Introduction - What is it like being a Cosplayer?

Hello there! Being a cosplayer is a little difficult to describe, honestly. When I first started, it was just like Halloween (but every day), which was awesome! Then, as I got more into it, I realized that it's actually more about finding out a bit about who I am and what I want to be in an ideal world. It started off as looking cute in an outfit, but now it's become an obsession to be at my personal best physically so I could become as close to the character as I could possibly get. It's about memorizing a lexicon of information about your character so you don't destroy the magic for someone else when they come up to you in awe because, to them, you ARE the character they've always dreamed of meeting in real life. It's about meeting up with other people who go through the same trials to make sure that their character is perfect, and appreciating the work that went into it, because you never know what it's really like until you do it. So what is it like? It's heaven. When you can't move for 5 hours because so many people are taking your picture, when little kids can't even speak because their hero is in front of them, it's the best feeling in the entire world. It's what people search for when they take heroin. It's my nirvana.

What are your next goals?

I know Jasmine from "Aladdin" is coming up for next year, but I'm still undecided on the rest. I know that they'll be awesome when I figure out what they are though! I wish being a professional costume designer / cosplayer was a real job, because that would be the best thing ever! Getting paid to dress up and go to conventions sounds like a dream job...

Cosplay Characters

I try to do 4 new costumes a year. So far, I have: Tifa Lockhart Ramona Flowers Bellatrix Lestrange Jessica Rabbit Mario (Nintendo) Slave Leia Belle (Beauty and the Beast) Lara Croft Baroness (GI Joe) Catwoman (Dark Knight Rises) Elsa (Frozen) Plus 4-5 more for next year coming soon!

What does Cosplay mean to you?

I'll answer this anecdotally since I accidentally answered it earlier: I always swore that I would be Tifa for Halloween if I ever lost the weight. That niggling 20 pounds or so that you really don't want to see on someone exposing their midriff was the bane of my existence. My hesitation for doing a really cool cosplay. Eventually, time and a fortunate trip abroad for a year saw that extra weight out the door, and a con nearby gave me an excuse to finally do it. I'd always loved dressing up, and I was honestly nervous that I would be the only person dressed up at the convention. I was wrong. So wonderfully wrong! As soon as I stepped through the doors for the first time and saw all the people around me dressed up, complimenting my costume, enjoying the company of other like-minded individuals, I literally welled up with tears. I was finally home. All the years of being made fun of for being weird were nothing. I was the ugly duckling that had just found out that I was hanging with the wrong species all these years. I swore I would do anything to keep coming back every year. Fast forward a couple of years. Moving to another state, getting in (and out of ) a relationship, and unfortunate weight gain had sent me into a depression that was really difficult to pull out of. I was the fattest I'd ever been, and it looked like it was going to be that way forever. One phone call from my sister inviting me to the convention changed all that. I had 7 months to get in shape and make my costumes. So I did. I watched everything I ate, started working out every day, and kept putting my costumes together one piece at a time. I lost 30 pounds and found a bit of myself that I'd lost somewhere. To this day, I still work out every day. I still watch what I eat, and I'm already putting together next year's pieces. Cosplaying isn't just a part of my life. It is my life. It's my motivation for everything I do.

Who have been your biggest influences/role models/mentors?

Honestly, as far as cosplaying goes, I don't really have any. This has been a journey entirely of self discovery, which started on my own, and continues to be on my own. I don't like using reference pictures of cosplayers, because I don't want to take away from their ideas, and I want to come up with my own ideas for how to put a costume together. Ok, I lied. My grandma is actually my biggest role model for this. Once she figured out I was into cosplay, she decided that this was something she needed to help me with, and I'm so grateful. My grandma is responsible for my most successful cosplays to date, and I love her touch on the dresses she makes. She's a truly gifted seamstress, and I'm so lucky to have her in my life.

Do you have any advice or suggestions for upcoming Cosplayers?

If I've learned anything during my adventures, it's about how unimportant the clothes part of the cosplay is. Everyone's gone to a con and saw that EXACT replica of a character, only when you went to go talk to them, they either blew you off or didn't have any clue about what they were wearing. To me, that ruins the magic of it. I've seen an Iron Man costume made out of cardboard, and it was amazing! I've seen armor made of paper plates, I've seen a character that had the details entirely wrong, and I've loved every single one, because you could tell that they took the time to make something, and they were proud of it. THAT's what cosplaying is about. So don't worry if you think your costume isn't good enough. Just be proud of what you've made, and have fun with it! Just be warned, it's a very addicting hobby...

What is the most negative experience you've dealt with while cosplaying, and how did you handle it?

I'm very fortunate that the conventions I go to have some amazing security, and the people are respectful (most of the time). I've had the occasional catcall, the "accidental" butt grab in a crowded area, the guy who invited me for a "photo shoot" up in his room, and of course the oblivious guy that just follows you around the whole time. But I'm not fooling myself, either. I'm typically dressed as a character of fantasy, and I know that that puts me in the "prey" category from time to time. That being said, 3 out of every 60,000 isn't bad!

Any final remarks or shout-outs?

Good luck, have fun, and I hope to see you on the con floor soon! :)