Dragoncon 2016- Top 5 Successes
This DragonCon was all about improving upon the experience of last year. In some ways, I succeeded (in other ways I failed miserably, see my mistakes of this year in my Dragoncon 2016-Top 5 Mistakes post) read on to find out what I did right...
My top 5 Successes of DragonCon 2016
1. Armor making
Since last year, I have been watching numerous YouTube videos about craft foam armor and I decided to try some out this year. I still have a lot to learn as it pertains to keeping it from cracking, putting functional closures on armor and making it neater, but for the most part, my armor this year was a success. It looked pretty awesome and I was quite proud of it. I think the weathering and the details I added to it were my biggest successes. You can watch my upcoming YouTube video to see how exactly I made the Poison Ivy armor. It is a little too extensive to go into detail with here.
2. Planning the “Must Sees”
After my initial over planning mistake (see my Dragoncon 2016- Biggest Mistakes post to see how I over planned my first day and became overwhelmed), I realized that I did not have time to see everything, nor would I even want to. So I sat down and figured out what the “must sees” were and removed everything else. For me, “must sees” were any panel that had the stars of my favorite shows in them. Focusing on the “must sees” helped us get in line soon enough to sit near the front and not waste time in panels and lines that I just "kind of" wanted to see.
3. Bringing Our Lunches
This helped out with the previous point. Bringing our own lunch saved us money and time. We did not have to leave lines or panels in order to get food. We could also sit in line and eat at the same time, that way we had something to do while waiting for over an hour. Packing a lunch was more nutritious and I did not suffer any tummy aches this year (I get stomach aches when I eat food that has a lot of oil in it)!! Overall bringing our lunch was a really good move.
A tip when bringing your own lunch, pack it in bags and containers that are disposable (sorry environment), so that you don’t have to carry anything extra the rest of the day.
4. Emergency kit
Oh the emergency kit… This came in handy quite a few days. Here is a list of the items we brought with us in our emergency kit (clutch items written in bold purple font):
Assorted sizes of safety pins
Duct tape
Lipstick of the day
Sponge and body paint of the day
Mirror
Hand sanitizer
Deodorant
Spirit gum (on the days that I had things glued to me)
Pain relieving medicine
Wall phone charger and portable charger
I used everything in the kit, except the spirit gum (I just didn’t feel like gluing leaves back on to me because I kept losing them).
Additional items I wished we had in the emergency kit:
Hot glue gun (because of the size I did not bring one)
Wet wipes
Napkins and/or tissues
5. Fantasy Makeup
Thankfully I am related to a talented makeup artist who also makes me breakfast after she finishes doing my makeup and helps me pack a lunch and snacks (#cosplayparents). So yeah, it is quite nice and a major perk of staying at my parents’ house instead of a hotel.
I selected two of my cosplays, Emma Frost and the Little Mermaid, solely because of the makeup and I am grateful I did. At Dragoncon, most cosplayers seem to focus on beautiful props and intricate costumes, not so much on fantasy makeup. I, however, am the daughter of a makeup artist, so I focus on the makeup. The looks my mother created for the three costumes (Emma Frost, Little Mermaid, and Poison Ivy) were phenomenal (pictures below). In some instances, the makeup was better than the costume I made and in most cases it added to the costume. If you have the means, I highly suggest enhancing your cosplay with makeup. We mostly used Ben Nye Magicakes (a water activated body paint), Hard Candy glitter glue (and glitter for intended for nails or makeup), and spirit gum (for adhering gems, leaves, sequin, whatever, to your skin).
So those were my top 5 success of Dragoncon 2016. Be sure to watch the upcoming YouTube videos to get more information about how I made certain things in some of the costumes.
What are some of your successes from cosplays past? If you would like a tutorial on anything let me know and I will see if I can give you more information.
