The Cosplay Garden

Some People See Signs in Anything.

Sat, 12 Dec 2009 21:00:50 GMT

Haven't posted for a while. There really hasn't been much to say, I'm still alive and junk. Need to work on some embroidery, if I wasn't so damn lazy.

But the reason I wanted to post was that I've been perusing some of the darker sides of the internet. And I don't mean 4chan. Apparently there's a trend for some Urban artists to be dark in their songs and videos. This is nothing new, it's just timing that there's a bit more than usual. However, I managed to stumble on some hip-hop conspiracy websites and videos. And I'll tell you what, they're the funniest and silliest thing I've ever seen! Talk about grasping at straws.

Take for Example:

Rihanna's little spiral into "Darkness." Whenever I stay the title, I have to put on my mock metal voice.

Then there's Beyonce's "Possession." Apparently her alter ego "Sasha Fierce" is a demon.

And let's not get started on Jay-Z, he apparently has a series named after him. I'm not putting that up, it has 10 parts.

Please make sure to check out the comments, they're just as insanely funny as the videos themselves.

Seriously though, there's a 20 part analysis into "Umbrella" that's about 3 hours long. Seriously, it's a video!

All I gotta say is:

Dragon*Con 2009 - A very good year

Fri, 11 Sep 2009 04:56:42 GMT

Dragon Con is turning into one of my can't miss conventions. This was my third year attending, but the first with a contingent of fellow New Englanders (many of whom drove down to Atlanta. 19 hours. I commend your bravery. Or insanity) There are so many things to do while at the convention, there is a fandom for each particular person. Plus, the costumes. 20,000 people dressed in zany outfits is a sight to see. (Dragon*Con's so big, it got front page CNN website coverage. Also helps that CNN's world headquarters is down the street)

Thursday afternoon was one of great excitement. I had been down south for 2 and a half weeks beforehand to visit family. This hindered some of my costume choices, since I also had to pack a good portion of normal clothes as well. I think I did well. stardust462 secured the rooms months ago, so I managed to get a spot with her. Even though there were 10 of us, it was rather comfortable in the 2 rooms. Conveniently, my aunt lives *really* close to the airport, so I grabbed her and her brother. It was really helpful that we went to get the hotel room first, since we managed to get a prime setting: two connecting rooms with two beds in each. It made sleeping assignments much easier. The four in the cara-van hooked up with us about an hour later. Other people would trickle in later on that evening and the next morning. And right around 5, we managed to get in line, and saw something NEVER seen at an anime con: vendors selling water, energy drinks, and beer on the street.

We had to take an picture for posterity's sake.

The lines were supposed to be organized by tape color, but not everything was in order. Those who ordered by Ticketmaster went to one room, and those who pre-regged went to another. If you registered at the con, you went to the Ticketmaster room. The pre-reg room was dependent on what was the real last name of the person. stardust462 and her brother had O names, and were called up to the front while we snaked in the middle. When it got down to where the line split, I ducked under some barriers since my line (S) was empty. This ended up saving me a half hour. diamond_dust8 remained in the line for almost 2 hours, since CA was painfully slow. I decided to wait, and wait, and wait. Fortunately, we didn't miss anything and returned to the room. Thursday turned out to be the 'get-as-much-sleep-as-you-can' day, since it was unlikely that we wouldn't be getting much over the weekend. Friday started off rather slowly for me. I didn't have an early day costume, so I decided to roam around in somewhat normal clothes, with some last-minute wings. A lot of the afternoon was spent roaming around and getting a view of the convention scene. I ended up at the Costumer's track in a panel about Thrift Store shopping. I learned a lot, like candelabras make good gun bases, and 80s lamps make good shoulder armor. I was debating on entering the Friday Night Costuming Contest, but I worried that I wouldn't be able to get there in time. (They changed the rule from last year, instead of doing it backstage during the contest, the would be a scheduled judging time. And even that time was too short) I instead joined some of my roommates in a My Little Pony gathering. Those costumes were cute and fun to wear, even if it was totally 80s.

I decided to give Ursula a bit of a stretch, I hadn't worn the costume since I repaired it over a year ago. I loved my new tank leotard, it was exactly the perfect color. My new addition would be to add gloves and nails, instead of painting my hands and nails. (Which still hasn't come off my hands yet) I wore her for only 2-3 hours, walking through the hotels to get a DQ Blizzard and back to the room. As expected, I was mobbed. One person would ask for my picture, then about 20 cameras would swarm. Rinse and repeat. I swear, I stopped traffic several times. My major regret was that I couldn't wear it to the Aquarium on Saturday, since that day would be full. During this time, my roommates went to Hooters, which turned out to be such an epically awesome experience, that I can't explain it. All I know is that pitchers of beer were involved. After all this, we were exhausted and decided to call it a night. Saturday started off quickly, since sweet_lottieand I want to get our stuff together. After the way we felt about Connecticon, we wanted to enter another cosplay contest with our Eternal Sonata group. Sure, we pulled them together in a month, but there was so much detail to be happy about. We got there right after 1, and managed to get a judging time of 1:45. The judges were very thorough and seemed quite interested in our construction techniques. They were quite impressed with our construction, and Lo's dying techniques and love of silk. In the end, we won 'Best Overall' in the Group category. It came with a nice certificate and a 13 box set of Battle Royale manga.

By that time, I was running to change into my Dawn oufit. I had to be very careful since the dress was held together flimsily. (This was the point) When I got on stage to rip it off, the entire audience gasped. My presentation went off perfectly, save my dress hanging on slightly to my ankle. Then the sword came out of the staff, and I knew I did well. I didn't win, but one of the judges ran into me and said that I had impressed her so much. I finally managed to get food and changed into lighter fare. All contestants in the Dawn contest go to the after party on the top floor of the Marriott. When it finall hit about 2 in the morning, I knew it was time for bed. Sunday was determined to be an Ursula day. Lo had made an Ariel costume, plus I was going to meet up with vampirate777 who was going to be our Vanessa. Lo went off to Patrick Stewart's panel with Shiva, while I put on the makeup. (I should be getting good at it by now) By the afternoon, we moved to the Marriott and managed to get some very nice shots, including the mirror shot. I can't wait for Shiva to edit and do her magic. As the three of us moved around, we kept be hounded for pictures. After the shoot, I waddled my way toward the Walk of Fame. It was my first time in there this year, and I wanted to see who was there. Walking around in Ursula was an experience. Mary McDonell stopped me and demanded that she take a picture for her daughter. And I got a hug from Doug Jones. (He's the one who gets in crazy makeup and outfits. Like Abe Sapien) We ended up talking abou 10 minutes about makeup application and other techniques. Best. Hour. Ever. At this point, the tentacles were getting tired, (and a bit tattered, need to re-sew them for future use). I went back to to the hotel room, just as my roomies were leaving. (I needed the space, and the sink) An hour later and I was ready for normal clothes. There was some sort of steampunk fairy tales gathering; Shiva and Lo brought their Cheshire Cat and Alice respectively. I had wanted to bring my Queen of Hearts, but there was no way I could fit it in the luggage, and it was too late to have them drive it down.

Shiva and Lo with a random Mad Hatter, in a matching set.

After their shoot, the rest of the evening was spent looking and staring at the creativity at the con. If there was some sort of media, someone was dressed in a corresponding outfit. It was people watching on a massive scale. We remained in the hotel room first to watch the masquerade on TV. Even though the time limit is shorter, it was rather not up to the standards that I felt a huge con that D*C deserves. It wasn't completely horrible, some of the presentations were just too long. After the masq, we went to roam around the hotels, snapping pictures of the amazing outfits out there.

Dead on Hook from the movie

Skeletor!

Actual Samurai Jack and Aku, TO SCALE. Aku fully erect stood higher than the next floor.

Amazing Hellboy!

Once it started to die down, we returned to the room and tried to get some sleep.

Monday was a packing up day for us all, the noon check-out time was insanely helpful. After scoping all of the dealer's areas and artist places, people made their seperate ways to the airport, and to hit the road.

Dragon*Con is one of those cons that must be experienced at least one in a lifetime. But, and my poor wallet fears, that it will be more annual for me. We came up with a ton of ideas for next year, and if I had the money or time, I would start already.

He's Out of My Life...

Fri, 26 Jun 2009 02:49:25 GMT

He's Out of my life...
He's Out of my life...
I don't know whether to laugh, or cry...
I don't know whether to live, or die...
And it cuts like a knife...

He's out of my life.

I feel awful for Farrah Fawcett's family, because her death will be totally overshadowed. To put it into perspective, I work with international staff on occasion. When MJ was heard to be dead, the entire staff was shocked. When the news of Farrah's death got around, it was "I vaguely remember her..."

Damn. My dance school used to use MJ songs all the time for routines. Thriller for Halloween, PYT for Jazz, Bad for tap. It was a great ride home from work, when almost every radio station was playing his songs. (Even the oldies station. Wow) 50 is such a weird age, it feels far too short. It feels like a piece of my childhood died. Sure, he may have been creepy, plus the skin stuff, but damn if that man couldn't put out a good song.

*sniff* Now if you excuse me, I'm gonna put on some LPs.

PortCon Maine: Little Cons Matter Too!

Tue, 23 Jun 2009 06:02:02 GMT

There's something about going with a con with friends. Many times, it is these people who will make or break your weekend. I believe, without them, PortCon would not be nearly as entertaining and fun as it was this past weekend. Because it is such a small con, it's here that I see a lot of people I miss at the huge conventions like Anime Boston. There was an attendance cap of 2000, but I doubt it made the total attendance of last year's 1650. One major deterrent was the extreme monsoon that occurred on Friday. Since Fridays tend to be one of the larger days for people to come, it's not surprising that it felt much smaller. PortCon also had several events scheduled for Pre-reg people on Thursdays, making this a 4 day con. Maine's laws make it somewhat restrictive, the bars close at about 12:30 as last call is 1 on the weekends, and 12 on weekdays. The convention itself was unable to run events after Midnight.

PortCon has always seemed to be more of a gaming and boffa con, with some anime to attract more people. It's not that it's bad, but it's far more diverse than other anime cons in New England. (I don't count Connecticon in this, since they're specifically designed as a multi-genre con. They're much more a web-comic con than anything else) After moving back to their previous hotel, the convention set up a very large tent for main events. As would be learned, there were several problems with this situation.

Thursday, I left work after a half day. I didn't hit a lick of traffic, and after stopping for 'provisions' in NH, I made my way into Portland at about 4. I met up with one of my roommates, since he was helping out with Opening Ceremonies. Shiva, my second roommate was supposed to arrive later in the evening. In that time, I enjoyed the animecons.com panel. (Somewhat biased) I also failed miserably at Anime Name That Tune. After a bit of socializing, I checked out the dealer's room and artist alley. Thursday night ended up being the best one ever, due to a reasonable group of adults getting our drink on. Between the bar closing at 11, walking to the pub then realizing it had moved, and making it to Sketch's room with a large quantity of drinks, the majority of our group ended up quite drunk. Responsible drunkeness is quite entertaining. Steve came up with a combination of Peach Arbor Mist and Blue Vodka which is tasty, but will knock you flat. It was the most entertaining Thursday I've ever had at a convention. Not due to the con events, but with the people I found there.

Friday, morning started off on a somewhat humorous note, as poor Steve was apparently unable to properly sleep due to my snoring. This was a combination of me being somewhat congested and he being a light sleeper. Shiva found him next to the bed, trying his hardest to drown out the sound with the fan. I eventually got up and made my way to hand in my music for the cosplay events. Friday was severely dampened by the heavy rain that it canceled Boffa. Boffa is a major event at PortCon, which happens outside for safety reasons. The main events tent flooded and had a somewhat moldy smell due to not having circulating air. This required us to stay inside and make our own entertainment; thanks to soap operas. There was the game room, which was small and personal. Many D&D related games were played there. Shiva, Steve, and I entertained ourselves with a marathon Uno game. At this point, it was slowly receding in rain-fall amount. Gale joined somewhat later after her 4 hour trip, as well as Lo, Annie, Courtney, and Mark. It was soon time for Anime Unscripted, a Whose-Line with the con guests participating. The tent had working power, but had the smell of mold everywhere, due to the protective blankets being soaked with rainwater. It was not the best version I had seen, but it wasn't bad at all. At this point, we walk down the block to Chili's, hoping to not break any more lamps. Sketch left early to participate in Extreme Geek, while the rest of us continued eating. After seeing a bit of Extreme Geek (It featured several men running in dresses to Tim Horton's at the next corner) I decided to roam around. We then returned to the hotel room, with a good game of 'Loaded Questions.'

Apparently, I had heard that one of the bands acted with disrespect to their room, and room policies. It's reasons like that which makes the convention move or unable to find a hotel at all.

Saturday
started off slower, as most of the day was devoted to the Masq. It was a very short one, the masq started after 3 and was done with all awards by 5. The majority of the entrants were walk-ons, new to the cosplay scene. Our skit was as follows:

What wasn't shown, is that right after the skit, I wasn't watching where I was going and fell off the stage. We all got a laugh out of it. We ended up with a Judge's Award and a finger puppet kit. PortCon's awards were never meant to be taken seriously. The best skit was a version of McDonalds, with a cast of varied characters. It was better than it sounds. The best cosplay went to an amazing pair of costumes from the Legend of Mana. Apparently, it took 2 years to put them together. It showed.

After cosplay, we went to change into normal clothes and ate at Old Country Buffet. Not long after was time for the rave. None of us stayed too long, as the audio was acting up, and the room smelled like sweaty mold. One whiff from me, and I didn't feel like dancing. I wasted the time in the Video Game room, until it was time for the Mixology panel. Jeni's panel was very informative and worth every minute. It was restricted to 21+, since the topic was about alcohol. At the end, it degenerated into a Rule 34 presentation. My mind is scarred for life. By then it was Midnight and after some post-day antics, we made our way back to the room for more "Loaded Questions." By about 3, we were all tired, and somewhat tipsy.

Sunday was far lighter since everyone is packing up. After checking out, most of the day was spent hanging out and saying goodbye to people. Save some last-minute purchases at the dealers and artists, most of the events could have been done with just the group of friends. After a humorous meeting with a Ruby Tuesday's waitress (Can you go inside and buy me some kitty ears?) It was time to go.
Portcon is not a con purely for anime fans. It's much more laid-back. It's far more helpful to go with PortCon with friends, or make some along the way. It's not purely outstanding, but has its little quirks which make it loveable. It ran into some bad fortune with the weather, but that couldn't be helped. If you're looking for an anime con, PortCon isn't your thing. But if you want less structure and more friend-building, give it a try.

I am such an 80s child

Fri, 12 Jun 2009 03:27:02 GMT

Thanks to the wonder that is youtube, I have re-discovered the awesomeness that is... Jem!

Sure, the outfits are completely dated, but tell me that this wasn't an animated soap-opera. The show had story arcs, more costumes than CC Sakura, and complicated plots. Plus, it was animated by Toei, of all places!

I swear, this song is begging to have an interpretive dance skit made for it.

Remember, this is a girl's show. I'm impressed that it wasn't butchered by executives. Of course, it was purely made for selling toys, but I tell you it worked.

Costume Con: HSQ is through the roof.

Wed, 06 May 2009 07:16:24 GMT

Costume Con is not for the faint of heart, especially if you plan to compete. It is an intense eye-gasm of color, beading, detail, and fabric. It is where the normal outfit is an endangered species, and beads, bangles, and thread are eaten for breakfast. (With the occasional alcoholic drink as a chaser) It is where the words "holy shit" ring out like an hourly prayer. This is not an anime con. It's not even a sci-fi con. The best way I can describe it, is as a costume con.

Firstly, to explain a few things, the way it is run is completely different than most cons I've attended. There are two types are programming, workshops and panels. Workshops come with a price, and usually run longer than panels. They go into more detail on how to complete a project or learn new techniques. For example, one workshop was "How to Build a Victorian Bustle." The fee was explained, what the participant needed to bring and what would be supplied at the workshop. A panel was more related to a specific topic, such as "Color Theory" "Designing a pattern from media or historical sources" or "How to do a presentation" These panels are very informative, and often feel like college classes with intense research. All of these panels were finished between 5 and 6 PM. This gives a break for the attendees to get food, plus to change into costumes that will either be presented in that night's Masquerade, or will be worn in the audience.

And as for Masquerades, there were several contests throughout the weekend. There was the single pattern contest on Friday, which took a pattern from somewhere like McCalls or Simplicity and allowed people to alter it while keeping the basic shape of the pattern. It allowed for a *lot* of creativity on what people did with the patterns. (There were 2 patterns this year, a Medieval robe with long sleeves, and a cowboy overcoat with a shoulder covering) Saturday night consisted of the Fantasy and Sci-Fi contest, which could cover just about anything that people liked. Sunday afternoon was the Future Fashion show, which consisted of drawn patterns sent in months before and selected by a panel of judges. Either you could do a pattern you designed, or something that another person came up with. Sunday night was the Historical competition, which either went for accuracy or interpretation. Plus there's the Hall contest, which unlike anime cons, is when judges/staff from the con hands you a ribbon stating they like your outfit. The closest thing that I can refer to this is like the Anime Boston staff voting contest, save there's only 1 vote and no signing sheet for the ribbon.

Another thing that was different from Anime Cons, is the existence of a con suite. Usually, this is a small location in the hotel which offers things like snacks and drinks. It's something that I would wish could happen at an anime con, but the logistics would be impossible, plus the exploitation would be quite easy. Just wishful thinking.

Anyway, onto the review:

I arrived into Baltimore around 11 Thursday night. I stayed with stardust462 and her mother for the weekend. Another thing about Costume Con is the length. It ran for 4 days, not just 3. (Although Monday was a major cooldown day, and many people had left Sunday night.) Friday morning, I get up to get my badge. There was no line whatsoever; in fact, all of the registration consisted of two guys at a table, looking up a card. Right around the corner was the Masquerade registration table, which had to be the busiest table all weekend.

Put it this way: Con registration had a shoebox full of cards for people who pre-registered and paid. Masq registration had 2 computers for keeping tally of entrants, and 4 computer stations for people who wanted to enter.

I spent Friday attending panels and gathering information. The panels were amazing. You could tell that the presenters were master costumers who had been doing their craft for as long as I've been alive. There was an excellent panel on hat-making, with sheets for reference and instructions. There was also a panel I attended for making appliques, couching, and other fabric manipulation techniques. (There's a book I really need to get, as I couldn't even remember all she had said)

The dealer's room was spread out in 3 rooms, one of which looked to be 2 rooms without the divider. The dealers sold things like fabric trims, strange accessories for costumes, steampunk and corset items, unorthodox patterns and instruction books, and there was one thing that surprised me. Unlike anime masquerades, there was a dealer selling past Costume-con masquerades on DVD and tape. This struck me as odd, to say the least. I'm not quite sure how they handle the copyright issues, if at all.

Next to the dealer's area, there was a place to display quilts, dolls and doll costumes, and past costumes.

After 5, all the workshops stopped, and people were given time to eat. I used this time to chill before changing into my Single pattern outfit. It was something I had made for Costume Con, but had finished earlier than expected. I used this at Arisia back in January.
I'm using some of stardust462 's pictures, since I couldn't get them all. (The trim on the sleeves lights up, BTW)

Other entries consisted of a version that looked very Chinese, and very beautiful. There was one person, who didn't even alter the pattern at all, to humorous entertainment as she walked on the platform. Now, Friday night's contest was done in the larger meeting room. (This room would become the green room for the Saturday and Sunday masquerades) The stage was built in half of the atrium of the hotel. (It had been finished at the time, but the contest was held in the room for a more informal feel) I ended up winning the "Best First Costume" for the contest, surprising the heck out of me. (It was my first costume for Costume-Con, I will admit) The contest itself started at about 8:30, and was done by about 10. This gave enough time for people to socialize outside in the other half of the atrium. This is when you realize how small the con really is. I'd say there had to be 500 people. Tops.
Some of the attired people at the Friday Night Social.

By about 12, it was winding down, and people slowly made their way back to bed. Another thing about the con was the demographics. The vast majority of the people here were older folks. Older as in 40s, at least. The cosplayers I met along the weekend, and I were the young ones here. It was a very different dynamic. Doesn't mean these folks didn't know how to have a good time! (I ended up winning a mini-plaque saying "Electric." If you saw my sleeves, you understood why.)

Saturday started out the same way as Friday, dressing lightly and making my way to the con suite for breakfast. There aren't too many people wearing hall costumes during the day. One, you may be going to a workshop, and there's no need to ruin a good costume. Two, there's a bit of the art of surprise here. Masquerade costumes aren't supposed to be worn around all day. It ruins the effect while on stage. There was an interesting panel on the differences between Anime and Sci-Fi cons, and what was mentioned about anime cons surprised and even shocked some of the older Sci-fi attendees. Many of them seem to be shocked that skits can be 2 minutes long, let alone 3. There was also an interesting panel on color theory, and how to make colors compliment a costume. There was also an introduction to cosplay panel, stating some of the basics.

However, a lot of my day was taken up by competition items. For the historical competition, judging times were given at the masquerade table. The Sci-fi judging was done in the green room. What took up a portion of my time was the tech time. Even for such a small con, lighting and entrances were planned out for the best effect. The idea is to show off the costume, not simply entertain with a skit. There isn't a set time limit, but nobody ever goes over 90 seconds, unless with a large group. Once I got to the green room, my thoughts were "Oh Crap." There was such a high quality of costumes, that it was impossible to determine which ones were the best. (The judges couldn't determine it either, they ended up giving 3 best in show awards) I entered as Beryl, something I had put together over a weekend, and was small enough to fit into my suitcase. Now that I know better, I felt that I needed something more the next time around. Not to say that it wasn't fun, but really not up to par.

The halftime show was a memorial to those who had died in the costuming community. It's apparent how close-knit the group is, when several of the master division were crying due to seeing their past friends remembered. Even I felt a bit teary-eyed, and I never even met any of those people.

After that, Marty Gear, the Con-Chair stated that as he has judged competitions at anime cons, he's heard the comments. The ones about be intimidated, that "they don't appreaciate cosplayers." As he said, cosplayers are welcome to 'play in our sandbox'. I think, and many of them realize, that the costumers can't really reject cosplayers, since this is where the future is coming from. Those who were under 30, (and some who were barely above it) came from a cosplaying backrground, somewhat disillusioned from the way anime cons have become. They were quite welcoming, moreso than a screaming fangirl giggling over the character and asking for strange yaoi requests. They know what we, as cosplayers can do. Heck, many of the cosplayers did very well at the competition. After the Masquerade was over, I returned to my room, removed my makeup and nails, and went to sleep.

Sunday started out the same as before, I went to panels and browsed around in the dealer's room. During the afternoon, there was the Future fashion show. What made this interesting was that not only did we get a show of people's designs, but one of our main panelists was Andrea Schewe. Who's she you ask? Well, next time you look at a Simplicity pattern:

Check the name. If you're looking at a costume pattern, chances are that she's the one who designed it. She brought some costumes of her own to model to us, and showed us some patterns that either had just come out, like a Tudor dress with underwear, or some things that will come out soon. For example:

Do you recognize that dress? It's based off the movie "Legend" (I just remember Tim Curry in a *lot* of makeup) But Simplicity is coming out with this dress, plus a Medieval dress to go in the package. Plus, there's the Twilight vampire cloaks, and a werewolf outfit. Plus a few other things.

I can't wait to go to Joann's and see them on sale.

After the fashion show, I needed to attend to tech rehearsal for the Historical masquerade, but the biggest thing I planned to attend was the fang making panel.

It was similar to the one I had went to at Dragon-con, but more hands-on. (A bit of underestimating the demand of people who wanted to come, so it never got fully completed). We did learn how to make some good dental impressions, and I know now where to get the kit.

After that, it was time for the Historical Masq. The judging had taken place on Saturday, which was good for showing how historical underwear and corsets were worn. I had made my own corset, and when tailored to yourself, is surprisingly comfortable (For up to about 6 hours, without being trained).

Pictures of the Historical Masquerade green room.

And for those who have been looking, some pictures of me in my Historical outfit.

Yep, I'm scandalously showing a bit of bootie there. Also a bit of confirming that yes, I did do all of the undies. That would also be the award I got for it. "Best Underpinnings"

If the rules are right, that means I may no longer be a novice in the Historical category. *shiver*

This competition only had 23 entries, compared to the 45 in the Fantasy & Sci-Fi masquerade. It actually took longer for the judges to deliberate than the presentations had been. In the end, they had to split the best in show to a specific ballet costume, and a Christian Dior outfit from 1959, that looked like it had been sealed in a time capsule and worn to the masquerade.

At this point, there were awards given out by Simplicity, including a $250 gift-card prize, and patterns that were out of print. Once all of the awards were given out, the Masquerade was over and people congregated and socialized on a Sunday night. For a group of less than 500 people, the supply of the bar was depleted. (They had even made specialties at the con's request, and they kept running out of ingredients since Saturday) I tried a Yungling, which just confirmed how much I dislike the taste of beer. But the contingent of French Canadians had brought sake, which was wonderful. People stayed up, chatted until about 2:30 in the morning, and then went to packing to return home.

Monday was spent at some last minute panels, the dealer's room was dismantled by Sunday evening. There was one panel on presentations from past Costume-Cons and Worldcons which had made their mark. It's amazing how easy one's point can be made in 30 seconds. It really makes me think on how I'm gonna do my own presentations. By then, it was past 1, so I made my way to the train so I could get to the airport to get home.

So, how do I sum up Costume-Con? AMAZING! It was so different than anything I had been to before. Of course, they have had nearly 30 years to perfect how to run a con, but the differences were huge. Would I do it again? Shoot, I'm already planning on costumes for Costume-Con 29 in NJ in 2011. It just felt so refreshing to go to a con that was so personal, but yet professional at the same time. (Without it being related to school or work) The dynamic was completely different than the last time I went to Baltimore, and when I will return again for Otakon. Give anime cons 20 years, maybe they'll evolve into something like this. However, Costume-Con isn't for everyone. If you're not into making a costume, or viewing how a costume is made, it would bore you to tears. If you're into skits, this is not the con for you. There are no skits here, merely presentations. But if this is your niche, and if you feel like cosplay is about the effort and construction of the piece, then I'd say give Costume-Con a try.

Now then, I'm gonna catch my breath. And some zzzz's while I'm at it.

Arisia: The con where I didn't spend a cent

Thu, 22 Jan 2009 07:02:33 GMT

I had told folks that I was going to do a review of Arisia, and here it is:

I'd say it was pretty good this year. Logistically, it was better run than Anime Boston, but that's because there are 1/6th the people there. Weather disrupted my Sunday, which dampened the event for me (There were at least 3 things I wanted to do but couldn't due to weather.)

Arisia is run similarly to Dragon*Con. Meaning that the con is separated by 'tracks'. Each track had from about 15-20 panels related to it over the weekend, ranging from Anime, to Costuming, to Teenager, to 'Alternative', to Lifestyle, and so on. Unlike other anime cons, it also relates to the older clientèle by starting around 3PM. I got there after work around 6, and didn't feel like I missed much. It doesn't really fit everything that people from the anime con circuit would expect; for example, there are no video games. There were also a few films, not limiting themselves to just video presentations. The venue was the same as New England Fan Experience, the Hyatt in Cambridge. The difference here was the hotel was buzzing with activity; I believe all of the rooms were sold for the weekend. In fact, they had rented a Peter Pan bus to go from the hotel, to another nearby hotel that was overflow, to the local train station, to parking lots that MIT let the convention use. Little perks like this are pleasing; it is apparent that they have been doing this for 20 years.

I was fortunate this year; I had been asked to be on a few panels for the con. 3 panels gets you a free badge. It was not a reimbursed badge either, they credited me as soon as I was scheduled. Sci-fi cons also have a con suite, where free food is offered to people willing to come down and get it. Panelists and other staff had their own green room, filled with brownies, cookies, drinks, stews, pasta, salad, and other edible goodies. I went there about 10 times over the weekend. With stardust462 's room for storage and free parking down the street, I didn't pay a cent while at the convention. (I'm slightly sad, because there were things I should have bought at the dealers) Speaking of the dealers, instead of having a hall for their setup place, they took the third floor of the Hyatt, cleared out the beds and set up shops in separate rooms. It's a good way to preserve space, but also leaves it to be a bit restrained. It makes it harder to browse without looking committed, plus, it's harder to compare prices to another dealer not far off.

Friday

I arrived after work and waited a grand total of 15 minutes in the registration line. One thing Arisia does, is that they keep the pre-regged and at-con together until the end. At-con fills out a registration sheet and pays at the terminal, while pre-reg's info is already on file. That wouldn't work at an anime con, (as Anime Boston and Anime Central found out) I got my panelist packet and searched for friends. I found stardust462 and her brother at about 7, and went to change into a costume. This costume is for Costume Con in May in Baltimore, but I wanted to wear it as a test run. Save for the feather trim shedding when stepped on, the costume was pretty good. Must remember to add a button for the undershirt. pdelahanty arrived later, about 8ish. My first panel started at 9. (My name was in the program booklet for a panel at 8, but they had removed me from the list) The first panel was Presentiations in Con Masquerades. It was helpful to learn, plus I got to take home notes. I found it amusing that the other members on the panel had been costuming longer than I've been alive. It was also interesting the differences between Sci-fi and anime con masqs. Sci-fi cons are much more about the costume and presentation while anime cons are about skits. They were amazed when I mentioned the 2-3 minute time limits standard in an anime con.

The second of my panels was What's New in Anime Now: Out of the panels I went to, this had to be my favorite. With myself, Stardust as the Moderator, and Mike (who brought his own projector) we went over our time limit, because the discussion was so awesome. I want to see new things like Baccano! now. Plus, this has to be the most epic opening song ever.</lj>
This is from a new anime called Tytania, it's still on Japanese TV. And I'm hooked. When it comes out, I think I'm gonna buy it. After about 11:15, the panel dispersed, and we returned to Elizabeth's room to change into normal clothes. We chilled and watched Leno for a bit, and then I decided to drive home before it got any colder.

Saturday

I got into the hotel about 11:30, so I could change into my costume, plus get some food from the green room. 1PM was another panel, What do you mean Avatar isn't an Anime: Which started out as an discussion between the two genres, then broke down into a fandom discussion about the show, and how M Night is ruining the casting. (Jesse McCartney as Zuko, WTF?!) The first part was interesting, because the moderator seemed surprised that Elizabeth and I didn't share her opinion about what consists an anime. But the second part sounded like an LJ community discussion instead of a pure panel. Don't get me wrong, I love Avatar, but call it an Avatar Discussion Panel for adults. One person seemed almost insulted because we deviated from the topic.

After the panel, Elizabeth and I went to change clothes into our Masq costumes. Sci-Fi masqs are different than Anime Con masqs. In an anime con, the judging time is scheduled, and technical aspects are done at the meeting beforehand. In a Sci-Fi con, that is reversed. We had a set tech time, (I was 10 minutes right before Elizabeth) where lighting to complement the costume would be implemented, plus a brief run-through to test sound. This is where I ran into Ang. I hadn't really talked to her since 2006 in Providence, although I saw her at PAC in passing. They' re were running a bit late, so it took about 30-45 minutes to be done for the both of us.

Elizabeth went to change into her Lolita outfit, while I took off some accessories before heading to the Anime: Then and Now panel. This was an introduction to anime, but it felt like the rest of the panel were discussing things from the 50s to 70s. Considering that I was only born 2 weeks before the 70s ended, this left me a bit out of the loop. It felt like a panel I didn't know much about; I tried to interject when I could. This was the slowest of the panels for me, because I just felt outclassed. By then it ended, and it was time for Elizabeth's lolita panel. Patrick arrived in his StarFox costume, while we listened to the loli panel. That was..... interesting. I felt so bad for many people who didn't know all the terms, because many of the girls couldn't explain them well. I'm somewhat relieved that I don't float in that part of the loli circle.

By the time the panel ended, it was almost time to get to the green room. I got something to eat. (Spilled a few drops and cleaned it with some wipes) Went back to put on the rest of my costume and went to the green room on the 14th floor. Another thing about Arisia, these somewhat larger Sci-fi cons tend to create their own channel to view big events like the Masq. This could be really helpful at anime cons. Imagine Katsucon (before it moved) if the Omni could have pumped the masq into hotel rooms and not worry about putting half of the audience in a room down the hall and up the stairs. This also allowed green room people to view the Masq without spoiling the surprise. A thing about Sci-Fi cons is that hall costumes are Hall costumes. Masq costumes are to be a total surprise. This is why judging is done back in the green room, since people don't want to spoil the surprise. This is easy to do when there are few entrants. In Anime Boston 2009, there will be 35 entrants in the Masq alone. Many of these are in groups. At Arisia, there were 25 entries, 8 of which were child entrants and given their own awards before the rest of the masq. When judging 20 entrants tops, it's easy to do it in one spot. Also in the green room was bits of veggies and cheese, drinks, and a photo booth. It doesn't do much for lighting, but it was nice to have a spot to get pictures taken.

The Masq started on time at 8:30, and including the Kamakaze kids (a kiddy version of Iron Cosplay), the young entrants, and the rest of the masq, it took less than 2 hours. Which is amazing for me, who's used to being in a Masq for 4-5 hours. This is helped by the fact all entrants are limited to 60 seconds, (Unless more than 4, then it's 90 seconds) Very few dances involved, for obvious reasons. I've learned that 35-45 seconds for a self presentation is optimal for me. The entrants in the masq use the service elevator to get to the stage, (got a nice view of the kitchen) After the performance, everyone is cleared out of the green room, and then goes downstairs to see the intermission and award presentation. Intermission this year was a series of trailers to fan movies, and sci-fi movies that are to come out this year. (I saw the Dragon Ball trailer. RAGE) Awards were presented. I got Best Recreation in Journeyman for Alice Alice Arquette, stardust462 got Best Overall Novice Workmanship and Best Overall Novice Presentation for Briar Rose from Disney's Sleeping Beauty, and Ang got Best Overall Master's Workmanship and Best Overall Master's Presentation for a historically accurate 10th Century Byzantine Noblewoman. Means I'm stuck as a Journeyman at Costume-Con. Yay.

After the Masq was over, returned to Elizabeth's room to change and chill for a bit. At about 1AM, I made my way home in the snow. Sunday was bad as I got snowed in at home and missed everything. I was not happy. Monday, I returned for a bit to check on certificates (There was a printer malfunction and they'll be mailed) Plus to pay my dues to the ICG since I missed the meeting the day before. After getting some last snacks, and since nobody else was there, I took off for fabric shopping.</lj>
Overall, I'd say my experience was better this year than the last. I just know from now on, I'm gonna be a panelist at Arisia. No need spending for a badge when attending panels that you would go to anyway, plus get the badge for free. I'm willing to go again; but like any con, it's best to go with people who you know. Just so you have those moments of making your own fun.

Playing Turkey with Palin or How NOT to Do an Interview

Fri, 21 Nov 2008 18:15:48 GMT

Remember, she was this close to being a cancer-surviving 72-year-old heartbeat away from being President.

A little late, but who cares!

Thu, 06 Nov 2008 00:31:34 GMT

Congratz, America!

David Allen Grier, you say it better than I ever could.

Wed, 29 Oct 2008 04:40:07 GMT

I missed you! I missed In Living Color!

I'll put up an AAC report later.

The Madness that is.. Dragon*Con!

Tue, 02 Sep 2008 14:41:25 GMT

This is primarily a review for those of my New England peeps who couldn't make it down to see it for themselves. It's also a general recap about what I did for the long weekend.

Let me give a little info about Dragon*Con. It's a multi-genre convention, seperated into fan tracks. Each track is settled into a specific area around 4 hotels (they added the 4th this year) in the downtown Atlanta area. For example, the Star Trek track was in the Sheraton, the Anime track was in the Hyatt, the Costuming track was in the Marriott, etc. Each track can have guests that are related to it, plus overall guests that many people would come to see. It has been going on for over 20 years, taking over the area. They have maintained a relationship with local vendors; many food places in the downtown mall will stay open late. (The Dairy Queen remained open past 2 AM on Saturday night) They had a shuttle or two to transport people from outer hotels to the host properties, and even had a discount deal with AVIS. The numbers average to about 30,000 per year, which makes it one of the premier events in the country.

It also made for an interesting clash when fan(atics) from college football going on that Saturday clashed with fan(dom) around the same area.

I'm gonna break it down by days, to make it easier.

I arrived on Thursday, having been in Atlanta to visit family for a week previously. I was rooming at the Sheraton with a new set of people, due to not having space with another group. Dragon*Con's line started outside of the Hyatt and curved around the hotel. Once inside, the room is broken down to three groups: Pre-reg, at-con reg, and ticketmaster. The pre-reg was the longest of the lines when I arrived, the price of paying early and a lower cost. It averaged to be about 1 to 1.5 hour wait in line, which I spent partially sewing some snaps onto an old costume. By the time I left, the line was longer. Thursday is the best day to see about attempting to get some sleep, since the rest of the weekend will not allow for it. After getting some dinner and such, I turned in relavitely early at about 12.
Waking up on Friday about 10ish, I waited for the bathroom. I had decided to get into Nareesha (my sari costume from Bizenghast). This would be the costume that I decided to enter for the Friday Night Costume Contest. This contest is pure workmanship, no skits, and barely a walk-on was accepted. Since I had some free time, I decided to make my way to the Dealer's room. This was set up in the Marriott, in three specific locations. Two spots were devoted primarily to larger companies with guests, (called the Exhibitor's Halls) The other room was more of a dealer's room. They were devoted mainly to corsets, comics, jewelry, occasional makeup and wigs, clothing, and weapons. I would guess that the area combined would make it the size of Connecticon's dealer's room. Not to say they didn't have enough stuff, just seemed to have smaller spaces for vendors compared to anime cons. I grabbed some comics from Joseph Michael Linsner's booth (I will come back to this later) and went off to the costuming track which was nearby. I sat through their introductory panel, which was part introduction and part plug for Costume-Con (I will get back to this later as well) A few of the panels intrigued me, so I decided to see them later on that weekend. After this, I decided to make my way toward one of the larger panels for prosthetics. It was supposed to be presented by a professional; I always want to improve on my technique. However, he never showed up. We were entertained with the in-house tv loop, which was partially psuedo-commercials, and part adult swim bumpers. I decided to give it a few more minutes, but even then I gave up. Floating around this point, I ran into Syragia. This is when I figured that I can't escape New England forever.
After a quick dinner, it was time to head toward the Costume Contest. Here, there was a *much* higher quality of costumes in comparison to the anime cons I've been to. Each one of the costumes could have been award winners in other contests. My only problem was the lack of recognition for these people. I know I was the last entrant at #54, and there were 6 awards. One of them was an audience choice award selected from the winners, and the best professional won the best in show. Not to say that the awards weren't deserving (There was a Wicked Witch of the West with soldiers that were *dead on*) I just merely wished they offered even honorable mentions or judges awards.

(One thing about photobooths, they are set up backstage while being judged. This is good because it means people don't need to be running around for pictures. It's bad because the time for pictures can be delayed and push back the event. Due to extra judging and photography, the hosts had to stall the Friday Night Costume Contest thrice.)

I was tired of my heavy wig at this point, and went back to change into something lighter. I wanted to find a dance or something, but I did find the hentai panel. Sex Warrior Pudding with an audience is humorous to say the least. Once the panel ended around 1:30, I made my way back to the room to attempt to get some sleep for the busy day ahead.
I woke up on Saturday at about 8 am to get ready for the parade. One of Dragon*Con's major events is the parade that travels from a park a few blocks away around the hotels. Many con-goers and several spectators come out to see it. The children seem to enjoy it a lot, especially when some groups hand out candy. The stormtroopers and jedi overpower many of the other groups, but it makes for a cool sight to see. I got dressed in my gijinka outfit to meet up with aleathiaburns </span> and she helped make a presentation script. After the show, we all had random ideas of what to do in 2008. It started off with BeDawn'ce, and went downhill from there. Aleathia backed out and went for the more traditional crone with armor. (You did an awesome job with it, BTW. I'll have to go find some garage sale signs) blikku ended up doing "The Goddess Formerly known as Dawn" with a Prince theme,
hentaigirl82 did Ma"Dawn"na, complete with rolling on the ground a la MTV awards. And I, I did Queen "Dawn" tifah! I found some old kinte fabric and made a hat, with a matching vest and made a lace robe that was sheer but sexy. A little music and intro, and 'tada!' The judges had a blast with it, and the other contestants loved it. The Dawn contest is full of all sorts of ideas. There was a rickroll. One of the winners was a Dawn, made out of cardboard! The one who won the $1000 prize went full Shiva dawn. Not FF Shiva full of ice, but Shiva with six arms and all. (She was from Portsmouth too. Told you I can't escape New England. I did mention PortCon to her, so maybe she'll come next June) The thing about the Dawn contest which makes it really awesome, is that everyone goes home with something. There are some prizes for categories, but all contestants go home with a Dawn portrait drawn spefically for Dragon*Con and not found anywhere else. And then there's the after party.
The after party is usually at the top floor in one of the suites. (The Marriott has 47 floors, it gets high pretty quick) This is where you can review the pictures taken at the photobooth (All those pics usually take a month or two to be released, so you're gonna have to wait for them) The Dawn contest is also replayed on the tv station (which is hooked up to the host hotels) and Lisner and crew offer free drinks (with tips of course) I ended up changing clothes to something a bit more durable to go to the after party. I was good and woozy after one hurricane, and I ended up having 3 drinks. I stayed there till about 3 AM and eventually wobbled back to my hotel room for some sleep.</div>
Sunday started off pretty slow, because that lack of sleep + combination of alcohol was making me stay in bed longer than I intended. Besides, I knew that there was nothing I really wanted to see until 2ish anyway. So at about 1:30, I stagger off the floor and shower. Putting on my Victorian Loli outfit, I scavenge more in the dealer's halls. I went to see Linsner to get my picture signed, and said "Be Creative" When I got it back, I got his signature, a three-teared eye that is standard with Dawn, and a little Queenie crown. I laughed my behind off. I may not have won, but the judges loved the while thing. (One of them started singing U.N.I.T.Y while we did our last stroll across the stage) I then made my way back toward the costuming panel for a face-casting lecture. It was very informative, and confirmed that eventually, I'm gonna kidnap someone for the day to do face-casting with. After that, was the corsetry workshop. This was also very informative, especially since a future costume I plan will have to have a corset, because there's no way that the outfit would work without an unnatural waist. I'll have to invest in heavy boning. Next, was the airbrushing panel, which went over makeup primarily. It was stuff I already knew, but I did pick up some tidbits. (I may have to eventually invest in a compressor) I was debating going to see the Masquerade, but decided against it. The Masq is also different, as it is only about the show and presentation. The prizes are determined by judges and audience reaction, and nothing is looked at up close. It has a Showtime at the Apollo feel, such as if the audience doesn't like your skit, stormtroopers will remove you from the stage. (This can be problematic, because groups have been removed by mistake)
My feet overruled, and decided to stay put for the panel on fangs. This panel was very interesting, as it talked about the technique of making one's fangs from scratch. I never though hearing about fangs and contacts for over 2 hours would be so interesting.
After that, I went to change clothes and begin packing, and went out with some night-wear. I stopped in the fetish/goth wear panel, which showed some amazing knotwork. I ran into Aleathia, and we decided to mingle around in the Marriott lobby, gathering pictures and asking questions. This is where I regretted bringing Ursula, because it was cold enough in the room to not be uncomfortable. It got so bad, I had to show pictures of Ursula on my phone. There were also some... costumes that leave little hidden. It seems like people skip on the decency laws for the weekend. I also stopped at one of the public parties, but I felt that it wasn't as good as the one the year before. We viewed more of the madness of Sunday night, which included a impromptu 'panel' with Dethklok, with people actually in character. After a while Aleathea didn't feel well, so we escorted her home. After re-hydration, she felt better. By this time, it was almost 4 AM, and I guessed to get some sleep.
Monday came around, and I woke around 10:30, and checked myself out. Made it easier to attend the con instead of leaving and ditching poeple. The exodus had already started. I wanted to catch some robot battles, but people moving cosplays to cars made my help more important. Blikku, Aleathia, and I do a last minute run-through in the dealer's room, I got some werewolf ears. We decide to get something to eat, and it's there that I run into Sketch. We probably missed eachother a few times and never even noticed it. At this point, Aleatha wanted to get some ICG info, which also turned out to be the closing ceremonies of sort for the costuming track. It turns out, that Costume-Con was started because some snooty literary sci-fi people didn't want people in costumes there. (I remember him mentioning specifically Boskone. If you know your history, they have evolved into nefe. It was at this point, that people began to separate, and the con started to close down completely. At this point, I went into my rental, and made my way back toward my family in Atlanta.
Overall, Dragon*Con was awesome! It must be done at least once in a lifetime. Some specific problems were: Badges. They weren't as strong as other badges, so it made ripping the tab easy. I had found a woman who had laminated hers at the ups store around the corner. She was a genius.
I'd also love to see some millerny in the future. This has confirmed that I really want to go to Costume-Con. That, and/or work on future projects.

There is one more thing:Check out this coat: I found this at the Museum Replicas stand. I *think* it's an org 13 coat. I think.

OMG! I'm CF: I'll show you my tentacles!

Mon, 07 Jul 2008 06:45:26 GMT

Mini PortCon blurb as I can't sleep for work at the moment. I got best in show for Craftsmanship! I'm still stunned about that. (Judges said it was a pretty easy decision when discussing it after the Masq) I found our skit on youtube already.
Timing got cut out due to laughter (It was so bad, that we momentarily lost our spot due to not hearing audio)

Bad news, someone stole/took my suitcase on Thursday night getting into the hotel. Which had accessories of costumes. Which means I'll have to redo things. I was a bit miffed about it, but when I got home I realized how little I lost. Besides, I made the things once. Now that I know how, I can do it better!

If people need clarification on parts, let me know and I will add in lines. Maybe eventually, I'll put up the clean audio version.

Someone at ABC has been watching Japanese TV

Sun, 25 May 2008 19:52:02 GMT

Meet: Wipeout. It looks like a combination of MXC and Sasuke (Ninja Warrior to all you G4 watchers)

Dear goodness, this may actually work. It's being hosted by the dude who does Talk Soup and one of the Sportscenter guys (I just wish it was Kenny Mayne) I happen to like Sportscenter, it should be interesting how the humor translates.

"I'm tired of being outdone by those sissy little princesses"

Thu, 13 Mar 2008 22:20:34 GMT

I was somewhat inspired by the annual Disney Princesses gathering at Dragon*Con every year, and decided "How come the villains don't get any love?" (I think my inner Ursula is starting to come out) So, I'm gonna open this up and call for all those baddies who tormented you in your nightmares, or just made you laugh at their ineptitude. I haven't decided on a day, a place, or whatever, but I'd love to annoy those prissy little brats to no end!

If people are interested, I'll make a list of who plans to do what. I'd prefer no overlap, but if it happens, it happens.

Now, how the heck am I gonna get that huge thing down to ATL without breaking my bank!?

Oh, and for those seeking inspiration, there's an entire list here. Wiki does it again.