2014: How It Went (Halloween)

Me compared with Maka!

Hey!
So my experience this year was a bit impaired, seeing as I caught a cold yesterday, so my review might be a bit biased. I also have a headache, so keep that in mind. :)

Recognition: 3/10
Okay, so I admit I was hoping for more recognition, but since this is better than last year, I'm fine with it. Three other people in our party of trick-or-treaters were from Soul Eater, so they obviously recognized me. One other person besides that did, who was dressed in an Attack On Titan cosplay, so that was fun.

Strength: 10/10
Yup, nothing came undone, nothing broke, nothing ripped, nothing popped off. It held up extremely well.

Comfort: 8/10

The skirt kept riding up, but if it weren't for that, it would have been fine. Also my legs and hands got a bit cold.

Candy Rating: 4/10
The usual treats! ;)

So, I know that was a little short but that's because I basically covered all that in the How it Went Special: Otakon post.

Happy Halloween!

2015's Costume: Ciel Phantomhive

The costume I'll be making!

Hey! So I know that it's really early to be posting this (I haven't even posted the How It Went post for this year yet!) but I know that this costume will be hard to make so I've decided to start as soon as possible so I can really make it look great. Anyway, I have decided that next year's costume will be...drumroll...Earl Ciel Phantomhive from Black Butler! And for those of you who don't know, that's basically an anime about rich people and demons and contracts and servants!

So this costume I'm planning on elaborating on a bit by adding some extra ruffle here and there and picking out nice fabrics.

It's a costume that I haven't seen anyone do before, it's from the 3rd OVA from the 2nd season called Welcome To The Phantomhive's, and while I don't really like this particular episode, I do like the outfit that Ciel wears, and since I've been going as a lot of smart children lately (Near, Maka) I thought it would be a good fit. Also, the top hat, so yeah.

I'm going to need my father's tailoring expertise a lot on this one! :D

Happy soon-to-be Halloween!

2014: How It Went (Otakon)

I have to point out the excellent Excalibur cosplay in the background!
And, yeah, I do look kind of scary in this picture.

Hi! So I wore this cosplay (I will from now on refer to it as a cosplay–) to Otakon, which was very fun! I'll also be posting a post about it's performance on Halloween, so don't think I'm forgetting what this blog's about!

Recognition: 7/10

So yay! A bunch of people recognized me, including a person dressed as Soul who said "makamakamakamakamaka" as I passed by, and at least three people took a picture of me! But, it's to be expected that I would be recognized in this crowd, I mean, it is Otakon, after all.

Strength: 10/10

Nothing broke at all! I was worried that the buttons might come off, but they held very well, and all-in-all, this is a great costume for a con because of its durability.

Just another cool picture of Maka!

Comfort: 8/10

Pretty comfortable, except that the skirt kept riding up (I was wearing leggings, so it wasn't really a problem), the gloves were kind of annoying to take on and off to eat and such, and near the end of the day the wig cap was digging into my skull, but pretty comfortable, nonetheless.

Con Rating: 9/10

I'm replacing the candy rating section for obvious reasons. So this con is really fun! I had a lot of fun every day and at the photoshoot and hopefully will be going next year.  Even the lines were fun, because they gave you some rest in between all the walking. The only complaint I have is that the first day we had to wait two hours to get in the building because of the line (next time we'll get the badges the day before!)

So it was really fun, and I'll try to go next year. I also forget to mention that I went to the unofficial Soul Eater photoshoot, as seen in the picture above. It was really great, even if I didn't talk much to the other people, I still really enjoyed being around other Soul eater fans!

Anyway, I'll post more near Halloween!

Maka: The Coat and Skirt

The finished Maka costume.

Hi!

My costume's all finished and I'm ready for Otakon! :D

Yeah!

So, I looked all over the place and couldn't find a skirt, so I was going to make it, but then at the last minute I walked into Wal-Mart (reluctantly, just to see if they had something,) and saw the perfect skirt! (shown in picture)
So that's great.

And now...

The Coat

What you'll need:

• Black coat/dress/thing that looks remotely like Maka's.
• White shirt cuffs taken from tuxedo shirt (cuff link kind)
• Maka buttons (see previous post)
• Brads
• Scissors
• Hot glue gun
• Thread and needle

Maka is a Slytherin! I knew it! ...Because her tie...?
...Never mind. :P

So what my father did was sew the cuffs onto the coat inside, using the hot glue at the same time to secure the thread. Then, for the buttons, he cut two very small holes in
the front where the buttons are, glued brads into the buttons
(so the flaps stick out through it) and inserted the bass through the holes and then folded the flaps down. Kind of complicated, I know, and also kind of hard to put on. I'd suggest finding another tutorial for that part.

Then we just glued the shirt cuff buttons on, because they don't need to come off.

So, yay!

I'll post after Otakon to report on how it went!

Maka: The Boots, Shirt, Vest, and Tie

Aren't they awesome? :D

Hello!

So I managed to find these really cool boots at a local thrift store and I think they are just perfect for Maka!

Yes, that's the same shirt I used for Near. :P

I may or may not add white craft foam and/or white belts to them to make them more like Maka's boots, it depends on whether I have extra time after I've finished her coat.

I also got these nice items.
I think they'll work pretty nicely. The tie is a little weird, you can't see it in the picture, but between the cream and green are small black lines.

Ah! Thrift stores! They usually have what you want. Anyway, the skirt is hard to find, which surprises me, because I thought it would be the easiest to find.
Oh, yeah, and I made these buttons for the coat out of (guess what?) craft foam, yarn, and stuffing. Here's what I did, it's pretty easy:

You will need:

• White craft foam
• Black or dark grey yarn
• Big needle with big eye
• Cotton stuffing, polyester stuffing, scraps of fluffy fabric...you get the idea.
• Silver paint
• Scissors
• Hot glue and hot glue gun

Okay, so you cut out 4 circles from the foam with about 3/4 of an inch radius, and also cut out 4 smaller circles with about 1 cm radius. Glue two of the circle's edges together halfway. Leave an opening so that you can put stuffing in to make the button roundish on top. Stuff it. Glue the opening shut. Paint the "button" silver.

Now for the thread. Thread the needle with the yarn and push it through at the edge of the "button." Push the needle in the opposite edge and repeat on the other side (so that it crosses over.) Repeat for the three other buttons.

Then you can safety pin them to the coat! Yay!

I'll post again soon!

2014's Costume: Maka Albarn

Maka!

Hello everyone!

This year I'm going to be Maka from the anime Soul Eater! I will be trying to finish it in time for Otakon, but even if I don't I'll still wear it for Halloween.

Right now the hardest looking thing about this costume is her boots...but good old craft foam will help a lot there.

Anyways, this is just a short update.

I'll post more soon.