The 2017 RealmMakers conference in Reno is at the end of this month. Some people dress up for the annual costume banquet. If you are like me you probably don’t have a lot of money to spend on extravagant costumes. Yet at the same time you really want to be clever and original.
Are you running out of time to get your costume together? Did you spend all of your money on that Plane ticket to Reno? What if I told you, you can still have an amazing costume without breaking the bank?
Are you interested?
Good, I have three rules for you:
1) Cosplay does not have to be screen worthy, just recognizable.
Is the piping on the sleeves correct? No, it’s just yellow felt. Is the the badge accurate? No, I literally printed the first image from google onto card stock and taped a safety pin on the back. Blue shirt, black slacks, black men’s under shirt showing through the top.
Can anyone look at this costume and not think Star Trek? No and that is what what makes this a costume win.
2) Regular clothes can be a costume.
Using ready made clothing saves time on sewing. Using clothes from your closet or goodwill saves money. Altered clothing will hold up better than most costumes. Clothing is machine washable, and after your event it can go back into your closet for instant reuse as anything. Instead of taking up space between fan events.
Black slacks, recycled graduation robe as a wizarding cloak, and a novelty shirt that I found at Walmart. But you could use a white button up shit and a grey cardigan. Add any house colored tie for extra realism.
Rule 3 the last and greatest rule: Cosplay is meant to be fun.
In spite of rule one’s best intentions some people will not get it. That’s okay. We do it for it the people who will get it.
If your costume is stressing you out, then maybe you need to step back and rethink your design. Can it be simplified? Can you get away with something more abstract?
Maybe you are trying to cosplay a fandom you have no passion for because friends wanted to group cosplay.
Or maybe you were told that you could never cosplay that character you love because you are the wrong Gender, Body Type, Hair Color or Race.
Do not let anyone keep you from that fandom you love. You can be anything you love.
Refer to rule one and do the thing!
C. O. Bonham 