An obvious question but how old are you? Where are you from?
I’m 24 years old and from Pennsylvania in the USA!
Getting to the main point how long have you’ve been cosplaying?
I’ve been “cosplaying” since 2006. I didn’t really get serious about it until around 2010.
What really inspired you to get into cosplaying? Was it a specific cosplayer or maybe it just looked fun so you wanted to try it out?
When I initially started to cosplay there were really no “cosplay famous” people that I could have sought inspiration from. What inspired me the most was the feeling I got, and the experiences I had while cosplaying. It was always so much fun to bring to life a character I really enjoyed, and I always met new people who were in the same fandom as the anime/game I cosplayed from!
Takamina the 5th – AKB0048
What are some of your favorite cosplays and why?
To date I’d have to say Takamina the 5th of AKB0048 and Princess Serenity of Sailor Moon. Takamina is special because she was the cosplay I wore in our first masquerade performance, I always do Takamina in a large group with my friends, and I very much relate to and love the character. Princess Serenity was a very, very long time coming. I’ve wanted to cosplay her since I was a kid and finally being able to bring my childhood heroine to life was one of the most magical feelings.
Do you make your cosplay yourself, if so, how long does it usually take to make?
I don’t usually make my own cosplays. Some times I alter them and/or make accessories or props, but it would be hard to put a time frame on that kind of thing.
Lux – League of Legends
Since this blog is mainly about Shoujo do you have any favorite Shoujo’s you enjoy watching? Anything that you’d like to suggest to the viewers?
Well of course there is Sailor Moon Crystal, but I’m sure everyone knows that. I really enjoyed Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki-kun this past season! It’s hilarious and reminds me a lot of Ouran High School Host Club some how. Also Wolf Girl and Black Prince was fairly good!
Aside from Shoujo, what are some of your other animes to watch?
Well, right now I’m watching Akatsuki No Yong and Your Lie In April!
How many cosplays have you done exactly?
Oh gosh, exactly? I don’t know if I could say exactly how many. It would likely be some where between 10-20.
Princess Serenity – Sailor Moon
What are some of your favorite conventions to go to? Any that you for sure have to go to every year? Katsucon is currently my favorite convention, but my top three that I make sure to go to every year are Katsucon, Otakon, and Colossalcon!
Word of advice to our viewers who want get into cosplay?
I have a video for this! Please check out my “Cosplay: Do it Right or Not at All!” video on my YouTube channel!
Is there anything else you would like to add?
Thank you very much for the opportinuty to be interviewed! It’s an honor to be recognized by a Blog dedicated to all thing Shoujo!
Well, there you have it folks! Thank you very, very much to Dejavudea for answering our questions! It was a real honor! ❤ You can like, Dejavudea on Facebook, or follow her on Youtube and Instagram! (All images used were taken from Dejavudea’s Facebook page.)
Have a cosplayer you want featured? Do you think should be featured as our cosplayer of the week? Then send us a message at our email shoujosisters@gmail.com! Please make sure to list who you are, where you post your cosplay pictures, and please, please give us pictures of your cosplay! Until next time!
It’s that time of the week! This week our Cosplayer is Rundevinrun and I have to say she was very enthusiastic to answer the questions we had for her! Without further ado, Devin!
An obvious question but how old are you? Where are you from?
I’m 22 years old and originally born in South Korea!
Getting to the main point how long have you’ve been cosplaying?
I’ve been cosplaying since I was 14, so it’s been a while I guess.
Mirai Kuriyama – Kyoukai no Kanata
What really inspired you to get into cosplaying? Was it a specific cosplayer or maybe it just looked fun so you wanted to try it out?
I had seen photos of people uploading cosplays on deviantart and Cosplay.com and I really thought it looked fun to try and portray your favorite characters. Originally, the two I saw the most of were behindinfinity [dA] and Pikmin Link [cos.com]
What are some of your favorite cosplays and why?
One of my favorites is Popstar Ahri just because I felt like I tried a little bit harder than usual and I really enjoy wearing her and seeing people’s reactions~
Do you make your cosplay yourself, if so, how long does it usually take to make?
I do! Very rarely I buy costumes because I get lazy, haha, and there’s nothing wrong with buying a costume. For making my own, it can take anywhere from days to months just because of the nature of my procrastination….
Mulan – Mulan
Since this blog is mainly about Shoujo do you have any favorite Shoujo’s you enjoy watching? Anything that you’d like to suggest to the viewers?
I strongly recommend the classics to anybody starting out, SM, CCS, but one of my favorites from my childhood is Minky Momo.
Aside from Shoujo, what are some of your other animes to watch?
I really enjoy the horror/action types of anime. I haven’t gotten a chance yet, but I gotta go check out the new Berserk series!
How many cosplays have you done exactly?
To date? I don’t really keep track but more than 10.
What are some of your favorite conventions to go to? Any that you for sure have to go to every year?
One of my favorites is Sakuracon, as well as Fanime. I try my best to make it every year to those two.
Popstar Ahri – League of Legends
Word of advice to our viewers who want get into cosplay?
Just start. Research google RELENTLESSLY. Chances are, before you ask someone, you can ask google.
Is there anything else you would like to add?
Always remember to have fun, because all of us are silly adults dressed up as cartoon characters. There’s only so much drama you can add to such a fun concept!
That about wraps it up folks! Thank you very much to Devin for willingly answering our questions! You were truly a delight! If you have anymore questions for her to can find on her, on her Facebook page and also her tumblr! (All photos used today can be found via Devin’s Facebook page.)
Have a cosplayer you want featured? Do you think should be featured as our cosplayer of the week? Then send us a message at our email shoujosisters@gmail.com! Please make sure to list who you are, where you post your cosplay pictures, and please, please give us pictures of your cosplay! Until next time!
A new and smaller segment here on Shoujo Sisters! I decided that since cosplay is such a popular thing online having a cosplayer of the week would be a good thing to have!
So with no further ado I present to you, our first cosplayer!
His real name is Ronald, and he is a German fashion designer! To him cosplaying is a hobby and I might say he’s really, really fantastic! Check him out guys, and if you have a Deviantart account you should all give him a watch! And if you have time, check out some of my favorite cosplays he’s done below! 🙂
Ciel and Sebastian – Black Butler
Sebastian – Black Butler
Edward and Giselle – Enchanted
Have a cosplayer you want featured? Do you think should be featured as our cosplayer of the week? Then send us a message at our email shoujosisters@gmail.com! Please make sure to list who you are, where you post your cosplay pictures, and please, please give us pictures of your cosplay! That’s all for now, have a wonderful day!
You’ve done it! You’ve successfully picked and worked everything out for your first anime convention! You’re cosplay(s) is all finished and you stuck, hopefully, to your budget! Now that all your hard work is paid off you can dress up and go crazy!
But before you go, I just want to go over a few things before I set you free. So put your sword down, take off your cloak, and just sit back down. There are just a few things you need to know. You ready? Great, let’s go!
You may be wondering why exactly I put such a silly little section. Of course arriving at an event is pretty simple, right? Well, it is, arriving to the place isn’t really that big of deal. But I do want to tell you a few things to expect from just pulling up in the car.
There are going to be people everywhere and for some of you it’s going to be a little overwhelming. Trust me, it was overwhelming for me at my first convention too. It’s normal to feel overwhelmed in a new environment especially when there hundreds of people, and they’re all dressed up. Just remember to take a deep breath and not get too overwhelmed. This is supposed to be fun and not something that’ll give you a headache! 🙂 Keep that in mind throughout the weekend!
I’ve briefly mentioned the Dealers Room once before but I never truly explained it. To you guys it probably sounds like this weird place where auctions or something like that goes on. Okay, so maybe that’s what I thought it was when I first heard of it. The Dealers Room is actually the place where vendors sell anime related items. Lots of these items are imported from Japan so don’t forget to bring a large amount of money if you want to buy stuff in the Dealers Room!
Prices range dramatically and you will find that a lot of the same vendors sell the same stuff. For instance a popular item that is sold in a Dealers’ Room are the pastel colored alpacas. They’re super cute and depending on the size (they come in many sizes) the price varies. Some are $5 while others can be around $40 or $50.
The Dealers Room does have hours, I believe the times vary for each convention but on the cons website there should information on their hours. Also, prepare for them to be busy 24/7! People love to shop (me especially) at conventions, so prepare yourself for waves of people trying to see Japanese plushies and sexy anime figurines.
Ah, the Artists Alley, one of the greatest places of anime conventions. The place where you can find anime related items made by hand of other fans.
The Artists Alley is like the Dealers’ Room but it is usually smaller, some things tend to be a lot more pricey in this room due to things being made by hand (usually). While you’re in there, you may see a variety of different art types, maybe you’ll see handmade corsets that are fandom themed or possibly you’ll see a booth of just Attack on Titan prints! The possibilities of what art you’ll see is endless! I highly suggest looking around, even if you can’t afford anything.
I told you last post I’d be talking about panels. Panels are the events inside of the convention.
These panels are a variety of different topics, of course the main one being anime but it’s not just anime it can also be on Lolita, Japanese fashion, dancing, fanfiction and plenty of other things! 🙂 (Though I will warn you there quite a few panels made for people 18 and up so make sure you can go!)
But there aren’t just subject panels, there are also panels with voice actors! At my first convention, I was able to meet and sit in a Q&A panel with Vic Mignogna! If you don’t know who that is, he’s very well known for his roles as Edward Elric from Full Metal and also, the character near and dear to my heart…Tamaki Suoh. ❤ He was absolutely lovely, and it was great to see him in person. Throughout the 2 hour panel. he answered our questions and talked like many of the characters he has portrayed in the anime world! I even got a hug from him and let me just say he gives the best hugs! What was really great though, was that at one point he turned on “Let it Go” from Frozen and sang it with the whole entire room.
But yes, panels are the best things about cons! Well, besides seeing people in other cosplays!
And thus my lovelies, this concludes the convention segment. I tried to keep these last two short and simple and not too confusing. Since the first one was very, very long. I hope that this has been something you enjoyed and if there is anything else you’d wish for me to discuss please either comment or send me a message! I’d love to hear from you! Until next time my dears!
Hello, hello and I hope y’all are having a very nice week so far. I know mine has been busy with work and school but I still am here to give you guys a weekly update as usual! Before I begin I just wanted to say welcome to the newest followers that we’ve accumulated over the last few weeks or so! There maybe only twenty-two of you guys but I know Laura, Abby and I greatly appreciate the support!
Now, onto the subject at hand!
This seems like a pretty self explanatory topic on its own doesn’t it? Well, it is and it isn’t. There are a few things you need to know before you actually go to a convention. The last article I wrote was on cosplay/cosplaying at a convention, that ties into this as well but when deciding on a convention it’s very minor.
Research
Always, always research a convention before deciding to go to one. For example, when I went to my first anime convention I tried to research as much as I could on it. Sure, that did involve watching the convention music videos (yes, music videos) but it also involved checking out the convention website, looking to see what hotel services they recommend when staying there. For example, when Abby and I went to Colossalcon over the summer (I reference this convention a lot I apologize) it was held in Sandusky, Ohio at the Kalahari Resort. Since it is a resort, convention goers could stay at the hotel itself and easily walk to the large convention center that they have there. But be aware that when conventions are held at resorts, they will more than likely sell out fairly quickly due to people wanting to be within walking distance! The nice thing is though, most conventions do have suggestions for when the main area does become too full and sometimes they do offer a shuttle to pick people up for free.
Of course when you’re researching you don’t want to just look for hotel stuff, you want to also look and see what other people have said about the convention. Make sure you keep these questions in mind when watching/reading these reviews.
Was it well organized?
Did they actually have interesting panels? (I’ll discuss panels in the third and final article)
Did you feel safe while there? (Was there a nice amount of security)
Is it a big convention or a smaller one?
The list goes on and on but I think you get the gist of what exactly you should be paying attention too!
Questions You Should Ask Yourself
When deciding on a convention to choose from (by the way if you are interested this website does give a list of anime conventions), you need to ask yourself some questions.
1.) Do I want to go a big convention or a small convention?
If this is your first time ever going to a con, I suggest starting off with a smaller convention. For a person that has never been to a convention before, it can be very overwhelming even at small ones, with some many people walking around in cosplay, the Artists Alley, the Dealers Room, and panels. It can be very stressful for someone if it’s their first time. Know your limits and if you’re someone who has a hard time with large crowds, try a small convention first that way you can see if you even like going to a convention or not.
For many convention goers this is a simple answer, some like to travel all over, while others find it easier to stay close to home. Make sure when you are traveling farther away you need to budget your money so that you can have the means to actually get there, eat, have a place to sleep etc. Keep in mind of the Mangos budget video from my last article!
3.) What type of convention do I want to go to?
Obviously this blog is mainly about Shoujo and anime but I thought I’d put this in here real quick. There are lots of different ‘fandom’ conventions out there, not just anime. Obviously we have San Diego Comic Con, but there are plenty of others as well like Steel City Con, E3, and many, many more! So maybe you don’t like anime (which asks the question, what are you doing here?) but maybe you really enjoy video games. Then look up video game conventions and try to go! Remember what I said last time, if you can think of it, there is probably a convention for it!
Sadly, we are now at the end of this post. I know, I know I’m sad too but just keep a look out for a new post by Laura in very, very near future! If you have any convention questions, please feel free to comment!
Conventions, we’ve all heard of them. Whether we’ve been to one or have just seen the fliers and have heard the ads on the radio, we know that they exist.
If you’ve been living under rock though; conventions are organized events some small and some are huge! Then we’ll have the ones that are in the middle. The length of them vary the topic, when it’s a craft convention those usually are one or two days but it depends on the size of it as well and how many people they expect to be there. Anime conventions lengths start on Thursdays or Fridays and end on Sundays so you’re looking at a weekend event (though you don’t have to go everyday). Usually are surrounded around a specific theme like: gardening, comics,arts and crafts, of course anime and many, many others. If you can think of it there is probably a convention for it. As much as I’d like to go into some of the other types of conventions, (and trust me I’ve been to a lot of different types) I think it’s best we stick to the anime subject.
Let’s get into the main topic this week shall we? Before we start in case you’re confused, cosplay is the practice of dressing up as a character (and no it’s not always fictional). Cosplay is a huge thing at the moment. Dressing up of course has always been a thing but the actual hobby of dressing up as a favorite character from a show is a fairly recent thing. How I see it, it’s a way to let go of the stress of a normal day and putting on the skin of another person.
Deciding Who to Cosplay
Deciding who to cosplay can sometimes be tricky, for others it can be very simple. I’ll break this up into a few simple questions you need to ask yourself, what show/movie/game am I going to choose, who are my favorite characters from said show/movie/game, how difficult will this cosplay be to make/buy, and what is my budget?
Real talk guys, cosplay isn’t free. It does actually cost to put a whole costume together, I know, I know, it sucks. But you have to think of this as a hobby, this is something you’re doing for you own enjoyment and when it comes to that, well, you have to make sure you can afford it. Being only eighteen, I struggle with this aspect of cosplaying. I want to get everything I need at once but that’s not plausible, mainly because I work a part time job and I don’t get paid enough to spend well over a hundred dollars in one sitting (and yes it’s probably going to cost you this much depending on what you do). My favorite youtuber, Mangosirene has a whole video about budgeting for cosplay and it’s super helpful. I would give you budgeting advice myself but really it’s better to get it from a more professional cosplayer than someone who doesn’t have a ton of experience with budgeting.
What Show/Movie/Game Am I going to Cosplay From?
Now that the more mathy, adult stuff is out of the way. We’re going to get to the fun part, deciding what we want to cosplay from! For some people this is pretty simple, they have a show in mind and also a character. But for others it can be challenging, especially if this your first time ever doing this. Trust me, I’ve been there! Brainstorm, take out a piece of paper and write down every show/movie/game that you love and decide from there! Having a hard time choosing? No worries, since anime conventions are usually more than one day you have the ability to cosplay different characters from your other favorites some of the other days! (But remember your budget! If you want to do more than one cosplay you need to budget your money accordingly so that you can afford everything. And you need to make sure you can afford more than one cosplay!)
Who are My Favorite Characters from this Show/Movie/Game?
Have your show/movie/game picked out? Fantastic! Now, take out a new piece of paper and write down your favorite characters. What I like to do is write down what I like about them, decide which one I like more out of all of them. When deciding, think about what they look like, what they wear, do they have a different eye color than you? Will you have to buy Circle Lenses/contacts in order to match their eye color? What about a wig? Will a wig need to be purchased? How difficult is this character to cosplay? (I’ll discuss this in the next step.) These are some of the questions you need to ask! Panicking? Don’t worry, this isn’t as bad as it sounds. It’ll be worth it in the end, don’t stress and have fun with it!
How Difficult Will This Character be to Cosplay?
If you’re new to the cosplaying world, you might not know how to sew. Don’t worry, remember that youtuber I mentioned before? She has a video on that too!
For my first cosplay, I decided to buy the parts I needed. I decided to cosplay Armin Arlert from Attack on Titan. It’s a fairly simple cosplay, and I thought it would be easier to buy what I needed instead of making all of it. I’m okay at sewing, but I definitely have no idea how to make clothes, so buying some of the basics of your cosplay will definitely help (though sometimes you aren’t able to do that at all). I did however end up having to make the harness he wears because all I could find was Japanese sizing, and being American…those obviously won’t fit me.(A bit of advice! Be careful when you are buying anime produced products from Japan! They are ALMOST ALWAYS Japan sized clothes! You can find cosplay websites that will alter these as well but please be careful and read the sizing chart!)
Remember though, if you are going the buy everything route, it sometimes ends up being more expensive than making the cosplay yourself due to shipping and sizing. Plan accordingly and as I’ve said before, budget your money.
The Unspoken Rules of Cosplaying
Believe it or not there rules one needs to understand before heading off to a convention and cosplaying. You ready? Alright let’s get to it.
One: Respect
I cannot, I repeat, cannot stress enough guys. Respect your fellow cosplayers, see someone who is dressed up as Sailor Moon but isn’t the right body type/skin color/gender? Respect them. Conventions are a safe zone for us nerds, but unfortunately cosplay bullying is a real thing. Respect people of their choices of what they decide to cosplay, if it makes them happy respect that. Even if you are not cosplaying, do this, I’m serious. People go to conventions to connect and feel comfortable around other people like them, not to be teased and judged. Alright? Okay good, moving on!
Two: Don’t be a Creep when Talking to a Cosplayer
What exactly do you mean by this Sara? Well, I’ll tell you. I went to Colossalcon over the past summer and it was really fun but I was basically bombarded by a girl who kept asking me very uncomfortable questions and wouldn’t leave me alone. She seemed nice, but to me it felt uncomfortable and weirded me out. Read social cues okay? I understand if you see someone in a Tomoe cosplay you’re going to want to go up to him and make him your familiar by kissing him. Just don’t…okay so maybe that’s a bit extreme but you get my point, yeah?
Yes, you may call a cosplayer by the characters name that they are cosplaying. But you need to remember, they aren’t that character. They are themselves, dressed up. Don’t be upset if they don’t act like Tamaki when you come up them. They may act like them if you ask but most of the time they are going to be acting like themselves so don’t be that guy.
Four: Don’t make Inappropriate Comments/Gestures to Girls/Guys in Revealing Cosplay
I don’t want to go on a feministic rant on you guys. But I’m serious guys, don’t say something nasty and inappropriate to someone unless they somehow give you the permission that you are able too. And don’t even think about touching anyone in an inappropriate way. This goes other way as well, if someone is doing this to you when you are in cosplay, if they are harassing you tell security. That is one of their jobs, they will take care of it. Okay? Okay. 🙂
Five: Don’t Critique Cosplayers cosplay UNLESS asked also make it constructive not destructive
I think this one is very self explanatory. Moving on!
Six: Make Compliments
This may be pretty obvious but complimenting people is always a nice thing to do. Even if you don’t think they did the best at making their cosplay, it’s still nice. Now that doesn’t mean you have to compliment every person you see but try to do a good amount of people. Just think how good you feel when someone compliments you. It’s just nice to return the gesture.
Seven: Ask to take pictures before taking them
I’m sure you’re going to see a person cosplaying one of your favorite characters. A lot of you are probably going to want to take a picture with them or just of them. That’s 100% okay but don’t do so without asking. I know that this is obvious to a lot of you but if I don’t put it here I fear someone will forget about something so simple. It happens to the best of us.
Eight: Don’t take a photo in the middle of the hallway (or in front of the body pillows)
I think this is pretty self explanatory. 🙂
Nine: Don’t Get Upset When People Aren’t in Anime Cosplay!
Let me explain real quick. Just because you are at an anime convention, that doesn’t mean everyone will be cosplaying anime characters. In fact a lot of people dress up from comic-books, TV shows such as Supernatural, Game of Thrones, Once Upon a Time, Adventure Time etc, movies and video games as well. It’s not just anime. It’s a variety of things! So don’t get all huffy when someone comes to the convention you’re at is dressed up as Booker Dewitt from Bioshock Infinite because he’s not from an anime. Conventions, as I’ve said, are an open space; it’s a free range.
Ten: Anyone is Able to Cosplay
Let Mangosirene speak the words of truth.
Now while you’re reading this whole long thing about cosplaying, you may be wondering. Sara, do I have to cosplay at a convention? Do you have to cosplay? Hell no! If you go to a convention, you will find lots of people who don’t dress up and that is 100% okay. For some people it’s just not their thing and that’s fine. Don’t worry about it, and even if you do want to cosplay but you don’t have the money or resources? Forget about it until you do! Don’t bend over backwards if you really can’t afford it! Conventions are meant to interact with other people and make friends, not just cosplaying!
There is so much more I can say on the cosplaying subject and maybe one day I will write a cosplaying part two. But I will leave you guys here. Until next week! Happy Thanksgiving, and happy cosplaying!
Sara here, and I just wanted to give you guys a quick little post before the weekend starts and we all sleep it away! I have a couple of suggestions on anime/shoujo related youtube channels that all of you should check out, especially if you’re interested in getting into cosplay and conventions as well!
A real shoujo more based youtube channel is dejavudea. She’s a girl that is more into the shoujo and cutesy side of the anime world, especially Lolita (though she just recently got into that). She tends to post vlogs, a few videos on cosplay, and various anime related subjects.
Abby and I were lucky enough to run into her at Colossalcon this year and she was super sweet! Check her out, you won’t regret it!
The second youtuber that I watch almost religiously is MangoSirene. An anime youtuber that mainly surrounds her youtube channel around costume making, cosplay 101, con vlogs etc. She doesn’t mention shoujo from what I’ve seen in her videos, but she’s still a great cosplayer and youtuber to watch if you’re wanting to get into that!
That’s all from me for now! I’ll see talk to you guys soon and keep a look out for some more recommendations and reviews!
Well, it is, arriving to the place isn’t really that big of deal. But I do want to tell you a few things to expect from just pulling up in the car.
Shoujo Sisters 