When I told friends of mine that I was planning to cosplay, they all thought I’d gone loony. For them, and no doubt for a lot of other people, cosplaying has to be the weirdest thing anyone can do-cosplayers are supposed to dress funny and act funny in public. And for what reason? No reason whatsoever-aside from the fact that they love it. Ask anyone who has ever cosplayed. Although they can have all sorts of other reasons, or tell us what they like about cosplaying in their own different ways, the gist of it boils down to three simple words: cosplaying is fun.
Cosplayers aren’t paid to dress up. They shoulder all the expenses for their costumes on their own. They don’t get anything in return for cosplaying and neither do they cosplay for the sole intention of winning the prize. They do it for the sheer enjoyment
If you are a cosplayer, you are in for a lot of challenges and excitement. From the start where you pick a character and conceptualize, make and assemble the costume, to the big day itself where you get to strut your stuff, it’s pure fun, fun, fun. Whether or not you are making your own costume, planning and preparing what to wear is sure to stimulate your creative juices. And once you get the final product-2D animation transformed to 3D flesh-and-blood (that’s you!)-you experience a sense of accomplishment and success.
The cosplay itself is an event to look forward to. Cosplaying is like attending a big masquerade party. What makes it even more fun is you get to see familiar anime characters ‘in the flesh.’ Acting in character is certainly challenging, but it’s part of what makes cosplays so exciting. Nothing could be better than seeing a cosplayer who acts and looks exactly like your favorite anime character. Also during the event, you get to meet a lot of other cosplayers who have the same interests you have, and you get to exchange ideas and tips about costumes and talk about anime in general.
But probably the biggest fun element in cosplaying is the fact that when you cosplay, you are actually living out a secret fantasy. What makes the idea of playing dress-up fun is ‘being someone else’ even for just a few hours. You could be the anime character you sometimes imagine you wish you could be, or be part of that anime whose story you particularly love. It may not be for real, but it’s the nearest anyone can ever get to being there.
Sounds crazy? Wait until you try it. ^__~
So you wanna cosplay….
It looks easy, it sounds easy, but cosplaying isn’t really that easy. If you’re the thorough type who likes to do it everything according to the nitty-gritty details, cosplaying will involve an almost nightmarish amount of preparation-especially on the last week before the event, when nothing matters but finishing the costume on time! But, you ask, is all the time and effort worth it? Heck, yes! Most cosplay aficionados will swear that the best cosplay is when you never do anything by halves. All the sweat you poured into planning your costume pays off once you see the results of all the weeks of hard work.
So how exactly do you prepare for a cosplay? Here are some tips you can follow:
Picking a character
Picking a character can sometimes be the hardest part (hardest to decide, that is). But it’s always best to pick a character you know, or at least, are familiar with. Also, since, you will be the character, it has to be someone you like (you wouldn’t want to cosplay a character you totally abhor, right? ^__^).
Some people cosplay any character they like, and there’s nothing wrong with that, since the point of joining is to have fun. But if you’re aiming to get an ‘authentic’ look to the character you want to cosplay, it is best to choose a character whose body type or features is similar, or at least close, to yours.
Other things you should consider when picking a character are hair (would you have to get a haircut or grow your hair, or maybe even buy a wig or hair color) and eyes (would you go as far as buying contacts?), as these might mean additional cost.
Determining your budget
When picking a character you have to consider your budget. The more elaborate the costume the greater the cost. So when you think of the character, take into account how much you’re willing to shell out.
Your budget will play a big part in your decision about what character to cosplay. It will also determine to what extent you would like your cosplay to be as close as possible to the original character. All the little details which would make your costume look similar to the anime character (ie, print of fabric, trims etc), will add considerably to the cost. However, how much you spend will depend largely on whether or not you will be making your costume-or even just parts of it-yourself.
Making the costume
Once you’ve decided on a character and determined your budget, you can start on the costume itself. Always start by doing thorough research. How thorough? More than enough. It’s not enough that you’ve watched the anime, or collected as many high quality pics you can of the character. You have to make sure you have pictures in different angles, so you’d know the complete ‘look’ of the costume. Also, take note of the different lighting conditions so you’d have an idea about the exact color and ‘texture’ of the clothes. And try to find close-up shots of the costume details, (fabric print, buttons, trims etc.). Fabric texture is might seem like a minor detail, but it’s extremely important. Just because a character wears a red shirt doesn’t mean that any red cloth will do. True, in anime you don’t usually see the texture of the cloth since it’s just drawn, but it will help to consider the use of the piece of clothing the character is wearing. Is it casual everyday clothes? Then a sturdy cloth with natural or natural-blend fiber might do. If it’s a gown, then the cloth is probably a luxurious type of fabric. Remember: ‘costume’ is not synonymous to ‘satin’ or ‘shiny fabrics.’ Unless the character is wearing a ball gown, the fabrics they ‘use’ are pretty much like the fabrics we use for similar types of clothing.
When you already have all the pictures you need, make a detailed sketch of the costume, indicating all the particular details and what materials you would be using. List what fabrics and trims you have to buy, and bring the sketch and list when you shop. It’s usually best if you buy the materials yourself if you are a very particular type of person.
After you have all the materials, you can start working on your costume, or hand the materials, as well as the detailed sketch you made and pictures of the character, to a tried and tested dressmaker.
You will most probably be left to doing the props on your own. If possible, solicit the help of a friend who likes to do crafts as s/he would have a lot of helpful ideas. The props will test your resourcefulness, especially if you have to substitute ‘found’ items for the components of your costume
Making the costume and props is the most energy-consuming part of cosplaying. It’s extremely challenging and might even be a tad frustrating especially if it’s the first time you would be doing something like it. But once you get the hang of it, it’s loads of fun, and the reward-seeing the result of all your hard work-is worth every drop of sweat.
Last word: The most important thing in cosplaying is having fun while you’re at it. Half the fun of it is making the costume, or even just the props, yourself. It’s not whether you’ve spent loads of cash on what you’re wearing, but whether you enjoyed planning, making, and wearing your costume.