Cosplay Positivity

I’m personally a fan of group costumes being as cohesive as possible, so I’d go for the longer blonde wig, but it’s really a personal design decision! Consider how feminine you’re making the costumes and think about how recognizably genderbent it would be with the different hairstyles. (I find that sketching ideas out really helps me make design decisions like this. Sketch both of your costumes together with the different wigs and see which you like better.)

As far as wig shininess, powder the heck out of it! Baby powder is great for dulling a shiny wig. But also, give your wig a gentle comb out and stick some product in it (I love beeswax for smoothing stray hairs) before powdering. Part of the reason lots of wigs look fake is because people don’t do anything to them at all styling wise. Just some basic effort with a wig can go a long way. 

~Sara

Well the first thing to do is decide what material you want to use and make a supply list. I would go with Worbla or some other thermoplastic (you’ll need quite a bit for Effie). Next make patterns out of paper on a form of yourself so the fit is right. 

For the rest you should be able to follow the usual process of making cosplay armor (sealing, painting, and fitting).

Sorry if this isn’t super helpful but I would need more specific questions to help better.

~Sola 

I’ve never used Scotchgard but after some research I wouldn’t recommend it. It seems to be more for waterproofing and will change the finish of the flannel. 

Just invest in a good stain remover (I personally like Oxiclean laundry stain remover spray) and remember all clothes get dirty eventually

~Sola

You could do all that but I think it would get heavy. With the right shapes I think you could make it from foam. 

There are fursuiters that make those sort of skulls from sculpting clay and casting it.

 But I found one that carved it from expanding foam on a plastic face mask so that could be another option

~Sola

I would create an outer form that looks like grenades out of cardboard or thermoplastic but attach it to an inner form that fits snugly on my forearm. Or you could just make the holes at the top and bottom fit your forearm and wrist well, although the art makes the bottom look like it is open. 

~Sola

This is totally a problem not unique to you! Projects, especially large ones or things new to you, can be really intimidating. I find that a thing that helps is to write out all the steps, make a kind of to do list. Like: draft/alter pattern, wash fabric, cut mockup, stitch mockup, alter pattern, cut fabric, etc. Personally, I find that breaking things down into little pieces can help make it more approachable and easier to get started. I also love crossing things off of lists, so it feels like you’re actually getting somewhere with your project. 

Also, don’t be afraid to ask your more experienced friends for help getting started or some encouragement! I know I tend to be a pretty big cheerleader for my less experienced cosplay friends, and I’m sure they’ll be happy to help. Good luck with your cosplay!

Paper will be your best friend. You can draft your own pattern by making several petals taping them together and cutting a circle out the will fit your wait. Like these people did [X,X]

~Sola

You could take long strips of linen and wrap them around your body while you a shirt and pants and stitch down the ends or you could follow this tutorial but use a shirt and pants pattern instead of one for an arm wrap.

You could make the mask, hand armor, and knifes from craft foam and there are tons of resource on how to do so. Just give a quick google search.

Good luck

~Sola

For something like Jack you would need a ponytail wig like Arda’s Jasmine or Epic Cosplay’s Phoebe

You could also take any long wig, remove the wefts and sew them in upside down to be able to pull the hair up into a top knot. 

Good luck

~Sola

I think that spandex would be a good choice, at least for the base bodysuit! They seem to have armory bits, which I wouldn’t use spandex for unless I was covering some sort of structure in the spandex.

If you’re looking to add volume, you can choose to add structure to the costume (bra cups with cutlets stuffed in the sides to push your boobs inwards, stealthily stitched into the costume or just straight up adhered to your skin). If you’re looking for more of a lift effect, check out some burlesque resources! Lots of burlesque performers do this thing with their pasties that’s a weird lift/tuck thing for a perkier bust. You could do that discreetly under your costume if you can’t find a way you like to work in more traditional support. 

If it doesn’t seem very obvious, I’ll often go by the type of garment it is. Is it a ballgown? Consider looking at satin, taffeta, silks, etc. Suit? Wools! Sundress? Cottons and linens. If you’re not sure what type of fabric a certain kind of garment is usually made of, a quick google search can generally solve that!

If it’s more of a non traditional garment (aka lots of weird anime things), think about what you want the weight and drape to be for it to look nice. Do you need a really stiff fabric or do you need something that will drape really pretty? Do you want it to be a little sheer or very thick? Do you want it to have any sheen or be a bit rougher/matte? 

And if you’re getting a bit more advanced and doing dye work, fiber content can become very important, so keep that in mind too if it’s a thing that’s necessary for a costume! 

Also, we’re happy to give specific advice if you have a certain costume in mind!

First you need to know your prescription. If you have minus power, there are tons of sites that sell special contacts. If you have plus power (like me) its much harder. As far as I know sites don't sell this type.Its also a really good idea to talk to your eye doctor before buying any online.~Sola

For something like that you'll need a sturdy frame to put the wefts on. You could attach a cylinder of cardboard or thermoplastics to a base wig and then wrap rows of wefts around it.~Sola

If you want it to have the stiffness of armor, your mobility will be limited, but you can probably find little tricks to increase your mobility. I would do something like make the sleeves a separate piece and just have them attached to the chest piece with a few strips of elastic (shorter pieces at the top so they don’t fall down but some longer ones at the bottom to act as a sort of underarm gusset). I’d probably have the elastic snap on the inside with giant snaps so that the sleeves would be removable and you could just slip them on after you get the chest piece on and that way you won’t have to try to maneuver your arms through that weird angle. 

~Sara

My advice would be to pin the hair and hide the pins behind the ears. Just like two bobby pins behind each ear, cross pinned for security, should hold the hair there as long as it’s long enough to actually reach behind the ears. If there are some shorter hairs in front that won’t be held by that, I would combine those pins with a few more bobby pins along the front, not necessarily with the whole pin visible, but sort of slid into the hair so most of the pin us hidden but it’s still holding some of the hair. Combined with hairspray, that should help keep it secure.

~Sara