Cosplay Costumes - DOs & DON'Ts

by DeaBellona

Looking for fresh ideas for cosplay costumes? A cosplay veteran gives some handy DOs & DON'Ts - along with a mini cosplay gallery and character suggestions.

Every year I try and attend the Movie Comic and Media expo held in my city (London). For the past six years or so I've enjoyed it very much. However, I've noticed an increase in the number of extremely female cosplayers over the years... or maybe I've just become more observant in my old age (heh)..

When I talk of 'extremely female cosplayers' I don't just mean women who dress in costume, because that would be a huge generalisation. I mean women who dress as very sexualised characters. Girls attend cosplay events wearing nothing more than a bikini and two strips of material or a body hugging pvc catsuit *cough* Bayonetta *cough*. Yes, female cosplayers, it is incredibly flattering that every other man is stopping in his tracks to gawp at you, photograph you and drool over you. But does this really help to make female newcomers to this world feel more at home?

The idea of cosplay isn't to look as overtly sexy as possible - it's to take a creative approach to looking as much like your favoured charater as you can.

Whether you're into Final Fantasy cosplay, Vampire Knight cosplay, Bleach cosplay, Itachi cosplay, Gaara cosplay, Naruto cospaly, Akatsuki cosplay, Midna cosplay or indeed aiming to create cosplay costumes for a truly under-the-radar character that no-one's ever heard of, don't be afraid to save money, spend time on your costume, get creative and emphasise fun. Having said all that, here are some ideas for how to approach creating cosplay costumes, from the (very personal) point of view of a seasoned veteran of British cosplay conventions.

Cosplay costumes - DOs

Make an extra-special effort to cosplay as something original and you can be sure it will be appreciated by all the other cosplay enthusiasts. For those of you attending a convention in Bleach or Naruto cosplay costumes (which is understandable if it's your first time cosplaying in public) be aware that there might be a few others sporting the same mass-produced headband. There are plenty of original characters out there for you to cosplay - you just have to watch even more anime and read even more manga to find out what they are. But then, that's no great hardship!

DIY ethic is a huge plus when sourcing cosplay costumes. Ideally, try to make at least some of the elements of your costume. Seeing someone dressed in elaborate and detailed armour is impressive. Realising that said armour is made entirely from egg cartons and a cornflakes box... even better. A home-made outfit means you can be sure to stand out from the crowd.

Pay attention to the details. Aim to wear cosplay costume from your cosplay wig / hairstyle right down to your little feet. If appropriate, consider cosplay contacts and other cosplay accessories to make your outfit completely immersive. Every time an amazing costume is coupled with converse sneakers, somewhere in the world a kitten dies.

If you're a female, perhaps try cross-dressing, or dressing as a genderless character. Not enough people do this, and women can pull off cosplay cross-dressing far more easily than men. Disagree? Okay, imagine your stereotypical convention male in a Sailor Moon costume and I think you'll get the (unhappy) picture. Also, gender-bending cosplay costumes provide a good opportunity for women who don't want to dress as an overtly sexy character. It's not too hard to find fitted suits in charity shops / Top Shop - and you'll look great in them.

Consider cosplaying as a Western character. Yes, manga and anime characters are lovely, but it would be nice to see more Western characters around. Plus, if you have a western figure (breasts, hips and more curves and height), you may look your best in Western cosplay costumes rather than dressed in Lolita clothing. Just a thought.

Cosplay costumes - DON'Ts

If possible (and it can be hard for your first time) try to avoid dressing as a character just because said cosplay costume is either easy or looks cool. Cosplay a character you like or know something about. Cosplaying a character you actually care leads to good CosplayCon chats and possibly making good friends. Research, people.

Refrain from buying all of the elements for your costume as one big pre-packaged set. The exception for this being those life-size moveable dalek costumes, and those storm trooper costumes, those have to come as a set. Unless you take the egg carton /cornflake packet route. Personally, I'm so impressed when someone shows how much time they took over sourcing bits for their costume rather than how much money they threw at it.

If you wish to cosplay as a sexy character then be aware that most fictional characters have the bodies of super humans... and their skintight costumes are very unforgiving. If you take the 'sexy cosplay character route', accept the fact that you'll be asked to stop every five minutes for a photo op.

Alternative cosplay costume ideas

Here are some cosplay ideas for women who want to keep some clothing on...

Ellen Ripley from the Alien series. Or Cal.
Female Rimmer or Kochanski from Red Dwarf (except for the skin tight red costume- fans of the show will know which one I'm talking about).
O Ren Ishii or The Bride from Kill Bill.
Alice in Resident Evil... for me, her costumes in the second and third films are a good compromise between sexy and decent.
Samus from Metroid Prime (I will pay homage to you as a cosplay Goddess if you pull this one off).
Integra or Rip Van Winkle from the Hellsing manga comics.
Dress up as an original character. This may seem like cop-out, but you can do whatever you want with the costume and nobody else will be dressed the same as you. Alternately, go as a generic character (vampire, zombie etc).

Check out the pictures on the right for examples of wonderful cosplay costumes - the most fun you can have with your clothes on. Happy cosplaying!

Cosplay beginners: now check out our Mooky cosplay guide. It'll give you some tips on what cosplay is, sites for cosplay costumes, ideas on how to get creative on your own costume.

Then check out our tips for going to anime conventions and tattoo, fetish, comics or classic sci-fi conventions. Convention goers tend to be a lovely bunch. But if it's your first time, it's nice to be prepared!