appear more elaborate, while still staying faithful to the original design.

And that would be all! See, it's not that difficult, is it?