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... With reflection over recent months, it made me realize that there were a few other reasons besides a lack of events and such to go to, but I was just plain burnt out. Since about 2014/2015 I was constantly making costumes, rushing them out and trying to get them done as fast as possible. I was making all of my own costumes, and sometimes making costumes for others, which added stress and to my workload. With not having conventions, it meant that there were no deadlines, no expectations, and I could take a breather. So I did. The last costume I finished from scratch before Lucifer in July 2021 was Cloud Strife in May 2020. I was relieved. I could breathe, take it easy, not need to focus on constantly making things so I could have multiple new costumes for every convention. It gave me the realization that without meaning to, I was also contributing to the 'fast fashion' idea that has permeated the cosplay world. Something I seriously need to step back from. The costumes that I've made since the pandemic started, and more of the older ones that I rushed out and didn't get to give much love to, I will be wearing to any and all events coming up in the future, and doing my best to cut down on how many costumes I make in a year - mostly for my own peace of mind. With making and finishing Lucifer, it made me realize that much of my work over the course of 2014-2019 were subpar, the craftstmanship not where I actually could and now can do. Slowing down it's made me see how much better the quality of my work can be. After making my Santa Jack Skellington (still need to put this up on my site oops) my motivation came back full force, but I'm only going to really truly focus on one costume at a time. Neuro was made over the course of one month, with nothing else on the go. Now, I'm working on Valentino. There are a few costumes that are detail/hand sewing heavy that I'll work on between other projects to give myself a breather. I'm excited for those. I'm really glad to have my motivation back.
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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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