Eevee Inspired Make Up: Glaceon

Part of the reason I chose to create my Eevee inspired outfits was that I wanted to show my readers that it is possible to represent your fandoms with very limited resources. I was always going to make a tie for my Glaceon outfit, to match the diamond pattern on his ears, tail and back.

(I say his - Even though Pokemon technically come in both sexes, for some reason I've always seen the Eeveelutions as male, with the exception of Espeon. I don't mean this to be offensive to anyone.)

I also decided to use the leftover materials from the Sylveon hair bow. I will buy some better quality materials and work on a tutorial.

I tried a different eyelash glue this time around. I managed to do everything right and they went on perfectly, but the new glue doesn't seem to last as long, and I found myself pocketing my lashes in the middle of the craft store!

This last shot is my favourite. I was so self conscious to be out in public and posing for a photo shoot. I know I do it all the time at conventions, but alone in a shopping centre car park is very different!

Next weekend will be my last Eevee inspired outfit for a while, as I have to order a couple of wigs for Leafeon and Flareon. On the plus side, I will be able to post more about my Goa'uld cosplay for Oz Comic Con.

Featured Cosplayer: David Fitton

One month ago, the cosplay community lost an amazing lady. When you picture an eighty-four year old, the first thing to spring to mind probably isn't cosplay, but Florence Mary Fitton, or Lena to those closest to her, didn't let her age, or her illness, stop her from enjoying herself. I had always intended to have her son, David, as a featured cosplayer. I'm sad I didn't get the chance to write about him before his mother passed away.

Florence Mary Fitton: 19th June 1930 - 23rd May 2014

"She loved people and wanted to come to cosplay events, but she couldn't due to her health," David says.

"Instead, I brought cosplay to her."

I met David at Brisbane Supanova in 2012. I was very impressed by his Loki (Thor and Avengers) costume. He doesn't just talk the talk, he walks the walk.

DC vs Marvel - I first met David at Brisbane Supanova

In much the same way as I meet most of my cosplay friends, I shared my photos with him online and added him on Facebook. I remember seeing pictures of him and his mum in various disguises on my feed and thinking how awesome it was that they could both enjoy cosplay together. I, like many of you, have to constantly explain to my mum how cool cosplay actually is. I don't think I'll ever get her into a costume.

"She loved dressing up and when I posted the photos on Facebook, she thought she was a star."

"The comments came in thick and fast - cute, adorable, funny. So I guess we became a comedy act."

Sadly, Lena suffered a stroke in the early hours of May 23rd.

Having never had the opportunity to meet her in person, I thought it best to let some of David's favourite pictures tell the story of Lena's cosplay journey.

Lena is a testament to the fact that you are never too old to cosplay. I've expressed anxiety at my age in previous posts, but after writing this article, I am inspired. I mean, who said we were only allowed to cosplay while we were young? Everyone has fandoms, therefore everyone should be allowed to represent them.

"I have moments when I think about her and I wish I could have brought her to more events," David says.

"She was given a good funeral, and she has been reunited with my dad now."

Something I've discovered about David is that he is very giving of his time. I've joined him at a couple of charity events where he's donned his Loki costume in order to collect for the children's hospitals in Brisbane.

Loki and Deadpool at the Stafford Shopping Centre Woolworths,
collecting money for the Children's Hospital Foundation

"Loki has been my most popular cosplay. He is so grand and menacing."

Having cosplayed more than thirty characters since he took up the hobby eight years ago, it's hard to say what lies on the horizon for David.

"I tend to get ideas during headaches. When the pain medicine kicks in and my head clears, ideas just come to me."

"I'm currently working on a Captain America costume and I'm looking at giving a Cyberman (Doctor Who) an outing soon. For now, I'm happy with Loki."

David as a Cyberman at the Mater Little Miracles charity walk

I managed to snap a few pictures of David at the Brisbane Alternative Expo on Sunday. One minute he was a Cyberman, the next he was donning a scarf as The Doctor.

If you're at a Brisbane convention or charity event, look out for David. He has some pretty recognisable costumes. There's just no guarantee he will stay in the same costume for the whole day!

Eevee Inspired Make Up: Sylveon

When I woke up this morning, I was really excited to be doing my Sylveon inspired outfit. My skin has been calming down after a nasty period of defiance and I was really proud of the hair bow I made, even if it wasn't quite perfect. I started applying the eye shadow I wanted to use, but halfway through I realised the colours were far too bright. I figured I could salvage the situation, so I kept working. I really wasn't happy with what I'd done, but I also didn't want to have to start again, so I began to apply my first eyelash. Whatever good luck had enabled me to apply my lashes perfectly last week was not with me today. I tried and tried and tried and eventually got the lash to stick to my right eye, but I had made a complete mess and I got really upset.

I've mentioned in previous posts that I suffer from anxiety and depression. It's not something I've ever been ashamed of, because it's so common. I started down the familiar path of telling myself I was a complete failure and wondering why I was bothering to write a cosplay blog at all. "Who wants to read something written by someone who can't even put their stupid lashes on," my Black Dog shouted inside my head. Right about then is when I would normally curl up under my blanket and sleep the rest of the day away.

But not today.

You know who wants to read my blog? People like me. People who are just starting out and feel like they are useless because they don't know how to do something ridiculous like build a working Serpent Guard helmet (from Stargate). People screw up all the time. I started this blog because I wanted to share a journey with you. If I waited until I was an expert in everything, I'd be waiting forever.

So, I picked up my box of rhinestones and continued to work on my right eye. It ended up looking more 'mermaid' than 'fairy', but it wasn't terrible. In fact, I now have an idea of how to do my make up for the Lady Gaga concert in August.

I decided to do something very basic with my left eye. A small amount of a much lighter pink shadow, black liner on the top lid, and the matching lash (which went on surprisingly easily - go figure). I also put on a very light pink lipstick. When I was finished, I realised that this is what I had wanted to do all along. I had tried to over-complicate things with my right eye, when all I needed to do to be fairy-like was something simple and elegant. I like the look so much, I'm excited to wear it with my everyday outfits.

Here's what I ended up with:

I absolutely adore this wig. Sadly, it doesn't appear to be available anymore. You can find a similar wig here.

As you can see, I made every effort to hide that pesky right eye. Had I not mentioned it, you probably would have thought nothing of it. But the whole point of this blog is to show people where I go wrong and where I improve. So, here it is:

It's not all that bad. I mean, I don't think it is. I even managed to make my eyebrow blue. But it wasn't right for this outfit. I guess I just didn't realise I was capable of doing simple make up. I actually feel like achieving a natural look is probably the hardest job a make up artist has. When you try something with a lot of flare, you can claim creativity, but everyone knows what 'natural' looks like, so if you screw up, it's more obvious.

That said, if you take away anything from this post it should be that it's okay to screw up, as long as you learn something.

Eevee Inspired Make Up: Espeon

I took these photos last weekend, but I've been too sick to concentrate on my blog this week. Sorry everyone!

Dress by Hell Bunny. I bought mine here

I absolutely love this dress, however, as you can see, my bra straps have a habit of creeping into view. I need to find a good strapless bra that will support my, ahem... Assets. I've been called out by my partner and a few of my friends for complaining about having a large cup size, but it's not all fun being 'chesticularly gifted'. In the world of cosplay and alternative fashion, sometimes you want slightly smaller lady lumps.

I chose the Countess wig (by Rock Star Wigs), mostly because of the colour. I wasn't really a fan of it for a long time after I bought it, but since shampooing and conditioning it, I have decided to give it another chance. The plait was an afterthought. Had I planned it a bit earlier, I probably would have used some product to tidy it up a bit.

My make up was fairly basic this time. I wish I'd had purple contacts to match Espeon's eyes, though I'm told by people wiser than me that purple eye shadow makes brown eyes pop. I think that would probably apply to me if my eyes weren't so dark.

The 'third eye' is one of the practice resin gems I made last month. It looks a little off centre in the photos, but I swear it was in the middle of my forehead. I think because it protrudes so far out, it gives the illusion of being crooked.

I decided to let my hair down for the last shot. I love the way the wind picked up the bangs!

You'll be happy to know I succeeded at applying my false lashes this time. I think I'm finally getting the technique down.

Tomorrow I will be shooting my Sylveon outfit. I've even made a hair bow to match the Pokemon. I'll post a tutorial later in the week.

Before I go, here are a couple of photos of my awesome friends and I at the Cooly Rocks On Festival last weekend.

Me with some of my future Featured Cosplayers

I did a quick wig change and removed my third eye before heading out. I'm not sure the people of Coolangatta were quite ready for Espeon. I really wanted to wear my curly bob in auburn, but I had to worry about those pesky bra straps. I bought two awesome fans that I will have to create outfits for in the near future.

Yes, I am on the Hathor diet, but FAIRY FLOSS

Eevee Inspired Make Up: Umbreon

I never really understood the obsession with Pokemon - that is, until I got a Nintendo 3DS. I'd been meaning to get one for a while, but due to consistently being a responsible adult, I kept putting it off in order to make sure I could pay my bills. As I'm currently on extended medical leave from work, I thought it'd be a good time to give in. What better way to pass the time than writing about cosplay and playing video games?

My partner and I picked up a copy of X and Y about four weeks ago. Since then, I have literally become obsessed. When I found out EB Games had Eevee plushies, I decided I wanted a Sylveon and a Glaceon (you know, because of my current obsession with all things ice and snow - see Frozen Inspired Make Up). When I got home, I thought they looked a bit lonely, so I bought an Umbreon and an Espeon. And three days later, I felt terrible for splitting up a family, so I bought the rest.

After seeing them all lined up on the shelf, I figured they would make great inspirations for my next few make up pieces. So, on Saturday I began with Umbreon. I'll try and complete one each week until I've done them all, unless I need to order a wig or something to complete the outfit.

One day I will not fail at putting on false lashes. I've been told that the individual lashes are actually a lot easier to apply, but the full lash sets come in pretty patterns and have gems and stuff on them. I'm so conflicted! I also take back what I said about rhinestones being reusable (see Eurovision 2014). Unless you're prepared to sit there and meticulously remove every last scrap of glue, you'll end up with a giant sticky clump of rhinestones in your storage case. Sorry for the bad advice, but this blog is the journey of a beginner after all.

I'm becoming a lot more confident with liquid eyeliner, however I learned the hard way that it doesn't mix well with lenses. Shortly after application, I noticed my vision become hazy. I couldn't quite figure out what was going on, until I realised some eyeliner must have seeped into my eye. While not enough to cause me any pain, it was plenty to fog up my lenses. It went away eventually, but it made applying the rest of my make up difficult. I would advise having a cup of tea or something until the blurriness subsides.

Next week, I will be doing Espeon inspired make up. I can also see a Fennekin/Braixen/Delphox cosplay on the horizon. :)

NB I have no idea what happened, but either Blogger or my computer decided that my red lenses were supposed to be black. You can view the photos as they should look here.

Featured Cosplayer: Haggard Clint

If you've attended a Supanova in the last few years, then you've quite possibly already been introduced to my next featured cosplayer. Until recently, he appeared as part of the AWF (Australasian Wrestling Federation) under the name 'Jack Haggard'. When a knee injury left him unable to continue, Clint decided that wasn't going to stop him from enjoying the con life.

"When a bunch of friends asked me to be Wreck-It-Ralph, I thought it would be a laugh, so I went along," he says.

"It was my first true cosplay attempt. I still love it, I always want to improve it, and most importantly, parents and kids light up when they see it."



I know my face lit up when I saw it. I was wandering around, looking for my own Wreck-It-Ralph group mates, when I bumped into Clint. I couldn't resist getting a photo.

Gold Coast Supanova 2013

When the con was over, I spent a couple of days trawling Instagram for photos of people I knew. When I came across a picture of Clint in his Ralph costume, I decided to share my photo with him. A year later, we're great friends. We even wore our Wreck-It-Ralph costumes to this year's Gold Coast Supanova to mark our one year anniversary.

For Clint, many of his cosplay ideas come from his art. He particularly enjoys creating Rule 63 versions of his favourite characters. For those who are not familiar with the hallowed rules of the Internet, to put it simply, for any given male character, there is a female version of that character. You can find Clint's unique take on popular heroes and villains here.

Although he considers it one of his least successful cosplays, Clint's Rule 63 Pam Poovey (Archer) is one of my favourites. He even created a Dr. Krieger for me to play.

                           

There are a few projects on the horizon for Clint, though he admits due to time and financial constraints, it may be a while before he completes them.

"I'm in the process of building a Bane (Batman) costume but it's slow moving because I have to ship a lot of parts. Cosplay is not a cheap hobby."

"My dream cosplay is a Rule 63 Ursula (The Little Mermaid). I want to get up and perform 'Poor Unfortunate Souls' in a competition."

And just like his Archer creations, there's a part for me too!

                           

In the meantime, Clint has been working on a Captain Boomerang cosplay.

"I had this idea from the start that I wanted to do a lesser known villain and get him or her some love. The fact that he's Australian and a bit of a smart arse - I couldn't find anyone better to pay tribute to."

"Other cosplays I'm looking forward to are Alan O'Neil (a Rule 63 April O'Neil from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles) and Barf from Space Balls. Given that I've recently lost twenty kilograms, I'm going to have to actually pad the flight suit."

Twenty kilograms is no small achievement. As Clint says, it pays to be fit and healthy when you take up a hobby like cosplay.

"I do believe in being healthy, if only for the fact that walking the floor of a convention in a heavy costume all day can be bloody exhausting."

"I will diet and exercise to meet a [cosplay] goal, no question. The worst thing that can come of you treating your body better is... Well, nothing. So if it takes cosplay to encourage you, go for it."

For Clint, there was a far more important reason to focus on his health. Earlier this year, his partner was diagnosed with cancer. In order to support her, Clint has been enjoying a completely ketogenic diet. He's also been a big inspiration to me, although I'm not quite ready to eliminate sugar from my life. I've managed to stop drinking soft drink (except for special occasions), something I would never have thought possible.

After such a dramatic turn of events, you could forgive the man for perhaps being a bit down in the dumps. But Clint is full of positivity, and he brings that positivity to cosplay. He doesn't let jealousy or self esteem issues get in the way of having a good time.

"I love the celebration of fandoms and completely geeking out over other people's costumes. There's an amazing collection of people out there. They blow me away."

"If I could do this full time, entertaining people with my ridiculous antics, I would give anything."

Gold Coast Supanova Cosplay Parade 2014 - James Niland Photography