TLDR; Some last minute changes and poor planning on my part led to chaos, but the con itself went great!

Con crunch, a classic tale #

Man, am I really bad at time management 😂. I started my Vax cosplay with what I thought was plenty of time to complete it without rushing, but loosing a couple of long weekends (to fun things, I have no regrets) meant that I ended up with work piling up and barely enough time to do it. I’m real glad I factored in that overflow time now!

I was also trying to get fixes for Aloy done, something I definitely should have started earlier as they did add to the chaos, switching between costumes.

Pack mule I am not #

I was packed, the night before I set off for con and in front of me sat a large wheeled case, duffel bag, rucksack, camera bag and tote bag. Oh. Oh no. I need to take that all on the train.

Cue me staring dead eyed at the pile, some frantic thought, and a last minute swap of Aloy for my Rincewind. It is 11pm and I’m doing a quick wash and hoping that the cosplay is still in good enough shape.

I repacked as much as I could, ditching the tote bag and big duffel bag and hoped things would be dry in the morning (Nope, I had to use my heat gun to help dry them 😂).

Con day one #

Skipping ahead to the Friday of the con, I was happy to find that my Rincewind cosplay was in decent shape! I spent the morning coating it in hairspray, which I’m glad to say did reduce the amount of red fluff that came off it to a manageable amount and mean I didn’t shed over everyone else like last time!

The con itself was great, the weather wasn’t too hot and I was convinced to get a lightsaber (which tbf was not that difficult at all). No regrets!

My friend Ben brought his camera which means I now actually have more than a couple of grainy in con photos of my as Rincewind!

Con day two #

Vax came out and immediately there where issues. I’d forgotten to do a few fixes the night before and it became quickly clear that the hot glue had not adhered well at all to the faux leather. I had to head to the cosplay hospital twice to get things re-glued, big thanks to the woman who I kept bothering for superglue!

Between myself, Lana (as Keyleth) and Daisy (as Vex) we had a small Vox Machina comic book group going and where able to take some good group photos, as well as participate in the big Critical Role meetup. It was way too busy to hang around for long which was a shame as I was looking forward to chatting with folks.

As we where leaving the con I did come across some very cool automated wings that convinced me to make winged Vax. Wings are cool!

Things to take away #

• Hot glue is terrible on faux leather. Superglue is effective though, I’ll bear that in mind when working with it. Thread is by far still the most effective way of keeping it together.
• Pack in advance to check you can fit everything in without requiring 76 bags and a team of baggage handlers.
• Don’t leave repairs until the last minute - get them done well in advance of any con to save stress.

What’s next? #

I’m hoping to get the photo’s I took edited, as well as get the ones of me in costume off Ben and the lovely photographer I was introduced to.

Next up for cons is MegaCon in Manchester at the end of July. I’ll be hopefully taking Aloy and Vax; I’ll be wearing the costumes from home to the con so don’t have to worry about packing.

Hope to see some of you there!

TLDR; After a break I’m back onto making Vax, starting with templates and fabric choices.

Picking out fabrics #

MCM wasn’t even over before I was thinking about what I was going to do next! The next big con is probably going to be MCM London in May, but I’m hoping to do some photo shoots and there’s always the chance other events will crop up.

Aloy is definitely making a return (with some minor repairs/tweaks) but it’s not a very flexible costume to move around/sit in, so it’s only going to see a single day. That means I need another cosplay for the other days, one that I can cram in with my Aloy outfit.

I want something lighter, more comfortable and able to deal with the heat. And I have one that not only fits the bill, but also allows me to do some group cosplay shots: Vax’ildan from Critical Role! I’d previously thought about doing Vax before, potentially Legend of Vox Machina or the Vox Machina Origins comic book version. I do like the comic book version, and with three volumes with different evolutions, I had choice! I eventually decided on the one from volume two (less layers, less belts, more knives).

Looking at the reference there’s only a few props, with most of it just fabric. This should mean that it stays in the craft area rather than taking over my flat, plus hopefully reducing things like dust and nasty vapours. It also looks like it’ll be comfortable to wear, and as a bonus get a swooshy cloak!

I’ve got plenty of time to get this done (famous last words) so hopefully there’s going to be much less stress than with the Aloy outfit. Stay tuned for more updates, as well as looks back on other cosplay I’ve done!

TLDR; Con season is over for me, but plans come into being for 2023!

Plotting and planning #

MCM wasn’t even over before I was thinking about what I was going to do next! The next big con is probably going to be MCM London in May, but I’m hoping to do some photo shoots and there’s always the chance other events will crop up.

Aloy is definitely making a return (with some minor repairs/tweaks) but it’s not a very flexible costume to move around/sit in, so it’s only going to see a single day. That means I need another cosplay for the other days, one that I can cram in with my Aloy outfit.

I want something lighter, more comfortable and able to deal with the heat. And I have one that not only fits the bill, but also allows me to do some group cosplay shots: Vax’ildan from Critical Role! I’d previously thought about doing Vax before, potentially Legend of Vox Machina or the Vox Machina Origins comic book version. I do like the comic book version, and with three volumes with different evolutions, I had choice! I eventually decided on the one from volume two (less layers, less belts, more knives).

Looking at the reference there’s only a few props, with most of it just fabric. This should mean that it stays in the craft area rather than taking over my flat, plus hopefully reducing things like dust and nasty vapours. It also looks like it’ll be comfortable to wear, and as a bonus get a swooshy cloak!

I’ve got plenty of time to get this done (famous last words) so hopefully there’s going to be much less stress than with the Aloy outfit. Stay tuned for more updates, as well as looks back on other cosplay I’ve done!

TLDR; MCM was a lot of fun (as usual)! Saturday was far too crowded.

The panic before the storm! #

As I mentioned in my last post I still had a few minor things to take care of the night before, a couple I’d identified from my costume test (reinforcement of flaps join to the belt) and a few minor things to the bow that I just hadn’t got time to finish. My friend Lana also helped detangle the mess that was my wig which I am grateful for (and subsequently just got tangled again after I’d worn it).

Getting to the accommodation much earlier in the day rather than later afternoon/early evening really helped to relieve some of the anxiety I had (that and the Gideon the Ninth book, I highly recommend for all your transported away from your worries needs!).

My experiences #

Comic Con was fantastic, as usual. There where some amazing artists in artists alley as well as people selling amazing merch; I definitely spent more money than I should have! The variety and quality of cosplay was so good, so many fantastic costumes that I of course completely forgot to take photos of. I promise every year I’m going to do better but never do.

I also got stopped a lot for photos (as did my friend Lana, having disney princessed it up and made so many kids days) which was nice, though I’ll admit not being able to make it down one row of artists alley did start to grate a bit! I got some nice photos outside, both with me in front and behind the camera, these will but up in galleries over the next week or so.

Wearing the cosplay #

My costume wasn’t too bad to wear, but was restrictive enough to make things awkward - I couldn’t really bend or kneel down and I was concious of crushing things when I sat down. It definitely was on the warmer side and I think it’s a bit much to wear two days in a row.

I made some fixes across the weekend, firstly safety pinning the upper arms to hold them in place, and for the second day sewing belt loops onto my trousers which where constantly falling down.

Overcrowding #

My biggest gripe was how many people where allowed in on the Saturday afternoon. I know Saturday is a busier day, but the fact was you couldn’t move or look at anything due to the crowds. The aircon was on stronger but the temperatures inside where stifling and we quickly escaped to outside where it was cooler. It was apparently 22 degrees as well, which shows just how bad it was!

I really hope that MCM restricts the number of people for Saturday at least because it was ridiculous. We left earlier than we wanted, and already have plans to avoid the bulk of Saturday afternoon in May.

What’s next? #

I’m not planning on going to MCM in Ocotober next year, whilst it’s a lot of fun it’s also real close to other cons I might want to attend. We’re instead going to go to May MCM, something I’ve not done in a long while!

Stay tuned for photos I’ve taken over the weekend and details on my next cosplay!