i want to start cosplaying ^_^

[CagalliAthha16]

i think it would be so cool to start, but i don't know how. how did all of you start?

[SaSuNaRu]

The most important thing, well, in my opinion, is to find out what you want to be first.

Yes, there are a BAJILLION and one ideas to choose from, but you have to find something *at least for the first costume* that is relatively cheap to make, *even if you yourself aren't sewing it*. (Though the idea of being Cloud from Advent Children can appeal to you... it takes more time than you think, and even more money than you can waste... T-T)

So what ideas are you looking at?

[DarkPriestess]

The way I got started was.... well I just jumped right in. I picked a character from my favorite video game of all time, and even though it WAS difficult (and costly) I did her. I am a Breath of Fire 2 (snes) cosplayer.

I am Nina.

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a392/cosplaylogbook/Reactor%202005/NINA.jpg


But be reasonable and set yourself up a budget. Think of how much are you willing to spend. My wings alone costs about roughly $90 and then the making of my dress and other props.... was MUCH cheaper :D use your imagination as well. See my belt?

It is made from the lid of a tin can from the dollar store, some black spray paint, and the hooks on over-all bibs.

The gold trim on my dress? Christmas tree trim / decorations (NOT WASHER MACHINE FRIENDLY :( I had to replace it... thankfully I had enough left to do so)

The "jewels" on my gauntlets and belt? Glass stones meant to throw in the bottom of a fish tank. Or life counters if you play Magic:The Gathering

The actual making of my wings is a secret, but I will say this... each one has 8 feather boa's on it.

[kiriti]

I think cosplay is a good Idea. Make sure though that you have all the right equpiment. I've cosplayed Robin off of Witch Hunter Robin. So I wish you good luck:D

[SaSuNaRu]

Important fact: BE GHETTO IF YOU HAVE TO!!!

Thrift store shopping is fun too, so you can actually get stuff there for costumes instead of wasting tons at JoAnne fabrics

*Made a Sakura outfit in a DAY, only spent two dollars, got the headband for my birthday*

[Kitsune3]

I want to cosplay but i don't know any characters that would look okay as an african american. I need a list. As a side quest for cagalli, please form a list of anime charactersd that would look good black.

[CatMarieS]

How about Nadia from "Nadia: The Secret of Blue Water"?

[kariuchiha]

i really want to start to.. there's so many cool outfits out there

[Noriko]

I want to cosplay but i don't know any characters that would look okay as an african american. I need a list. As a side quest for cagalli, please form a list of anime charactersd that would look good black.

Here's two for you:

Himemiya Anthy from Shoujo Kakumei Utena!
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a245/noriko_of_doom/character-design-2.jpg
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a245/noriko_of_doom/utena-anthy1.jpg
I even found a site (by accident... ^^;; ) telling you how to make her outfit! http://www.sfolse.net/cos/anthy/index.html

ANNNNDDDD....

Shouin Yoruichi (did I spell that right??? They just call her Yoruichi-san in the manga..... ) from Bleach! Here are a few of her outfits:

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a245/noriko_of_doom/yoru.jpg

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a245/noriko_of_doom/untitled.jpg

She's the coolest. She spends about half the anime in the form of a black cat with a really deep voice. Everyone was really surprised when it turned out she was a sexy lady. XP

[Mexicanime]

Well, because of my financial limits, my first cosplay will be as Onizuka of GTO, which so far, has cost me about $50, mostly on the shoes and coloring the wig, but the coat only cost me $4.50 at a thrift store.

http://img461.imageshack.us/img461/6384/onizuka8ro.jpg.

[PsychoXLeXCemu]

Important fact: BE GHETTO IF YOU HAVE TO!!!

Thrift store shopping is fun too, so you can actually get stuff there for costumes instead of wasting tons at JoAnne fabrics

*Made a Sakura outfit in a DAY, only spent two dollars, got the headband for my birthday*

be aware of what ghetto cosplay is tho, before ya start ^_~
ghetto costumes basically are stuff made 3 hours before con with trash bags, and stuff like that. they hot glue them together and strut around with that. now, if you're trying to get one of those costumes that every one stares at at the con(aka, high quality, yaya quality, costumes), well then...JoAnn's can be ya best friend. things like resin casting, fiber glass work, pattern drafting and altering, wig styling, wig dying, and many more things will only come over time and research. web sites like cosplay.com and such are invaluable resources that, as an un-experienced cosplayer, can help ya out a ton. there they have access to tons of experienced cosplayers that know what their doing. well, ya can also ask meh too! when i get borded, i stare at people's clothes and figure out what type of seams and such were used. i can look at a costume and in almost an instant i know what to do...it's something i gained with experience in over 17 costumes...well, basically start small, and work up. things like cloud strife and sephiroth are costumes that should not be taken lightly and take a lot of experience...
also, i'm not looking for another debate about cosplaying levels (i got into one a bit on the anizona forus all ready) so if you live by the ghetto standard, and don't take experience into costume decisions, then, please don't question me...i like to do more high quality costumes...bad seams and such annoy meh ^-^...but i'm not caulky bout it...just i'm too nit picky bout costumes


also: STAY AWAY FROM BROUGE SATIN...it should never be used...no character has a cosume with that fabric, and i looks cheep on costumes.

[Zombie prom date]

I started with a Sailor Moon cosplay. Only probelm was I'm a guy and the skirt was really really short. I won't show you the pictures. I want to do a school girl outfit from Kanon as my latest one. School girl outfits are always a good place to start.

[cosplayqueen]

waiting 2 hours in the line for stupid people who didn't preorder thier passes for the anime expo does things to a person so ya pretty much draw out your character or if you're art challenged map it out in your mind. like alll the changes you might have to make like "this is too short" "I'm not gonna find this any where" stuff like that try to find as much as you can online or in the stores if it's not exactly what you want then fix it later it helps soOo much to not have to make everything and even if you're not good with a sewing machine or not rich enough for a tailor-they're not really that expensive- you can make it happen o ya and my first will be princess ai yes i know-noting screen name- i'm really excited about it and so i put it like that so deal with it and princess ai mic=ght not be the cheapest person to choose but ya know what with ebay and a ton of cash in my arsenal it's working

[Miako]

School girl outfits are fun. First of all, they are usually comfortable. You probably don't want to worry about someone stepping on your long skirt or bumping into your bigger accessories the first time around. Second, ^_^ you can buy them if you don't sew or don't have the time...or don't want to put a lot of time into your costume, the personal touches for school girl uniforms are usually few and simple to do. I'm thinking of doing Orihime's school girl uniform for the last day of my next con as the last day I usually don't feel like going all out. But it's so much more fun to be in character for me than not. Let us know what you come up with for who you want to do!

[Ch*yeuk]

I would love to start, but I am so lazy

[Deed]

I would love to start, but I am so lazy
Ditto...that and I'm financially challenged XP

[sregirl]

Remember: Sewing machines, dollar/thrift/craft stores, fabric dye, paper mache, and hot glue guns are all your friends. (Unless you glue your hand to your headpiece...) I would also suggest doing something original that isn't cosplayed very often, because otherwise people will usually not notice your workmanship (Characters from Naruto, Full Metal Alchemist, and One Piece are good examples of the over-cosplayed)

[saralicious]

I'm financially challenged, but luckily I've got a sponsor otaku who's willing to make my Shia (Pita Ten) cosplay this year. It's the cute little kitty pajamas with, well, it's just too cute to describe. One of my friends is going as Misha. ^.^

[Miako]

Be sure to show us a picture of it! Pita Ten is super cute and Shia is definitely the most adorable apprentice ever. ^_^

[saralicious]

Well, if I manage to keep in touch I'll be sure of it. Shia is the ultimate embodiment of cuteness and innocence from an evil perspective, and it would just be doing you all an injustice if I didn't. (btw, I think she really is good) Thanks for the Pita Ten props, even if it isn't my place to take them ^_^ It's just a horrible feeling to love something so much and have everyone else look at you like 0.o (Such is the case in my school and friends and the like...)

[Miako]

Cosplaying period is enough to give someone props. ^_^ So you definitely can accept props for deciding to be such a cute character. And yea, I think she's good too. ^_~

[CagalliAthha16]

i'm not sure what character to cosplay though, and i don't even know when or where i'd be able to go to a con. does anyone have any ideas for a character that would be easy to cosplay? i don't have a working sewing machine and i don't have a lot of money to spend.

[DarkPriestess]

race or skin color shouldn't really matter too much when picking out a cosplay, although I can see where people would want to try to look as close to a character as possible... but I have seen the following cosplayed by people with dark skin.

Tifa Lockhart (both the FF7 and Advent Children version)
Lupin the 3rd
Dark from DNangel
Card Captor Sakura (and this was a man too.... CardCaptor Will lol)
Winry Rockbell from FullMetal Alchemist
Sesshomaru from Inu-Yasha.

All of these looked absolutly wonderful and no one cared that they didn't have the same skin color as the original characters...... except Sesshomaru. Sesshy made the mistake of trying to use body paint and make his skin pure white. It didn't look so bad right at first (I caught him comming out of his room) but when I saw him again like four hours later, the paint had faded and just looked like crap. So, don't do it, and if there is a cosplay you really want to do, don't worry about that sorta stuff, just remeber to have fun :D

[DarkPriestess]

i don't even know when or where i'd be able to go to a con.


http://www.anime-cons.com/events/search.shtml


Maybe there is one in your area that you don't know about yet. There is a free con called JAFAX only an hour away from my home, This year makes it's 11th year running... and I just found out about it last year ;_; because it's listed on that site.

[Shinigamiyoko]

It really does sound like fun to cosplay... I seriously think I will this Halloween. *sigh* Now, I wish I listened when Mom tried to teach me how to sow...

[Miako]

I'm gonna agree with the race post. No one cares what color you are as long as you get the outfit right. On some notes tho I would alter a few details *gasp* Like hair color..sometimes it's just not gonna work with your skin color *in MY opinion* so it's better to go with a color that will compliment you in the style of the character, instead of going with that color. I'm going to do Orihime and I think especially in pictures if I had an orange wig in her color I'd just look to cartoony and well...dumb. So I'm gonna opt for a black wig in the same style with her barrettes OR a way different shade of orange *think more brown* and then perfectly match her costume. It's definitely your choice of course the hair thing but seriously regardless of color you can cosplay who you want and still look completely awesome, I've seen it. And if you do some searching for cosplayers you'll see it too. ^_^

[PsychoXLeXCemu]

actuallly, where i live, there's this cosplayer named Honey Bunny (that's not her real name) and she does the most kick butt costumes i've ever seen (they're like what yaya or cherry would make) and she's African-American. she's actually the one starting up the arizona cosplay socity...also for easy costumes, here are some ideas:
EGL (these can be hard, but they can also be very easy...just depends on what ya want to do)
Kagome
Maid Out Fits from Tokyo Mew Mew (aka Mew Mew Power...the manga is way better) they're faily simple to make (mastering the puffy sleave might be a bit difficult tho)
and if you're skinny Rose from .Hack (...i'm not sure on this one, but you may be able to do it)

[CagalliAthha16]

i want to cosplay Rosett from Chrno (or Chrono) Crusade, but i don't know how to start. if i were to sew any part of the costume, i would have to hand sew cuz my sewing machine is wacky. does anyone have any tips? and i don't have a lot of money to spend.

[PsychoXLeXCemu]

as i said in an earlier post, if ya want help, PLEASE post a pic of the character...it makes it so much easier ^_^;; thank you!

i'm assuming you're talking about this character ( http://www.clho.net/anime/anime.php?anime=225 )? i won't post help on it untill i know specifically which character you're doing...sorreh D: but i don't want to write out a long help list and have it be on the wrong character ^-^

[Menstrual Cramps]

One of the easiest cosplays: Japanese School Girl.
Legwarmers, skirt, shirt with decorations or custom-made.
Then you can decide if you want to do anything special, like make-up or what-not.
Sailor Scouts are simple too, with their first level outfits.
Naruto is beyond simple-- but over done.
Same with ED and Winry from FMA.
Chii is advanced/difficult but over-done.

[CagalliAthha16]

yes kalas_angel_of_darkness, that is her. i was to do the one at the top of the page, the one where she doesn't have shorts on and she has that vest thing on.

[PsychoXLeXCemu]

hhmm *mulling it over*...o.O...that is a difficult costume indeed ^-^;; if you want something thats not extremly time consuming, i'd pick a different costume, but i'll help ya out on this one ^-^;; from head to toe:

the cap/hat/nun habbot thingy is a long restangle that is the length as far as you want it to go down (aka, if you want it to go down to your tush, then it has to be the length from the top of your head to your tush) and the same goes for the width (from the top of your head to the lengtg of your elbow or such) then that is sewen to a long stiff circle the lenght of the top of your head

the white under shirt appears to be a chinese coller type thing very loose and resing on her coller bone

the blue shirt is a bottis pattern (they sell them from new look [which i think is under simplicity] for like 2.59)

the sleaves look to be a pain in the butt X.X the sleaves you will need to draft a pattern for...i'm thinking it will be a 4 peice pattern for each sleave...a regular bottom sleave pattern, but the top be arched triangles? then sewing a long restangle to the bottom of the sleave...it will take some fiddlin and will probally be a big pain in the rumpus

the corset type thingy on her waist is basically a long rectangle around her waist w/ 2 black squares on it.

the skirt is a basic long skirt pattern with just 2 long slits up the the side

the thigh highs you can buy

the metal things on her sleaves can be made w/ craft tin, spray paint, and acrylic for the little detailes

any thing ya don't get or i missed?

[CagalliAthha16]

uh... i think i'll just end up modifyin a dress, cuz i don't have a sewing machine. but that helps with what kind of dress i'm lookin for. and it gave me ideas for how to do the hat and the things on her sleeves. thanks. ^_^

[PsychoXLeXCemu]

that's what i'm here for tehehehe ^_^

[Manadevil]

I started one halloween when i was really bored. I was inuyasha.

[T0M0_chan]

I'm financially challenged, but luckily I've got a sponsor otaku who's willing to make my Shia (Pita Ten) cosplay this year. It's the cute little kitty pajamas with, well, it's just too cute to describe. One of my friends is going as Misha. ^.^



:) GOOD LUCK

[orewatanseida]

I've decided what costume I'd like to portray, but how do you get started on sewing?!?! I've been stuck on that aspect for centuries, haha. Never learned to use a sewing machine and then it broke on me and my mum doesn't wanna get another one... we're missing some weird part.

Any use in hand stitching, or should I just get a cheap sewing machine for the moment? My costume is one of those where you should start out with smaller projects first if it helps on advice.

[WhistleBlower]

Im from Africa too and in my first cosplay im like what the heck am i gonna do!!?? Noone looks even romotely like me then a mericle happened i sound out about Tamara from sokora refugees. It was really easy cause it was pretty much just a school girl uniform ^_^ unfortunatly at the time i severly laced in the breast department but eh whatever I still felt pretty damn proud!

[SaSuNaRu]

be aware of what ghetto cosplay is tho, before ya start ^_~
ghetto costumes basically are stuff made 3 hours before con with trash bags, and stuff like that. they hot glue them together and strut around with that. now, if you're trying to get one of those costumes that every one stares at at the con(aka, high quality, yaya quality, costumes), well then...JoAnn's can be ya best friend. things like resin casting, fiber glass work, pattern drafting and altering, wig styling, wig dying, and many more things will only come over time and research. web sites like cosplay.com and such are invaluable resources that, as an un-experienced cosplayer, can help ya out a ton. there they have access to tons of experienced cosplayers that know what their doing. well, ya can also ask meh too! when i get borded, i stare at people's clothes and figure out what type of seams and such were used. i can look at a costume and in almost an instant i know what to do...it's something i gained with experience in over 17 costumes...well, basically start small, and work up. things like cloud strife and sephiroth are costumes that should not be taken lightly and take a lot of experience...
also, i'm not looking for another debate about cosplaying levels (i got into one a bit on the anizona forus all ready) so if you live by the ghetto standard, and don't take experience into costume decisions, then, please don't question me...i like to do more high quality costumes...bad seams and such annoy meh ^-^...but i'm not caulky bout it...just i'm too nit picky bout costumes


also: STAY AWAY FROM BROUGE SATIN...it should never be used...no character has a cosume with that fabric, and i looks cheep on costumes.

I didnt mean like "super ghetto" liek that... XD I'm a ... person that sews (not a sewer.... >.<) I meant, think AHEAD of time of what possible costumes you would like to do, cuz some fabrics that aren't popular this year, can be popular next year and they up the price.

*Last year, orange fabric for a Naruto costume, for example, was pretty cheap. Orange is a "color" of this spring and summer, so now it's extremely high priced.

[roxas87]

well you can always go for a death god since im going as yachiru this year at the anime expo so this is my first time cosplaying i just hope that my costume likes nice but the hard part is yachiru's hair i cant decide if i want to get a wig or just color my hair pink