How I cosplay

I am gradually creating a series of videos on how I put my cosplays together. I thought I would take this opportunity to tell you about some of the things I have done to put them together so far and share some hints and tips that I have picked up along the way.

Getting started:

How does one start cosplaying? Well, I would ask you to think about what you are really in to. Are you a gamer? Do you like anime/manga? Do you like sci-fi? Do you like fantasy? Action movies? In all honesty the possibilities are endless.

I have a love of anime and manga myself so I have chosen characters from there at first. There are other things I would like to try in the future too though. I love the works of J.R.R. Tolkien and have always had the idea to try out an elf. Taurel from the latest Hobbit films would be a good one. As you can see, inspiration can come from anywhere at any time.

Where can I buy stuff?

In all honesty the possibilities are endless here as well. You might find that you already own pieces of clothing that can be modified or put as part of a wider costume. This will really save you money if it is something that you already own and wear for other purposes.

Thrift shops or charity shops (depending on where you live and what you call them) can be really useful. They will often sell good quality items for small amounts and you know that the money is going to a good cause. If you are looking for something specific then this might involve a bit of luck, but more generic items can be purchased this way.

Wigs are often a big part of cosplay. There are loads of places to get good ones. If you go to a convention there are often loads of stalls selling amazing wigs (although they can be pricey this way). I have found that buying them from eBay, directly from the Chinese manufacturers, is often the cheapest way and they often don't put any additional postage on them. Yes, you might have to wait a few weeks for them to arrive, but this gives you plenty of time to really plan what you want to do.

You can also buy cosplay items online. There are loads of great stores around now who will be able to cater to cosplay needs. I have even found some that will custom make outfits for cosplay if you send them your correct measurements. Shop around when looking for custom made pieces though as some places are way more expensive than others.

What about props?

Some characters, especially from video games, will likely have elaborate props. This is where you get to be creative and again, it all depends on your own budget. You could go and buy that custom sword and spend a lot of money, or you could have a look around and see what materials you can use to make a good looking one yourself.

Again, the possibilities are endless and it all depends on time, money and what you really want and how creative you want to be with your cosplay.

Make-up?

There is no rule that says you have to wear make-up or even use a certain type of make-up. It all depends on what you have to hand and what you want to do. I see myself very much as an amateur cosplayer because I just don't have the time and resources (sadly) to take it further so I just use my everyday make-up.

If you want to have some professional photos done there is photography make up you can use that will really make your look stand out. This can be pricey though.

Some characters will be quite elaborate in their looks and require a lot of make-up. If you are going to cosplay a character from something like Avatar then obviously this will require a lot of make-up and time. If you are cosplaying a human anime character then (depending on the character) this will require slightly less.

Sarah's cosplays

L:

Starting with L from Death Note (private investigator who is called in by the World's police forces to track down the mysterious killer, Kira) because he is the first character I had an idea to cosplay. I have loved the manga and anime a while and fell in love with L at first sight. I decided that, with MCM Comic Con coming up in London I would like to start cosplaying. I wasn't full of confidence in the first instance, so I decided to start with something I would feel comfortable with.

L wears the same thing all the time and it is something that I already had and kind of wore myself. The main costume consists of light blue, slightly baggy jeans and a long sleeved white top. The only thing I had to get hold of at the time was the black wig. I did this through eBay and it came quite quickly and only cost around £10.00.

The only make-up I really required was to put some dark eyeshadow under my eyes to create the bag eye look that L has. This can be created by staying awake for about a week, but it is probably best not to risk that...anyway, this completes the look.

Once I saw how this turned out I was filled with more confidence and decided to work on my second cosplay, Misa Amane.

Misa Amane:

Misa is also a character from Death Note. She is the blond, fun loving and enthusiastic model/singer/actress girlfriend of main character Light Yagami (aka Kira). She also possesses a death note and is often referred to as 'Second Kira'.

This was a really fun character to put together and I love cosplaying Misa as she has such a positive outlook on everything. She desperately wants Light to love her back and truly believes in his utopian world. She always wants to make him happy and is enthusiastic about everything.

The easy part of this cosplay for me was that I already owned some of the clothes. I have a really amazing skirt that I usually wear at weekends and especially to gigs. I know that Misa normally wears much skimpier clothes than I wear, but to be honest it would just look odd on me. Part of cosplay is being comfortable in what you are wearing too and I know that this skirt is something I enjoy wearing. It is in keeping with the character and what she normally wears too so it still works. Black or patterned tights are also really good and a black vest top (of which I own many) was how I completed the look. 

Again the wig came from eBay and cost a little more than the black one at around £15.00. It is worth it though and is possibly the best quality wig I own. A little bit of styling meant I could put Misa's trademark pigtails in and I was ready to go.

I tend to wear really dramatic eye make up for Misa and choose colours that let my blue eyes really stand out. This is because I feel it gives me more emphasis on Misa's eyes and shows her enthusiasm.

I managed to get hold of a Death Note prop from Amazon.co.uk for very little money and I made sure it was Misa's one and not Lights. When it comes to cosplay, the little details can make all the difference.

Grell (or Grelle) Sutcliff:

I always put the two spellings of this name in a title because in the manga it is 'Grelle' and in the anime it is 'Grell'. I will use 'Grell' though as this is the spelling as I first encountered it and I think that generally people tend to use this spelling more.

Grell Sutcliff is a grim reaper from the manga/anime series Black Butler (or Kuroshitsuji to give the Japanese title). Grell is flamboyant and often says inappropriately sexual things, especially to attractive men such as demon butler Sebastian. When speaking of them-self. Grell uses female pronouns such as 'lady' or 'woman'. This is a bone of contention amongst many fans as some argue that Grell should therefore always be referred to in this way and others insist that actually it is still correct to use male pronouns. I tend to think that if Grell were real then she would want to use female pronouns and that is what I do.

Grell comes into the story as the butler to Madam Red (Ciel's aunt and more of which later). At first Grell is dowdy and actually pretty useless as a butler. In the anime Grell is even sent to the Phantomhive Manor to learn from Sebastian. It turns out that Grell is also an unconvential butler as she is actually a grim reaper. Deviating from judging souls of those scheduled to die, Grell takes up with Madam Red as they have a mutual longing to give birth to a child, which neither can do (Grell being biologically male has something to do with that). It turns out that the pair are one of the most notorious killers of Victorian London, Jack the Ripper. This is how Grell comes into contact with Ciel and Sebastian and is the start of many amusing tales in the manga and anime.

This is another fun character to cosplay as Grell seems to have no shame and is very over the top in behaviour so it is amusing to adopt the personality of the character.

This was by far my biggest and most expensive cosplay. The wig was actually the easiest to get hold of (again, eBay) and cost around £10.00. Make-up was also easy, I just use a little red eyeshadow and some black eyeliner on the upper lid gives the effect of an anime eye. I also put mascara on the upper lid lashes only and this gives the effect of the fake eyelashes that Grell wears (I don't like them and have double lashes so they look daft on me).

The costume was a mix of things really. I already have a lot of smart black trousers that I wear to work so that was quick, cheap and easy. I ordered some shoes that look the part from Clarks and although they cost £60.00, they were cheaper than the cosplay ones that you can buy for this character which were around £80 - £90. I also had the coat, waistcoat, tie and gloves specially made. This cost £50.00 and was a case of sending my measurements to a company in China who makes cosplay outfits. The blouse was something I wear for work so was useful and cheap and I ordered some black arm bands as the ones that came with the cosplay outfit didn't really work out. 

The last part was the glasses. These are really just red frames with the neck chain attached. I got these from eBay for around £5.00.

The good thing about this outfit is that it is comfortable as it fits me perfectly as it is made to measure, but I can also use a lot of it for another cosplay of mine, Madam Red, as you will see next.

Madam Red:

Aunt to Ciel Phantomhive and the sister to his dead mother. Madam Red is the name given to her as she always wears the colour red. Throughout her life she has both loved and hated the colour as she inherited her father's red hair and always felt ashamed. When the young and handsome Vincent Phantomhive pays her a compliment and says she should embrace the colour she does and this is when she becomes 'Madam Red'. Unfortunately Vincent marries her older sister, Rachel, who she dearly loves and they have a baby, Ciel. Madam Red marries herself and falls pregnant, but a tragic accident leaves her a widow, childless and unable to ever have children. As a doctor she treats many people for many reasons, but when prostitutes start asking for abortions so that they don't have children around to put off punters she is angry that they would throw away something she would kill for and exacts revenge. This is when Grell takes up with her and agrees to help her out.

The character of Madam Red is one that comes across on the surface as one who is fun loving, excited, enthusiastic and happy all the time. She is the life of the party and often invited to large and extravagant social gatherings. Under the surface though she is bitter, angry and actually quite insecure. This is actually sad and lends a certain melancholy to the character.

Again the wig came from eBay as did the fish tail skirt. I already had a patterned blouse which looks the part and the good thing was that I could reuse some of the Grell cosplay to portray Madam Red. The waistcoat and coat are useful as these are items that Madam Red wears alot. In fact, the coat Grell wears actually belonged to Madam Red, but Grell took it from her claiming she was not fit to wear such a passionate colour. This made the Grell costume more cost effective and it provided me with the perfect outfit for Madam Red.

The make-up was also red eyeshadow, but I take it up to the brow which I don't do with Grell. Again, the anime eye is created with eyeliner on the upper lid and I use mascara on the upper and lower lids this time.

So that is my cosplay and my advice. I hope you enjoyed it and it helped shape some of your ideas.