Ushicon's
opening day saw a costuming panel from a couple of members of Paper Wings,
a Texas group of cosplayers who have been together for about a year. What
Becky (who goes by the nickname of "Integral") and Lauren (who uses the
handle of "Ringo") have learned is that accuracy counts, and cosplayers
reach that accuracy to the original design through experience and using
the right materials. "Break down a costume into parts and figure how to
make each part," said Becky. Lauren said accuracy to a costume design includes
details such as wearing the right shoes. "I've seen some great Tuxedo Mask
costumes, but they were wearing bright white tennis shoes," said Lauren.
Another hint: before wearing a costume to a convention, wear it around
the house to make sure you can move in the outfit and it doesn't become
uncomfortable.
Becky
made this Silky outfit from "I'm Gonna Be an Angel" in 2002, working over
five months to complete the costume. The first feature that catches the
eye are the shoulder pieces, which started with balloons which were inflated
to make forms that were covered with paper mache. The paper was then used
as a form which was covered with fiberglass, which Becky says works much
like paper mache, only that fiberglass uses resin instead of water and
glue to set a shape. The fiberglass was then sanded to smooth its surface,
then given a final coat of Bondo, the automotive body putty and filler.
Since Bondo is used to match the surface of metal auto bodies, it's a good
chose for costumes that need to look equally shiny - but Becky said it's
heavier than the fiberglass on which it sits.
Lauren's
Pita Ten costume took a lot more cloth than it might seem - several yards'
worth - because of the layers needed to define the shape. The cloth and
the blue striping took extra effort to get just right, but sometimes that
effort doesn't pay off. She admitted that one of her first costume attempts
was one of the elaborate pink petticoated Card Captor Sakura costumes;
Lauren started the project and gave it up after a while. Simpler costumes
can be satisfying for beginning cosplayers. Lauren made a pajama costume
from Magical Project Sammy by taking a plain set of pajamas and drawing
carrots on them to match the anime design. "Do something that you like,"
Lauren advised. "I think I would never do a costume if I didn't like the
characters."
Ushicon's
opening day saw a costuming panel from a couple of members of Paper Wings,
a Texas group of cosplayers who have been together for about a year. What
Becky (who goes by the nickname of "Integral") and Lauren (who uses the
handle of "Ringo") have learned is that accuracy counts, and cosplayers
reach that accuracy to the original design through experience and using
the right materials. "Break down a costume into parts and figure how to
make each part," said Becky. Lauren said accuracy to a costume design includes
details such as wearing the right shoes. "I've seen some great Tuxedo Mask
costumes, but they were wearing bright white tennis shoes," said Lauren.
Another hint: before wearing a costume to a convention, wear it around
the house to make sure you can move in the outfit and it doesn't become
uncomfortable.
Becky
made this Silky outfit from "I'm Gonna Be an Angel" in 2002, working over
five months to complete the costume. The first feature that catches the
eye are the shoulder pieces, which started with balloons which were inflated
to make forms that were covered with paper mache. The paper was then used
as a form which was covered with fiberglass, which Becky says works much
like paper mache, only that fiberglass uses resin instead of water and
glue to set a shape. The fiberglass was then sanded to smooth its surface,
then given a final coat of Bondo, the automotive body putty and filler.
Since Bondo is used to match the surface of metal auto bodies, it's a good
chose for costumes that need to look equally shiny - but Becky said it's
heavier than the fiberglass on which it sits.
Lauren's
Pita Ten costume took a lot more cloth than it might seem - several yards'
worth - because of the layers needed to define the shape. The cloth and
the blue striping took extra effort to get just right, but sometimes that
effort doesn't pay off. She admitted that one of her first costume attempts
was one of the elaborate pink petticoated Card Captor Sakura costumes;
Lauren started the project and gave it up after a while. Simpler costumes
can be satisfying for beginning cosplayers. Lauren made a pajama costume
from Magical Project Sammy by taking a plain set of pajamas and drawing
carrots on them to match the anime design. "Do something that you like,"
Lauren advised. "I think I would never do a costume if I didn't like the
characters."
