Cosplayer Interview: Lizard Beans!

OK! Finally-- I have returned!

My goodness, it's been very hectic around here. But now everything has calmed down and I can get back to blogging! Yay! 

And this time, to get it restarted right, I'm doing a cosplayer interview! Lizard-Beans is a good friend of mine and a super-duper cosplayer! I hope you all enjoy reading about her!

Cosplayer Interview: Lizard Beans

Your name or Cosplay Name:

My name is Liz, on my cosplay page I go by Lizard-Beans.

Lizard Beans

Age: 

27

How long have you been cosplaying/prop building?

On and off for 7 years. I was doing one costume/convention a year from 2006-2008, then I took a break for a few years due to jerks and drama. I made a few things in that time but it wasn't til 2011 that I came back with a vengeance. I just had to meet the right people to get me excited about it again.

What was your first cosplay/prop?

Tifa Lockhart from Final Fantasy 7: Advent Children. I met a girl in college who said she'd teach me how to sew and she helped me make it. It wasn't accurate by any means but it was recognizable and I felt like a total badass. After that my dad bought me a sewing machine and I started teaching myself to sew.

Do you make your cosplays, buy them pre-made online, or have them commissioned?

I make all of them. I'll buy things like shoes, some modern clothes from thrift shops and the occasional prop but it would really wound my pride if I had someone make my costume for me. This has nothing to do with cosplay snobbery, I just like to push myself to try new things. Sometimes that means pulling my hair out but it also means I can enjoy a well deserved victory dance.

Tarja Turunen: Jacket from the music video "Nemo" by Nightwish

Why do you cosplay?

So many reasons. First of all I've always loved wearing costumes, and being able to make my own is kind of a dream come true. And getting to wear costumes with other people who are wearing costumes is even better. I also love the creativity that goes into every cosplay. One of the best parts is talking to someone and having them tell you how they used a bike pedal or a soda bottle for a weirdly formed part on an anime gun.

What is you favorite part about cosplay?

The social interaction. Being thrown into social situations with strangers is just about the hardest thing possible. You look from face to face hoping to find someone you might have something in common with. Cosplay is a great icebreaker to take away some of that strain. You know something you can talk about right off the bat. And the community is the friendliest one I've ever been a part of.

What is your least favorite part?

I cannot abide bullies, and it pains me to hear about cosplay bullying. I know some cosplayers who have been cornered by people who made fun of their choice of cosplay or tore them down for their body type in relation to their cosplay choices. It really pisses me off. Cosplay is a very personal thing that's tied to our self esteem and our love for characters who have touched us in some way. Nobody should have to put up with that. If you don't like someone's cosplay, go far away and tell someone who doesn't give a crap and get over it. Don't be a jerk to someone to make yourself feel good. 

Who is your favorite character to cosplay?

Lady Sif from Thor. I love armor, and I love it when costume designers give women practical armor instead of tittie plates. So I get to walk around with cool armor and I feel tough while still feeling like a pretty lady. 

Lady Sif: Thor the Movie

What is your favorite cosplay/prop to wear?

The Courtesan: Fiora Cavazza from the Assassin's Creed Brotherhood multiplayer. It's so stinking comfortable to wear and the costume itself is a good mixture of elegant and sexy so I feel like I look really cute. And I get to take pictures of me assassinating people with my bladed fan. Mwa ha ha ha.

Fiora Cavazza: The Courtesan from the Assassin's Creed Brotherhood multiplayer

What is your least favorite cosplay/prop to wear?

Probably Nepeta from Homestuck. The costume is mostly modern clothing so it doesn't really feel like a cosplay to me. And one of the horns always snaps off and I have to superglue it back on.

What was the most complicated cosplay/prop youíve worked on?

Definitely Lady Sif. The costume part had several layers to it that I had to figure out and make. Then I had to make the armor, which I had to make twice. The first one was my first time making armor and I made it out of Wonderflex. The problem I found with Wonderflex is that it doesn't handle large curves too well, and if it gets too hot it loses its shape. I left mine in the car in August and it melted. So I had to remake her armor out of Sintra and it looks a whole lot better. Then I also had to make the shield which took a few tries, I tried cardboard and craft foam and those flopped, I eventually found EVA foam and learned how to work with it. It sucked! But I love the finished product.

What was the least complicated?

Nepeta from Homestuck. I was able to throw it together relatively quickly and bought most of the stuff for it from Wal-Mart. Throw on some face paint and bam. Easy peasy. 

What group cosplays have you been a part of?

My Little Pony as Twilight Sparkle, Madoka Magica as Homura, Monster High as Spectra, Homestuck as Nepeta, and we're working on a Once Upon a Time group where I'm Red Riding Hood.

Twilight Sparkle: My Little Pony Gijinka

What group cosplays would like to be part of?

I would love to have actual groups for my Dragon Age and Mass Effect cosplays that I'm working on. I have so many photo ideas it would be so much fun. And a large Skyrim group would be a blast. I'm scheming an Aela the Huntress cosplay. ^_^

Who are some characters/props you plan to make in the future?

Some of my upcoming projects are: Morrigan from Dragon Age, Ashley Williams from Mass Effect, Aela the Huntress from Skyrim, a fan art version of Wonder Woman. Hopefully I'll eventually find the rest of the fabric I need to finish Avatar Kyoshi. And someday Nariko from Heavenly Sword.

Homura Akemi: Madoka Magica

What crossplay characters have you done or would like to do?

I really want to make a cosplay of Raziel from Soul Reaver. But since that would involve a body suit I really need to work up my comfort level first. I also want to work on my armor making so I can make some armored badasses like Gabranth from Final Fantasy XII.

Who is a character people say you should cosplay (or prop you should make), but you aren't sure about?

Most anime characters. I just don't like to cosplay them very much unless I love them a certain amount, like Homura. But as for specific characters, the only one that comes to mind is Impa from Zelda. She's cool and all but I hate her Ocarina of Time design. And I'm just not a Zelda fan. I'll leave Zelda cosplays for those who love them to death.

What is your dream cosplay?

This is going to take some explaining. My dream cosplay is Xena Warrior Princess. Xena means more to me than any other fictional character. Yes, even more than Gandalf. My mom died when I was seven so I was left without a female role model in my life. We had a couple of step moms who taught me more about who I don't want to be than who I did want to be. And since we moved a lot I never had a lot of consistant positive influence in my childhood. But when I was 9 Xena started airing on tv. I watched it religiously every week and I learned so much from Xena. She taught me that no matter what anyone says, being a woman shouldn't hold me back from doing anything. She taught me to be strong and stand up for myself and others, even if it's hard or involves a fight. She was strong, intelligent and beautiful and everything I wanted to be. And everything I've worked on up until now has been building up my skills so I can one day make a costume worthy of Xena. I made one out of trash bags once and I used to cut out cardboard Chakrams and throw them around while doing the yell thing. My dad yelled at me to be quiet a lot. I think I could do a lot better now.

Ellen's Cloak of Twilight: Folklore

What is a cosplay/prop you would love to make, but don't feel you could pull off?

The answer to that question changes as my skill level improves. But I'm not very good at making props, so I'd have to say any intricate giant swords. I want to cosplay Nariko from Heavenly Sword but I am terrified of making the actual sword.

In your opinion, what makes a great cosplay/prop?

Small details, patterns, designs or attachments. I find them to be the hardest part of a project but detail work adds that extra bit of oomph to make you stand out and look spectacular. 

Spectra the Ghostly Gossip: Monster High

At which conventions are we likely to see you?

Fandemonium, Sakura Con, Tomodachi Fest, and hopefully I'll be able to go to some Comic Cons this year ^_^

Any advice to other cosplayers/prop makers?

Dream big, but start small. Don't make your dream cosplay your first cosplay unless you have a lot of crafting experience. Most of us don't so we start with something easy in order to learn more about materials and how to manipulate them. You get better as you go, but don't expect too much of yourself right off. I've also learned that make up really helps you when it comes to taking photos. They enhance your features and keep light from shining off of you where it shouldn't. And if you're new to conventions make sure you have a friend with you the first time. It's all about meeting people but that can be hard at first and it's easy to get overwhelmed in an environment with a lot of people coming and going.

Arwen 'Undomiel': Lord of the Rings

What are some other hobbies you have, other than cosplaying?

I consider myself a scholar, so I love to study history and read old texts like mythology and epic poetry. I also enjoy exercise, video games, music, tv shows and cute animal pictures (who doesn't?).

Favorite anime/tv shows?

Obviously Xena! Alias, Buffy, Supernatural, Princess Tutu, Madoka Magica, Cowboy Bebop, Star Trek, Mai Hime, Firefly, Avatar, Samurai Jack, Arrested Development, My Little Pony, Adventure Time.

Favorite movie?

The Fifth Element, Lord of the Rings, Avengers (I love Loki), Nightmare Before Christmas, The Long Kiss Goodnight.

Favorite books/manga?

Lord of the Rings, Kushiel's Dart, Shakespeare, Edgar Allen Poe, Paradise Lost, The Prose Edda, most books by Neil Gaiman, The Metamorphoses.

Favorite video games?

Soul Reaver, Folklore, Heavenly Sword, Assassin's Creed, Final Fantasy VII and X.

Favorite color?

Red, purple, black.

Favorite food?

Chocolate! Also fried rice. And garlic bread. Yum.

Favorite desert?

Chocolate

Favorite curse word?

Fuck. It's so fucking versitile. Fuck yeah fuckers.

What are some websites where we can see more of you?

Facebook  and Tumblr.

Yay! She's awesome! I love how deep cosplay goes for some folks. It's not always just dress up. And I think that's sweet. 

Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed it! I'll hopefully be posting every week, but we shall see how busy I get--what with now being part of the work force and all. Not that I was real consistent when I wasn't part of the work force...


Until next time!

~Edward

What happened?

Ok, so I'm not really dead, obviously, but there is a whole bunch of crap going on in my life at the moment. It's been crazy.
 

What with suddenly having to move, looking for work, and then getting bitten by a dog on both my hands I have been very distracted from this blog.

But fear not! I will return! And it will be glorious! 
I'm not sure once I get a job if I'll be able to post on Mondays (not like I remember to anyway ), but I am going to try to post every week still.

So please be patient while I get my life rearranged. I still have lots of things to talk about and a great interview ready to be posted! I'm not sure when I'll be back but I'm hoping within the month!

So I'm very sorry for the belated explanation, but I'm not gone forever, just on a brief hiatus! I shall return!

~Edward

Tomodachi Fest 2013! (Lots of Pics)

Ok! So yeah... again with the ran out of data thing. I think we are going to have to get some real internet again... because this data thing isn’t working. 

Anyway! This week it’s  finally con review time all about Tomodachi Fest 2013!! And what a great time it was!

Let’s see, where to begin? Well, this year instead of staying with my parent’s I bunked with my good friend who happens to live not too far from the convention center! It was a lot more convenient than driving 30 minutes to and from my parent’s house. And she also went to the convention so we hung out a whole bunch and had a great time! 

On Friday I wore my new lolita coordinate!

My lolita co-ord.
Photo by Tim Boothby

I’m really happy with how this skirt turned out! I fixed my previous pattern and it works a lot better now! I also made matching bows! Everyone thought it was very cute, which makes me so happy! 

We got there early, so I decided to get a few pics of my Lolita coord in the photo room. If you don’t know, Tim and Kim Boothby do FREE photos at both Fandemonium and Tomodachi! Yes, that’s right, FREE! They post all the photos on their page, Red Zone Fandem. And if you want a photo printed out, it only cost $1 per photo. So really, there is no excuse to not get in there and get your cosplays documented.

At 10:30 we went to the early morning tea party. I’ll be honest, it was a little disappointing as far as tea parties go.
It was obvious that whoever organized it has never thrown a tea party before. 
There was no host and they had pre-made lipton type tea in canisters.  
No variety in tea. 
No hot water if you brought your own tea (which one of my friends had) and no tea cups.  
And the cookies were so-so.  They were better when dipped in the tea.

They did get us hot water for our own tea bags though, which was good. Anime Oasis was kind of disappointing this year, but at least they know how to throw a tea party. But oh well. It was still fun anyway. I talked with my friends about tea and other stuff. And there was another lolita there (also a friend of mine) so we geeked out about fashion. I hope that next year if they do a tea party they will at least have a host. 

Right after tea was a panel called “Self-Esteem for Otaku” in the same room, so we just stayed for that. I don’t really have a lot of self esteem problems, but I think the panel was helpful for others. I was mostly interested in getting advice to help others I know with their low self-esteem, which I did. So it was worth it.

After lunch time I went to “Dead Town”, like I always do. I have talked about this game before in my Fandemonium review, but to give a short recap: Dead Town is a group interactive game where your decisions and abilities effect how the game progresses and ends. When you come in you get a card that tells you who you are and if you have any abilities. This time I was a Tech Support Guy! 

Hooray I'm useful!

Sadly being slow is not a very good trait, but I did have computers skill which came in handy at the end! And I helped save the day! Yay! I also got an equipment card, which I new to the game. I got a first aid kit and I helped heal some people! Woo!

And you’ll all be happy to know that I survived! Sadly, I gave some bad advice to my friend and I got her killed. Sorry Krystal! I don’t know what I was thinking. Even with the fighting skill you couldn’t have possibly defeated a hoard of zombies! 

After that my dad came by and we all went out to eat and then we headed to our friends hotel room and had drinks and hung out. The best part about Tomodachi is that it’s really laid back and there aren’t a ton of events, so you have lots of time to hang out with friends you might not see very often! Tomodachi Fest is really the best name for this con because it literally means Friends Fest!

After drinks (I had nearly a whole beer and was quite inebriated ) we headed to the swimsuit competition! Which was fun! There were some very cute swimsuits and there were adorable Cubone and Marowak cosplayers! I loved them! Though they were disqualified because they weren’t actually wearing swimsuits.

My friend Rikki won! I think it’s because she had a special towel that she ripped off for a dramatic display! Oh, and because she’s a super-cutie!

BAM!

It was lots of fun!

Then we went to the rave dance! I hadn’t been to one before and it was fun! Though, it would have been nice if they had had a bit more variety in the music. It was a lot of the same beat over and over, which gets boring to dance to after a while. But it was still fun. And I got to dance with my friends and I showed them my jellyfish dance. (If you don’t know, you’ll just have to ask me about it when you see me.)

Then it was Hentai Night! Wooo! I always like to go to hentai night! And this time it was a really funny one! It was called “Sex Warrior Pudding!” And it was a terrible Sailor Moon spoof. All the characters were named after types of desserts. Pudding was the main girl, but there was also Tiramisu, Jelly, Parfait, and Panna Cotta. And of course there was our hero, Manager, who played a very important role. I won’t go into all the naughty details, but believe me, it was hilarious. It even had a few lines straight out of Sailor Moon in it.

Then we headed home and I slept like a rock. (I think it was the one beer I had.)

On Saturday, Krystal and I did our Winnie the Pooh cosplays! Sadly, her super cool Tigger hoodie didn’t arrive in time for con, so she did a make shift one so I wouldn’t be cosplaying alone.

Tiggers DON'T like hunny!
Photo by Tim Boothby

But don’t worry, Krystal! Now that you have your hoodie, we are totally going to rock it at Fandem!

Everyone REALLY liked my Pooh cosplay! I’m so glad! It’s fun to wear and is very comfy! One guy even told me that my cosplay was the most creative one he had seen at the con! What a wonderful compliment! Thank you mystery man!

We got a few photos done in the photo room which was fun! Then I headed over to the “Are You Geek Enough” game show panel. I had initially only planned on watching, but no one was volunteering to actually be in the game so I thought, “What the hell?” and I joined one of the teams. I’m not a super genius with trivia, but I do know some stuff. And I was actually helpful for my team! They had a part where you heard a quote and had to name the character or show/movie it’s from. And one of them was a Powerpuff Girls quote (by Mojo Jojo to be exact) and apparently my hand shot up on like word two. Haha. I loves me some Mojo Jojo I guess. Anyway, our team actually won! And we got chocolates! I got a coconut flavored chocolate, which, I don’t really like coconut but it was dark chocolate and still yummy. And I shared lots of it with my friends. I really liked doing the game show and I think I’ll be in it more often! I did tell them they needed more Disney questions though. I can rock some Disney trivia.

And then--to my greatest surprise--my mom and sister showed up! 

And to my even greater surprise--my sister was in cosplay!  

My nephew was cosplaying as Edward Elric this time and so my sister decided to cosplay as his mom, Trisha Elric. My mom made her cosplay and her and my nephew looked super cute together!

Trisha and Edward Elric

Since this was the first time my mom and sister had ever been to a con, I told them they need to go to the Cosplay contest. You HAVE to go the cosplay contest at your first con. It’s just part of it. There were some really great acts this year! Some very good singers too! This girl Ceecee:

This girl was epic! She sung a song in Japanese! And did really good! Everyone was cheering for her and it was awesome! She won the costume AND cosplay contests! She deserved it!

Afterward I changed into my Hello Kitty coordinate and we headed to the panel called “Tiffany Grant Loves Hello Kitty.” And boy they weren’t kidding! She loves herself some HK! It was a really great panel! I learned a lot about Hello Kitty and Tiffany Grant was super adorable! She adapted the script for one of the HK series and she also did some voices. The way she talked about the series, it sounded super cute! I want to get it now. My favorite part of the panel was at the end when she showed up all the HK things in her purse. Let me tell you, ALL the things were HK. It was so cute. She also signed my HK lunch box! And gave out free stickers at the end of the panel! I really enjoyed it and I got to talk to her after the panel which was really nice. 

So much Hello Kitty Love. Photo of Tiffany Grant.

After that we went to dinner and then I mostly hung out with my friends for the rest of the night. I popped into see the Dating Game, which is always hilarious. I also popped into a MST3000 type panel of a really bad movie called “Infra-Man: The Man Beyond Bionics” which was pretty funny. And after that I did a little bit of karaoke. I always get super excited about karaoke, and then once I get in there I never know what to sing. Probably because most of the songs I know are Disney songs, which they don’t have any of--alas. I’ll just have to sing Disney songs to myself in the car. I did sing “Baby, One More Time” by Brittany Spears to start off the night. Because I love me some 90’s pop. Don’t judge me. I’m a 90’s kid and always will be.

On Sunday I cosplayed as Sailor Moon. I really didn’t feel like getting all dressed up in SM, but once I had it on I felt awesome. Like I always do. I just love being SM, even if putting it on is kind of involved. It’s always worth it. 

First, I popped in to see the last half of the Tiffany Grant panel “Adapting Scripts for English Dubs.” Which was super interesting! I learned some things about dubs I didn’t know. And some of you may shun me for saying so, but I really prefer dubs over subs. Unless the dub is REALLY bad *coughSailorMooncough*. I like being able to actually watch the show instead of having to read the whole time. I also like being about to do things when I’m watching it if I’ve seen the show several times. For instance, I can’t watch Sailor Moon and sew at the same time, so sadly I hardly ever watch it. 

But anyways, the panel was really great and getting a peak at how adapting and dubbing scripts works was very interesting. 

Afterwards I went to the Batsu Games. If you don’t know what the Batsu Games are.... let me tell you..... they are messed up. But also disturbingly hilarious. It’s hosted by Chris Rager every year. And he’s super hilarious. The way it works is the players have to draw these cards and whoever gets the turkey has to do a punishment challenge. And the team members and the audience is not supposed to laugh at all during the games.

Sometimes the punishment is for them and sometimes it is a reverse challenge and everyone else has to do the challenge. Some of the things they have to do are really unpleasant! But it’s hard to feel too sorry for the guys, because the same guys do it EVERY year! So it must not be too terrible if they put themselves through it every year. Though when I was telling my husband about it, he was very disgusted and disturbed at the whole idea. I guess it is kind of messed up... these dudes agree to go up there and be abused and humiliated in front of a crowd of strangers, who enjoy their torment..... Humans are pretty messed up aren’t they? What is wrong with us.....

But I still laughed my ass off. The only parts I don’t like is when they have to eat something yucky, because I’m always afraid they will throw up. But that hasn’t happened at the two I’ve gone to. The one guy I did feel really sorry for was when he had to put super hot horse radish on his face and some of it got in his eye. He was all shaking and had a cold napkin on his eye the rest of the games. Poor fellow. I wanted them to be nice to him.

“Super hot horse radish on his face?? Whaa??” you might be saying. Yes. That is one of the challenges. Along with snorting pixie sticks..

Being zapped by one of those electric fly swatters...

Being beated with regular fly swatters...

Ouch!!

Having to wear a carved jack-o-lantern on your head the entire games...

At least it's a cute jack-o-lantern. Though it was slightly too small for his head. XD

Blowing up a balloon in your shirt until it explodes...

Ouch!! Damn!! From a balloon??

Being doodled all over...

Having hard candies sling shotted at your back...

Like really? What is wrong with us....

Having to walk barefoot across a bunch of legos...

Having to color....

So pretty. XD

And the hosts least favorite coloring had to wear onion filled goggles....

It really is kind of messed up. I guess the Batsu Games is a real game show in Japan and..... I mean really..... Only in Japan, right? They like some weird ass shit over there. But I guess that’s why we love them so. My friend said she wanted to actually do the Batsu Games next year and if she does she’ll be the first girl to ever have participated in it. I certainly wouldn’t participate. I’m not fond of pain or spicy things. Which is pretty much what the whole games is about. 

After that we went to the closing and my friend found out she won the pumpkin carving contest! If I had known about the contest I would have entered it too! Ah well, there is always next year!

The whole 2 entries. XD

Then I went to my friend’s impromptu Monster High Doll get together. It was fun and we geeked out over dollies! I took pictures because.... well because. 

Also, my super awesome mommy got me the doll I REALLY wanted! Catty Noir! I love her soo much! I plan to cosplay as her! Thanks Mommy!

So pretty and sparkly!!

And my super awesome mommy also gave me a little spending money! She’s the nicest mommy ever! So I got these sweet Pop figures!

Some kid got there RIGHT before me and got the Raphael I had been ogling all con! I was so sad! But Donetello is still adorable and I Shredder is too. I’ll just have to save and get Raph at the next con. I also got these super cute keychains with the help of my friend Krystal! Thanks again buddy!

Also, Jen gave me this Trunks sticker. I do wuv him so very much! Thanks Jen!

And now for all the cosplay pics I took!!

Tiny Ewok

Lolita! In a lovely Infanta dress! Woo!

Edward Elric

Sooo cute!

Belledandy!

Moonies!! Woo!

Ok, so my friend dresses as a tentacle monster every year and I always get a pic with her. This time I happened to be Pooh Bear.... This is wrong on a lot of levels.

The Ghost Busters got gooped!

Kenshin!

A little sister!

Pretty kimono!

Cute Pikachu!!

Monster High Spectra and Catty Noir!

My friend posing with a large gun!

All in all Tomodachi Fest 2013 was really fun! The only part that I was really disappointed about was that they didn’t have any fan run panels. Anime Oasis did this this year too and I don’t know why. The fan panels are usually the most fun and interesting! I get bored with the voice acting q&a’s because it’s always the same 15 questions. Not having fan panels is one of the reasons I’m not going to AO next year. I hope that they will change this, because I want to support our local cons! But if they are boring, then it isn’t very much fun to go to them. 

So please, AO and Tomo, bring back fan run panels!! They are the best part! I know for certain that some of my friends did not attend Tomo this year for this very reason! 

Anyway, even without the fan panels I still had a great time and it was wonderful getting to see my friends before Winter comes and we all don’t see each other for a while. The next con I’m going to will be Fandemonium next year!

I hope you all enjoyed my con review of Tomodachi Fest 2013!

Next week I have lots of things to show you guys! So until next time!

~Edward