Video Bloggers

Have you met a video blogger? They're crazy. Just nuts. And a couple of them happen to be friends of mine.

You know what happens when you have video blogging friends right? Right. They rope you into being in videos. Oh yes.

So Wyatt Kane (again, here is his YouTube channel: Wyatt Kane) roped me into a video once. I will not be posting a link to that one, sorry. Our other friends appear in a few of his videos, too.

Generally, I hate being in front of a camera so it is not so pleasant for me. I especially hate the sound of my voice so you can imagine how little I want to be involved in such things.

Then Wyatt's friend, Sean Caspian (here is his video blog link: Sean Caspian) started video blogging with the aid and influence of Wyatt (oh good, another convert/project for Wyatt!). He requested, not only Wyatt's help for a video, but the help of me and some of our other friends. This is what happened: Harlem Shake (Russian Meteor Katamari Version). Go to the link and watch it, it's short.

I think it's funny and silly actually. Best part? We didn't have to show our faces! However, if you've followed my blog, surely you recognize my Katamari costume. Also, I was excited to wear said costume again-they were a lot of work!

So there you have it: video bloggers are crazy. But always entertaining to have around. Thanks Wyatt and Sean!

The Last NDK 2012 Post

I know it isn't Halloween related. Though, there are costumes involved, so, maybe it's not too bad.

I promise that this will be my absolute LAST post for NDK 2012!

Here is one more video my friend made-an uncut video of our wonderful Katamari train around NDK. I wanted to share it because it is fun and entertaining.

Uncut NDK Footage

Thought: how do you think trick-or-treaters would respond if I opened the door to them in my Katamari costume? Hmm...

Final Cosplay Results for NDK 2012

While my Jareth costume did not happen even remotely, here are the results for both Kurama costumes and our Katamari cosplay.

Costume number one: Shuiichi Kurama:

The girl standing next to me is cosplaying as Botan from the same anime.

Compared to this:

(Side note, those twisty-things around his ankles and wrists are not part of the outfit, they are part of a power his opponent was using in the scene, which I would not have used if I could find a better full body picture of this outfit. It is also hard to tell that the cuffs and collar are dark blue.)

Thoughts: I love this outfit of Shuiichi Kurama's. Almost no one knew who I was because Shuiichi Kurama has two, arguably three, more popular outfits. I have never seen anyone else wear this particular outfit. Even doing a Google search turned up no others like this Also, the wig was awful! I couldn't get it right, so I just did the best with what I had. If I ever bring back this outfit I will commission a new wig. The one I made (sadly) belongs in the trash. I had to hot glue parts of it, which means it cannot be taken out and re-done better. The hot glue happened because I was running out of time and options. I don't really recommend hot gluing your wigs.

Costume number two: Yoko Kurama:

(Also, forgive my weak poses and half-smiles. I am a cosplayer, not an actress... And I am sad that my tail cannot be seen in this photo.)
Compared to this:

Thoughts: This one was much more of a hit. My one main problem was the ears slipped if I looked down. Otherwise I liked it very much.

Costume number three: June from Katamari (plus my friends as the King, Prince, and other various cousins):

Notes on making our costumes: We made the cardboard frames and wrapped those in quilt batting. I believe that we all used some interfacing (I did because mine is white and I didn't want everyone to see through the cloth and such) and sewed the cloth like a pillow case which could be slipped on. Due to the irregular shape, they had to be hand sewn shut. I left a hole for my head to go through, but my friends, being wiser, did not and cut it afterwards (which made the case fit better). The linings around faces and edges are hemmed and hot glued on. The cones and balls for the antennae are foam. The cones are covered in yellow cloth and the balls are painted and we hot glued them on last. The faces were made with a cross-stitch mesh covered with two layers of a chiffon dyed a flesh color. The eyes, noses, and mouths are felt that we did together for consistency and are hot glued on. For my dress I used a pattern made for me by Cat and the gloves I winged and did not do a good job on. Tights were purchased and I painted old white shoes to match the rest.

Compared to:

Thoughts: I LOVED this cosplay! It was fun and we were a big hit! Unfortunately it is hard to see much unless there is a lot of light (which there usually wasn't) so we didn't always know when people were taking pictures or finished taking pictures unless someone told us. It was a little hard to hear. We had the King and other friends herd us around the hotel in a big linked chain, stopping occasionally for pictures. Also, it gets very hot inside those heads! But totally worth it! Even after spending about 10-11 hours painting all those circles (yes, 10-11 hours for the whole head and dress-just for circle painting, though I worked 12 hours total including putting the lining on the head and making the gloves) was worth it.

Ending Notes: Wearing so much white at NDK was sort of rough. It is not the cleanest of places and it is hard to keep them white. I got some makeup on my Shuiichi costume and a little drop of chocolate on Yoko's tail (not sure how, but that's OK). Something to keep in mind for the future and for those thinking about white costumes.

For next year we are talking about doing a large Ghibli cosplay! I hope this one pans out because I would love to be Nausicaa! Have to plan these things in advance you know!

Nausicaa