Four years ago, Marielle Fox’s younger sisters press-ganged her into attending Fan Expo (taking place this year Nov. 10-12).
“I told them I’d only go if they bought me a ticket and made my costume. And they did,” the Vancouverite says.
The sisters decided to dress up as the Baratheon brothers from Game of Thrones, with Marielle as Robert – the fat, drunk king, complete with fake beard and metal chainmail handmade by her youngest sister.
The fun they had, and the reactions they received, were all Fox needed to dive head first into the world of cosplay.
“It’s about being a fan of something and wanting to wear it on my sleeve and connect with people who like the same thing,” she says. “You put so much time into the thing you’re engrossed in, then other people say, ‘I recognize that – you did a great job and I love that thing too.’”
Fox’s costumes are not only tributes to the characters she loves, but also works of art: elaborate, intricate and beautiful, and with her own spin – faithful, but not replicas.
“You always think everything you do is crap and everyone else is better so you push yourself to do the next thing. As an artist, if you feel like you’ve made it and you’re the best, you lose your drive and perhaps your work reflects that,” she says.
Most of her works are inspired by videogame characters (she works in the industry as an artist). Her process starts with research.
“I find as much art as I can, then I’ll stare at the images – usually on my commute to work – and break the costume down in my mind. I’ll go by materials: everything that’s made of leather, can I make the gloves, boot covers and belts? Then I move on: How about these gauntlets or these pieces of leg armour? If I can visualize it, I’ll be fine,” she says.
Making it, wearing it
Making the costume takes around three months – up to 100 hours over evenings and weekends, working at the kitchen table, moulding plastic, sewing, sanding, cutting and painting, sometimes re-making elements several times before they’re right.
Fox is mostly self-taught via internet tutorials posted by fellow cosplayers.
“The cosplay community is huge and extremelysupportive; if you ever need advice or ideas, other cosplayers are usually happy to help,” she says.
The art doesn’t stop with making the costume: There’s also the performance element of wearing it and embodying the character.
Marielle goes to events like gaming festival PAX in Seattle and San Diego Comic Con, where she finds the majority of cosplayers are women.
“There’s this huge community of women who like costumes. It sucks if your game or movie is popular but you only have one female character. When I look around at conventions I see a lot of women cosplaying the same character – a lot of Harley Quinns,” she says.
The atmosphere at conventions is positive, but things can be different online.
“I’ve certainly received hatred because I make male characters,” she says. “There was one time I made a costume more feminine and incorporated elements from older versions of the character. I wanted to make it my own because that’s the creative process.
“I was proud of it so I posted an image on Reddit and got people telling me I should stick to cosplaying female characters. People can be so defensive of the thing they like that if they see you trying to change it, they get personally offended.”
What happens next
Once a costume has been worn, it goes into storage.
“I rarely wear stuff again. Halloween is a great excuse to get a costume out,” Fox says. “I’m an emotional person to begin with, so when I look at an old costume I remember what a good time I had wearing it. If I get rid of one, if feels like I’m getting rid of the memory.”
Her last event was in September and she’s just started to think about what to do next.
“I have an idea bubbling away from a game called Dota 2, which is probably my favourite right now. It’s a giant, Satanic man called Doom. It’s a little bit insane, like nothing I’ve tried before. I’d have to make a different kind of foot. He has wings, and his sword is on fire. The mask is a big skull with ram horns,” she says.
“It’s definitely a lot bigger – physically and mentally – than anything I’ve done before. But I can look at it and break down the pieces. That’s the scary part – this is ambitious but ... maybe I can actually do this. I think I’m going to do it.”
Just cos
Essential skills: “Nothing about costume making takes a specific talent or expertise – it just takes time. If you don’t know how to work with a material or how to sew, give yourself the time, and learn. Sometimes your costume won’t fit properly, or pieces will break. Don’t let it defeat you; use it as an opportunity to learn something new and get better.”
Material musts: “For armour, you can use foam floor mats and buy packages of those cheap at Home Depot. For some projects I use specialty foam that’s denser and better for sanding and comes in different thicknesses. I usually buy that from tntcosplaysupply.com. There’s a material called Worbla I use a lot – it’s a plastic that you mould with a heat gun. It’s great for people who are starting out. The place to buy it locally is Coast Fiber-Tek on Boundary Road, which stocks a lot of crafting and costuming materials for beginners or experts.”
Getting started: “Look up the online tutorials and books from Kamui Cosplay. Lots of talented cosplayers and costume-makers post their work and process online and you can follow their progress on Instagram. Some of my other favourite creators are @jechts, @misskatcakes, @coregeek and @rehabgnaked.”
Marielle Fox is on Instagram as @iron_swan
