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Tell us about your first cosplay experience.
Who, what, where, when, and how did it go?
I think it started with seeing Japanese cosplay photos online; they were pretty interesting. The costumes, poses, and photo angles were pretty amazing. I started sewing by staring at my Barbie doll that was on my desk.
I flipped the clothes inside out and thought to myself, “I can do that.” Then I pulled myself to the sewing machine and started creating my first costume -- Cardcaptor Sakura. Yes, that was my first self-made costume. I took some pictures at home, and that's actually my first experience of cosplay. Later, my friend took me to an anime convention, and I wore my first costume in a place with people who actually knew the series and character I was wearing.
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How did you learn to sew?
Many people asked me this question, and every time I answer it, my answer seems impress people. Believe it or not, I never learned how to sew; I never took any lesson or class. Everything came from my own experience. My personal theory of "humans create everything" just compelled me to try things on my own, including patterns and props. I believe if humans can create the world, so can I. That musical with the song that goes, "Anything you can do I can do better, sooner or later I'll be better than you," has become one of my favorite quotes. I started sewing all the costumes on my own, and of course, every time I did a new outfit, I gained experience and learned a new technique. I believe that this helped me create better projects and helped me “level up.” And of course I want to thank all my friends who are willing to share ideas with me, including Jezeroth, Oshidori, and Laa ::laughing::
How did you decide to start making costumes and accessories for other people? Please share some tips for cosplayers who are thinking of taking commissions.
One of my friends from school asked me if I could make a costume for her because she’d seen my work, and she’d pay me to do it. After awhile, it seemed to happen more often so I started taking commissions because I could do it nicely and quickly.
Taking commissions isn't an easy job because everything revolves around schedules and deadlines. But whenever people give me good feedback, it just makes me happy. I love the fact that people are happy with my craftsmanship so I started to create more items to sell on eBay to spread the happiness to all the fans. They seem to really enjoy wearing the costumes and have fun at the con, and that's the most wonderful thing to make me continue my business. My suggestion on taking commissions: you’ve got to know how to work on the items to make them nice and fast. You need to know how long it will take you to finish the project, to figure material costs, and to think about the profit you think you deserve.
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Your range of characters stretches from boisterous boys to girly lolitas. What attracts you to the different characters that you want to portray?
What an interesting question. Well, I usually don't think too deeply about it... I pick characters I like in the series, but sometimes, I also like to make some costumes as a joke. Like dressing as a really bold, male character then suddenly switching to a really girly, female character just to shock people. ::laugh::
But also, I do love to try different characters with various styles. I don't call myself a good actress, but I do love to try on new personalities with different clothes. From Mr. Nice Guy to extremely evil woman, or recently, I tried a ghostly type. Even though this character didn't do much action, the expression was really a big challenge.
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You have a goal of making all the outfits of Lacus Clyne. Do you think you'll complete them all?
Lacus Clyne is one of my top favorite characters. All her costumes involve color combinations and unusual patterns. I do enjoy making them. Each of them took me a long time just to try to match coloring and fabric and doing a lot of sketches to see how to make it look better. You can see all my costumes have little special things on them because I don't like to create stuff that looks exactly like the picture from the anime or manga. If we all copy exactly, everbody comes out the same, and that's no fun.
The reason I make so many versions is because each time I see a little mistake, I will go to fix it. This is how much I am into Lacus, but I don't really think I have a set goal for it; I just follow my thoughts.
I’m tempted to try to make all her outfits, but I do skip a few because they aren’t interesting enough for me to make. |
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Was there ever a time when you wanted to quit cosplaying completely? How did you come back to enjoying the hobby?
Almost the opposite, I should say. I’ve tried to quit too many times, but I still can't do it. It’s not an easy thing because I’m already into it too much. Maybe one day, it will stop itself ::laugh:: Mainly, I just follow my own thoughts.
When you choose a costume that's very complex, how do you avoid being overwhelmed and stay motivated to finish it?
I don't really know how to explain. I think because I like to do stuff by schedule, I know how much work I can do in one day. Plus, I don't really make a character list by convention. I continually make costumes of what I like (just personal favorite) so during the convention time, I can just go into my closet pick the costumes I want to wear at the con. So I never really rush anything at the last minute. This is good for my health because it’s less stressful! ::laugh::
Many of your costumes & commissions use trim like bias tape (Horo Horo, FMA uniforms, school uniforms). Please give some suggestions for making it turn out nicely.
My personal favorite, bias tape is just easy to work on. It can save a lot of time from having to fold fabric yourself and is especially easy to use on uniform-type costumes for edges and decorations. Hmm, I don’t think I have good tips to share. It’s funny because I never pin anything before I sew. I pretty much just let it go through the machine. People say I’m crazy… maybe I am crazy. ^^;
In general, iron your costume after you finish making it and before you wear it. That's important for best presentation. |
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During construction of a costume, is there a task that you always dread? (buttons, zippers, shoe covers, hems, etc.)
I don't really see anything hard to make now, since I believe I’ve already made a costume beyond my own limit, that Trinity blood costume. So nothing can be hard for me right now. But when the laziness hits me, I can't do anything.
So believe in yourself. You can do anything, but just don't be lazy. That's all I want to say to people ::laugh::
You've done some work for Nickelodeon, and many fans dream of working at an animation or video game studio. Has the experience changed the way you cosplay, or did your cosplay experience influence your animation work?
I am working for Animation Collective, and the show Kappa Mikey premiered this year on Nickelodeon. The experience of being an animator doesn't really affect my cosplay hobby, but every time I do cosplay I can learn some new poses as reference for my job, including the acting for the characters. It has become a very useful reference to me. Plus everyone in the studio knows I’m a cosplayer, and they ask me when they need some ideas for costumes or accessories.
What has been your favorite cosplay memory so far? (a skit, a group, meeting someone at a con, etc.)
Mostly I stay with my friends so they don't care what I do as long as we don't break the rules. There are tons fun memories, but if you wanted me to share, the stories would be too long to tell. However, I do recreate these fun experiences at cons into a mini comic sometimes, and I post them each time. The most recent funny memory was from Katsucon where my friend Rukawagf cosplayed as Yzak from Gundam seed. It was winter and her outfit was made of velvet which created static electricity. She kept shocking everyone who touched her, including me, her cosplay partner. We dubbed her “Yzakchu” from that day forth. |
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Having won several awards for your workmanship, what do you think of the misguided trend to place too much emphasis on winning and becoming "a star?"
If you look at my costume list, you may notice I don't enter many contests. The first time I entered a contest was with my friend who came to visit me from LA. We joined the cosplay contest just for fun, and we won the prize without even realizing. The second time I entered was because I spent 2 months to make my costume, and I thought at least I should have some feedback so that's another reason I tried a contest. I never focused on winning anything and never thought of using cosplay to make me a star.
From personal observation, contests always drag people into drama which I don't really like. I think cosplay is for making friends, meeting people who have the same hobby so we can share ideas and have fun geeking out with each other. I never thought cosplay could lead people to be rivals, fighting about who is more famous.
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Here's your space for additional comments and dispelling rumors.
Rumors... I don’t know if there are any rumors about me. How about I am actually a guy? ::laugh:: j/k Well, my friend still jokes around and asks me, "Why weren't you born as man?" That gives me a big “??!”
I want to encourage cosplayers to remember to clean up your area after you finish a photo shoot or dress up, and don't be too hyper and scare people. Be nice, and that way, other people will know cosplay is not always bad. We need to give outsiders a good feeling so they can accept us more.
See more of Digikoomi's costumes
Digikoomi, you seem to have a natural talent for sewing & crafting which makes cosplay an ideal match as far as hobbies go. It's great to see you hone your skills with each new creation while staying focused on enjoying cosplay for the sake of meeting friends & spending time together. It's also comforting to find that the addictiveness of cosplay is universal. Well, perhaps we shouldn't seek comfort but professional help instead. ^^; Thanks for spending some time with us, and we wish you continued success in costuming & animation endeavors!
~Mrs. Tomoe |
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