Cosplay Struggles: June

Hello there my possibly crafty friends!

Chances are, if you are on this blog, you enjoy one of 4 things.
1. Cosplay
2. Anime
3. Reading/nerd fandoms in general or
4. Me!

Just kidding, we both know that last one is probably not a real reason, but if it is then you are in luck. I am just going to write a little heart to heart about some internal struggles in regards to my cosplay projects.

First of all, picking a character to cosplay is never easy and I always have my doubts. I try to pick things with fun elements that will comfort me when I am surrounded by strangers who could laugh at me at any moment. I am always nervous and afraid but I make myself do it anyways, so please don't think that I am "Master of all that is cosplay". It isn't easy.

Second, I have always been crafty but never to the scale of costume making. I have worked as props and wardrobe for multiple productions and have grown up with it being an almost everyday affair in my house Homeschool and the family business leads to some creative adventures. so it has always been something I was familiar with but that doesn't make it easy. Before cosplay I never messed with the sewing machine, fake fur, hot glue, Gesso or pretty much any of my new materials and I never dreamed of making a sword or 3DMG so these past 6/7 months have really been eye opening for me and helped me realize what I might want to do with my future.

All that being said, during my last cosplay (Rin Okumura) I got very stressed and broke 3 sewing needles, every time the tips snapped up and hit me in the face. It is miracle that one of them didn't take my eye out. That has me afraid to sew again. I know that the best thing for me to do is to get right back in there and keep trying but I can't help but to be scared. The needle snapping means two things, I did something wrong and without the no-sew kit I would have failed. I don't or possibly cant  handle failure on my part. If I go to sew again and it ruins something I am working on then that will be a big failure and I know I can't handle that.
Currently I plan on hand sewing the trim onto my maid outfit so that will take a while and probably hurt but at least I can practice my stitches. I do have plans to try and sew a simple pair of fingerless gloves just to work things out with my sewing machine and get back on good graces with it.... Wish me luck.

Also, I don't know if you noticed but I tend to lean towards cosplaying male characters. That is because I am not and never have been confident in my ability to look "cute" or "attractive". I don't picture myself that way and have a hard time even trying to figure out how to accomplish that. You can watch a million tutorials but in the end if you aren't cute then you simply aren't cute. Almost all female anime/manga/game characters are cute and hot! I have considered doing strong female examples like Riza Hawkeye (FMA) or Erza Scarlet (FairyTail) but they also have a certain appeal that I lack. What I am saying is, this Maid costume is a huge accomplishment for me. It might not turn out great and I might not do it justice but I am trying and doing my best because that is all I know how to do.
I do still plan to cosplay male characters because lets face it, there are a ton more males that have fun personalities and easy costumes. Also I really want to be able to make females (or males) days at a convention. Imagine a Tamaki coming up and giving you a flower and reminding you that you are perfect just the way you are. Sound silly? Maybe. On my last day of Yama-con 2015 a pair of Hikaru and Kaoru cosplayers (crossplaying) let me take their pictures and gave me a rose and really acted their part. That saved my Sunday and left a wonderful lasting impression that I want to be able to pass on.


These have been only a few of my cosplay struggles and I am glad that you chose to read them. No hate please, I just left a portion of my heart and soul exposed so don't abuse it.

~Aki Ame Okami