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#i always have doubts with photos of cosplayers
katsushika-division · 7 months
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It was very late into the night and Touya Kisaragi’s birthday was nearly over but there was still one more present he had yet to receive. A knock on the door to the residence of Death Row Block and Akari was heard and Akihisa, being the one who was closest to the door, went up to check who it was through the peephole, after all, who in their right mind would go to the place where known and infamous serial killers and murderers lived. A minute later, he sighed and opened the door, revealing none other than Kaiji Sano of Kobe Division’s Lovesick, in his usual feminine get up and holding a number of pink and black colored bags. “Surprise!” The crossdresser sang and stepped inside. “Sorry for coming in late, I was booked photo shoot after photo shoot for this upcoming anime but never mind that…” His icy blue eyes scanned the room, looking for a familiar head of blue hair. “Where is our beloved birthday boy?”
“KAI-CHAN!!!” As if on cue, the white haired boy was immediately tackled into a hug by said birthday boy. Touya squealed and nuzzled his cheek against Kaiji’s, grinning widely. “Kai-chan! Kai-chan! You came! I was afraid you forgot!”
Kaiji laughed and did his best to hug Touya back while being mindful of the bags still in his hands. “Of course, darling. I could never forget about you!” Kaiji pressed a kiss on his cheek before signaling him to let go. “I also got you something, well, somethings to be more accurate. Wanna open them?”
Touya’s eyes shined at the thought of presents and nodded rapidly, taking Kaiji’s wrist and pulling him towards his room and shutting the door. Once the two of them were situated on Touya’s bed, Kaiji gave the bags to Touya which he happily took, opening one bag, it revealed…
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A pair of new and shiny knives, not only that, they were beautifully crafted, one taking the appearance of a butterfly and the other had hearts carved into them. “I know you have a bunch already but you could always have more, they’re a matching set so you can gift one to your beloved.”
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Another bag revealed a beautiful bouquet of pink roses. “Beautiful right? Well, those are actually from Max. He’s really taking up gardening recently, he wanted me to tell you happy birthday and that he’s sorry he couldn’t be there but he had somewhere to be, he didn’t say much about it only that it’s something important and that he’ll be gone for a few days.”
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Another bag revealed a gorgeous looking gothic Lolita cake. “Looks yummy right? I had to call in a favor and man did they deliver, and judging by the drool coming from your mouth I’d say that favor is well worth it hehe!”
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And finally, the last bag revealed a high quality and accurate Draculaura cosplay outfit. “Ta da~! An outfit just for you! It’s from this doll brand in America called ‘Monster High’ and it’s something I wanted to cosplay for a while but I just couldn’t find the right idea what to show until I thought back on wanting you to show on my livestream one day. The character that outfit belongs to is called Draculaura and the moment I saw her I immediately thought about you! I made the myself and trust me, with a bit of makeup no one will even recognize you! I have it all planned out don’t worry.”
With all the gifts now revealed, Kaiji wrapped his arms around Touya in a tight hug. “Happy birthday, lovely. I know we’ve only known each other for a year but you’ve become so special to me, like you couldn’t even imagine. I hope you know that.” Pulling back, he gave Touya a bright smile.
Happy Birthday Touya! 💖
Suggestive Themes Ahead.
"You're always so good to me, Kai-chan," Touya purred, bringing the white-haired cosplayer into a kiss. It didn't take long for the kiss to get heated, with Touya licking at Kaiji's lips, begging to be let in something that Kaiji was more than willing to oblige. The two of them were lucky that Katsushika didn't have any neighbors because there was no doubt that the police would be called due to the downright sinfully loud noises coming from them. 
It wasn't hard for the two of them in the middle for their heated passion to maneuver closer to the bed, with Touya pushing Kaiji to lay down on it. Giggling as he straddled Kaiji's lap, Touya ran multiple kisses down his throat, stopping only when he felt the thrum of a vein. It's with a coy smile that Touya runs his tongue across it, tasting the pulse that sat underneath his partner's pale skin. 
"Let me show you how much I appreciate it." 
Meanwhile Downstairs…
"Are they?...."
"Yes."
"While we're still here?" 
"Yes." 
"Fucking gross. They're gonna be like this all night long. Great. Akari? Where are you going?"  
"My hideout because I am not listening to that. You two wanna join?" 
"If you don't mind." 
"Holy shit please." 
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usmiletk · 9 months
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2 weeks ago some nasty people 😷 opened 3 differents „discord servers“ and were spreading each link on Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr. From those servers they selected secretly the vilest persons and added them in a private group. What they did till now?:
Quoting Taekookers posts (which are not ship related) unprovoked on twitter with photos of their ship and delusional comments. They want to force people to admit that their ship is real. But Taekookers were unbothered and just blocked them cause it’s an old tactic of them everyone is aware of. Note: you can ship without harassing other. Enjoy your ship without hate and leave other do the same peacefully. Hope you will know the difference between supporting and shipping one day! But I doubt this day will ever come! And sadly it’s just a competition for most of you now and you’re ready to do anything not to lose! ⚠️
Report and encourage Army to report Jk, Tae and Taekooker’s fanbases and Taekookers. These people have many accounts and they don’t hide it. Even some of their admins (not all are same) already openly admit many times in their blogs that they have OT7, their ship‘s accts and cosplayers accts and encourage their followers to do so.
Sabotage Jk and Tae upcoming solo albums and Damage their image. They started shitting on Tae with another girl idol and their achievements unprovoked (‼️FOCUS ON YOUR FAV). Their goal was to push big Tae and JK’s FBs to post about it and so they could screenshot it and use their OT7 accts to encourage others OT7 to report them. Their exit door was the victimization as always. Since those fbs didn’t give them want they wanted, they push it far and started posting some nasty allegations (everything for them is sex related even their own ship 🤯) about Tae and his cousins ❌(Tae posted in the past some videos playing with his cousins and even wanted to manage one of them). That is when things escalated and they deleted but kths and Taekookers started to clap back (what wasn’t the right thing to do cause what every party did was nasty and no one deserve this). Their next step they used their jk’s accts (cosplayers) to shit on Tae too and kths were clapping back and that’s how jk solo join all this shit. Why? They don’t want jks and kths to work together for their favs upcoming albums. It’s crazy cause we don’t even have any confirmation of those album’s release. When they saw many people clapping back, they started the victimization and the people behind this were focus to ask to report Jk, Tae and Taekooker fbs while those who joined innocently to defend their fav asked to report accts which were involved in the fight. They even openly offered to paid some people to help them trend nasty things about Tae and Jk. As we all know they hurried to write false narratives about what really happened and circulated it on every platform. It‘s disgusting to see how they’re proud of what was said cause it was to defend their real fav (yes, they only care about one person in their ship, the other one is only important for their delusional sex narratives and the punching bag for their frustrations). No, it’s not. Every nasty thing said that day was wrong no matter the reason. No one deserve this and hope people see how far they’re going before it’s too late. At the end Fanbases of all sides joined to clean the tl and asked people to stop. They did great ! 🙋🏻‍♂️👏👏. Only their fake OT7 accts were trending positive things only for their real fav (it’s good 👍) and reported the fan’s accts of the 2 others maknaes involve and not their fav’s one (it isn’t good 🫵👎).
They’re starting to shit on Tae again today with their OT7 accts cause he is on the way of their ship 🤯🤢. They’re mad cause they didn’t have what they expected from their ship from D-Day‘s concert and they through their frustrations and insecurities on Tae and jk. They made some edited photos of Tae with the same idol girl and are circulating it in their OT7 accts, use their other OT7 accts to kekekeke about it. They are trying to normalize openly mocking and harassing Tae in the fandom and are setting Tae up for hate with the idol girl’s fandom. They also want to shift the focus from what is happening to Kodak black (don’t worry, we don’t care, we are not like you and there is no reason for you to panic about that in the first place). Their exit door this time, they planned to claim jokes if it doesn‘t go well. But no one is calling them out, everyone is acting blind while we’re reporting them and Stay focus on streaming and voting.
I can‘t believe that in 2023 these people are still using smear campaign to shit on others. Aren’t you tired? Stop lying to your followers that it’s what others are doing too to make them joint your devil cult cause they think they’re defending their fav from what other started first, when in reality they are innocently been used to satisfy the ego of some devil people who social media made them think they have some power. Stop this, it’s going too far and you’re not even seeing it!!! And somehow what you do is never wrong even when everyone around you is telling you otherwise. This is crazy!!!!!
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roo-bastmoon · 2 years
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Girl...idk why I'm always doing asks on your account 😭😭😭 but anyway...sorry but this might be long.
So this is not really in response to the anon but just my lil ranting.
So I'm not gonna dive too too deep but do I believe jikook is still dating? Yes I do. Now I'm not gonna give a timeline for how long I think they were dating but I think mutual crushing started happening in 2015 (it's a stretch but maybe late 2014). As time passed we started seeing it alot. In late 2017 or early 2018, we saw rings on their wedding finger. Now idk bout yall but I ain't ever seen two straight men get matching rings and put them on their wedding finger. EVER.
2018 and 2019 were the years of grand gestures. Jkkers love to mention Rosebowl and call me weird but I've never been gassed about rosebowl. Never once. It doesn't do anything for me. I know...I'm weird 😭. Almost anything that was on stage never did anything for me. What I focus on is the members reactions, words that were unspokenly spoken and off work behavior. For me, one of the big things that make me ship/support jikook and know that there's something there, is the members reactions. Alot of people don't like 2020 and 2021 because it doesn't have any grand gestures but those 2 are my favorite years because it showed the domesticity of jikook.
In jk's 2020 birthday vlive, jk went to make his wish and v said he doesn't need to make a wish because he already has everything he wanted. Hobi and suga laughed and hobi leaned forward and looked at jm. I say that because when he was talking to jk he didn't need to lean forward, he just needed to look across. Suga looked at v and said don't say any nonsense. On jm's birthday vlive, hobi asked a simple question. You could hear the smirk in his voice when he asked what is he doing in jk's studio. Nobody would've batted an eye if he just answered the question normally. But instead he looked back at jk, got shy and lowered his head. Following up with hobi saying let's move to my studio. It's just a studio room, why make a big deal out of it?
Then you have the leaked photo from jm dad's phone that people said was a cosplay. Now why the hell would jm's dad have a photo of cosplayers portraying his son and bandmate in an intimate position in front of a heart? Tf?
Don't get me wrong, I see where people have doubts about the 2022 behavior from jk. I see it too, it's not like I'm disagreeing with everything the anons are saying, it's just that I genuinely believe their relationship is fine behind close doors. And alot of people bring up v this v that. But if I could remember they had a "adult conversation" where jk said thay had to catch up, now why you need to catch up with somebody if you're close? That just shows (TO ME) that they're not as close as people make it seem. One time he didn't even remember jk's birthday, so the fact that people keep bring up v for everything related to jk is weird.
I believe 90% that jikook are together. That 10% is where stuff doesn't add up. One being the passiveness and the other the tattoo and song mystery conspiracy that people keep bringing up. He said "where did jimin get his tattoo again?", meaning that he knew that he got a tattoo but "didn't know" where (under the 10%)....I talked about the song thing previously so you know how I feel about that. The passiveness, I talked about in the dms. About the social media thing, both jm and jk have not interacted with each other at all. Except for jm posting the 2 photos of them (which again is under my 10% btw) btw. They both didn't promote each other's songs.
Is it possible that they could've never been together all this time? For me impossible. At least if they're weren't in a relationship, something was there. The amount of times that jm has slipped up calling his room "our room"....🧐....that's another thing that is under my 90%, yall are bandmembers, NOBODY would bat an eye that you're in each other's room but the constant need to hide it makes it weird. The smallest things they make soooooo suspicious for no reason. Jk saying "I go to his room cause it's the closest and he's bored".....🧐.....oh I'm sorry I didn't know you had to walk a mile to get to another member's room. Again...the white lies.
People say they've broken up but in what period would they have been supposedly broken up? What date? What month? Because the consistency and the breaking up don't make sense. Jm said himself that he's not a good actor, if they've been broken up, we would've sensed it somehow...someway. People thought that they were broken up when the January/March "drought" happened only for them to be out to lunch on white day with jm's friends. And last time I checked, if I have an ex, he's not going NOWHERE near me or my friends. He's also NOT finna be on my social media...periodttttt. I don't give a flying @%# if he's a bandmember or not.
All I'm saying by saying all of this is that I have more faith in the 90% than the 10%.
XOXO ~ Kas
Sing it, child! I agree with your timeline
I'd heard Jimin's dad filmed JK doing Euphoria but what's this about a photo on his phone getting leaked? Can you share with me the backstory?
To be honest, I'd like to believe Taehyung sincerely loves both Jimin and JK and that fans' reactions don't factor into his actions with either of them, but I've worked in entertainment for years in my previous professional life and I'd be astounded if his on-camera behavior isn't somewhat calculated (I'd be astounded if that weren't true for all the members, but Tae especially seems very self-aware of his own brand marketing and solo ambitions at the moment). I'm just gonna say it: Tae leans into Taekook a lot more lately. A lot, a lot. He doesn't just drape himself all over JK, he holds on to him and won't let go. Like literally will not give him his arm back sometimes. Makes it a point to bring up fire and water, playing video games together all night online, dressing each other up--pointedly mentioning these things when no one asks. And JK just passively accepts these overtures, sometimes even leans into it too. And yeah, they are super close friends, but sometimes it really comes off flirty. Now, if JK is online and monitoring everything, he knows what the cult is like and he knows the hate Jimin gets and he still participates in open displays of affection with Tae but not with Jimin anymore, which baffles me. It is not how I would behave if I were in a relationship with Jimin (or if I were Jimin's best friend/soulmate). But I'm not a twenty-something South Korean male pop star. Things that look hella sus to me could be par for the course to them. So far, none of the members have raised eyebrows about it, so I take my cue from them. And Tae is super touchy feely with everyone. Like he literally kissed Jin twice in recent months, damn! But he's way less so with Jimin this year (or rather, it's Jimin to again initiate touching faces or hair, back hugs, compliments). So I'm not making a judgment call about what all it could mean, but once again here's an instance in 2022 where Jimin is pulling the lion's share of emotional labor and being the one making gestures for connection. I'm just clocking it, based on the content we have so far. I know plenty of Jikook supporters who will froth at the mouth over this but I call it like I see it. It is one thing to keep some distance and plausible deniability around a closeted gay relationship. It's quite another thing to sit your ass on another man's crotch when you know you two are part of one of the biggest and most popular ships in the world. That shit is calculated. I just don't understand the math. But again, Jimin doesn't seem especially triggered by it, so I take my cue from him. But the cult seems pretty convinced that Jikook died during the pandemic and Taekook is real now, and it kinda makes me sad that they can point to instances this year where Tae and JK are all over each other and Jimin and JK are not. For the first time ever, they have something I don't have enough information about to refute. Kinda sucks. (I'll probably get crucified in my inbox for going there but again, I really don't give a shit about peer pressure. I am trying to gauge reality regardless of what I want to be true. Show me evidence that says differently, and I'll say I was wrong and call it differently.)
In conclusion, I have to agree with what you've said--there have been enough unique instances (even in 2022) to indicate very real Jikook intimacy is still going strong off camera. I just can't figure out why it's always Jimin reaching out to show affection, always Jimin hyping up his members' projects, always Jimin who gets the worst hate. I'd feel a lot better about it if there were more irrefutable instances of Jimin support from JK and all the members. But keep in mind, I'm Jimin biased. :-) You could probably make that same case for all the members if you were inclined.
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famousbob · 1 year
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8 year old post
Just a note to say it’s been about 8 years since I was last here on tumblr (mostly too time consuming and fast paced for an old man like me).  I recently finished ‘SpockLock” (now known as “An Ancestor of Mine . . . “ and in beta test!) and came back online to see that the following was a draft from many years ago which I never posted.
A few more answers to specific con-related questions you had! 
You’re totally right that public photos are often shared publicly without asking for permission - the reason why it’s different with cosplay is precisely because we all make the costumes ourselves! Because it’s a creative work that we poured a lot of time effort and money into, it’s nice to be credited, same as I would want to be credited for writing or artwork or any other creative venture that was shared by someone. The Irene Adler you mentioned (the sheer green robe one?) is actually a commission I made for makokitten! There is creative work being represented - the Victorian costumes a bunch of us wore on saturday, we had been planning since September. If it were just a personal picture of me hanging out in ‘normal’ clothes, I wouldn’t care at all about credit. 
I absolutely do not think that a photographer asking for the contact info of a cosplayer they photographed would be seen as invasive, it’s pretty common. A lot of cosplayers and con photographers who do this kind of thing frequently make and carry around business cards to make this kind of info-swap easier! Now, as has happened to me before, taking someone’s picture and directly afterwards asking them out? Deeefinitely inappropriate. But an info-swap is a very par for the course con interaction!
Blurring faces isn’t an action that there’s a lot of precedent for - in my experience, the best thing to do when there’s a picture you want to share but don’t maybe have permission/credit is to include a caption or note along the lines of ‘If you are the cosplayer, or know who the cosplayer is, contact me!’ This way the cosplayer can decide whether or not they want the credit, and it shows that the sharer is being respectful of the work! When I find an uncredited picture of myself that has some kind of similar caption, I’m happy, because it means the photographer liked my costume so much they wanted to share it but just lacked the means to get in contact with me! It happens all the time - cons are busy!  
I’d disagree with you though that it makes things too complicated to apply some discernment to who you allow to take an image of yourself! It’s always a bit of a gamble of a decision, but far safer than instantly trusting all interested strangers. And let’s be honest, we make these costumes to share! We WANT pictures to be taken, we want like-minded people who ‘get it’ to feel the same joy seeing our costumes as we’ve had making them! At other cons, photographers won’t always wear nerdy gear, but they’ll usually at least have a badge visible. An example of a rare time I turned down a picture: at dragon*con, I was wearing a genderbent version of one of the dwarves from the Hobbit. This meant I was wearing a skirt and feminine make-up, but also had a beard! Out of context, to people unfamiliar with Tolkien mythology and the Hobbit movies, it can get some strong reactions. A man asked if he could get a picture with me, and I said yes. (He was drinking a beer, I was drinking a beer, it was dragon*con!) When he moved closer to get in frame, he said “So what exactly were you going for with this?” And I, in a very amenable, friendly way told him that I wasn’t going to take the picture any more, and we parted on friendly terms. Because I had given him the benefit of the doubt - you betcha Tolkien fans can wear polos and board shorts! But the way he asked that question made it clear to me that the image I gave him the power to take would be presented without context, not as ‘this awesome cosplayer I saw at a con’ but as ‘check out this crazy bearded lady!’ And I opted out of a situation that I thought would end with my image being mis-represented.
When PFG talks about who has power, she’s talking about the moment when someone asks to get a picture. In that moment, the person being asked has the power to say yes or no, and the person doing the asking does not have power. This dynamic doesn’t extend to the whole weekend, or even the whole conversation!! But when asking permission for something, the control of that situation lies with the person granting or withholding permission. This is true both of strangers and of friends who I’ve known for years! 
I definitely should have clarified that when I referred to facebook, I meant private, personal accounts, and not on a public page. As far as I’m concerned, sharing images from a fun weekend with personal friends is always okay! That’s what I meant to refer to!
I’m a bit worn out talking about gender stuff, but I hope that can clarify some of the con/cosplay culture questions you had! Like I said, I’ve been part of the cosplay community for a very long time and these things are second-nature to me. Cosplayers also LOVE to talk about how hard they worked on their costumes - I guarantee you the next time you run into someone who sewed a costume from a series you like, they will talk your ear off about all the hard work and details! If you had a good time, I hope you’ll think about attending other meet-ups or conventions in the future! 
Thank you for your detailed answer. 
A good number of years ago a friend/colleague gave me a maxim I have taken to heart: “Never attribute to malice what can be explained by incompetence.”  Or perhaps in this case, ignorance.  I had no idea of the history of cosplay - any pictures I have glanced at I saw as either being obviously amateurish costumes or (what I thought) as professionally made (by a costuming company?).  I am not ‘crafty’ myself and would look to eBay or google to find a costume.  OTOH, as an audiophile I would rather build an amplifier kit than purchase one pre-assembled, so I do understand the joy of ‘rolling your own.’  (I did just re-edit my original IHOSE article to add the phrase ‘in their handmade costumes’ under the picture to at least credit your hard work.)
Being uninformed about 221bCon, tumblr, cosplay, comicon or other fancons, how some fans are wary of picture-taking (for their own valid reasons), and God-knows-what-else that I haven’t stumbled into yet, made it almost inevitable that my assumptions about a ‘Sherlockian’ event would be inadequate to explain what I was seeing/experiencing.
I needed context about many aspects of what was going on, just as you needed context of how I came to the con and published my article on IHOSE.  And as I have remarked, in on-line interaction I miss the tone of voice and non-verbal cues that are present in person-to-person communication.  Even your brief description of what happened to you at dragon*con makes the point.  I do not doubt that you made an appropriate decision about changing your mind having your picture taken.  You were there, you saw/heard not only the words you quoted, but how they were said in the context at the time.  But if I came to that con as a first time attendee (especially at my first con in 35 years) I could imagine myself asking you something similar, though I might phrase it as, “You look really cool, but I don’t understand how this relates to the Tolkien stories.”  (Is dragon*con only about Tolkien or dragon-stuff in general? - you don’t have to answer, I can google it and figure it out).  Now that I have a context it is a lot more understandable.  (Sometime I marvel that any two people can communicate relatively accurately most of the time!)
I recently did a paper on Holmes’ ‘you see but do not observe’ in which I quoted some research that says about 70% of our sensory experience is visual.  Even if Sherlockian playboy bunnies were chosen to imitate the Marvel bunnies, I didn’t recognize any Sherlockian connection per se other than your names.  OTOH, at a Marvel-con a green-skinned bunny could only mean a female ‘Hulk’ character even to me.  You are all attractive young women, initially attractive because of your physical appearance which was the first thing I saw at the time. And playboy bunny costumes, to me as an older male, do have associations with sexuality even if your unspoken intent was more ironic and meant to challenge gender stereotyping. I hazarded a guess about ‘cumberbunnies’ because of my penchant for puns and my (unknown to you at the time) recent purchase of cumberbunds to wear with my tux. 
Historically I am not usually outgoing in large groups.  But on this occasion with little knowledge of what surrounded me, I just had to ask questions of practically everyone I met.  I regret that I did not talk to any of you directly (though I did mention to one of you - to your sister? - that she could also be a very good Amy from Dr. Who - I am a fan of the show and noted her long red hair - don’t know or care if it was her own or not).  As I learned about the x-rated fanfic, I could understand a little more about playful sexual references.  I do have testosterone and try to keep it confined to my ‘naughty bits’ (as the Pythons would say) but reserve it for someone with whom I have a meaningful relationship and not have it take over my verbal behavior (though given an opportunity to make a wise-ass sexual pun I would probably risk it, especially amongst people who know me).
Anyway I do enjoy rambling on and interacting with intelligent people who have given a lot more thought to ‘things not dreamt of in my philosophy’ until now.  In fact, and I mean this as a non-sexist compliment, because of these interactions you are more attractive in a most general sense than the visual representation I saw at the con.  This doesn’t mean I want to date you or become your bff.  I am more than old enough to be your father (my wise-ass Electra complex remark aside) and have the physical attractiveness of an old pudgy Steve Buscemi and not a Benedict Cumberbatch or Martin Freeman.  I tend to think that the ‘attraction’ I provide for some women on tumblr who have made supportive comments is because I had a clever idea for a fanfic, I’m fairly intelligent, generally respectful and I’m open-minded (though maybe not so much that I’m long-winded!). You all have interesting ideas and experiences which until now have not been a focus for me.
So please you need not reply nor make this post public on my account (that is a pun!) but feel free to do so if you think it might be helpful to others in some way.
Best wishes,
Bob
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snarkyship-main · 3 years
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I took these photos years apart, but they fit together so well! I couldn’t find the cosplayers, so I made a fanart out of them.
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cosplayinamerica · 5 years
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DEVILIQUE: Aughra has always been my dream costume since I saw The Dark Crystal in 1982. As a birthday gift, my partner, Rev Chumley offered to do the sculpt for the mask. We set our goal to premiere the costume at DragonCon 2019 and began work early in February of this year. Later we found out that the new Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance was to premiere the same weekend as DragonCon, which was a happy accident.
REVCHUMLEY: I have been going to DragonCon for over 20 years, and in that time I have made friends with a lot of the volunteers that help run the convention.  We expressed interest in going to the Dark Crystal:AOR panel and I was fortunate enough to have one of those friends contact me and allow us to arrive early at the panel.  Otherwise Devilique would have had to stand in the Atlanta sun for over an hour outside in a thick silicone mask and full robe. I doubt we could have attended because of that, so I'd like to publicly thank that friend who helped us out (you know who you are). Because of this generosity, Devilique was able to meet and talk to the TDC:AOR puppeteers and Brian Henson himself, it was a dream come true.
DEVILIQUE: We had a girl ask for a picture with Aughra, who started crying after because she loved Aughra so much from the film and felt overwhelmed as she said it was like meeting the real Aughra from her childhood memories.
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REVCHUMLEY: The mask was sculpted on a head form in MonsterClay, then molded in a 2 part mold with SmoothOn shellshock.  We then cast the silicone mask with EcoFlex 20, made custom paint using EcoFlex 30.  Then hair for the facial features was hand punched and a wig was styled and hand sewn to the finished mask.  Horns were hand sculpted out of TNTCosplay Supply C4 Foam Clay and sewn to the wig.
DEVILIQUE: The robe was designed by looking at the limited amount of pre-existing reference material for the new The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance Netflix series as that is what I wanted to model the robe from, and not the 82 movie. It was constructed with hand dyed material, and custom made patterns, sewn by hand and via sewing machine.
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REVCHUMLEY:  I am a partnered twitch streamer because of cosplay.  Around 4 years ago, Twitch began a Creative section on their mostly gaming oriented platform.  I was making a costume for DragonCon at the time and began documenting my progress in live streams.  I met wonderful people in the Creative community of other artists, cosplayers, sculptors. I gained a following and eventually gained partnership on the platform, and I now have a much larger group of artistic friends, that I see every year at DragonCon, forged through connections from the costumes I made.
DEVILIQUE: Rev and I have known each other since grade school, and reconnected later in college in sculpture class. Since then we have lived and worked together with cosplay bringing our unique skills together to grow and create costumes neither could do alone. Cosplay keeps us working together and exploring new possibilities.
Photo: Mike Faber / RevChumley
Check out Dark Crystal books here, merchandise here and more books + Funko here. 
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s-fellows-art · 4 years
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I've been scrolling for the past few days and every time I see one of your reblogs I smile! I have saved many images (especially the clothing because I need to see Yoosung in those incredible dresses)! So, thank you for sharing your interests because they are very inspiring! 💜U!!!!!!!!!
Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah❣ ❤ u to!  i panicked for a sec when i saw this cause i thought i uploaded the dresses on my art blog. Lmfao. 
Yoosung in a dress is 👌  out of curiosity which one was your fave?
Also your art is very good so i know 1000% you could\can knock it out of the park. You have improved so much and i adore your art style!! Keep up the lovely work! ❤  I’m always happy when i see your uploads on my dash! 💌
( putting rest under keep reading cause i babbled woops)
Im glad your not annoyed by it cause I really  struggle not to obsessively post one thing at a time to often cause 90% of the nonsense i post ( like for example 40000 photos of ice cream i shamelessly went though last night at 2am) i use for color pallets or warm up drawings i dont save.  Also for the ascetic  ;)
I actually want to get into clothing design a bit more myself since I’d love to make some of my designs. I know in Vole project , a dating game thingy im starting to work on making for fun but i doubt ill finish, and for other projects im going to be very design heavy for each character so im doing a lot of photo hoarding to keep track of it all and for folds references and movement. And cause well….. shiny. Im a bird mentally.
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 i want to keep my designs actually   semi practical to the character or for general function and cosplayable because i hate stuff\shows\games that make costumes that make no since and make me want to cry if i try to make them. 
 i have a rule, anything i design i have to make or at least know i am able to figure out a sewing pattern for cause if i do ever sit down and draw out a series i would sell the cosplay pattern so if anyone wanted to cosplay it they wouldn’t have to go through the hell of figuring it out them self’s if they don’t want to. Because i know i hate doing that.  Its also really helpful to keep that stuff in mind when drawing the thing cause you can figure out how it moves as well. 
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cozycosplaycorner · 4 years
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5 Reasons to attend Conventions
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Nerd hubs. Anime Conferences. Conventions. Almost everyone in the anime & cosplay community has either heard of or attended one
ALMOST everyone
There can be many reasons to why you or your friends haven't attended a con. Maybe you suffer from bad anxiety, perhaps school or work is taking up all your time or you possibly just don’t have the money for a ticket, let alone transport and accommodation. These reasons are totally fair, don’t get me wrong!
BUT
If you’re considering attending a convention, and you need just the last bit of convincing, I’m here to persuade you into joining the gang of con-goers. Whether or not you’re a cosplayer, there’s always something fun to do at a con. I’m personally a HUGE fan of attending cons, and I would totally recommend it to anyone having doubts or concerns.
ANYWAYS! Here are 5 reasons why you should attend conventions!
1. Make new friends
Stumbling across a fellow cosplayer or fan of a certain series is for some a short and nice encounter - but for others, it can form (life long) friendships/ relationships. Even if it’s a simple discussion about your favorite BNHA ship or a compliment about your wig, but that small conversation can lead to so much more! Maybe you decide to hit Artist Alley together, maybe film some tiktoks together, even exchange instagram and facebook profiles! The people you meet at cons could turn out to be a friend for life!
Bonus: If you live far away from each other and aren’t able to meet physically, attending the same particular con as well as other cons can become a great ritual to stay in contact!
2. Attend events
Who doesn’t love a fun quiz or game? At conventions there are TONS of different activities to attend. Need to show off your overpowered Harry Potter knowledge? There’s a quiz for it! Wanna show off your dance skills? Hit the Just Dance booth in the came room! Wanna meet other cosplayers from your favorite fandom? Attend a meetup! The possibilities are ENDLESS and you will NEVER be bored!
Bonus: Remember what I said about friends earlier? Events are GREAT places to both meet and spend time with your fellow con-going friends!
3. Experience a cosplay show LIVE
We have all seen seen acts or performances from a convention masquerade. Fun skits you can watch over and over on the internet. But lemme tell ya: it ain’t nothing like watching it IRL. It is a whole other experience than watching an act through a small screen (obviously). The lights, the music, the acting, the whole atmosphere is INCREDIBLE. One CANNOT attend a con, without watching the cosplay show. No. Just, no.
Bonus: If you’re lucky, you can even get the possibility to talk to some of the contestants, which can be super fun (and helpful, if you plan on participating yourself)
4. Go on photoshoots
This one mostly applies to cosplayers FYI
Most conventions have some cool locations that you don’t typically come across in your everyday life. Perhaps the con is near a forrest, in a hotel with lounges or around high tech looking stuff. There are photographers everywhere willing to take photos, so why not grab the chance of bedazzling your instagram page?
Bonus: There are almost always other cosplayers from the same franchise, so they could also join for some extra cool photos! Both new and old friends ;)
5. Buy cool stuff
This one is kinds self-explanatory, but I had to include it anyway. The marketplace at cons are huge, and you have to skip the whole “waiting for your etsy order to arrive” process. If you’re lucky, some of your favorite artists may attend the con as well. Dealers’ hall and Artist alley are FILLED with all kinds of merchandise, posters, art, live commissions etc. It’s great!
Bonus: Not having to wait 4+ weeks for your merch or art is just pretty nice
Welp! I hope my convincing job has been somewhat successful! Hope to see you at a con soon ;)
- Joshi
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365daysoftododeku · 5 years
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2nd June 2019
Author: CrzA
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(Soon-to-be) Pros  At Cons
A hero nerd as big as Izuku couldn’t call himself as such without having attended at least one hero con, and throughout the years, whenever money allowed it, he had been to plenty. He loved it all: the panels, the merch, the guests, the cosplayers. Every part of it was just as exciting the tenth time as it had been the first, even when most of the stalls were the same every year, if some faces were so often present, they became familiar.
Izuku had tried to cosplay his favourite hero once, his mother had helped him fix up his All Might onesie into a more proper suit that earned him some excited compliments and a few requests for photos. Though Izuku isn’t really one for being the centre of attention—seeing as most of the time when eyes were on him, it was for all the wrong reasons, it seemed—, it had been a nice change of pace from his middle school interactions. At the cons, he was among his people, so to speak.
People of all shapes and sizes, from all sorts of backgrounds, came to these events to share in their love and admirations of Japan’s heroes. And the people who noticed him were just as enthusiastic about them as he was. It was nice, to not be looked at as the quirkless kid who aspired to be more than he was meant to. No one knew him, who he was, whether or not he had a quirk or what it might be. No one really cared either. They knew he loved heroes and that was that, enough to strike up a friendly conversation before they parted ways after only a few minutes.
When he started at U.A., things changed slightly though. After not only the villain attacks, but the sports festival as well, Izuku grew a little more recognisable than he had originally expected. Now that his face had been imprinted in hero aficionados’ minds as the kid who broke nearly all the bones in his arm in the fight with Endeavor’s son, people started approaching him even as he was just dressed as casually as any other day of the year. The con had happened not that long after the event was broadcast for all of Japan to see, so he reasoned that it was only natural the fight was still fresh in people’s minds. They were bound to forget about him once the hype had died down, and the next convention he managed to go to, he would go just as unnoticed as he had done in the past.
Or at least, that was what Izuku thought would happen.
To be fair, he hadn’t expected to get himself a boyfriend between then and now. He most certainly didn’t expect it to be the very boy with whom he had fought to make him noticeable in the first place. And the thing about Todoroki is that his hair doesn’t really qualify as something one could consider discreet. After the hero nerds found out who he was, who his father was, it was unlikely that they would forget.
In retrospect, Izuku should have expected this particular outcome. But he didn’t. And he invited Todoroki to come to the convention with him because he thought it could be fun, a bit of a date but not really. He just wanted to enjoy something he loves with someone he cares about. It seemed harmless.
But then people saw Todoroki, they recognised his hair, his face, his standing in the hero world. They saw Izuku beside him, their fingers laced together as they absentmindedly browsed an artist’s table. First came the shoulder taps, then the questions of whether they really were Endeavor’s son and the guy he had thrown out of bounds in a fit of blazing glory, and finally, the long, awkwardly silent stares as the cogs turned in these people’s brains. Some legitimately shrieked in uncontained excitement, and Izuku was torn between feeling amused at these stranger’s enthusiasm for their relationship, guilty for the way it made Todoroki shift uncomfortably and anxious about the possible consequences it could have.
Luckily, everyone was relatively nice and only wanted some pictures with some of U.A.’s most promising. It made Izuku feel like some sort of celebrity, which was a little strange. Todoroki kept mostly to himself though, almost cowering behind Izuku as he made all the small talk for the both of them. He was clearly thankful when people didn’t pry at his standoffish behaviour, though Izuku had done his best to steer their attention off of him to begin with.
Despite most simply approaching them about their iconic fight, however, they had a few stray encounters that were… interesting, to put it nicely.
It was definitely weird finding out that some people shipped them together ever since the U.A. sports festival. According to them, it was something about some obvious romantic tension—a couple of people may have called it by a slightly different name—that made Izuku blush so hard he was worryingly close to passing out from the lack of blood reaching his brain. Apparently, there was even a forum in some dark corner of the internet dedicated to speculating whether there was something between them in the little glimpses they caught of their lives when they were thrust into the media for one reason or another.
Izuku didn’t know whether to be impressed or extremely put off by the fact that these complete strangers had pieced together their mutual feelings long before they had managed to do it themselves.
Regardless, it was an overall taxing experience. Between trying to enjoy what the con had to offer and running around the venue to reach all the things that caught their eye as soon as possible, and handling their supposed fans and/or supporters (shippers?) while doing his best to keep them from poking at Todoroki’s life… Izuku got to the end of the day utterly exhausted. Conventions always took a lot out of him, no doubt about it, but this… this was a whole other level of tiresome.
If Izuku had a say in it, the next time they went together would go without a hitch. No people nearly cornering them with questions or requests that sometimes were borderline invasion of privacy. He knew that they meant well, but it was still clearly uncomfortable for Todoroki to be in these situations, so Izuku would like to find a way to avoid them entirely in order for him to actually have a good time.
“You want me to go with you to another one of these?” Todoroki asked, and Izuku realised with a start he had mumbled his musings out loud.
“Ah, sorry, you probably don’t want to go to something like this again, huh? After how this one went, I don’t really blame you, since it’s not even your kind of thing…”
Izuku smiled bashfully, though a hint of sadness settled in his chest at the thought of not getting to enjoy his boyfriend’s company at the next convention without people bothering them about something or other every few minutes. With a small shake of his head, Todoroki pulled Izuku into his arms, letting himself fall back onto one of the empty couches on the common room with him on top of his chest and stomach. Another rush of blood pooled in Izuku’s cheeks and he buried his face in Todoroki’s shirt in a futile attempt to hide it.
“I just didn’t think you’d want the attention I draw to us. I like spending time with you, especially if it’s something you like doing…”
A little whine of embarrassment sounded muffled against Todoroki’s chest and Izuku bit on his lower lip for a moment before lifting his chin and propping himself up on his elbows to look into his boyfriend’s tired, mismatched eyes.
“We could wear disguises… Maybe even couple’s cosplay… If you wanted, of course…”
Todoroki hummed softly, letting his head fall back against the armrest and his lids droop closed. “That would be nice… People wouldn’t really recognise us…”
Izuku tried to agree but was cut off by a large yawn, covering his mouth just in time to stop the little yelp from escaping his lips entirely when Todoroki wrapped his arms around his waist and pulled him closer to his chest. His breaths quickly settled on an even tempo and Izuku shifted to a more comfortable position, closing his eyes too and listening closely to Todoroki’s calm heartbeat. The exhaustion from the convention finally took over him as well, and by the time Iida woke them up to go up to their dorms before curfew, they had spent hours napping it away in each other’s arms. Even if the day didn’t go quite as he expected, Izuku couldn’t really complain about how it ended.
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Would you like your work to be featured in the 365 Days of TodoDeku Project? Apply here! (≧∇≦)/
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itslmdee · 5 years
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Fic: When Fans Collide
Mira meets a fellow female fan with a secret at a convention.For the allbingo meet-ugly prompt "we have been chatting online for three years and today I learned your profile picture isn't you"
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Mira loved going to conventions and meeting other fans, buying merchandise, attending the celebrity panels, and joining in with the amazing cosplay; those who liked to dress up as a favourite character could get very inventive with their costumes.
Mira had chosen to dress as Domino from "Deadpool 2" this year, having previously cosplayed as characters including Wonder Woman, Zoë from "Firefly" and, last year, Valkyrie from "Thor: Ragnarok". She hadn't gone so far as to add a contact lens as another Dominio cosplayer she'd met at the registration desk had, but she'd carefully applied the white makeup around one eye and fluffed up her hair.
She'd hoped to meet her online friend of three years, and fellow fan, Erica, but at the last minute Erica had said she wouldn't be able to make it this time, adding a sad emoji to her instant message. Erica hadn't been to a fan convention before and was anxious about it, so Mira wondered if it was nerves that led her to back out.
"I'll take lots of photos for you," Mira had promised. She already had several of the building and a couple with some fans, including the other Dominio, who had gushed over Mira's elbow-length fingerless leather gloves as more authentic than her own.
Mira browsed some of the stalls full of comics, signed photos, Funko Pops and other figurines, Blu-Ray box sets, and more. She'd got some money saved up especially to splurge on merchandise.
"Sorry," someone said as they bumped into her. Mira looked up at the woman who was wearing a "Burr shot first" T-shirt and a beautiful dragon necklace.
"No problem. I love the shirt," Mira said. "Both "Hamilton" and "Star Wars", what's not to love? My friend Erica has the same one." Erica had proudly photographed the shirt laid out on her bed being admired by a plush Pikachu.
The woman paled a little. "Thanks," she mumbled and walked away.
Mira was surprised by the reaction but didn't take offence. People could get nervous around strangers, especially if they felt intimidated by the crowded halls. She continued browsing.
Several stalls later Mira had only purchased a couple of keyrings though she'd seen a lot of things she'd like. She'd probably buy more things tomorrow once she'd seen everything on offer, and had her eye on a "Stargate: Atlantis" print and a colour-changing "Supernatural" mug.
Stopping for a coffee, Mira spotted the Hamilton fan again, huddled in one corner and glancing at the convention leaflet and then at the room as if lost. She wandered over slowly, giving a wide smile.
"Hi," Mira said. "This your first time here? It's a bit overwhelming when you first get here but most people are really friendly and you'll have a great time."
The woman nodded, one hand moving to fondle her necklace.
"That's a great piece," Mira said, "I'm Mira."
The woman nodded again. "I know."
That was unexpected. Mira glanced down at her ID badge; it was readable close-up but the woman must have good eyesight to have seen it from this distance.
"I'm sorry," the woman said and launched into a ramble. "I'm so ashamed. I kind of hoped I'd see you here, but I said I couldn't come because then you'd know what a liar I am, and so I said I wouldn't come and then I got here, and it's so crowded and you know I don't like crowds, and I regret everything right now and I'm sorry."
Mira blinked a few times, taking all this in. "Erica?" she asked when the woman finally stopped for a much needed breath. It was the only thing that made sense except the woman didn't look like Erica's profile picture. She leaned in and peered at the woman's badge. Erica Staywell. Her friend.
"Yes. You look amazing," Erica said. "Just like the pictures you showed me when you were preparing your costume. And I look…" She gestured vaguely.
"You look a little different to your profile picture," Mira agreed. Her own pic showed her dressed as Princess Tiana from when she and some of her friends had all dressed as Disney Prince and Princesses for a Halloween party.
"That's because that's not me," Erica said miserably. "It's a picture I found on a stock photo website. I was making a vision board to inspire me and I chose her because she's younger, thinner, prettier than me. I put her as my avatar because that's what I wanted to look like, that's how I wanted to feel, happy like she looks in that picture. It makes me feel good to look at her when I post online."
That was understandable, but Erica wasn't finished. Before Mira could ask why she'd never mentioned the photo was inspirational rather than based in reality, Erica explained. "We'd only been talking for a while when you said something nice about me and I didn't want to admit I didn't look like that; I'd just lost my job and was feeling miserable enough without having to show you how I really looked."
Mira stared at her, aghast. They'd still been getting to know each other then but she remembered Erica getting made redundant and how it had in fact brought them closer with Mira sending her gifs to cheer her up when she was low, letting Erica vent about the struggle of hunting for a job, and being thrilled when Erica got her new job which turned out to be better in every respect than her old one. They'd even talked a bit about the vision board which had at first seemed to fail Erica by letting redundancy occur before delivering the better pay and flexible hours she'd been asking the Universe for.
Now she understood why none of the photos Erica had shared in the last three years had shown her face.
"Oh, Erica," Mira said with sympathy. She was still reconciling this woman with her friend – and since they'd only ever communicated via text, no doubt Erica was getting used to hearing Mira's voice too. Meeting someone in person was always an interesting experience. "I would have understood."
Erica shook her head. "The longer it went on it just seemed like this huge thing that I'd have to tell you and I was embarrassed."
"Enough that you'd come to the convention alone?" Mira had already planned her trip and booked a single room since it was a longer distance for her to travel and she wanted to attend both days, Erica only initially agreeing to come for one day because she could get the train from her hometown to the hotel where she could meet up with Mira.
"I almost didn't come but I'd paid for the ticket," Erica said, blinking away tears. "I'm an idiot."
"Yes," Mira said because they'd become close enough for her to tease. "You're an idiot for thinking I'd care what you looked like. Which is amazing by the way."
Erica shook her head again and Mira pulled her into a hug.
"Look, of all the people here we found each other," Mira said, releasing Erica. "We have the rest of the day to enjoy the convention together. It's going to be so much fun."
"Okay," Erica said, summoning up a smile and wiping her eyes. "I'd like that."
"And I got you something so this will save me mailing it," Mira said, rummaging in her bag. She held out one of the keyrings.
Erica took the Lego Loki keyring, eyes wide with surprise. "Oh, thank you!"
"I've got Lego Wonder Woman," Mira said with a grin. "So, do you fancy the "Lord of the Rings" panel? It starts in ten minutes."
Erica clipped Loki to her handbag. "I'd love that."
They walked, arm in arm, to find a seat.
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jelixpo · 5 years
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Psycho (Chap 2)
~Author’s note: This is a fictional story featuring the pairing between jack///septic//eye and mark//iplier, or septiplier for short, and the pairing between jack///septic//eye and pew//die//pie, or jelix/septicpie for short. You are not to contact the people that are involved in this story with regards to questions about this story or their relationships, whatever they may be, as they have stated in the past that this makes them uncomfortable. This story will deal closely with spiralling mental health and will delve into very sensitive topics that may be triggering for some individuals. Chapter warnings will be provided as seen fit/needed. You are asked to read at your own discretion. Thank you.~
   "God, isn't it gorgeous?" Jack spoke affectionately as he looked at his hand, stuck out as far as it could go. He twiddled his fingers and watched as the dainty ring caught the light, "It's a little big, I know, but it's just so perfect!" He beamed passionately, "What d'ya think?" He asked, turning slightly to look at Felix standing beside him.    "It-It's great!" Felix rushed out, popping back into reality after being absorbed in his own thoughts, "Yeah, it, uh, it looks really good on you," He clambered for something good to say about it, anything. It wasn't really a lie. Although Felix loathed the reason it was sitting on Jack's finger he couldn't deny that it was a very pretty ring.      "Here!" Jack quickly took Felix's his hand and brought it over to his ring finger, "Feel how smooth it is!" He exclaimed excitedly as he held his hand still to allow his friend to do as he had instructed. Felix gently rolled his fingers together over the cool metal. Despite the small gem that was embedded in the top of the wedding band it really was as smooth as Jack had boasted it to be.    "Wow, yeah. It's really... something," Felix sounded deflated. He knew he did, but there wasn't much he could do about it. Last night had been hell after that phone call and he knew today was going to be just as bad. He tried to push the negative thoughts out of his head. Jack looked so elated that Felix knew he couldn't bring himself to try and bring the Irishman down with him.    "Hey, are you alright?" Jack asked. Of course he could read Felix like an open book. It was useless trying to hide feelings from him.    "Yeah, I'm just still a little sick is all. Didn't sleep that great last night..." It wasn't a lie. He couldn't lie, not to Jack, "I'll be fine, though."    "Alright, well," Jack moved his right arm and wrapped it around Felix's shoulders, tugging the Swede in for a side hug as he did so, "You let me know if you want me to do anything for you, okay?" Jack smiled caringly, his body warmth radiating onto Felix. I want you to call off the wedding, Felix thought, but of course, he said nothing.    "Sure thing," He replied, smiling back at Jack. He couldn't tell if his own smile was genuine or not. Jack nodded his head slightly in acknowledgement before stepping away from Felix and walking further into the con. Felix felt so cold when Jack let go of him, like he lost his only heat source. He always felt cold. So cold.    Not wanting to lose track of the group, Felix walked along after Jack and followed him further in. Just as Jack was about to round the corner Felix watched him slip a red face mask over top of his head, concealing his identity, before stepping out into the crowd of people on the floor. Felix followed his friend's actions by pulling his hoodie up over his head, grateful for how well the thick material masked his face.    Cons weren't really Felix's thing. The crowds, the screams, the booths. It was an introvert's living hell but he'd be lying if he said it was all bad. It was honestly nice to just be invited out somewhere with his friends, especially if those friends involved Jack. He ducked and weaved around people dressed up like all sorts of things before coming up to stand by his friends. Thank god they had all shared with each other what they were disguised as before they had arrived, otherwise Felix wouldn't have recognised them. Jack's red mask went well with his red hoodie, adorned with a black spider printed over the front of it, as well with a yellow jacket placed over his shoulders. Spiderman, of course. Mark stood next to Jack wearing a black and red pull-over plastic mask, accompanied by black skinny jeans and a red shirt that he had scribbled on with a sharpie to simulate shoulder-pads and a 6 pack. Granted, it was a very budgeted Deadpool, but it was Deadpool nonetheless. Stood on the other side of the couple was Pj wearing a large grey sweater adorned with a NASA patch over his heart with a cardboard astronaut helmet placed over his head to complete the look. Also a very budgeted costume but it seemed much more finessed than Mark's did. Felix wasn't really one to dress up and never really understood the excitement behind cosplay so he had merely slung a black Blame! hoodie over his shoulders and was satisfied.    "Feeling a little underdressed over there?" Mark poked fun at the Swede, gesturing to his lack of costume. Felix chuckled lightly in response, unhurt.    "I like your hoodie!" Jack quickly jumped in to say, "It looks super comfy." Jack reached over and ran his hand lightly over Felix's arm, feeling along the material.    "Uh, yeah, it's pretty comfy. Sometimes I fall asleep in it," Felix replied, unsure of how to react as Jack's fingers ran along him, unable to touch but close enough to feel.    "I would too if I owned something this soft!" Jack's bright smile could be seen through his mask.    "Well, shall we get started?" Pj asked as he gestured to the line of booths.    "Yeah, let's go!" Jack beamed as he bounced ahead of the group, eager to get a look at all that the con had to offer them. The rest of the group began to follow in tow.    Felix followed absentmindedly along with the group as they went from booth to booth, looking at the different merchandise and games that they had to offer. He followed at the back of the group hoping none of his friends, specifically Jack, would notice his hunched over body, his dragging feet or his worn down expression. He had had one hell of a night. He was sure the cleaning lady would give him a scowl when he returned to the hotel later that night, a silent revenge for the state he left the room in. No doubt the ripped up sheets and torn duvet would be added to his final bill. Extreme emotions... didn't usually end well with him. This instance was no different. He didn't want to be here, but he knew his friends would be disappointed if he didn't accompany them. He hated that. He hated how bound he was to the desires of others, to the wants and wished of those around him. He cared too much, he knew that all too well. His mind drifted to Jack and he felt his chest grow tight. What was life going to be like when there was no bit of hope, not a single chance of Jack ever being with him? For years he had held on to it, held on to the hope that one day he would say it, one day he would work up the courage, one day Jack would leap into his arms and they'd both wonder how they ever managed on without each other, how either of them ever lived a single day not entangled in the embrace of the other. Hope had strung him along, carrying him through every word unspoken and feeling unshared, every chance not taken and action not done. Now hope had left him, alone, in the cold, harsh reality. Cold. So very cold.    "Spiderman!" The shout of a young female caught the attention of the entire group, most importantly Jack as a girl walked toward him, "Might I grab a picture for The Daily Bugle?" The red-head asked, adorned in a brown leather jacket to match her MaryJane cosplay.    "Of course, MJ!" Jack beamed back. He stepped back from the group a bit and crossed his arms over his chest, stepping into a defensive stance and forming his hands into a web-throw as he did so. MJ held up a Polaroid camera and snapped the shot. Before Jack could move from the stance the girl looked over at Mark and beckoned him.    "Why don't we get some Spidey-Pool action up in here, eh? You two look like you're together," She said as Mark walked over to stand by Jack.    "Well, you're right on that one!" Mark replied as he stepped by Jack. The two of them folded their arms as they stood back to back against each other, both turning to look at the camera. MJ snapped the shot once again.    As Jack began to step away from the pose Mark quickly turned around to face him. Acting quickly, he pulled up Jack's mask far enough to expose his mouth and nose. After lifting his own mask up half way Mark secured his left arm behind Jack's lower back and planted his right hand gently on Jack's cheek. Mark's lips were suddenly greeting Jack's as he dipped the Irishman quickly back into his arms, causing Jack to shriek in surprise. Acting out of reflex Jack's hands shot up to grip at Mark's biceps as his body tried to keep him from falling. Jack's left leg bent and shot itself up and hooked against Mark's side. A moment passed where the two stayed like that, Mark enjoying the moment and Jack still reeling from surprise. A flash suddenly came up beside them, drawing them out of the moment. Jack couldn't help but laugh as he pushed the American off of him and pulled down his mask.    "You fuckin' asshole," Jack laughed as he straightened, stepping away only enough so that he was out of Mark's reach. Mark only smiled smugly in response. Looking over, Jack watched as the MaryJane cosplayer handed him a Polaroid, shaking it lightly in her hand as she did so.    "Here," She laughed, "You can keep that one," She said as he took the warm photo from her.    "Thank you," Mark looked at her as he stepped closer to Jack.    "No. Thank you," She replied happily. And with that, she disappeared into the crowd.    Jack chuckled slightly as he looked at the photo, happy to have the memory now. Mark placed his hands on Jack's shoulders and leaned over his shoulder to look at it with him. Jack turned slightly to look at Mark and smiled warmly, though it was hidden by the mask.    "I love you," Jack stated softly but clearly. Mark smiled back, his expression just as hidden but his eyes showing all the emotion they needed.    "I love you, too," He replied.    Felix couldn't take this. Not today. Not after last night. He had one last fucking nerve to spare and this was it. He could feel it shattering.    "I'm going to the bathroom," Felix muttered to Pj, monotone, before whipping around and pushing through the crowd.    He quickly navigated his way to the washroom and sprinted for a stall, thankful that they weren't all being used. He paced around in the small space, fuming. He wanted to scream. He wanted to cry. He wanted to hit something, someone, anything. He wanted to break every wall in this goddamn building but he knew he couldn't, wouldn't. The stares he would get from people, the way they'd think about him after he did that, he couldn't take it. He couldn't take this. He was dying inside and he hated himself for it. It wasn't just because Mark dipped Jack. It wasn't just because the picture was taken. It wasn't just because the moment had happened. It was those three words. It was the look they gave each other. It was the sincerity. The sincerity. Felix had never heard Jack speak so heartfelt, so star struck before. And he spoke that way to Mark. To Mark. Felix heard the stall next to him flush and he turned and punched the concrete wall behind him as hard as he could, the sound muffled. Jack had never spoken that way to Felix before. Not ever. Felix turned and slumped down on the seat, panting deeply as he squeezed his fists so hard they shook. And it was in that moment, that emotion filled, thoughtless, angry moment, that Felix realised. He wasn't special. He wasn't above anyone else. Not to anyone, and certainly not to Jack. No, Jack's friends held no tiers in his life. He treated everyone as they needed to be treated, but that didn't mean any of them were special. No, Felix wasn't special. Mark was special. And that moment, that tone, that sincerity, proved it. Felix felt hot tears spring to his eyes. This wasn't just a bad dream anymore. This was a nightmare.    Felix leaned back against the wall behind him and allowed his head to lul back, not bothered by the thunk his head made as it hit the concrete. He felt defeated, lonely. His whole life was shattering right in front of him and he felt powerless against it. He wanted to stop this. He wanted to stop all of this. He wanted to take control and do what he wanted, unthinking, regardless of what others wanted. But he knew he couldn't. He shouldn't. The stares, the looks, the opinions. And people could say no to him and there'd be nothing he could do about it. Felix wanted someone to blame, someone to give him answers and tell him exactly how to fix this. But the only person to blame was himself and he didn't have the answers. He desperately wanted to blame Mark, to say it was all his fault, but how could he? The American had done nothing but feel, something Felix did as well. He couldn't fault the man for that. He also couldn't fault the man for being his polar opposite, for taking matters into his own hands and striving for what he wanted. He had done what was required and now he was going to receive his just reward. Jack. Felix grimaced at himself. Jack wasn't a possession to be bought or won. He was priceless. This was why Felix couldn't win; because he had thoughts like that.    He sighed and closed his eyes, noticing now how dry they had become. He probably looked a mess. What would his friends think? His friends. Oh god. How long had he been in here? Felix stood from his seat and wiped furiously at his face, hoping to somehow clean it, before stepping out of the washroom. He pulled his hoodie far up over his head to hide himself as he exited the bathroom. He'd have to deal with his emotions later. But would he even remember how to feel when the time came? He pushed away the thought. He was tired of thinking. It's all he had been doing since that damned phone call. He walked down to where his friends had last been. Surprisingly, they hadn't moved at all.    "There he is," Pj commented as he watched Felix walk back over to them, "Woah, are you okay?" He asked once he got a better look at Felix.    "Just feel sick," He muttered.    "Do you want to head back to the hotel?" Mark asked, concerned, "I could drive you there."    "No, don't. It's alright, I'll be fine," Felix lied, "Let's just keep going. Please," He insisted. He knew they weren't convinced without even looking at him.    "... Alright," Pj finished, not wanting to push Felix too far, "As long as that's what you want," It was more of a question than anything. Felix nodded.    "Alright," Mark resigned. Thinking Felix would want to leave it alone, he and Pj began to walk further down the line of booths. Felix was grateful.     A hand rested gently on Felix's shoulder and caused him to look up. His haggard, puffed eyes met concerned blue ones. Jack's mouth hung open, wanted to ask questions but knowing it wasn't a good time. He looked deep into Felix's eyes, searching for answers unspoken. Unthinking, Felix stared back, letting Jack search for whatever it was he wanted to know. Jack made a small, defeated sigh. He couldn't understand Felix. Not this time. Could Felix even understand himself right now? He wasn't entirely sure. Jack's hand slipped down from Felix's shoulder and gently took hold of Felix's hand, entangling his fingers between the Swede's. Jack squeezed, reassuring. Felix didn't know what to think, didn't have the energy left to try. He felt something that he hadn't felt since the phone call. Peace. The worries stopped. Hand in hand, Jack turned and began to lead Felix along the row of booths. Too tired to think and too exhausted to let go, Felix walked with him.
    He didn't want to ever let go.
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hazeleyesoftwilight · 2 years
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Please encourage me to be the cosplayer that I know I can be! I hate my body…. I was so confident in cosplay seven years ago! And I was only 20 pounds lighter than I am today. But the thought of getting back there and feeling that way again feels like a pipe dream to me!!! Why??! I also feel like I’m just TOO OLD to chase those dreams, now. I am turning 31 in two weeks. On top of being disabled…. So like! I know my body was in better shape seven years ago, as I had far less health impairments, back then.
But I still want this. I want it, so bad.
In the past, I have always made my own costumes; and that is honestly the part I love the most. I don’t follow a pattern. I just run with it, and create what I see in my head. This is also helpful, being a plus size cosplayer… I know my outfit will fit me properly, and not based upon a standard measurement from the website.
But then, whenever I start something, I always stop, midway through the costume! Like this imaginary force is holding me back. And I know it is myself; my self doubt. My paranoia. But it feels like a real road block, that I just succumb to every damn time. I have multiple drawers of incomplete cosplay.
Furthermore…. I don’t have anyone to take my photos! So that is discouraging. I feel guilty asking anyone to take photos of me. I don’t have a lot of friends and I think my family members would judge me for it. On top of just not having someone to take my photos, even if I were to use a self timer and a camera…. I know that I will probably detest every angle of every photo taken, and cry about it, and then delete said photos. I hate that I do that, but I do, so often, because I feel ashamed of the way I look.
But I don’t want to… I don’t want to hate myself! I want to pursue my dreams. I want to excel. I want to feel beautiful, and celebrated, and seen! For me, having someone compliment my hard work, accuracy of the costume/character, and my overall appearance is everything to me. It really lifts me up and gives me such joy and confidence, and just sheer satisfaction, after working hard on a cosplay, to have someone acknowledge that.
I miss cosplay. I miss that feeling. I miss having friends who wanted to cosplay with me. I also believe that having that made it easier - gave me more to look forward to, and energy to feed off of from others. That alone was encouragement to keep going. But not having anyone to go with is the opposite. It feels lonely. And I don’t feel much reason to strive to complete a costume, when I have no one to share it with. And again, I truly do believe not having anyone to photograph me is contributing to my lack of desire, as well.
So many different things hold me back! 😰 Hate it!!
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beeskindagae · 3 years
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♡ M/C - Romania (Roman) | Y/C - (💟) ♡
(you can use any of the sides +Emile, Remy and Anton)
~Fluff~
|~ ⚠️ I got this idea from someone in my discord server the original is prinxiety but you can do whoever you want ~|
♡ TW: Transphobic parents, and self doubt
♡ Other information: Romania is trans MtF, already having bottom surgery but not top surgery yet, she is 25
♡ How I see the M/C in this au: Romania has long brown curly hair, tanned skin with freckles, she has green eyes and she originally had a feminine body even before she started transitioning, she stands at 5’6 and has chubby thighs and belly but normally wears a corset
Six years ago Romania began following (💟). A professional cosplayer she adores and looks up to on TikTok. With an empty platform she never knew what to do on her account until she discovered closet cosplay. Two years of posting videos, she had always dreamed of receiving attention from (💟) until one day they message her asking her if she has the interest of joining him to take photos for a cosplay magazine. Romania immediately fan girls, after all these years she finally had gotten their attention, little did she know is that they were mutual friends.
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Romania had her suitcase in hand, she was going to meet (💟) for the first time and they were going to share a hotel room so it made things easier. Romania headed to the hotel quickly, (💟) saying they’d be there a little late, she got inside and put some of her clothes in the drawers by her bed by the window and looked over as the door opened
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exposingethankath · 6 years
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Ethan Kath Undermined Alice Glass’ Contributions to Crystal Castles and tried to Paint her as Interchangeable
Ethan Kath has been on record saying the following:
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Ethan Kath claimed that Alice Glass did not appear on Crystal Castles “best known songs” and lists Vietnam, Reckless, Year of Silence, 1991, & Good Time…he claims that these songs are more well known by Crystal Castles fans Alice Practice, Baptism, Celestica, Suffocation, Courtship Dating, Black Panther, Empathy Plague etc.; what numbers is he referring to? If the entire Crystal Castles fan base was surveyed and had to list their favorite/most memorable songs, would the majority list 1991 and Good Time over Alice Practice and Baptism? Does not seem likely.
Alice Glass responded to this statement from Ethan Kath with the following Tweets:
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Ethan Kath responded with the following statements:
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Though it seems as if he is trying to “see through Alice Glass’ logic” here, this statement is actually written in a very manipulative way. Rather than directly refuting Alice Glass’ claims with figures and numbers, Ethan Kath responds by telling the readers ‘it can’t be both’; trying to paint Alice as someone that does not make sense and gas-lighting the readers to question Alice’s logic. It is interesting to note that right before he also claims in the interview that “I didn’t belittle her or make any derogatory comments, I was acknowledging what she had already said herself” even though his comments did attempt to belittle her and undermine her accomplishments; he is trying to get the readers to re-interpret Alice’s words. Gaslighting is a form of manipulation that seeks to sow seeds of doubt in a targeted individual or in members of a targeted group, hoping to make them question their own memory, perception, and sanity. Using persistent denial, misdirection, contradiction, and lying, it attempts to destabilize the target and delegitimize the target’s belief.
To be clear, it makes logical sense for Alice to have contributed almost all of the  lyrics and the majority of the vocal melodies to Crystal Castles despite feeling like she was in an artistically restrictive environment filled with emotional, physical and sexual abuse.
Ethan Kath also said the following in his response to Alice Glass: “I wished her the best because despite everything, I’ll always love her and sincerely want her to do well and be happy.“
It is a tactic of emotionally manipulative abusers to say something rude, degrading, or belittling (i.e. undermining Alice’s contributions to the band) followed by something overly-sweet & loving (i.e. I will always love her and sincerely want her to do well and be happy). This tactic is called intermittent reinforcement or hot & cold behavior.
“On top of other emotional abuse tactics, like gas lighting, narcissists/sociopaths/abusers give or withhold certain needs from their partner, granting them either randomly enough to develop an addiction in their partner or giving them in response to the exact behavior they want to see in their partner. Intermittent reinforcement creates a starvation within the being, which puts the person who is in charge of the reinforcing in a position of complete and absolute control.  You will always see intermittent reinforcement present in an abusive relationship..” 
Patterns of gaslighting and intermittent reinforcement from Ethan Kath are also highlighted in Alice Glass’ recent statement:
“But as is sometimes the case in abusive relationships, his cruelty was often  followed by kindness.“ “He kept me insecure and on edge, and  then would tell me that he was the only one it the world that believed in me. He told me it  was us against everyone, because everyone else thought I was a loser, a joke, a  talentless dancing clown. I believed him. I was suicidal for years.“
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Ethan Kath also tried to paint Alice Glass as interchangeable and easily replaceable: Edith Frances, the new Crystal Castles singer, used to be a model in LA that went by Margo Frances. Though Edith did have some photoshoots where she adopted a more “edgy” look (see below)…
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…her photoshoots actually have a wide range of “aesthetics” (which is unsurprising as she is a model). Also, in pretty much all of her photoshoots, she is blonde.
More photos of Margo Frances pre-Crystal Castles below:
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Despite being a model who is used to being photographed and who has many photographs available online, many images of Edith released by Crystal Castles don’t clearly show her face…a Reddit user even commented on it after Crystal Castles changed their Apple Music Photo to include Edith:
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“I’m not exactly sure what Edith looks like. She keeps hiding behind hair, and glasses, and hats, even when I do see a full face shot of her it’s hard not to see Alice. I think she’s doing herself a disservice by hiding so much” -Reddit User
Because Edith i.e. Margo Frances was a model, she is clearly not camera shy. Why would she be hiding or not fully showing her face? The fact that Edith started to hide her face & become less active on social media after she started spending more time around Ethan follows a pattern that is seen with both Alice Glass and his current romantic partner & former Alice Glass cosplayer Autumn
It is interesting the compare the photos of Edith i.e. Margo Frances pre-Crystal Castles to her after she joined Crystal Castles. It really does seem as though Edith’s style has changed completely to more closely mirror Alice Glass. One of the most noticeable differences is Edith seemed to adpot Alice Glass’ signature haircut & dyed her hairs similar colors to Alice when she was still performing with Crystal Castles. Please see below photos:
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Photos of Alice Glass performing with Crystal Castles (left) compared to Edith Frances performing with Crystal Castles (right); in some shots with sunglasses she almost looks identical to Alice Glass. 
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Another photo of Edith Frances performing with Crystal Castles; notice similarities in hair and makeup style to Alice Glass
It is likely that Edith (i.e. Margo) Frances is also being manipulated by Ethan Kath. Edith’s style probably so closely mirrors Alice Glass’ style in Crystal Castles to further paint Alice Glass as replaceable, interchangeable and unimportant to Crystal Castles.
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dccomicsnews · 6 years
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Welcome to the latest edition of DCN Cosplay Spotlight, where we talk to people in the wonderful world of cosplay.  This month we had the pleasure of talking with a member of the DC Cosplayers East and the Philadelphia Avengers, the Dark Knight of PA!
Check out our interview below:
DC COMICS NEWS: Batman is arguably one of the most popular, well-known superheroes to ever exist.  What is it about this character, for you, in particular that made you want to create a cosplay?
DARK KNIGHT OF PA: Batman has always been a part of my life. The first comics I remember seeing when I was a child were Batman comics. The 60’s Batman series and the old Filmation Batman (and other DC characters) were also on TV every day. I was drawn to the character for many reasons; the costume, the absence of superpowers, the gadgets, the Batmobile, etc.
DCN: With Batman being such an iconic character to so many people, do you find there to be a lot of pressure to portray the Dark Knight in a certain way?
DK: I don’t really worry about that. I think everyone has their own vision of what Batman should be. I just show my vision. I have several variations of the Batsuit, and none of them are 100% comics or movie accurate, and that is intentional. Personally, I always prefer the oval emblem over the plain bat on the chest. I also prefer an all black or gray and black suit. Even though the first version of Batman I ever saw was gray and blue, the blue never made sense to me. Have you ever seen a blue bat?
DCN: How long have you been cosplaying?  What was your first ever project?
DK: I was cosplaying before cosplay was a word! My first custom Batsuit was back when I was about 5 years old… many decades ago. My grandfather put it together for me. Back then, Halloween costumes were the old Ben Cooper things. A plastic face mask with a rubber string, and basically a plastic poncho that had an image of the character on it. My grandfather took an old Ideal Batman “helmet”, which was a hard plastic version of the bat cowl that covered my whole head. He painted it black, because even at 5 years old, I insisted that blue had no place on a Batsuit. He made a black bat cape for me by cutting scallops in a large black sheet. He modified black rubber boots to look the Batman boots, and added scallops to black leather cowboy gloves. The bodysuit was dark gray flannel pajamas with an oval bat emblem attached (made from cardboard and glued on). He also got black trunks for me, and somehow made a yellow utility belt from a leather belt and pouches scavenged from somewhere. I wish I still had pictures, but the Polaroids were lost many years ago. Years later, in 1989, I bought all the Morris pieces licensed for the Batman movie, and started customizing. So, I have been constantly modifying Batsuits since 1989 and wearing them for parties, cons, and other events.
DCN: What has been your favorite cosplay project so far?
DK: Costume wise, probably my Batman Inc suits. I really loved that costume in the comics and I wish they kept using it. But, the “New 52” ruined that (among other things). Group project wise, working with DC Cosplayers East to do a Justice League International group for a con and meeting the creators of JLI. We also did a fun photo shoot and got to recreate the “one punch” scene. Most of my favorite pictures are recreations of comic book panels.
DCN: How long did it take you to create this cosplay?
DK: It’s a constant work in progress. Every Batsuit I wear is the result of everything I’ve learned since 1989. I am currently working on some modifications to the newest suit that will probably take a month or two. As soon as that is done, I’ll probably come up with other things I want to change and the process will continue.
DCN: What is it about cosplay that calls to you?
DK: I love bringing comics to life. I remember being in first grade and the teacher asked us what we want to be when we grow up. My answer was “Batman”. Now, being around other people wearing superhero costumes is like living a childhood dream and at the same time bringing a smile to others, especially the children who believe they really are meeting Batman.
DCN: Do you have a favorite memory or story while cosplaying?
DK: I can’t pick just one. So many people (both children and adults) have been so excited to get a picture with me, talk to me, or just shake my hand. Seeing the joy in their faces makes all the time and money spent on Batsuits well worth it. I frequently do events at Ontario Street Comics in Philadelphia (the best comic shop in the world, and the comic shop that a scene from ‘Unbreakable’ was filmed in) and there are several families that show up every time I am there. I can look back at pictures from the past few years and see the kids growing up. When I talk to these people each time I see them, they make me feel like I am part of their family.
DCN: You were recently nominated as the “Favorite Philly Celebrity” in an “A-List” competition.  Tell us a little about this experience, how it came about, and what it has meant to you.
DK: That’s a bit of a surprise. It started with Ontario Street Comics, which has been voted the #1 Comic Shop on the list for the past 5 years. I was nominated late in the competition. I think voting began on October 16th and I was nominated a month later. I really didn’t expect to get many votes, but within a week, I was in the lead! Results are hidden now, so I have no idea who will win. I don’t expect to win, I don’t consider myself a celebrity, but it was nice to see so much support from so many people in such a short time. I really appreciate it, and it has encouraged me to get out and do more events.
DCN: Outside of cosplay do you have any other interest/hobbies?
DK: JUSTICE! And also comics, movies, pretty much all things geeky.
DCN: How do your friends and family feel about you cosplaying?  Are they supportive?
DK: Most are supportive, even if they don’t understand it. My youngest daughter has been Batgirl at many parties and conventions with me. She really does a much better job than I do. She is amazing with kids, and always puts a smile on their faces. She’s a natural!
DCN: Do you have a pet peeve when it comes to cosplay?
DK:  1.) I’ve only seen this once or twice, but it really burns me up. If you are in cosplay, and a child wants a picture with you, say YES! I don’t care what else is going on, what panel or photo shoot you are on the way to, take a moment and give that child their wish. You are representing a hero, act like one. Yes, I know this can lead to another child and another pic, and slow you down more, but it’s worth it.
2.) Nitpickers – if someone has the courage to get out in public in a home made, or store bought costume, don’t bring them down. Not everyone has the time, patience, skill, or money to make a “perfect” cosplay. Some people are just starting out and don’t have the experience… encourage them, don’t put them down.
DCN: Do you have any cosplays you will never do? And if so, why?
DK: Never say never, but I doubt I will ever do a cosplay that includes guns. I know there are many characters where guns are a part of the character (Punisher, Deadpool, Deadshot, etc) and I respect those characters and the cosplayers that choose them as a character, but it’s just not for me.
DCN: Why do you think cosplay has become so popular in the last few years?
DK: I think all the comic movies and TV shows that have been so popular for the past several years have called attention to the characters. Social media, and the internet in general have given people easy access to pictures of people cosplaying these characters, online tutorials on how to create cosplays, and access to buy costumes year round. There was a time before the internet when you could only find costumes and supplies in September and October, unless you lived near a costume/theatrical supply store. Before social media, there were message boards where people could exchange ideas and buy/sell/trade costume items. This made things easier, but you still had to know what you were looking for to find the boards, cosplay wasn’t a term at that time.
DCN: Which DC character, if any, may we see next from you?
DK: Flashpoint Batman (without guns)? Yellow or Green Lantern Batman? Or maybe Green Arrow… since he is the CW’s Batman. 🙂 I also keep kicking around a couple Marvel characters (Moon Knight and Captain America) so maybe somewhere down the line I will do those, but they just don’t call to me like the bat does.
I’d like to give a special thanks to the Dark Knight of PA for taking the time to talk with us.  I’d also like to thank Ontario Street Comics for helping make this interview happen.
Be sure to check out Dark Knight of PA’s Facebook page as well as Ontario Street Comics!
DCN Cosplay Spotlight: Dark Knight of PA Welcome to the latest edition of DCN Cosplay Spotlight, where we talk to people in the wonderful world of cosplay. 
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cosplayinamerica · 5 years
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Loki // Cosplayer: Troublemaker Cosplay // Photo: @gnerdcorner
My cosplay is actually a fan art that was floating around on the Internet around 2012. My roommate loves Iron Man and so I asked her if she wanted to do it with me. She agreed. I tried to make this version of Loki that year but I failed miserably. I did not plan it out properly and came out with another Loki instead. So like a lot of cosplays, I shelved it.
Years passed, I got married to someone in the armed forces. I suffer from extreme PTSD, ADHD and bipolar type two. So I have learned to deal with these things by sewing and cosplaying.
I got told a lot growing up that I could never do anything right. I have a younger brother, who was treated like a prince. I was always told, "why can't you be more like your little brother?" So I always saw him as Thor in my mind and I was Loki. Trying to get into the spotlight but never being good enough to be the golden child.
Every time a new Thor movie came out, Loki was at a different part of his life and so was i. I self-analyzed who and what I was. Why did I feel this way? How do I move past this? I analyzed what he went through and who he was at that time.
So last year, I sat in my sewing room going through a depression episode, just sobbing. I just could not see where my life was heading. I felt aimless, so lost. What was I doing with my life? All I wanted was to run back home, but I couldn't because I had chosen the life that I have now. I have never regretted it. The transition has been extremely difficult. Anyone who has married into the armed forces will understand how isolating it can be.
So during this episode, I started to watch the Thor movies. That is when it came to me that I needed to make this Loki finally. I had kept putting it off. Something in my mind just clicked that I needed to make this costume now. That this was the right time to revisit the costume I had failed on so many years before.
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Photo: @singular_photography 
I sat down and started to draw out how the costume looked to me and I started to break it down and writing out what I might need to do for it. I wanted that beautiful collar that was in the artwork. I found a butterrick pattern. The pattern was a shirt with a high collar with no seam. After I was comfortable with the start of it, I proceed to take in the pattern. I am extremely tiny, so I always have to take everything in to the extreme. I forget my size at times because I don't see myself as this petite 5'3 thing in my mind. I am seven feet tall in my mind and a builder who can crush boulders in my hands.
I used muslin to pattern out the whole costume, I highly recommend that everyone always mock-up things they have never made before. It will save a lot of headaches later on. I just drew on the petals for the lower half on to the shirt pattern, measuring out the bottom half of the shirt and using that as the guideline for the bottom of the petal.
I have always loved Loki sleeves. They are literally my favorite part of the whole costume. I could look at them forever. This is basically the only part of the costume I am ashamed of. I skipped patterning out the sleeves with muslin and went straight into using the actual fabric. I took a bunch of scrap material, folded them, sewed them down and started to position them on the sleeves. There are about 300 studs on the sleeves, I planned the layered fabric around the studs. I hand stitched all the gold chain-mail onto the sleeves.
I put zippers into the sleeves since they were going to be skin tight, I knew there had to be a way for me to get it on and off. I eventually just hand-stitched the zippers in because the sleeves were so tiny and thick that I could not get my machine to work with me.
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Photo: @singular_photography
For the details, I found all of them on Amazon. I found a gold chain mail dance club shirt for 20 dollars. The zipper stoppers were a bit harder. Those are what are on Loki's coat. I spent a long time searching for zipper stoppers, eventually, I found a pretty decent size on Amazon. There are almost 900 zipper stoppers on my Loki that i hand crimped on.
I was having so much fun creating something so personal to me. I was putting all my grief, anger, sadness, loneliness into that one costume.
For the midsection, I started off with a pattern I thought that would work, it didn't. so I just flipped the design around and re-cut out the pattern and extended the ends to take in when I needed to like the strap at the top of the shoulder. I organized the straps around finding the best way to sew them together. after they were sewn together, I stitched snap buttons on to all the points so it would sit where I wanted it to on my torso. I put more snap buttons on the back by the zipper to finish it off. I hand sewed more chain mail on to it. I used a curved needle for most of the sewing for it. because curved needles are easier to sew with.
The whole costume is interfaced. I will warn people against trying to interfaced 36 pattern pieces in one day. Don't do it. I literally hurt. It sucked. I had so many chances to turn the ship back around and stop but I did not. Lesson learned. everything but the skirt is interfaced. It is also topped stitched as well. I wear two petticoats under it to give it that extra poof. I wanted a super poofed out figure.
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Photo: @singular_photography
The costume has impacted my life in so many ways. I did not think I could sew something like this. I still battle self-doubt and self-worth quite a bit. It helped me evolve how I create costumes and pattern things out.
Anytime I am feeling down and like I can't do anything right, I have this amazing piece of art that I can go back and look at. I went above and beyond what I had ever done before that point and showed myself what I could achieve. I feel such love for it when I look at it. I can not stress how much this character and costume has boosted my confidence.
Now I look at costumes I thought that was too hard for me, and go I can do that. Peoples reaction to it help alot because I don't realize what I can do at times and again I will downplay myself. their reactions snap me out of that mentality and I m like Oh yeah I made that. I can do that.
https://linktr.ee/troublemakercosplay
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