The 5 stages of creating a costume
You've found an outfit which you want to cosplay? Great! This blog entry is about how to start creating your dream cosplay.
Welcome back! I hope, you have liked my first blog entry? Then we should go on again immediately!
I ask myself constantly whether the help for cosplayers is covered in our scene, especially for those who are new in the community. Even the old hares learn new cosplay hacks from other cosplayers sometimes! Today I have started with a new cosplay and I remembered myself how helpless I was with my first costume, that I was not organised like today. My approach was quite unstructured, I did not really know where I should start. But fast I noticed that cosplay means, above all, one: planning.
In this blog entry I'd like to explain my personal 5 steps of creating a costume, through which I go with every single costume I make and which of them are especially importantly, round to avoid stressful conventions. Nothing is worse than finish the cosplay a night before the convention, believe me! A cosplay lives from the love of detailing and his authenticity.
First step: Finding a cosplay that I like to make
This sounds obvious or? You watch your favorite anime or read just the newest chapter of your favorite manga series and all at once there is it: this moment in which you find out that you like a character so badly that you would like to cosplay the person. As next you maybe find out that this character wears things that you really like. This can be an easy casual outfit consisting of jeans and t-shirt, but it also could be the magical girl with the luminous magic wand or the princess in the ball dress. Great! Now you should decide: which of the outfits would I like to wear? If you clear the following four points for yourself, they can help you in your decision considerably.
1. Do I feel fine in the outfit? Is it not too short, too warm, too revealing and in my comfort zone? 2. Does my knowledge last for making the outfit and if not can I get help? 3. Does it fit in my budget? 4. Do I feel self-confident enough to walk in this cosplay on open streets?
Second step: the search for references
You have found an outfit in which you feel fine, for which your experience is enough and it fits in your budget? Perfect! Now you can start diligently searching references. The more detailed and more extravagantly the cosplay, the more references do you have to get. So lash into the buttons! Tip: You mostly achieve better searching results if you search your references on different platforms in different languages.
Third step: the planning
You know how your Cosplay looks like from all directions? Then now you are ready for the planning phase! In this phase it is a matter of determining the right materials and working steps for your Cosplay. Do I take cotton for this upper top or rather a polyester mixture? What feels better on my skin? Which pattern do I take for this part of the cosplay? How do I make the weapons / armor parts? The most time when I'm creating my costumes takes this part because in my opinion it is the most important step of all. The more of your time you invest in this step, the better results you will receive later and unnecessary brainwork can be avoided. My personal tip: print out a reference and make a small brainstorming on it. If you make armor parts then you should invest extra time in the realization, our physically laws are differently than in the worlds of our heroes ;') For this it is worthwhile to keep your eyes open after the same cosplay of your version from another cosplayer and to have a look at the realization of the cosplay. Maybe you can ask questions about the making of this costume and mostly you get valuable tips for your own realization.
Fourth step: acquisition of the materials
Now you have enough thought and sketched about the realization of your cosplay. Finally, you can search for the materials. Some go rather directly to the sewing shop, so that they can touch the fabrics and examine them, others order online. It is important that you don't order or buy your fabrics without knowledge about them! Above all I do not recommend to order fabrics from the internet before you've not received any fabric samples. The biggest part of the online suppliers can send you free fabric samples or against a small fee. Tip: For an upper top you won't need 3 meters of fabric, therefore I recommend to calculating your material use before you buy the materials. Don't overthrow the first-best stores for beads, pearls, buttons and lace and don't buy this expensive junk. I order such things mostly online in good quality for acceptable prices. Sometimes you will also find (with some luck) fitting materials for your cosplay while strolling through the town or in a 1$ shop around the corner.
The fifth phase: take needle and thread (or dremel and heat gun)!
A long way lies behind you, but now you can begin with the sewing/crafting of your cosplay! Also here I have a few sensible approaches for you, so that you are contented at the end with your result.
1. If you want to to paint/color/embroidery (…) your fabric, I recommend to you to cut off a piece of the fabric and try the other materials on of it.
2. You are not sure with your pattern and have a fabric at home that you won't need anymore? Then transfer your temporary pattern on it and adapt it afterwards in you. Thus you can make sure that at the end everything fits and sits where it has to go. When I have expensive fabrics for my cosplays I use this method very often to make sure that everything will fit in the end.
3. You want to make your armor/weapons with a new material and you do not know a lot about it? No problem! Also here I recommend you to put aside a piece of the material and try out what is possible with it. How does it react to heat? How does the surface change with polish? How ductile is it and how can it be sealed best of all? Nevertheless, it would be irritating if you waste your expensive materials!
Now we have come at the end, quite nicely wide way or? However, believe me, it is worthwhile if you invest extra time on one or other step. I hope I was able to help you and you have maybe learnt something new. I wish you a lot of success, staying power and satisfactory results for your cosplay! Till then, ~ Doomfairy Cosplay
