How I got into costuming
Luckily, I come from a family with multiple generations of amateur textile enthusiasts. My maternal grandmother sewed and crocheted, my mother sewed and knitted, and then the love of sewing was passed on to me and my sister.
Mom handmade our Halloween costumes every year, starting from when I was 2. At age 5, I was allowed to pick my own costume theme. A year later, she started taking both of us to be a part of the pattern selection and fabric shopping.
At age 7, I asked to be Rainbow Brite, at which point she told me that I would need to tell her how I wanted the costume made. We rented all the Rainbow Brite specials from the local Blockbuster sooo many times that September/October so I could look at her costume details. My scribbled diagram of “scrunchies” running up and down the arms and on the “boot covers”, along with the list of accessories and details, became my first costume breakdown. Every year after that, I was expected to provide reference images, a breakdown, pick the patterns, and fabric.
That year, we were also given our first sewing kits. One year later, I was allowed to use the sewing machine for the first time. Instead of going to summer camp, I enrolled in summer school classes for sewing and made my first garment when I was 9 or 10. It was a simple slip dress with pinked seams, but I did wear it until I outgrew it.
It would be a few more years of sewing projects and helping my mom increasingly with the Halloween costumes before I made my own costume. At 13, I made Robin Hood from a Simplicity pattern. Mom closely oversaw my progress and I had to ask a lot of questions, but I did the project myself!
A year later, I embarked on what would technically become my first cosplay – although I didn’t know what “anime” or “cosplay” even were at that point. Death of Rats from Terry Practchett’s Discord series required a cloak and also a mask. It wasn’t my first time working with plaster or making masks (thanks to winter time art classes), so I was able to figure out roughly what I wanted it to look like.
Then we hit the spring/summer of 2003. I learned about anime, cosplay, and conventions. I made Yukina from Yu Yu Hakusho, using cheap cotton and a blue wig from Amphigory, went to Anime Boston 2004, and never looked back.
My first years as a cosplayer
My drive to start ‘cosplaying’ was driven by Anime Boston, my first convention. I wanted so desperately to show off my newfound love of anime through the crafting medium I was most comfortable with.
First, I cosplayed with my sister. We picked costumes from Yu Yu Hakusho, a series that we started by watching borrowed DVDs from a counselor at her summer camp on a laptop taken from the family’s closet in the dead of night – unbeknownst to our parents.
Then I met my boyfriend (later to be husband), who was 100% gamer and 0% cosplayer. I made us costumes to wear to Anime Boston from series that we both enjoyed, but aesthetically more to his taste.
After a few years, I dipped my toes into competition for the first time at Anime Boston 2008 with Jin and Touya from Yu Yu Hakusho, as well as an online contest for Code Geass. The latter would result in my first cosplay photoshoot.
Euphemia Li Britannia and Suzaku Kururugi from Code Geass
Photos by Indigo Castle Cosplay & Photography
We were busy finishing college, finding jobs, getting married, and buying a house, but after all of that, I started focusing on competition and participating in cosplay events.
Coming back to the stage
My mom fostered my love for music, theater, and musicals from a young age. I learned the piano, violin, viola, and to a much lesser extent: oboe and guitar. This became my gateway into performing on stage.
Throughout middle school and high school, I branched heavily into theater, taking on acting, musical, and behind-the-scenes production roles. I even did a stint for 2 years doing competitive improv.
When I started going to conventions, I returned to the stage, first performing in cosplay events and then later on, running and producing them.
