Lets cosplay! Rock Lee

HAPPY EASTER!!!!!

I hope everyone is having a great day with movies and chocolate! Today I have decided to give my beloved sewing machine a break and enjoy my day day in front of the TV and take it easy.

I have decided that it is time to start putting my work up more often. What better way to start than to show off my most recent work?

'Lets cosplay!' is pretty much an idea derived from the 'Lets plays' that has stormed Youtube but instead of gaming I will give you a run through of my favorite costumes every once in a while.

I have attended Em-Con a few weeks ago in my hometown. Em-con is a annual convention in Nottingham that focuses of Sci-fi and fantasy as opposed to anime. There you can meet various actors from popular series such as Red Dwarf and Game of Thrones. There were also many dealers and artists around. It was a fantastic family event, with tiny Cybermen and little Jedis.

I was expecting it to be a crowded event so I opted for a costume of a character that is well loved, easy to wear and practical to move in when I need to retreat to a quieter place. Rock Lee was planned for Kitacon 2015 but because I was making fast progress with him I thought I'd budge him up ahead.

The weekend was a cold one and it was a chilled out event so we didnt have time to do a 'serious' photoshoot so much of the photos taken were us just messing about.

Several years ago I have brought the legwarmers on Ebay. I didn't have any plans to make the costume at the time but being a Rock Lee fan I had brought them for myself for a little joke and a nod to one of my favorite characters. I became more confident with wearing shorter wigs some time later so there we go!

The bodysuit was just a roll of blue Spandex that I was given for free a year ago. I have decided to make use of it by throwing it in 2 dye baths to achieve the colour. The first bath was by using Jacquards iDye (recommended by my good friend FishyFins) in green and another bath using Dark green Dylon dye. Jacquard's was by far effective but the Dylon gave it a slightly 'greener' hue. I have used my (Knight of Zero) Suzaku costume to help pattern the costume out and a simple green zipper rolls down the back. The collar has been replaced since being worn to Em-con.

The Chunin jacket was by far the most difficult part of the costume. I have adapted the beginning of it from a fleece jacket pattern my friend Katie have copied for me a few years back from Hinata. Though technically relatively simple, measurements were of prime importance getting the proportions right. The fabric was dyed white cotton using Dark Green Dylon fabric paint (same time as the bath for the bodysuit) and wadding was placed around the shoulders, collar and bottom hem. The red spiral was some leftover red PVC from Hikaru and appliqued onto the back.

The wig and forhead protector were also Ebayed. The wig had a ponytail that was cut off and tidied. The forehead protector plate was salvaged from a very cheap one and put onto a strip on polycotton. The eyebrows were coated with eyeliner.

Revisions are underway. I plan to make some new shoes for Kitacon!

Do your best in life! Part 1-Exercising to promote positive thinking

Cosplay can test the boundaries of your self-confidence. It seems that just a few inches of body fat can make an impact to whether or not you should cosplay a certain character. Unlike traditional dress up, cosplayers often feel that they need to look the part yet it is considered the preference to choose based on what you want to do. Anxiety and your image can really make an impact on lots of things in life, not just cosplay.

Everyone that knows me well will surely be aware by now that I probably, in fact, suffer from many anxiety disorders. I have Social Anxiety, which I am slowly leaning to cope with, and I also have Generalised Anxiety, Anticipation Anxiety and a few minor OCD tenancies.

In all honestly, I never had any professional help, not even a diagnosis; yet its still obvious that the listed above were the roots of the many problems I have to face such as anticipation worry, social nerves, depression from workplace bullying and giving TOO much of a **** about anything and everything that goes on around me. I proved to myself many, many times that its all in my head but still getting my mind off such things are not quite this easy.

I always thought that as a constant worrier maybe that would be the path to gaining more endurance to handle such negative thoughts. I always do manage to get back on my feet eventually but lately I have noticed that should be the last thing I should worry about since what is more of a problem is how I tackle worry on foot. It wasn't until I started working that I realised how many problems this could lead to. In fact, most of my worries until that point were more dwelling into my thoughts rather that coping with stressful situations on the spot and coming up with a solution immediately. Depression and anxiety does far more harm than good, and just sitting around behind the computer all day wouldn't help all that much so something needs to be done.

I was toying with the thoughts for years to whether to see a doctor or not as I don't want to keep handling all of this for the rest of my life. I spent a few days Googling solutions to try and beat my stress levels as I don't want to be on anti-depressants (I can't stomach tablets well and I like to enjoy drinking alcohol). I found out that exercise turned out to be one of the best solutions for it.

The problem is, although I am not afraid of moving and I can spend quality time away from the laptop, is that I am very, very unfit. My PE lessons at school got it into my head that because I was a really, really fast developer in my late childhood/late teens that having curves is not practical at all on the sports field and its true when people say it hurts running around with quite a colossal sized chest. I never considered myself to be fat but I have always been a little chubby in places.

About a decade later, although I still lack stamina and flexibility, I am starting to think that maybe I shouldn't compare myself to others in terms of physical endurance but try to become more active to enjoy the many other benefits such as stronger bones, improved cardiovascular health, faster metabolism, improved thinking and a depression/anxiety beater. Oh, and sports bras really do make a difference in performance!

On New Years day I just on a whim decided to go on a gentle jog around the block. Nothing intense, just wanted to test the waters. I noticed although it did hurt a bit at the time I felt better shortly after. I jogged again tonight and been asking around for tips to improve my endurance when I was done and found out all that jogging requires is some perseverance and some weight training would help too. I want to lose a bit of body fat. Maybe I should make it into a habit, now the new year has begun.

KitaCon has a group called Fita4Kita that is designed for the congoers that wish to improve on their overall health. Cosplay seems to be a common drive for a healthier lifestyle and looking at their Facebook page is very inspirational and full of help. I have been working on my make-up skills for the past year and that alone gave me a esteem boost so

I have a number of cosplays for the year that will be mostly made out of spandex, including Rock Lee. I dont want my weight to be the deciding factor for who to cosplay. Now is a good time to stop worrying and start doing something about it!

Planning ahead for Kitacon 2015!

OK serious business is done! Time for a happier post where I dont have to be serious. My brain is fried XD

2014 is near it's end! Coming soon will be a new year of cosplay fun! Although Kitacon is not until simmer, there will be a gruelling battle for places on the 1st January! I will be there the minute they open! I will also be attending Em-con, the NAMSOC regional social and maybe Midlands Expo if I am up to it.

 I have some ideas for 2015 already but with months before the con and a number of local events coming up they are subject to change. I will defiantly be rewaring Hikaru and I have made a start on a number of projects already.

The first costume I have made a start on for next year is Rock Lee from Naruto Shippuuden. I was in 2 minds at first but I have some blue lycra to use up so I dyed it in green dye for the bodysuit.It was one of those stove dyes but I didnt have one big enough so I threw boiling water into a bucket and it still worked pretty well. I still have some finishing up for it and the wig is already styled. I will be using the flak jacket for Forth Shinobi War Hinata too, who is also well on her way. I also intend to make her Last movie attire. Her wig arrived last week and I LOVE LOVE LOVE it!

I also have plans to cosplay Ladybug to go with a friend and zentais are really cheap so I can get her done quickly, and Amy from Suisei no Gargantia, who should be appropiate for the summer heat. I wanna do some more thermoforming so Mushra from Mushrambo is pretty tempting. The anime is a childhood favourite so im looking forward to this one.

I have no idea when, but I would love to being Sailor Jupiter out too. She was on a temporary hiatus due to the gloves being missing but thanks to a good tidy in my room I found them!

I have Justin (Grandia), Rider (Fate/Stay night), a Ranma Saotome remake and bunny-girl Mikuru (Haruhi) half completed in my sewing box so I wonder if I should bring any of these out from the dead?

How cosplay has changed me as a person

Before going into cosplay myself I had never imagined it to have such an impact in my life. My life pretty much resolved around the arts back then and now it made me realise that it is pretty much my lifestyle too, not just a phase. I always enjoyed Graphic design, gaming and drawing, and before I knew it I have gotten into costume making and crafts. Now it branched into fashion, game design and make-up too!

Back in late 2007 all I wanted was a friend that I felt could relate to me over my love of art and anime. Thankfully back in the early-mid 00's I was an active member of the AZ:UK forum, a close knit on-line anime community back in the day where anime was relativity unknown to most people in the UK. I have made lots of friends at the time so I was overwhelmed to find out I was not the only one. Although there were plenty of my own species in the virtual world it wasn't until much later where I had found others in my own home town. Sadly living in a small Nottinghamshire village made it very difficult to be myself at times and even when I was in my last job recently there was no way I can be my dorky, silly self without people thinking I am some sort of weirdo.

Thankfully years ago I have found out about AmeCon 08. Like the reckless dumbass I was back then I registered and paid for my space but there was one problem; I still didn't know any anime fans! I have always been a forum nut (still no different today!) so I have spent countless hours getting to know what others and out of a blue found out there was a local cosplay event happening. To make it even better there were a number of people going to Amecon!

May 27th, 2008 just a few minutes after 7PM...that was a the start of meeting some of the best friends I have ever made and 6 years later I still meet a lot of them, at the same place at the same time every week.

I was always socially awkward to the max. I still am pretty shy now but back then much of my life was either at home or at school trying to keep up with my A-levels. As soon as I have gotten to know these people I begun going into town, having cinema trips, helping to organise picnics and even attending other anime conventions during the day. It was a massive leap and looking back I genuinely wonder how I managed to muster up all this courage to meet all these people. Maybe because we have all these geeky things in common I no longer feel like a foreigner in my own country. I now can deal with public transport on my own, go around town without feeling judged and I even had a few retail jobs; that in particular I thought I would NEVER do.

Breaking this social barrier was only the start. It was only the start of the battle to fight against something much greater; my own self esteem!

I was happy with my social life, I attended my first convention and I felt that I am becoming much more independent but I had never realised that being in the convention could be such a double-edged sword.In a way my anxiety levels around people were still an issue. I am bad with crowds and I have begun questioning my sewing skills as most people outside my own circle seem to have been in the scene for years. Being a timid newcomer surrounded by many veterans can be scary for some. Maybe that is what driven me to make this blog as I knew all along I would be completely lost without my friends. I remember watching the masquerade and being in awe as every single entrant looked like they belonged to that stage. No chance I would be able to show off my work with such confidence.

I carried on attending smaller conventions with friends that were more relaxing. As time went, so did my social anxiety and began to feel more comfortable in crowds. I began talking to more people, made some friends from outside my home town, and been inspired by a close friend to begin entering masquerades myself. I never thought that being on stage would feel so...so fantastic! My name gets called and the stage...no, the world becomes my own! People cheering for me, camera flashing everywhere! Oh my goodness I feel like a celebrity! Everyone can see the hours I put into this costume and the cheers completely any negativity in the room. It is wonderful!

Friends, check! Learn to manage social awkwardness, check!

What more can I do? Ah yes! Learn to love myself!

Strangely enough, that was the part that was the most difficult to motivate myself to do, but seem to have the fastest progress once I got into the zone. Much of my previous insecurities was due to my low self esteem. How does one raise their self esteem? Is there a globally agreed way of doing it or is it just simply a result of always doing your best in life.

I began becoming more ambitious with my cosplays, dedicated more time and effort to get things right and even been taking make-up into account. In fact learning cosplay make-up has taught me to become more fashionable in my everyday life and begun experimenting and explored my feminine side. Now I have learned to love myself, my body, my personality. It is very empowering and I am starting to struggle with deciding what would be my next move.