My madness

29. What is your favourite cosplay item? (eg. a pair of shoes, a wig)

I know that most would probably say the Fai staff and you'd probably be right. That was my first actual prop that I ever made. A lot of the time when I need swords and things my father makes it and then I just paint it. But I actually have made this prop and evolved this prop into what it is. And it keeps evolving. I just added lights to it for Otakon. I probably won't leave them in there but its a good test.

But I think another thing that ranks right up there would have to be my Sakura staff.


It was fun to make, its fun and light to carry and it is instantly recognizable. Its kind of cute too XD So those would be my two favorite cosplay items.

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27. How many wigs do you own? Which is your favorite?

Um..Give me a minute. Gonna have to count. *goes a hunting*

I couldn't really get them all counted but I have 60+ wigs.

I can't really pick a top favorite because honestly..all wigs kind of drive me crazy XD But a few of my favorites would have to be the Kougaiji wig because it is a fun color and just fun to wear, the Elizabeth and Alexiel wigs because people seem to think they look very natural and pretty on me XD, My Sakura wig and my Mukuro wig. I can wear any of those pretty much an entire weekend and not get sick of them. LOL

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Otakon to-do list:
-add beading to Elizabeth's dress and sew piece back on
-Fix Shiki necklace
-print reference images/release forms/press info
-Ferio pants - remake or fix up
-find Ferio long sleeve shirt

At the beginning of the month I figured I would be scrambling at the end to finish. Hard to believe I'm going to finish in time and won't have to worry about too much.

25. The cosplay you put the most effort into

I would definitely have to say the Fai coat falls into this category. So many hours went into it and it was just back breaking at times to paint and sew. Cain would probably be the number one though since I was teaching myself so many different techniques. I used resin for the first time so I spent time creating crosses and clasps out of model magic and sculpy, then spent the time to create the molds and then pouring the resin. There are a lot of little clasp things on the coat that I had to do one at a time and then had to do a front and back to so that was very time consuming. Then there was learning to use wonderflex and figuring out what shapes to make the fingers and the armor in order to get it to look the way I wanted it to. And there were was the weeks I spent in the barn creating the pully system for the wing and then gluing feathers. Cain was definitely a labor of love and I still consider remaking it and starting over since it was a costume I did before I was really ready to tackle a project like that. And then I think about how much effort that would take and it makes me want to fall over LOL.

And then there is my current project which shall not be named that i have spent countless hours cutting, planning, gluing, reworking, painting, and just generally scratching my head over going..."how in the hell am I going to make that work?"

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23. Your most expensive cosplay
I had to really really think about this one because I don't normally keep track of those kinds of things. I buy what I need to buy and then deal with whatever it is. I thought it might be Cain. That was the first time I had ever used resin and wonderflex and feathers on a costume. But beyond those things there wasn't much as far as expense. I think Cain probably ran me about $500 in total.

But I think if you want to look at overall cost..it would have to be the first time I did fai's manga coat.


The entire back design is an applique and along the edge was trim. I used over 150 yards of trim to go around the entire design. The trim was $5 a yard at the time but luckily I used a coupon for each spool that I bought. So there was about $400 in just trim on the coat. The whole coat was lined and I think the total for the fabric was almost $200 (this includes the fabric for the applique). Then there was $45 worth of fur on the coat. Then the staff was plywood, PVC, fish tank stones, quilters plastic, basket wrap, model magic, and lots of gold spray paint. The total on the staff alone was about $150. So all in total almost $800 for the Fai costume.

its remake was far cheaper since I was able to reuse the fur and fabric. I only had to buy a new lining and the paint. So if you factor in the cost of that, Fai is worth about $1000 XD!

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21. Show us your best cosplay derp photo!
Oh man.. you want Derp? I am the master of derp..



( I GIVE YOU DERP )

19. What is your worst cosplay memory?
Oh man..well there has been a few frustrating moments over the years but I think almost all of them stem from Masquerade related things. The last two years at Nekocon we have had an absolutely horrendous time trying to find places to practice our skits. We have been harassed, yelled at, kicked out of places..all in an effort to spend a couple hours rehearsing. Sometimes we get kicked out into the freezing cold, sometimes we get tossed from places that we were told we could be in, and sometimes it is impossible to hear the audio. Nekocon seems to be our con of incredible rehearsing frustration.

Then there was the year that I swore off Otakon masquerades. It was the year we did a Tsubasa/Peacemaker Kurogane skit and we literally spent our entire Saturday in lines. First we had to rehearse. Then we had to be in line for judging. Then as soon as judging was done we were in line to go backstage..and that was like 2 hours before the show was even supposed to start. For a person that likes to wander around and can't be in one place for too long..it really really sucked. I said I would never do another Otakon masquerade and waste my convention like that again. (only to get roped into one last year PFFT XD)

But I think the one that could probably top them all was this past Katsucon. Our costumes weren't done and didn't get done until about five minutes before our judging. Wait. Let me rephrase that. MY costume was done. Frau's costume was done. One of Hakuren's costumes as done (needed 2 since we were ruining one). Everyone else's..NOT DONE. Our Teito was literally finishing just before judging. Plus we had the white robes to finish, so pretty much all I did that Friday night was serge together white bishop robes. I got ZERO sleep. By the time 8AM rolled around I was so tired and so frustrated that I literally burst into tears and had to leave the room. I had never experienced anything that made me cry out of frustration at a con before. Needless to say that did not put me in a particularly good mood for the rest of the day. We got dressed as best we could, went to rehearsal, practiced the skit twice then people went back to the room to finish sewing. I refused to go back up there so Labrador and I wandered around for awhile. Everyone else pretty much spent their entire convention in the hotel room finishing things. There were 2 sewing machines and a serger in the room, going pretty much constantly for 2 nights. It was unbelievable and I think everyone agreed after that con that if there was that much to left to do the day of a con..it wasn't worth wearing the costumes.

Heh..considering all my bad memories revolve around masquerades you would think I would refuse to complete in them anymore. But overall I just really like doing them.

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Sitting here and watching the NASCAR race when I should be working on Otakon costumes XD Oh well..I have tomorrow off so I will do it then.

17. What events have you cosplayed to?
Well..conventions wise, I have gone to these cons at least one:

-Ohayocon
-Ichibancon
-Katsucon
-Mysticon
-Momocon
-Nashicon
-Sakuracon
-Animazement
-ConCarolinas
-Anime mid-Atlantic
-Otakon
-Dragoncon
-Anime Weekend Atlantic
-Nekocon
-Anime USA
-Yaoi-con
and one convention in Canada that I don't remember the name of..

I think that is all of them...

Plus I have cosplayed to several Animania events at the FYE stores at both Hanes Mall in Winston and the one in Concord Mills. There has also been some cosplay picnics and I have cosplayed around town taking pictures before. Plus I used to go to CCR meetups at the malls when the had them. In college we used to cosplay to IHOP on occassion XD

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I started watching Durarara a couple days ago. (yes I know..late to the party. shutup XP). At first I was skeptical. But it very slowly started to grow on me. Izaya is kind of like the Mukuro of Durarara. Always calculating and controlling things behind the scene. But my favorite is Shinra. Something about that pervy happy doctor just draws me in. I would so cosplay him for Otakon and maybe ACP's event but I doubt I could get a wig in time. So maybe I can get it done for another con in the future. But yeah..rather enjoying the show. I'm almost done with it..give me a few more days XD

15. Your least favourite thing about cosplay

4chan, elitism, and the various aspects of cosplay that surround all of this. Anytime you create a forum or place where people can rip apart costumes, you are asking for problems. Everyone works really hard to make their costumes. Some turn out good, some turn out bad, some need work. That is the case with every cosplayer. You work on things so that you can improve. You have costumes that don't turn out the way you want them to. And you have costumes that are your pride and joy. But each one is special because of the effort it took to create it.

There is nothing I hate more then going on forums and seeing people rip apart a costume or a cosplayer. No one is perfect. These forums might pretend that there is a standard that all cosplayers should aspire towards..but that standard is skewed. You don't have to be beautiful or skinny or asian to make an amazing cosplayer. You just have to be proud of what you have accomplished. Cosplay is art, and everyone interpretation of art is going to be different. Be proud of each other's accomplishments and creations, without staring down the negative aspects of them.

I'm not young, not pretty, not skinny, not any of these things that forums like 4chan believe are necessary to become an amazing cosplayer. But does that stop me from making costumes and portraying characters that I adore? Absolutely not. I don't care if people laugh at my construction or insult how I look. Yes, it hurts. No one can say it doesn't. But I also know that I don't need the adoration and love of everyone to be happy at what I do. I'll never be the greatest at armor making or wing making or resin casting or any of those things. But as long as I continue to improve and can continue to have fun, that's all I care about.

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Was almost without internet for awhile. Our router died and so we spent all day trying to get a new one and get it hooked up. Well Pam did anyway. I merely paid for half of the new one LOL.

13. Your cosplay specialty (ie. something that seems to apply to a large amount of your cosplays, it could be a specific series, or a common feature in their appearance, such as glasses)

Um..Tsubasa? XD When you have over a dozen cosplays from one character I guess that would fall into the specialty category. In general I do a lot of coats and capes though. I love anything that is long and flowy. I guess that is why i enjoy so many of Fai's outfits. They fall right into that category XD



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11. Something cosplay-related that you will never do (eg. crossplay, cosplay from a certain series)

I'll never cosplay something that shows off too much leg or chest. For various reasons really..
I'm a shy and modest person so I don't really like showing off much. I actually don't even like showing my arms and will wear sweaters/sweatshirts/coverups..anything with a sleeve to cover them up. It isn't because I have ugly arms or anything..its just that I don't like showing my armpit/upper arm area. I also don't like to have anything cut above the knee. I hate shorts/capris. It took a lot of self motivation to even cosplay Alexiel with the long slit. My legs..well in my opinion I have very fat thighs and so I hate anything that accentuates that. Also, my legs look like I have held jobs where I am on my feet for long periods of time..and I have. For 14 years I've worked on my feet so I have veins and marks..and just general uglyness. So you will never see me wear any sort of dress that is short without stockings. Its my own paranoia/self image loathing.

Lets also remember that I don't have much to show in the chest area. I have to wear push up bras and padding just to have anything at all XD So there is never any thought of those female characters with the big busts..just don't have it to show it. So that is something I will never cosplay.


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