This will probably be my last journal before my exams in April, wish me luck! In the spirit of cosplaying and Anime North, here’s my long overdue cosplay meme~! ^-^

Cosplaying


1. What is your cosplay alias?
Let’s just go with my screen name, nikichi!

2. How many years have you cosplayed?
I started cosplaying in 2005 so that would be 4 years. This year will be my 5th!

3. How did you get into cosplaying?
Well, I can’t say that I remember. My first cosplay was Yu Yu Hakusho, so my love for the show was definitely a motivating factor. Oh, and Lindy said that she put the idea into our heads after we went to our first con and saw so many cosplayers. :/ I’ll stick with that.

4. What was your first convention and how did it go?
Anime North 2004…aaaalll the way back when I was almost 15 (I feel so old lately >_> ). It was really awesome to realize just how many people shared the same interests as me. I was so amazed by AMV contest, and a little bit freaked out by some of the outfits people were wearing (at the time I had no idea what cosplay was, and the more unusual ones stood out to me—like domo-kun). I remember being so exhausted by the end of the day. :'D

5. How many cons have you been to?
Eleven! ^-^

6. How many cosplays have you done?
5 cosplays! Yu Yu Hakusho (Hiei), Azumanga Daioh (Kagura), Bleach (Rukia), Host Club (Haruhi), Death Note (Misa)

Your Cosplays

7. What was your first cosplay and why did you choose it?
As I mentioned above, my first cosplay was YYH, and I chose it because it's one of my top favourite animes.

8. What is your favorite cosplay you've done so far?
Haruhi Fujioka…and soon to be Sheena Fujibayashi!

9. What is your least favorite you've cosplayed?
Sadly, Hiei :’( We were all such n00bs back then. My costume was really nice, but my hair (no wig) and (lack of) makeup was awful.

10. What cosplay is the most uncomfortable?
Hmm…I was going to say Hiei, because the boots I wore were too small for me, but now I’m going to say Misa, just because at DTAC last year it felt like my feet were going to fall off after walking all day in high heels. That and I’m not used to wearing long wigs and I found that it got in the way a lot.

Process

11. How do you research the cosplay before you make it?
Of course I familiarize myself with the character/series that I’m cosplaying as. This includes actually watching the show (or reading the manga), searching for reference pictures, looking up tutorials, and reading advice from other cosplayers online. Then I pass on what I’ve learned to the person who actually makes my costumes—Erin.

12. Do you sew your cosplays yourself?
LOL I fail at sewing. Erin has (generously) made all of my costumes so far.

13. If so, how did you learn to sew? If not, do you plan to learn?
I’d love to be able to sew! Not being able to makes me feel so useless in the cosplay making process :’(

14. Do you make your own props?
I’ve never had a prop before. This year I’m making my own weapons (which are just cards, so they’ll be easy enough!).

15. If so, how did you learn to? If not, do you plan to learn?
As long as it’s relatively easy, I can manage. If it’s anything crafty, then I’d probably turn to Lindy. She can make anything or at least give me advice on what to do.

16. Do you style your own wigs?
I’ve trimmed and straightened my own wig (Misa). I spend a lot of time fixing my bangs (or so I’m told) and nitpicking until I find the right style.

17. What other skills do you use to create your cosplays?
My job/skill is information gathering, info that will basically help Lindy and Erin in the costume making process. I also help find wigs and other products online. I plan to put my art skills to use when I help out with some of the props for our Tales of Symphonia cosplay

18. What skill has been most useful for making your cosplay?
Ummm…finding/buying wigs and other items online, and helping Erin and Lindy (aka contributing) as much as I can! _{Which isn’t much u_u;;} I’m pretty much only involved in the after-process, such as editing photographs and helping with the layout of our dA page.

19. What is the hardest thing when making a cosplay?
Not being able to sew! ^-^

20. What was the biggest screw up you've had making a cosplay?
Not getting a wig for Hiei, Kagura, and Rukia.

21. How often do you injure yourself while making a cosplay?
WELL I don’t injure myself because I don’t make my cosplays. But my cosplay has attacked me. The worst (and only) time that I’ve been injured by my cosplay was when I came home from AN 08 and decided to hand wash my Ouran jacket. I threw it in a bucket, washed it, rinsed it, then squeezed it to get the water out—and felt a sharp pain shoot through my hand. I checked the inside of the lining (hahah swearing to myself about my bad luck), and found a pin stuck in there. Apparently, Erin booby-traps the outfits she makes for me with pins xD; Now I’m always wary when I’m first handed my outfits…

Budget

22. On average, how much will you spend on cosplay in one year?
It used to be $80. Then it went to $100. Now it’s well over that. xD

23. Do you try to stay cheap or do you splurge on materials?
I’m too confused to understand the prices of fabric when we shop for materials, so I just leave it up to Erin and Lin to decide for me ^-^ Of course, when there’s a sale, I splurge!

Conventions

24. What is your favorite convention?
Anime North.

25. What conventions have you gone to?
Anime North, CN Anime/FanExpo, MTAC, DTAC.

26. How far have you traveled for a convention?
All the cons around here are in Toronto. I really wish we lived closer to the big cons in the States! But I wouldn’t want to give up Anime North.

27. Do you usually stay in a hotel or stay at home when you can?
My friends and I always stay in a hotel for Anime North, from Thursday-Sunday. For the other cons, we take the GO train and only go for a day.

28. What was your worst convention experience?
My worst con experience was definitely CN Anime 2007.That year, we decided to attend CN (I’m not too fond of that con) for the entire weekend and stay at Erin’s cousin’s house. On Sunday morning I felt incredibly sick. I’m not sure if it was the water or food I’d eaten the day before, but I don’t remember ever feeling that terrible. I had to leave early and go home which was really upsetting because I wanted to spend the entire weekend there, and on Sunday we had been planning to get FMA autographs T__T

cos-PLAY

29. Have you ever cosplayed with a partner or group?


30. Do you try to act in character?
Of course ^-^

31. Have you ever done fanservice at a con? (Yaoi, yuri, etc)
Ahahahah no. Unless walking around in a school girl uniform counts.

32. How do you react to cosplayers dressed as character from the same anime/game/etc?
I laugh at my friends who immediately start comparing how amazing the other group looks, when they look just as good. It’s really exciting when this happens because it shows just how popular and great the series is. Last year the same thing happened with Host Club, and we ended up meeting and befriending a lot of people because of it!

33. Do you try to duplicate your character's expressions, walk, movements, etc?
LOL as much as I can! That’s an important part of cosplaying, imo~!

34. When crossplaying, do you try to act as much like the gender as possible?
I’ve only crossplayed once, and I think this is pretty much the same thing as acting in character.

35. What was your funniest experience of acting in character?
Uhhh…accepting to dance in the parking lot at Anime North 08 to Ouran’s theme song dressed as Ouran, because you know the Host Club would never turn down an invitation like that. It was quite embarrassing, but extremely fun at the same time. This involved being tossed back and forth between Kyoya and Tamaki (final episode style)—I don’t remember if I danced with the twins, since they were off to the side a bit hiding and laughing hysterically no doubt (they were totally in character, just like the rest of us of course), but I think I did…Anyways, that made our day and our entire weekend. I’d love to see the video of it or at least some pictures, but so far nothing on the internet has surfaced.

36. What was your worst experience acting in character?
I can't think of any...

Competition

37. Do you compete in cosplay contests?
I really want to!!! Doing a skit would be SO much fun!

38. Have you won anything?
Actually, yes, if the costume contest at the Breaking Dawn Midnight Masquerade at Chapters counts. I cosplayed as Alice Cullen, and won first place! And all I got was a lousy t-shirt ;w; But I also got a candle..from Dollarama…it’s pretty at least!

39. Do you prefer skits or walk-ons?
I love watching skits!

Community

40. How many friends have you made because of cosplay?
A lot!

41. Are you a part of any convention or cosplay forums?
Yes, on cosplay.com I go by the same screen name, nikichi. Though I’m not a very active member…>_<

42. Do you attend photo shoots and meet-ups outside of conventions?
Yes, the SutekiGo has gotten together quite a lot for photoshoots, but I’d love to collaborate and meet-up with other cosplay groups! It’s too bad that we all live so far apart :’D

43. What is the funniest reaction you've gotten cosplaying from people outside of the community?
Hmm…when this man asked what we were doing when we cosplayed as Host Club for our Gage Park Photoshoot. I came up with the excuse that we were doing a drama club project, which seemed to work ;D Last year we were mistaken as X-men at the Go station, which was hilarious. Oh and we were also mistaken as Harry Potter characters by Kate Mulgrew and got our picture with her ^^''

44. What was the worst?
Walking down the streets of Toronto late at night after FanExpo 2006 in Azumanga Daioh school girl uniforms. When we got off the GO Train we had to walk to Erin’s cousins house and the guys along the way freaked me out. I’m not sure what they said or if they whistled—I was too busy concentrating on getting home alive. T___T; There were also some jerks on the GO Train after DTAC last year who harassed us when we got off the train. I’m just glad I was with my friends! >_< Just gotta ignore those kinds of people!

Future

45. How long do you think you'll be cosplaying for?
Heh, as long as there are characters to cosplay as.

46. Name a few cosplays you're planning to do next.
Tales of Symphonia at Anime North 2009~! I can’t wait! ^-^ I’ll be cosplaying as Sheena. We’re also planning to revamp our Azumanga Daioh cosplays with new wigs and better makeup in the near future. After that possible cosplays include Code Geass (cosplaying as CC) and definitely Final Fantasy (cosplaying as Yuffie).

47. What is your dream cosplay?
Sheena Fujibayashi from Tales of Symphonia
Serene from Riviera: The Promised Land
Lethe from Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance
Yuffie from FF7
Yuki from The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya

Misc

48. What do you take into consideration when picking a character to cosplay?
Mainly their outfit/appearance/personality and if I’d actually be able to do the cosplay justice.

49. Is cosplay serious business for you?
Yes! We’re not professionals, but we like to try our best to make our cosplays perfect.

50. What is your favorite thing about cosplay?
I love cosplaying at cons. It’s always rewarding to hear people appreciate the amount of work that we put into our cosplays. I love dressing up as a completely different person and just having fun with it. Of course, cosplaying as a group is the best—and hanging out with people who share the same interests and dedication to cosplaying as we do!

51. What is your least favorite?
$$$ @_@ $$$

52. What is it that makes you keep cosplaying?
It’s become a major hobby of mine and I enjoy it so much. It’s just too much fun and worthwhile to give up!

53. How would you like cosplaying to change in the future?
Umm…I’d like for more people to get out there and start cosplaying!

54. How do you want to grow as a cosplayer?
I’d like to become better at cosplaying in general. That and I’d especially like to improve on my posing skills for photoshoots and cons.

55. Tag someone?

Any cosplayer who hasn’t already done this!