Cosplay is defined as "obsessed anime nerds who have nothing better to do except lurk around conventions all weekend in a shoddy costume that may, on occassion, mildly resemble a cartoon character." I am one of these nerds, and I wish to share it with the world. XD XD XD In this section, you can find works-in-progess, finished projects, and some wonderful pieces my close friends have created.

WIP-- Edward Elric, Hagane no Renkinjyutsushi. Edward Elric is the eldest of the Elric brothers in the series Fullmetal Alchemist, currently airing Saturday nights on Adult Swin on Cartoon Network. Ed is, in fact, the titular "Fullmetal Alchemist", although his younger brother, Al, whom is actually much taller than him and encased in a suit of armor, is usually mistaken as him. He totes a huge ego and height issues, which both sort of contradict with eachother, really. Although he is a male character, I really wanted to cosplay as him, simply because of his lovable character and adorable wittiness that make him who he is. I have yet to find another anime character who suits me so well.

[Finished Pieces:] Red hooded cloak, from a plain woven cotton, used a bath robe pattern. Cut two sizes too large, for extra flowiness, yet fit to frame the shoulders. Black caducueas insignia drawn on back. Silver State Alchemist Pocket watch; only flaw is that it bears an eagle, rather than the official State Alchemist mascot, which is really a sea-horse type thing.

[To be Completed:] Black, buttonless top w/ white trim, fastened with silver clasp.
[Needed Materials:] Brown belt w/ silver buckle, black boots w/ brown trim and silver buckles, (may need to be made custom...?) Black tanktop, (Have tons... no worries) White gloves. (Can find them everywhere at Halloween time; next planned convention is shortly after Halloween.) I'm not worrying about the automail, because I'll be wearing long black slacks and two layers of long sleeves.

**Update: 8/28/05

I have found the silver clasps I need for Ed's jacket, and I have bought the black fabric and white trim. I have custom made the boots, complete with the red sole, and now all I need is a blonde head of hair and some plain black slacks. Neither should be very hard to find. Pictures of the completed product should be available soon!

 

CONSIDERING/PLANNING-- Haruko, FLCL. I have never seen this series before, but have heard mixed opinions on it. Some responded as "Avoid it if you treasure your mind," while others just mysteriously exclaimed "EYEBROWS!" (?!) At any rate, I've read several reviews and summaries of both the series and the manga, and it sounds, surprisingly, like an intellectual piece that wouls uit my personality. As far as Haruko goes, I love her character desighn and costume, as well as the fact that she beats up baddies with an electric blue gee-tar. There aint nothin like an ass-kicking pink-haired alien-girl to get me into my natural punk-rock vibe. ^.^

CONSIDERING/PLANNING-- Lulu, Final Fantasy X. Okay, okay, I admit that I am not the best gamer in the planet, nor do I plant myself on the futon with a PS2 controller glues in my hands all day. Normally, If I'm even on the Play Station, I'm playing DDR, jumping like a loon and belting out tunes while thrashing my brains out. Lulu, however, is one of the few characters in a video game that I feel I can relate to; what, with her dark persona and non-chalant taunting, its almost like I can see my older sister Nyteshade every time I play the freaking game. As for her costume, its elegant yet complex, and it carries just the sort of detail that I can customize and obsess over. Not to mention, the only "revealing" thing about this costume is cleavage, which I have no argument against, as long as every porno-popping nerd in Nekocon doesn't stop me for a pic he can display on his desktop. Other than that, it seems like a perfectly delightable challenge, and I can hardly wait to begin.