Nerd

Twenty-two. Gaming. Reading. Writing. Cosplay. Crafting. Disney.

[thejasontodd]

[youcanlearntodoit]

We were strangers, Starting out on a journey.

[woodsmokeandwords]

Unsolicited Advice in the Cosplay Community (and why you should stop)

“Here she is, back again with another one of her sporadic and preachy essays” I hear you sigh… Or I would hear you, if I was listening, but tonight I’m in no mood to. Something has been praying on my mind over the last few days, made ever more insistent by the fact that I now have fresh, first hand experience with which to feed the flames of my ire. That thing is unsolicited advice. In other words, uninvited criticism, feedback no one asked for, or, really, if we’re being blunt, the smart ass comments no one appreciates receiving. It is a truth universally acknowledged among cosplayers that whomsoever posts a photo of themselves online must be in want of (constructive?) criticism. EH, WRONG! This has actually been discussed a whole lot, by people much more prominent and well loved in the community than little ol’ me but it’s something that has been a particularly frequent topic of discussion among myself and my friends in the last week and I wanted to share some thoughts on the matter. We put photos of ourselves out there online and should, I 100% agree, expect to receive feedback on those photos. Most people, myself included, crave it. It’s a large part of why we do what we do. Feedback, dialogue and constructive criticism are the foundations of a good community, a good final product and a healthy mindset in creators. They’re assets. What is not an asset is something that is far, far too common in the comments section of many cosplayer’s posts and that’s criticism that they never asked for. If someone shares a photo of themselves, anything from a new make up test to a photo from a shoot and they’re pleased with it, proud, eager to share it with the world and at no point have asked for feedback on how they could improve then why do you feel you have the right to offer an opinion? I’m sure I’m repeating myself here because this is something I say a lot, something a lot of cosplayers repeat constantly, but, we stare at images of these characters for hours. Quite literally hours. We spend hours researching and months making our costumes, we know our reference material inside and out, to presume that you know something we don’t is to grossly underestimate us (and it makes us feel pretty bad too). Recently I have seen this crop up a lot on friend’s posts and yesterday I received some honestly quite rude remarks on a photo I shared. The second of these remarks is one I’d like to use as an example of unsolicited criticism. In this case it was the old chestnut of ‘actually, this is how you should be holding your bow/arrow’, a comment that I genuinely expected to receive long before now on any one of the numerous Vex’ahlia photos I’ve shared. Now, if I had asked for tips on how to pose correctly with my bow then that comment would have been completely appropriate, I probably would even have been grateful, but here’s the thing… I did archery seriously for four years and I know how to hold a bow correctly (I competed and everything), I posed in the way that I did because knocking my arrow and drawing the bow properly would have put the photographer as serious risk of injury and I was not asking for feedback. I cannot stress this enough, not once did I ask for anyone’s opinion on my archery technique. And it is this assumption, the assumption that I don’t know any better, that frustrates me beyond all reason. It’s rude, it’s uncalled for and not a single person would think it appropriate in a real life situation. This has turned into something a lot more negative than I originally intended so I’d like to point out that this is something everyone does at times, we’re all in the same boat. I’ve done it, I frequently get very know-it-all about anything to do with historical costume and I’m sure it drives people up the wall. I’m sure you’ve done it too. Most of the time people have good intentions but what I think we need to do as a community is encourage a debate about this in a friendly manner. I am by no means advocating for an end to feedback but what I would encourage is more consideration in the giving of said feedback. So, next time you feel like leaving a comment explaining to a cosplayer that they chose the wrong shade of silk, or that their character wouldn’t stand like that, consider that; A) they probably already know, B) they probably have a very good reason for why they did something differently and C) did they actually ask for your opinion? If the answer to that last one is anything resembling ‘no’, don’t post your comment. This has been another Tilda essay, thanks for sticking around! TL;DR don’t bloody tell cosplayers they’re wrong if they haven’t asked for your opinion. They already know and they’ll be super pissed with you. It’s not worth it.

[puffdenlilledragen]

ok i hear you and i totally get where you’re coming from

but things i’ve observed as one who follows cosplayers but do not actively cosplay myself, leads me to think there should be an addition to this

even though you know you should never knock an arrow when posing, that does not mean other people do. There was an eposide a while back where a cosplayer got mad as hell and started drama because someone voiced concerns about what appeared to be a knocked arrow and a fully drawn bow. She knew what she was doing, and had not knocked the arrow and hidden this with her hand. However, to anyone not familiar with archery and/or archery photography, this was not easy to spot at all.

So here is my problem with this. Someone see a cosplayer they look up to posing with what appears to be a knocked arrow and a drawn bow, and they might want to copy that pose but they do not necessarily know about the trick where you don’t actually knock the arrow. 

Informing people on how to conduct themselves in a manner that does not put others at risk or questioning poses or photographs that look like they are taken in an unsafe situation can potentially prevent accidents, because these questions, comments or additions to posts end up educating bystanders.

[woodsmokeandwords]

First things first, if you plan to comment on a specific situation it is always good to have all of the facts. So I’m gonna do you a solid and lay them out for you right here in black and white, despite the fact this is all rather tangential to my original point. My arrow was not knocked, as you so helpfully point out, it is dangerous to knock an arrow whilst fully drawing a bow and pointing it at someone, incredibly so. I’m in no way suggesting that people shouldn’t be made aware of that, but the woman that decided to patronise me publicly on facebook by explaining how to hold a bow was not focused on that, something you did not know, I imagine. Instead, she was focused on how my fingers were positioned on the string around the arrow, she made a valid point but one that really did not need addressing as the reason for the incorrect placement of my fingers, was, you guessed it… Holding the not-knocked arrow near the string. Why you think it falls to you to educate the masses on archery safety is intriguing, I wonder perhaps if it’s because you enjoy feeling high and mighty when you get to correct cosplayers? Why you think you need to be the front line in preventing cosplay related injuries in such a gleefully pretentious manner on the public posts of cosplayers is another matter entirely. Surely it has occurred to you that cosplayers are not responsible for enlightening their followers as to health and safety? If not, you might want to give it a think. If you feel you simply must point out the dangers for the benefit of another person’s followers, maybe find a polite way of doing it instead of making underhanded posts on tumblr? Which brings me neatly to my second point… You should be aware that I know exactly to whom you are referring and the post in question and as righteous as you think your cause may be, I can promise you that you are barking up the wrong tree. I have not known a single person less likely to want to start drama in my life than the lovely woman to whom you refer. Before you start spewing spurious claims all over this wretched site, you might want to check yourself.

[mae-martin]

[ahopelessindecisive]

Just a random makeup and wig shoot, with some experimentation in Photoshop.

[ahopelessindecisive]

Earlier I did a quick makeup test for my next cosplay, Elphaba! I say quick but face paint is a pain in the arse and doesn't like me. I'm so nervous about this one... 💚💚💚💚

[elektranatchios]

All of my life, I’ve had to pretend to be something I wasn’t. And to become what I wanted to become, I couldn’t be what I am. 

[ahopelessindecisive]

I was so worried about wearing Rogue today, I didn't have time in the days leading up to comic con to do a test run, so I wasn't sure if it would all look okay. But, it was great. My wig was mental but I think it worked really well. I may not have had the boots, gloves or patches but I am still proud of what I've achieved! DEFINITELY COSPLAYING HER AGAIN! 😍😍😍 (at MCM London Comic Con)

[ahopelessindecisive]

THUMBELINAAAA ❤ (at MCM London Comic Con)

[ahopelessindecisive]

Howl and Riku are the only males I would consider cosplaying, because you don't see many and THEY ARE MY BABIES 😍

[ahopelessindecisive]

I'm pretty sure I won't be able to make Rosalina's earrings for Comic Con, but in the grand scheme of things, it's not the worst thing in the world to not have.

[ahopelessindecisive]

Ajshfbrkwjrvr I'm a bad person. Fuck.

[ahopelessindecisive]

I DIDN'T MESS IT UP!? I actually managed to sew the two wigs together successfully, I still have to add the wefts from the other halves of the wigs, but I'm excited. I had to get Rogue's wig right, it was the most important part for me. • • #rogue #roguecosplay #xmen #cosplaywip #cosplayprogress #mcmcomiccon

[ahopelessindecisive]

I don't have a third cosplay for MCM but I could always just throw together something 'elf-like' I guess. Live out my elfy dream 🌱🍃 • • #elfcosplay #me #mcmcomiccon #mcmlondoncomiccon #mcmlondon

[ahopelessindecisive]

So I've sewn the skirt together, And earlier decided to 'put together' what the dress might look like when I'm done (minus the sleeves). The star was my first attempt way back in October and it sucks I know, so hopefully I can improve that too, I can't decide whether it needs to be smaller or if it's a good size for my torso. We'll see. I'm about to sew the bodice and skirt together and then finalise the sleeves and attach them AND THE BASE WILL BE COMPLETE ❤

[ahopelessindecisive]

More Rosalina progress! I've sewn the zipper into the bodice now, and it fits much better. I've cut out the lining for both sleeves now and the skirt definitely fits to the bodice. I added a strip of the chiffon to visualise the final cut of the top part and I think it's going to look really cute. I'm not 100% happy with everything but that's literally because I'm a cosplay perfectionist (who isn't actually good at sewing 😂) 🌟

[lavenderfables]