Anyone who has known my work pre-COVID knows that my usual for cosplay is to spend basically from October/November until August working on costumes almost continuously. Since COVID however that has drastically changed, to the point that I have done very little sewing and crafting since May 2020.
Some of the reasoning was not having any conventions or events to go to over the course of the pandemic (until November 2021). Once I finished Lucifer's official costume however, I felt the return of my motivation bit by bit, so I tried to do little things to help push and improve it. There were other things at play that had made me not want to craft though...
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This year was crazy in it's own way. It was busy in some ways, and slow in others. I experienced a lot of ups and downs, and I'm so excited to get into this year. As 2021 comes to a close it's time for my usual recap blog. I managed to get back to my favourite thing of actually sewing my cosplays instead of using things from my closet - which I still did a lot of. Most of what I did was also for TikTok, which became a great outsource for my built up energy. Yes, I'm still going pretty strong with TikTok and enjoying using the platform - though I'll not deny that there have been some frustrations with it, but that seems to be a given with any social media platform. It's pretty obvious what my pride and joy of the year is though *cough*Lucifer*cough*. After nearly 2 years, I finally went to a convention again. In a few ways it felt like the first time all over again, but so familiar. It was a truly marvelous feeling to be back amongst other people, wearing cosplay in public, and having social interactions that I so desperately missed. Being an ambivert, the last year was a rather sort of torture. While my introverted side loved the solitude, the part of me that's an extrovert was crying out to get out. But of course, my fear of the virus (because I and my parents are high risk), it kept me from really going anywhere for health and safety purposes. With things opening up in Ontario, Canada again, I took the opportunity to finally go to a con. For the first time ever in my cosplay/convention career, I had a hotel room all to myself, and booked myself into the Hilton Garden Inn nearby. This convention was extremely refreshing after almost 2 years, it was absolutely fantastic to see friends again, interact in person, shop for fandom items in person. Sometimes through the weekend I had to remind myself it wasn't a dream. This is unexpected to be writing, but I had the recent realization that my cosplaying has changed over the course of the pandemic since last March. My love of cosplaying hasn't died in any shape or form, still putting cosplays on fairly frequently for at least TikToks. Typically in a year I make from scratch many cosplays, anywhere between 6-15 (including making for others), but since last March I haven't done that. And honestly? That's been very liberating to not do that. Now after all this time, I don't think I could go back to making many costumes in short periods from scratch like I used to. This last year and a half I have taken the time to especially focus on improving my skills on different things. It's been a godsend in a way and it's been such a relief and a help to my own mental health in a few ways - aka not stressed about deadlines. I know that basically every cosplayer has frustrations with the TikTok app in some way shape or form, mostly in it being the continuous shadowbans of cosplayer content for ridiculous false reporting. I've seen videos where the person is fully covered be reported for "sexual activity and/or nudity". Yet the basic user can upload content in their underwear it's fine... My issues lie a bit beyond this.
Since long before I started cosplaying I had an actual fear of something that is so widely used by costumers, actors, and everyday persons alike. It's something so small, and fits on the end of your finger. I've been iffy on it as well because of cost but, thankfully, this fear is now overcome - at least, partly.
What is this fear? Contact lenses. There's one thing that everyone can agree on (whether you're a cosplayer, general con-goer, artist, average Joe/Jane/whatever, etc), it's that 2020 was a year none of us will ever forget. And it is certainly one that is going to stand out when we say "things were very different". 2020 had a lot of HUGE downs, most of them due to COVID-19, but there were also some big ups for a lot of people.
This year I struggled a lot with things towards the end of the year, but I also had some major ups and had a few things that surprised me! Hello lovelies! So recently I realized something about myself that I was kind of denying for pretty much the entire time I have been into cosplay. I used to be vehemently against people doing purely sexy things with cosplay, then eventually accepting that that was what people wanted to do, and if I didn't like it, just don't look. Which honestly is the best way to go about things, don't like it you just don't look. Since I did the initial makeup test for Lucifer from Hazbin Hotel, something... sparked inside and made me realize something.
I normally never write about my makeup tests, since they are usually just simple things, try it out, and be done with it. This one was very different from that. Instead, I felt things about myself that I don't normally feel and I haven't really been able to stop looking at the selfies.
It should come as no surprise at all during these stressful times that most cosplayers, costumers, and hobby sewists are spending more time making masks, gowns, and ear savers than what they would normally sew. Many such as Yaya Han, Angela Clayton, and Bernadette Banner have made many to be donated which is incredibly commendable.
Personally, I do not have the luxury to spend a lot of time making masks, and the ones that I have been making are not exactly appropriate to be donated to hospitals, nursing homes, etc. The ones I make are more for the every day person, who would like to have one for their essential shopping. Why do I not have the luxury of a lot of time to sew like so many well known costumers and even some of my friends? Currently, I am classed as an "essential" worker as I work in food production. Because I am up at 5am, and get home around 3pm, I am exhausted by the time I'm home and don't want to do things that require hyper focus. So I work on masks on my days off, as either asked for by friends or coworkers. This blog illustrates how I have been making them for myself, my family, friends, and my coworkers. |
About the Blog
My blog will cover costume progress and event coverage for the most part. There may also be other posts that will be cosplay related. Categories
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