*Fuujin*
Final Fantasy VIII
Worn at: Anime Expo 2003
Chara Info: As one third of the Disciplinary Committee of Balamb Garden, Fuujin is a force to be reckoned with. However, this girl of few words deeply cares for her friends. And deeply loves to kick certain friends in the shins XD.
Why Her?: Ever since I played FFVIII I've wanted to cosplay someone from it. However, none of the girls seemed to match me closely enough. Then I took a closer look at Fuujin. She's my exact height, AND she's incredibly pale just like me! So I don't have red eyes :P. She's still pretty close to me, so she'll be done ^^.
The Story: Err, this is definately not one of my favorite costumes >.>.
I first planned this costume for Halloween of 2002. That didn't happen. Then I planned it for Katsucon 2003. Again, I hadn't even started on it. I finally buckled down and decided to do it for Anime Expo 2003.
The jacket is made from cheap quilting cotton and gold bias tape. This was my second (and rushed) try at making it. The first was fully lined, made from a heavy cotton specifically for uniforms, and was absolutely beautiful. Unfortunately, it didn't fit me. Don't ever use See & Sew patterns. The pants are made from navy blue twill, and are my favorite part of the costume (they fit really nice ^_^). The eyepatch is black spandex sewed around a piece of craft foam shaped like my eyeglasses. The wig was purchased from Wigs Unlimited and trimmed by myself. It's a really nice wig -- I recommend that site ^_^. The boots were purchased from Goodwill.
The parts I'm most proud of are the shoulder pad and pinwheel. They are both made from a type of plastic sheeting called Lexan, and craft foam. The shoulder pad was painted with a type of silver leaf, and the pinwheel with acrylics. This was the first time I ever worked with this material or made props, so I'm pretty happy with how they turned out.
As for wearing this costume. . .ugh. I have never been so uncomfortable in my life. Eye patches are not fun. My vision was blurred the entire time I had it on. The wig is also uncomfortable, since I'm not used to short hair falling in my face every five seconds. And the shoulder pad! It kept dragging my shirt back and making it fit improperly.
The chances of me wearing this costume again are very slim. I think it was a failed experiment. Luckily I didn't spend too much money on it :P.
Pictures
