Sunday 3 August 2014

Chansey Gijinka - Photographs

When: March 2014
Where: Portland, OR

Friends and I were looking through Cowslip's drawings of pokemon in human form (called gijinka) when I fell in love with her Chansey design and had to give it a go. It was only for a small local event and I managed to get the costume done in a week. I loved making it but was sad that no one recognised the design, and even more depressed after because no one came to talk to me about the costume and the photos I got of it weren't very good.

I had to change the design a little because of time restraints and the fact that the proportions on the design compared to a real human body didn't quite work the same way. But I tried to get it as accurate as I could. I also didn't have a sewing machine at the time so the entire thing was made by hand.


You can see the construction for this costume here


Pokemon Gijinka Chansey CosplayPokemon Gijinka Chansey Cosplay


Pokemon Gijinka Chansey CosplayPokemon Gijinka Chansey Cosplay



Sunday 27 July 2014

Chansey Gijinka - Cosplay Construction

When: March 2014
Where: Portland, OR

Friends and I were looking through Cowslip's drawings of pokemon in human form (called gijinka) when I fell in love with her Chansey design and had to give it a go. It was only for a small local event and I managed to get the costume done in a week. I loved making it but was sad that no one recognised the design, and even more depressed after because no one came to talk to me about the costume and the photos I got of it weren't very good.

I had to change the design a little because of time restraints and the fact that the proportions on the design compared to a real human body didn't quite work the same way. But I tried to get it as accurate as I could. I also didn't have a sewing machine at the time so the entire thing was made by hand.


You can see the final costume here

Reference:


Pokemon Gijinka Chansey

Sunday 20 July 2014

Lara Croft - Tomb Raider I - Photographs

When: March 2014
Where: University of Kent, Canterbury, UK
Photos by Meltopian (who also makes amazing AMVs)

This costume was so much fun to do! I really do prefer the smaller convention/parties as people just seem so much more friendlier and willing to chat about costumes. That and I know I'd get a lot of fat comments at large conventions >_< At least I fear I would.

You can see the construction for this costume here.

Tomb Raider Lara Croft Cosplay

Sunday 13 July 2014

Lara Croft - Tomb Raider I - Cosplay Construction

When: March 2014
Where: UK

I'd been wanting to cosplay Lara for a really long time because she's one of my all time favourite game characters. I played the original series when I was younger on the play station so of course I had to do the Tomb Raider I version of her.

However, there are always a bagillion Lara Crofts at conventions and I didn't want my costume to be just another Lara in the sea of Laras (especially with the recent release of Tomb Raider on PS3). So when local geek party Geekfest at my university in Kent came up this was the perfect chance for a Lara!

I don't have many pictures of the construction for this costume because I made it in literally a few days.

You can see the final costume here.

Lara Croft Tomb Raider I Cosplay

Lara Croft Tomb Raider I Cosplay

Sunday 6 July 2014

Shiki Ryougi - Kara no Kyoukai - Photographs

When: March 2014
Where: Minami Con 2014, Southampton, UK
Photographs by ManyLemons and Locke

I was actually really annoyed when I wore this costume. I was really unhappy with how the whole thing looked, and it was a really warm day, which meant I couldn't wear the juban otherwise I'd die. It was bad enough having to wear the jacket. I had also had a problem with the wig and it wouldn't go in the style that I wanted it to. So my first few shots in the studio taken by Nert were really bad. I just wasn't feeling the character or the costume and I looked soooo bad. So I didn't include the ones by Nert below.

My friend Locke who is an amazing photograph took some great shots, and he was kind enough to edit them for me so they actually came out looking fairly decent. These are the photos below.

I don't think I'll ever wear this costume again though.

You can see the construction for it here.

Photographs


Saturday 5 July 2014

Shiki Ryogi - Kara no Kyoukai - Construction

When: February/March 2014
Where: UK

I made this at the same time I made the Furisode Girl cosplay. Two VERY different character but both with kimono style costumes.

Reference Picture:

Ryogi Shiki reference pictures Kara no Kyoukai

Sunday 29 June 2014

Furisode Girl Lienna (Pokemon Trainer) - Photographs

When: March 2014
Where: Minami Con 2014, Southampton, UK
I have to admit I have never played Pokemon X or Y. This was because recently I've bought the games and then never had time to play them. But I loved the character design for this pokemon trainer and decided to try doing her costume as it seemed like a fun challenge!

I was a little annoyed because I didn't realise until after that my fringe was facing the wrong way. Also the lighting made my skin really shiny and the costume looked a lot brighter than it was. I wish I had photoshop -_-

I wore a petticoat under the skirt to give it some volume, and I tied the obi in a regular bow as there were no references for what her obi looks like in the pictures. I also made earrings using the same fabric for the obi.


Furisode Girl Pokemon X Y Cosplay

Saturday 28 June 2014

Furisode Girl Lienna (Pokemon Trainer) - Construction

When: February/March 2014
Where: UK

I have to admit I have never played Pokemon X or Y. This was because recently I've bought the games and then never had time to play them. But I loved the character design for this pokemon trainer and decided to try doing her costume as it seemed like a fun challenge!

You can see the final cosplay here

Reference Picture:

There were practically NO reference pictures for this character and they were all very small with off colours.

Sunday 22 June 2014

Saki Morimi - Eden of the East (Closet Cosplay) Photographs

When: March 2014
Where: MinamiCon
Photos by ManyLemons

Eden of the East was an anime that I was really looking forward to when it started. Then the ending happened...and then the movies... But the start of the series was a lot of fun and I really fell in love with the main female Saki.

I'd been wanting to do a cosplay of her for a while but didn't have the time to make all the stuff. This was the fist time I'd made a costume by buying all the components. You can't see in these pics but I actually got the pink turtleneck as well. Unfortunately the coat I got was a really bright red where as her original is quite dark. I think if I wear this costume again I will dye the coat a darker red and re-take the photos.

The great thing about this costume is that I can wear it out any time I want to and it won't look out of the ordinary. Yay closet cosplay!

Reference Picture:


Saki Morimi Eden of the East

Photographs:

Saki Morimi Eden of the East Cosplay

Saki Morimi Eden of the East CosplaySaki Morimi Eden of the East Cosplay


Saki Morimi Eden of the East Cosplay



Sunday 8 June 2014

How To Win Cosplay Competitions

I must admit that I have not won any big cosplay competitions (but I haven't entered any large ones either). I do know a number of people who have won big competitions, interviewed cosplayers who are also judges for a University project, and last year I interviewed Euro Cosplay contestants. So although I can't say this is 100% guaranteed way to win competitions, but is more of a guide put together using other people's experience as contestants, judges, and lovers of cosplay.


Depending on the competition the following points will have more weight than others. Some competitions focus more on impressive techniques, others  on props, and there are often prizes for amazing sewing skills alone. A good bet is, if you can't apply all of them to your costume, use a mix of the following points. 


Made By You
This is probably obvious but the costume needs to be made by you. No commissions, no items made by other people are allowed. A cosplay competition is to show off your own skills, not someone elses.


Recognisable Character
When the judges know what the character you're cosplaying is from the more likely it will stick out in their minds. But recognisable doesn't have to mean popular. For example, there are so many Frozen and Attack on Titan cosplays now that it's hard to pick any one from the crowd, and in a competition there is likely to be more than one of those entries. Avoid them because judges are less likely to pick out something they have seen 100 times before. But likewise a costume based on an original character might be impressive but it's less likely to stick out to someone compared to a character they recognise.

Sunday 25 May 2014

Euro Cosplay October 2013

Where: London Expo / London Comic Con
When: October 2013

The London Expo has become very overcrowded the last few years as it's become more and more popular. One of the reasons for this is that they're trying to get on the same level of popularity as the Japan Expo in Paris (which is the largest geeky convention in Europe). So to compete with them and make more money they began running Euro Cosplay, it's only been going a few years but has become super popular. Each country runs its own competitions in various conventions and picks one or two entries for their country. The winner of those then gets flown to the UK for the competition in October where they get judged on their costume and skit.

Here's a video made as the introduction for the 2013 competition showing the entrees from the year before:


Video by ManyLemons who does photography and filming. Here are his Cosplay videos on YouTube

So because it's become so crowded and repetitive I decided to offer my services to help out. (I know Nert from ManyLemons and some of the other con event people who were involved in the EuroCosplay organisation) And after a few conversations I was asked to do the informal interviews of the contestants which was great because that's exactly what I did for my dissertation at Uni. Below are some of the photos of the contestants from the competition (unfortunately I couldn't get good ones of all of them):

Tuesday 20 May 2014

Tess Cosplay

Tess from Jak II & III

When: October 2013
Where: London Expo / ComicCon

This costume didn't come out too bad, and I was surprised at how many people actually recognised it! I was a bit disappointed at the lack of pictures I have of it though.

If I were to do this again I'd improve the ears and make the gloves (I didn't have time to before the con)


Jak and Daxter Cosplay

Jak and Daxter Cosplay

Friday 16 May 2014

Tess Cosplay - Construction

Tess from Jak II & III

When: August 2013
Where: Home, UK
For What: London Expo Oct 2013

Tess is a character that a lot of people who have played the Jak games might not remember if they saw her on the street. She's a cool character though, a strong bubbly freedom fighter and spy who really, really likes guns. It was a shame I didn't have time to make a gun for her this time.




Thursday 15 May 2014

Horo Cosplay II - Photographs

Horo from Spice and Wolf

Where: London MCM Expo / London ComicCon
When: October 2011

Horo (which some people pronounce Holo) is one of my favourite characters from the novel turned anime/manga Spice and Wolf (狼と香辛料). She's a boisterous old wolf goddess who hires the help of a merchant to get back to her homelands. I love her because she's such a strong female character with her soft spot and she talks like an old Japanese lady, hahaha!

This was the second time I did this costume and I mostly improved it by buying a new wig to match her fur and original hair colour. The annoying thing was I forgot her sack of wheat the second time, and I didn't get as many photogaphs taken. I would like to do this again at some point soon and get some good photographs with the complete costume.

First set of Horo Photos

Horo Cosplay Construction


Horo Cosplay

Horo Cosplay

Horo Cosplay



Tuesday 13 May 2014

Jade Cosplay II - Photographs

Where: London MCM Expo / London Comic Con
When: May 2012

I mentioned that I had done this cosplay a few time in my previous post and this was the second, and most successful one. I decided to improve on the costume making the menu computer on her side look a little more real, and I completely re-did the trousers so the patter and fit would work better. The only thing was I didn't realise until after that I had the strap around the wrong way! Grrr. I'm hoping to loose some weight again and do this costume again, improving it even more! This is the one costume I want to get 100% correct! And I'm hoping one day to make a DomZ or Double H armour for my boyfriend.





Friday 9 May 2014

Jade Cosplay - Photographs

Where: MinamiCon, Southampton, UK
When: March 2012

This character is from the game Beyond Good and Evil, which was developed in 2003 as a trilogy for the PS2 but due to lack to funding for advertising when it was released it didn't sell well. But it is an amazing game that now has cult status which means the game is perhaps getting its well deserved squeals made.

And I love the main character Jade (another strong female role), and this is one of my favourite costumes of all time. I love it so much I did twice! Well technically three times, but the third time was 2 years after I'd worn it the first time and I'd put on so much weight the costume didn't fit properly. Needless to say I have no photos for that one because it was such a train-wreck. These are the photographs from the first time at MinamiCon


Monday 10 February 2014

Ookami-san Cosplay - Photographs

When: August 2011
Where: AyaCon

Ookami-san from Ookami-san to shichinin no nakama-tachi (オオカミさんと七人の仲間たち) is a strong interdependent character with a big temper. Even though not many people recognised the costume I loved making it and cosplaying her. 

Photos taken by the awesome Nert at ManyLemons.co.uk

You can see the progress and construction images of this costume on Ookami Cosplay Construction.

I like this screen cap ^-^ It signifies perfectly the relationship between the two of them at the beginning of the series. We also have Ryoushi (cosplayed by the amazing Steve -character in white shirt) and Tarou (cosplayed by the flouncy Andrew -character in black shirt).




ookami to shichinin no nakamatachi cosplay

Thursday 6 February 2014

Horo Cosplay - Spice and Wolf - Photographs

Where: AyaCon, UK
When: August 2011


Horo (which some people pronounce Holo) is one of my favourite characters from the novel turned anime/manga Spice and Wolf (狼と香辛料). She's a boisterous old wolf goddess who hires the help of a merchant to get back to her homelands. I love her because she's such a strong female character with her soft spot and she talks like an old Japanese lady, hahaha!

I put my foot in it for this costume though because I put it up for the masquerade and cosplay competition! It was the first time I'd ever entered a costume into a competition and although I didn't win anything the judges said it was a well done and accurate costume.

You can see the construction images of this costume on Horo Cosplay Construction.

Photographs by Nert at ManyLemons, who is a UK convention cosplay photographer.




Horo Photographs

spice and wolf cosplay

Monday 3 February 2014

Ookami Cosplay - Construction

Ookami from Ookami to Shichinin no Takama-tachi

When: August 2011
Where: Home, UK


Ookami-san from Ookami-san to shichinin no nakama-tachi (オオカミさんと七人の仲間たち) is a strong interdependent character with a big temper. Even though not many people recognised the costume I loved making it and cosplaying her. 

So this was my progress with 1 day of making time left before the convention. 



Ookami's top was the very first thing I got started on. I used a pattern for a jacket but...well to be honest, I was a bit worried that there were spare panels with no where to put them...It was a bit like constructing Ikea furniture. Oh well. The parts I used worked out nicely in the end.





Saturday 1 February 2014

Horo Cosplay - Construction

Horo from Spice and Wolf

When: August 2011
Where: Home, UK
For: AyaCon 2011


Horo (which some people pronounce Holo) is one of my favourite characters from the novel turned anime/manga Spice and Wolf (狼と香辛料). She's a boisterous old wolf goddess who hires the help of a merchant to get back to her homelands. I love her because she's such a strong female character with her soft spot and she talks like an old Japanese lady, hahaha!

I put my foot in it for this costume though because I put it up for the masquerade and cosplay competition! It was the first time I'd ever entered a costume into a competition and although I didn't win anything the judges said it was a well done and accurate costume.

When I was out buying the fabric I spent a good hour hunting down the right shade of pink for her dress. I am a big stickler for finding the right fabric for a costume, otherwise the costume just doesn't look as good.











So the first thing I ended up making was one of the smallest pieces of the costume: Horo's wheat purse. I started with this because while I was searching for reference pics online I found some cosplay pics of how NOT to do it. So I got the idea of making the purse like a patchwork quilt. Dug out various shades of appropriate fabric from my box of fabric and just stitched it together. It was really a random idea which I didn't expect to work as well as it did, but it did! Took 4 hours to make the main part of the purse. Worth it though.







One thing one of the judges asked was if the pouch opened and did it have any wheat in it. Sadly no, but I realised that small details like that can make a costume go a long way and make an impact in a costume competition.