Welcome to my cosplay page. This is just a collection of some costumes I've made and worn to anime conventions or other events- the newest costumes are at the top. I really like to try to make the costume as close to the original character (or my idea of a character) down to the last detail as much as I can, and pick ones I can pull off with my body type, so if I don't think I can do it properly I'd rather not do it at all. (I've provided some official pictures so you can compare how my costume turned out versus the real character if applicable.) I usually don't even show up that long in them (sometimes just part of one day of the con or event), hence there's not that many pictures- I eventually get annoyed at having to deal with wearing them even though I try to make them as practical as possible its hard to see out of those masks plus I usually wear glasses!
  I occasionally randomly make costumes if the desire seizes me, but I don't have much time for it so its pretty infrequent (maybe once a year or so.) I'm also impeded in that I can't sew at all, I have to have my mom or someone else help me with any of that which she doesn't really like to do ^_^;  I like to make costumes because for one I just like to dress up and its fun making yourself look like a completely different person, as well as I like the challenge of figuring out what would look best and how to do it. Usually the first thing I do when I want to make a costume is make sketches to figure out the different parts I need to make and make sure I'm not missing any details. Then I can more easily figure out what all materials I need to make each part. If the character has any variance in how they look in the series (like San did) I try to make the costume flexable that way. I aim for looks and practicality.

If you've seen or have any other pictures of me in these costumes that I don't have here, please let me know! I tried to find any that other people took of me on the internet but couldn't find many.
I had an account on Cosplay Lab but I think its gone now, but I also have on on Cosplay.com under the user name Kitsune_rei, I also have some of my convention pictures up there if you want to see them (though for some reason I've lost a good chunk of them so I couldn't put up all I had.)
Last update: 7/01/05 (added pictures from Halloween of my fox spirit costume)

My costume dream list (stuff that I'd like to do but probably won't):
*Mike/Meek from Panyo Panyo Di Gi Charat (somewhat likely)
Taomon from Digimon (unlikely, but maybe)
*Rik or Ky of the Black Gemma Gemma Gang from Di Gi Charat (maybe?)
Sora in Halloween Town costume with keyblade from Kingdom Hearts (maybe...? Nah, probably not.)
Yumiko Readman aka "the Paper" from Read or Die (unlikely to happen)
Sakura from Hyper Police (unlikely to happen)
Fuu from Magic Knights Rayearth (because I used to look kinda like her) (unlikely to happen)
Sizer from Violinist of Hamelin (unlikely to happen)

A MORE DETAILED EXPLANATION for making the ears: Okay, I've had a lot of people email me about making these! Wow! I'm glad you all loved them so much! So here is more detailed instructions on making them. I think this should cover everything! Be ready for some serious reading, because I always end up being too verbose when I write up instructions ^_^;
  What you need: 
Crayola model magic- 2 bags (in case of mistakes or you need a little extra, color doesn't really matter- if you want to be uber-safe get 3), some wire (I just used what I had which happened to be 20 gauge, you just want something firm but still flexable by your bare hands, tho needle-nose pliers are helpful), fur (of course! You need outer fur and inner ear fur/soft fabric, and maybe inner ear accent fur), glue (I used a mini hot glue gun which seemed very effective, I don't know if regular fabric glue works as well, I think the hot glue sets up faster but may peel off later.) 
Something that I didn't do, but may be helpful- the use of Spirit Gum. Its a yellowish liquid specifically used for gluing stuff to your face (it smells bad and can be a pain to get off, but its pretty sticky, its usually used for fake hair/beards and other prosthetics.) You may want to apply some to the back of your ear to help the sculpted ear adhere, and a wee bit on the bit of your face right in front of your ear to help the flap that covers it stay down.
  The step-by-step:
  The sculpting around the ears really is the hardest part. If you're not something of an intuitive sculptor, I'd really say don't try it this way or you'll get very frustrated, I've sculpted before so I have a feel for it but I don't think just anyone could get it to work well. Instead maybe just sculpt an ear shape and attach it to a headband or something. The really tricky part is getting it to fit around your ears well and shape well while its still mushy. My first attempt was a failure (it didn't fit quite right and was too bulky in areas), but I got a better hang of it for the second try. Its also tricky making them symmetrical since you have to do them opposite ways for each ear, make sure you note how much modeling compound you used so you can use the same for each ear. I made one and then took a break because it was long and ackward, and made the second the next day. It probably took me at least an hour to get it exactly how I wanted it, and then I tried to make the second ear emulate that (I kept setting them on the counter next to each other and examined them from all angles to make sure the looked about the same.) 
  Anyway, I pulled all my hair back from my ear with clips, and I sat on the bathroom counter with a large mirror in front of me and the medicine cabinet mirror to my right side (which was really helpful for having two angles to see it at, I'd recommend having a decent sized hand mirror so you can see how it looks from the back better too.) Yes it was rather uncomfortable. The things you do for fox ears ^_^. First, before I go into how I sculpted the successful ear, I'll point out some things that didn't work and some properties of the modeling compound. Its light and foamy-feeling, but not sticky so you don't have to worry about it getting on stuff, but it doesn't really like to stick to itself that much either (when you put two pieces together.) So its going to end up a little lumpy no matter what you do, but after you put on the fur its not noticeable. After about 20 minutes its going to start drying and becoming more difficult to work (it'll start cracking if you bend too much), although it doesn't fully harden for over 24 hours. When you're done sculpting you're going to want to be able to prop it up in the proper shape while it dries or it will start to follow gravity and droop/flatten a bit, it'll take a couple hours to hold the shape itself. I actually used some extra modeling compound to support the back curve and had the part that rests against your head flat on the table. I recommend after having it sit a bit you check on it periodically and do any necessary pinching if it starts to flatten out a bit. Once you've opened a bag of it, don't bother trying to save it because it'll dry and harden up within a couple days even if you seal it in a plastic bag.
  Things that I found *didn't* work well when sculpting- shaping the modeling compound and then fitting it to my ear, and putting too much of it behind my ear, making it too bulky and weird. Its easier to add than to take off, and its better to have the ears light as possible- less strain on your ears to hold them on, and they'll be more likely to stay in place. Be aware that while you're sculpting them you're also going to have to be holding them on, since the clay will be too soft to stay in shape or hold to your ear itself until it dries properly.
  Okay, on to the actual sculpting. I took small pieces of modeling stuff and fitted them snug behind my ear in the curve, building up the layers until I had a nice curve built up behind my ear, imprinting my ear shape. Like I said, be careful about doing too much, just do enough so it has support but not so much that you have a huge blob back there, or it'll look kinda weird from the side. Look at it at all angles, and think of it as an ear growing out of your head like your own ears do, except these rise taller and come to a point. Follow the natural curve of your ears. Personally, my earlobes are attached to my head, so for people who have detached lobes this may be easier. I made a bit of a ridge coming out from the top and bottom so that when I put fabric over it would cover the front of my real ears easily. Just kinda make them look as natural as possible, and don't use more modeling stuff than necessary- you want it to be light as possible since the weight will just make your ears sore and if its too heavy your ears won't support it. I did pull off a bit of unnecessary extra when I was done I think. Make the upper part curve a bit over the top of your ear at that point where it meets your head so it hooks over a bit, to help them stay on. Also curve the bottom a little bit over your lower ear. Once you get it to a shape you're satisfied with set it up to dry, and check on it a couple times in the early stages to make sure it hasn't shifted due to gravity, as I mentioned before. Allow about 24 hours for full setting. Once set they should fit over your ears and stay by themselves when you have your head still.  Don't be too hard on yourself if your first attempt doesn't really work out, the stuff isn't that expensive so try again till you get it so you are happy with it.
  Once the ears are set up, the next step is getting the wire right. I used two pieces. First off, a note- *don't* glue the wire in the sculpted ear. Part of putting on your ears and having them fit is being able to swing the wire out and fit them on behind, and then swing it back in to lock in your ear curves in front. Just make a sharp V where you're sticking it in and make a decent length stuck in the ear, and it'll stay just fine, it goes in quite easily (just make sure it doesn't accidentally poke out somewhere.) You'll also maybe want to put a drop of hot glue on the end of the exposed wire to keep from cutting yourself with it when wearing the ears. This won't be all that comfortable, but it'll be bearable since you don't have that many nerves in your ear anyway ~_^. The first wire shape is around the first and largest curve of your ear, and the second around the deeper inner curve. The first outside curve you have is the soft one of your outer ear, and then next there's the deep curve that starts to go to your inner ear. The outer one likely won't hold all that well, since your skin there is thin and flexible, but it helps. I just cut a fair length of wire and shaped it to the curve of my ear, and then snipped it where it no longer fit well (so it ends up maybe a couple inches.) I stuck it in at the upper front of the sculpted ear, when it hooked over the front. The second wire is important, and very dependant on your ear shape (and will likely be most uncomfortable.) It'll end up holding most of the front weight, and keep your ears from sliding off from the bouncing motion of walking etc. (tho they won't hold out to jumping or anything too vigorous, if you run carefully they'd probably be okay.) Anyway I started the wire at the bottom this time, and made a little dip to fit into my ear hole a short ways, and then follow the curve of my ear in a half-moon sort of shape. Just do the best you can, the wire can always be re-adjusted later if needed. Here's a sketch showing how the wire goes, hopefully it'll make what I wrote more clear (the dotted lines are where the wire sticks into the fox ear, and in the second wire where it goes in your ear hole a short way.) The way I ended up making the wires is different than my preliminary sketch, so ignore that part of it. If you find a better way of fitting the wire to your ear, more power to ya!
  Then comes the furring. I pulled the wires out to do this just cause its easier, just be sure you're able to figure out how to stick them back in properly when you're done. I think I may have even put fur over where the wire went in a little and just stuck it back in, I forget. Its just easier to make the initial shape before you have fur on the ear. It shouldn't add very much additional weight. I think you can either do the outer or inner covering flap first, its just your preference. I did the outer first, so I'll describe it that way. Remember with the inner flap though, you only glue the top along the edge, and a little bit of the bottom edge at the tip, so it flips up and you can get your ear in and adjust the wire more easily. Another thing to keep in mind when cutting the fur- do so at the same angle of the fur, so that you don't end up with sort stubble along the edges. I cut it very carefully with small cuts so that at the edges it still had fur hanging over. I also brushed off any fur not attached anymore. I put a fair sized piece, plenty for what I needed, over the area I wanted covered with the fur going up/towards the ear tip (make sure your fur is always facing the same way.) In places where it starts to wrinkle where the ear narrows, do a series of small "V" cuts to take out some of the excess fur and let it fit to the ear smoothly. A series of smaller (in terms of width, not length) rather than a few larger V cuts is better, and easier to hide. If you make a mistake, it isn't too hard to fit a patch of fur in without a noticeable seam, unless you're using a very short fine fur. Then do the rest of the fur, and carefully cut it to line up right against the fur used for the ear-tip. Be careful with your gluing, so that you don't get it on the fur. I found that gluing sections at a time and letting them set was easier than trying to do it all at once, and pins to keep it in place while drying are very helpful so it doesn't shift and mess you up. Try to pin your fur shape basically how you want it before cutting off too much to be sure it fits properly. Don't use too much glue, but applying a small amount underneath all the way to the edge can help keep the fur from shedding and further where it was cut.
  So now you should have an ear with outer fur covering around to the edges of the front. Cut a triangular shape of whatever fabric you're using for the inner ear to cover your actual ear. Hold it up to make sure it covers properly before you glue it of course. Glue along the top edge so it can be flipped up to expose your hidden actual ear (I also recommend pinning this till it dries.) You can also additionally add a line of fluff, which I did- the white to represent the inside of the ear. So you're basically done now! The only part pretty much without fur is where it touches the back of your ear and the side of your head. You can use a pin to hold the flap down at the bottom to cover your ear, but I found that wasn't necessary on mine. The ears will probably be a little awkward to get on, so you may have to do some ear crunching as you do it (good thing those babies are flexable ~_^.) So hopefully now you have a nice fuzzy pair of ears instead of your boring old human ones!
  I hope my explanation was understandable, some bits may be hazy to you until you actually do them. Feel free to change anything you want though if you think of something that works better for you! If you *still* have some question on something I havn't covered then email me. Good luck! Oh yes, if anyone makes ears based on my explanation here (or even makes a foxy costume in general!) let me know, I'd love to see!
*I love my fox ears, I'll probably wear them as much as I can until they fall apart or wear out ^_^.
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