Cosplay 101:5 tips every new cosplayer should know for making costumes.
If you have been a cosplayer for years or you are brand new to the cosplay community, you know there are so many things that can go wrong with costume creation. Blood, sweat, and tears, literally, go into building these costumes. Not to mention time and money. Boy, oh boy can cosplay cost money. Stress levels are high and maximum effort is exerted. Most of us know what its like to lose sleep over our cosplays. Cosplayers are the worst procrastinators in the world. Can I get an AMEN?!
I’ve put together a few tips for fellow cosplayers and myself to follow based upon the hellish mistakes my friends and I have already made. Now, I’m no Jessica Nigiri or Yaya Hahn, believe me! I cosplay just for fun and love doing it.
TIP # 1: Decide on one character at a time and stick to it. Try not to take on more than you can handle.
I am a very indecisive person by nature so I bounce around cosplay ideas and start projects that I never finish. This ends up costing twice the money and quadruple the time. Start one costume at a time and don't start another until that one is finished. This is my number one tip because I am the literal worst at this and have fellow cosplayer friends that are the exact same way. Why are we like this? We just have too many favorite characters out there. Just take my advice and save yourself the extra EVERYTHING and stick one plan until you execute it. Trust me the end result is so much better.
TIP # 2:Get a sewing machine.
I know not everyone has a sewing machine. I get it. I borrowed my mom’s or grandma’s many a time, in my life. I have also sewn a lot of cosplays by hand. While hand stitching certainly works, I don’t recommend it because it takes 5-ever. The most recent cosplay I made was a Gwenpool suit. It was completely hand sewn. What took me 2 days....2 entire days just to sew could have taken just a couple of hours with a sewing machine. That’s not including the props I also had to make. [ I just recently moved in with my boyfriend in a different state so buying a new machine wasn't financially smart at the time. I will be on the look out for one on ebay] Guy’s, you can get a small one for cheap or a used one. Goodwill always has them and yard sales can be good for finding them. Trust me you are going to want one. The first time you cosplay you will get hooked. It is so much fun. Buying a sewing machine will be so worth it.
Tip # 3: Keep your fabric store coupons!
Hobby Lobby and Joann fabrics have coupons ALL the time. They also have great in store sales that you can combine your coupons with. Don't be afraid to ask the cashier about coupon offers.[side note: sometimes other cosplayers or seamstresses work at fabric stores, if you need help or suggestions] There are 40-50% off coupons online everyday and they will show you how to get to them. I was in Joann fabrics the other day and the girl who was cutting my fabric asked me if I had signed up for the text coupon yet. No, I hadn’t but I was all about it. She gave me a 5 digit number and told me text coupon to it and I got a 20% off entire purchase that worked with my 50% off fabric coupon. Seriously, I went to Joann once a week for a month to redeem coupons. Cosplay is expensive, y’all. Save yourself and your wallet by watching sales.
Tip # 4: Practice makes perfect.
Start simple. You don't have to be competition ready the first time. The only reason the professionals are so good at making costumes is because thy have been doing this for years. Remember cosplay is for fun. You can buy a finished costume from a store and still have a great time wearing it. This is a fandom family and we are all cosplaying to be goofy and have a great time. Your costumes will get better with time and practice. my first cosplay was Kiki from Kiki’s delivery service. I wore a dress I already had, made a bow, and bought a broom stick. Everyone still loved my character. now, I sew my own super hero suits and paint my props. its a hobby, That gets better over time, just like any other.
Tip # 5: Give credit where it’s due.
Fellow cosplayers will know if you made your own costume or if you bought it. Too many people like to take credit for someone else’s work. If you buy a retail costume or commission props from another costume designer, give them credit for their work. And, for goodness sake don’t try to enter a cosplay contest with a store bought costume. C’mon guys. the judges will know. The competitive cosplayers spend so much time making there elaborate costumes and it can be seen as disrespectful to their efforts. There’s nothing wrong with buying it, just give the credit where it’s due.
This has been the nerdy dirty on making costumes, for new cosplayers. If you liked this blog entry, give that like button a tap. If you want to talk about cosplay or anything else feel free to leave a comment. If you’d like to see more nerdy dirty tips just let me know.
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