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Katsucon 2020

20/2/2020

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Thursday

PictureWooloo
No better way to start the weekend than an early morning flight and several flight delays. After 12 hours of airports, flights, and cabs I finally made it to the Gaylord. I got my badge, grabbed some food, and had some mild hangouts.

The Thursday night is getting busier and people start the party early on the gazebo level. I might have been up for it if I wasn't so exhausted.

I was supposed to wear Wooloo on Thursday, but I was too tired. So I wore it on Saturday. I realize that 2 costumes in a day is exhausting especially if the makeup is drastically different. 

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Chinese New Year decor at the MGM

Friday

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On Friday I wore my new Cosmog ginjika. The headdress is nice and light and I love how the look came together. I found out later that the body jewelry was scrapping my shoulder and left a bunch of scratches. Oh well, the photos look nice and a lesson learned for next time.

I shot at the Voltaggio in the MGM with Paul Hiller and the blue colour scheme was a perfect match for this outfit.

After the shoot I ran back to the Gaylord to check out the Cosplay Met Gala. I missed the runway showcase but it was nice seeing all the costumes up close afterwards  and catching up with a few cosplayers from all over the country and abroad.

I checked out Anna Fischer's cool shooting setup on one of her beds in her room. It's impressive what you can do with some fabric and cheap lights.

I changed out of the costume for the rest of the day and just spent my time visiting friends,

Saturday

PictureRohan - Jojo
At long last I cosplayed from JOJO. I wore Rohan for most of the day since it's such a comfy costume. I shot with Dangrr Doll at the lobby bar at the MGM. I can't wait to share those photos. I did a lot of unintentional core exercises posing for those pics.

I then spent the rest of the afternoon helping Dangrr and co setup a full flower arch and tea table set. It was beautiful. I also helped take pics of all the Fire Emblem characters - on everyone else's phones rather than my own.

I switched in Wooloo briefly to wander the con floor to see friends and snap some hall shots. I was in it for maybe 2 hours before I changed out of it. It's comfy but heavy and warm.

Sunday

PictureRohan - Jojo - Vers.2 with more makeup
I wore Rohan again but with some different makekup. Gotta accentuate those Jojo lines. I shot with Elemental Photography this time around on the Gazebo level. Again I engaged my core for the shoot. I then helped out Elemental with lighting her shoot with Sarcasm-hime. I spent the rest of the day trying to see all the people I missed during the rest of the con.

The Sunday of Katsu is getting busier as well. Usually it would die down after 2pm but there were still lots of people around and at the Gazebo into the night.

It was my first time staying the Sunday night and I think I will keep doing that for future years. I also went to see Sonic with friends. Was it good? It was ok. Not worth the $20USD movie ticket though. I think I would have been satisfied with a non-HD viewing.

Monday

I've been going to Katsu for 7 years and this is the first year I actually got to see the city. We went to the museums at the Washington mall. The weather was great and the exhibits were fun. They were surprisingly dusty and especially crowded because it was a holiday.

I only run into slight delays getting home. I made it home after midnight and had work the next day. I do not recommend it. 

Overall Katsu was a blast and bringing comfier costumes made it more enjoyable.
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Katsucon 2019

19/2/2019

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It was my sixth year at Katsu and it had it different vibe than usual. It felt less crowded, probably thanks to the new badge policy. It also gave me a nostalgic con vibe thanks to hanging out with friends and meeting many new people. As always, I didn't run into many of the people I knew were there over the weekend, a fact of life for modern cons. Luckily I was able to have quite a few good chats with some old friends that live far away and I miss them already.

​​Another observation, Katsu always had a party vibe to it, but I feel as if it is becoming Dragoncon north with the partying (congregation of drunk people) in the lobby of the Gaylord which is leading to many memorable moments. See the DVD X It crossover, Mothman, or the Danny Devito shrine.

I took it relatively easy over the weekend. I managed to finish all of my costume in time with minimal hotel finishing touches (adding a handful of rhinestones to my dress and sewing down some buttons). I kept it to 3 costumes for the weekend, 1 per day and I was maybe in them for maximum 4 hours each. I find this give me more time to enjoy the con, see the sights, and relax. I'm technically there on vacation so it should feel like it by the end of each day.

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Some highlights of the weekend:
  • My fastest experiences of going through airport security, both there and back
  • Staring at amazing costumes
  • Offering apples to Snow Whites when dressed Evil Queen Regina
  • Quality friend time
  • Warm reception for my new costumes - thank you for your kind words
  • Cosplayhipster's makeshift photoshoot set on a bed
  • Exploring the MGM and it's cool photoshoot locations
  • The nice weather, yet spending the bulk of my time shooting outside on one of the colder days
  • Forgetting my Atalanta ears at home and managing to find a near perfect substitute in the Artist Alley. Thanks Cabbits!

What were your highlights this year? Any memorable costumes?
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Katsucon 2018

20/2/2018

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With Jayuna and Jazzmin
Katsucon is a yearly tradition for me where I look forward to seeing amazing work while also catching up with friends. With those two things in mind my mission was accomplished. I was really worried I wouldn't finish my projects in time but luckily I was able to pulled through without pushing myself too hard. The grind to finish Katsu costumes, aka "Katsucrunch", got the best of many people this year, which serves as a good reminder to take a step back and reevaluate things with high stress projects. I learned that lesson the hard way at WCS.

I have to give special thanks to a few people who made this weekend great. First off to Kurumasha for helping me finish my projects and lending me her wig. Second to VickybunnyAngel for being an amazing roomie, helping me in and out of costume, and also helping with makeup. Third to Jayuna, for helping me out of costume when Vicky wasn't there. Lastly to everyone who I caught up with ans shot with over the weekend. Thank you for your time and sharing it with me.

​All right let's dive in!

Thursday

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I flew in on Thursday morning and made friendly with some local cosplayers on the same flight. We split an Uber to the hotel and I totally felt like a con mom asking them about what they planned to do for the first year there.

When I arrived, I picked up some supplies for the weekend from CVS then got ready to shoot my Spring Sawsbuck that afternoon. I shot with White Specs and Vicissijuice back to back. It was my first time shooting with her and I look forward to seeing the photos. Afterwards I immediately took a nap because I was very tired. After sleeping for 2 hours, I got up and worked on finishing up Lilith while watching the Olympics. Figure skating woot woot!

Friday

I was pretty certain that I would't finish this costume in time but I was able to wear Lilith on Friday of the event. I was suppposed to finish this costume for Katsu of last year but I just kept putting it off. There are a few details that still need to be added or improved but I am still happy with what I got to wear for a few hours.

A special thanks goes to Vickybunnyangel for helping me get into this and pinning down my wing harness and also to Jayuna for helping me out of the costume. I was resigned to the fact that I would have lie down on the bed for close to hour waiting for a roommate to return to help.

I got to shoot with MH photography by the water before the rain came in. I had a "great" time balancing my long nails (not pictured but you'll see eventually) for pictures but they were worth the hassle because they add an extra layer of crazy detail to the costume.
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Photo by Martin Wong
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The rest of the day was easy going. My roomies and I went for dinner at Elevation Burger then we went to Felt for a party at the MGM. It was a nice change of pace from the hustle that happens at Pose. I didn't end up going there this year since the lines were horrendous.

It was a great opportunity to catch up with friends without having to circle the bar all night trying to find them. Also two couples got engaged, how exciting!

Side note: I got this new blue dress and it is a nightmare to get in and out of. It's a snug fit with minimal stretch and I wish it had a zipper. Luckily I wasn't stuck sleeping in it overnight.

Saturday

The big day. I decided to wear something somewhat comfortable and that was Storm. After years of putting this costume on the back burner she is finally done! She got such a warm welcome at the event even though I got blamed for the snow that arrived that day.

I did a shoot with U.V. Photography partially outdoors and indoors then I spent the rest of the afternoon meeting up with friends and getting to know new ones around the gazebo. I also shot with Anna Fischer and my god it is magic what she can accomplish with a few lights and gels.

I had another dinner with friends, this time at the Walrus for some delicious seafood. I find this is the best opportunity to catch up with people because the hustle of Katsu can get the best of you. Afterwards I went around the lobby visiting friends and playing more catch up.
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Sunday

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I was pretty tired come Sunday but I still got into Alexandrite. There were so many other gems that it made me so happy. I love to see the different ways people interpreted the wigs and the makeup. My interpretation requires 3 layers of highlighters. 

I spent most of time hanging out at the gazebo  level and doing the odd shoot here and there. I also got to catch up with Sweet Sensation photo, and I'm curious to see if my over posing worked out. Since it was such a simple costume I figure it was time to whip out the Vogue moves. I also did a brief balcony shoot before I changed out of the costume, which was a first for me.

After saying too many goodbyes I made my way to the airport and after nearly falling asleep at the gate, I made it home in one piece.
All in all I had a good time despite the crowding. Honestly, I expect this every year from Katsu so it was not a surprise and honestly I thought it would be worse. I wore my cumbersome outfits on Thursday and Friday to avoid the worst of it. Crowding makes it difficult to get good photos but a little ingenuity, courtesy, and determination goes a long way. I would agree with some friends with the point that some of the usual photoshoot spots are getting overused but I think that is part of the deal when you attend a con several years in a row. However, it's still leaps and bounds better for shoots than conventions held in warehouses every year. I will be returning next year so long as my friends will be there since that is the bulk of the fun for me.

How was your Katsu? Did you run into any issues?
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Katsucon 2017

22/2/2017

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I thoroughly enjoyed Katsu this year. I decided not to push myself too hard and only booked one  shoot per day and left the rest of my schedule open for quick shoots and hanging out with friends. I wasn't able to finish my big showstopper costume (Lilith - Reference here) due to health reasons. In the end it didn't bother me that much. In the past it would have bummed me out for the entire weekend which is an unhealthy habit. Instead I had fun. Here's what happened over the weekend.


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Katsucon 2015

17/2/2015

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Friday

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I arrived in DC on Thursday with no issue although they bumped my initial and connecting flight an hour later. Thursday was easy going. I stitched down eight beads to finish my Beryl costume then went on to help Calamity with her projects while watching Rambo II and III.

I had a late start to Friday since my first shoot started at two, so I got dressed in Beryl at around noon. I learned the importance of planning how to put on a costume with some many layers. It went something like this: Corset on - corset off - hoopskirt, tulle, slip, skirt on - then corset on and finally put on wig and accessories. Thanks to Kudrel for lacing me up twice.

I started off the day by shooting with Anna Fischer, followed by Jason Chau. I then went to meet up with my No Flutter Sailor Moon group and everyone looked gorgeous. I’m so happy we had such a good turnout. We had scouts from all over Canada and the costumes were all well-coordinated. After we did some group shoots we went to go see the artist that designed the costumes. No Flutter was excited to see the costumes and even gave me support for my original design to match the group. It was very flattering because I tried my best to match the style. I’ll get more into that when I post my construction breakdown for the costume.

Here's a few shot of our group. First photo is by Martin Wong and all others are from Octography

  • Mercury - https://www.facebook.com/Elemental.Sight
  • Venus - https://www.facebook.com/JellyCosplay
  • Serenity - https://www.facebook.com/pages/Ellysetta-Rain-Cosplay
  • Moon - https://www.facebook.com/Angelicacosplay
  • Chibi-Moon - https://www.facebook.com/JayunaCosplay
  • Beryl - https://www.facebook.com/MeltingMirror
  • Mars - https://www.facebook.com/Vickybunnyangel
  • Saturn - https://www.facebook.com/shushuwafflez
  • Neptune - https://www.facebook.com/pages/Nomadic-Goldfish-Cosplay
  • Pluto - https://www.facebook.com/CosplayCalamity

After freeing ourselves from our costumes, some of us went to dinner at a nearby seafood place and stuffed our faces. The rest of the night was spent hanging out with friends and finally getting my badge. On that note: WHAT THE HELL WAS GOING ON WITH THAT LINE-UP? It really defeats the purpose of pre-registering if it ends up such a hassle. There was a 2,3,4,5, even 6hr long wait to get badges on Thursday and Friday. I waited till 11 pm Friday and waited 5 minutes.

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Katsucon 2014

19/2/2014

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PictureMyself and Ani-Mia @ Crunchyroll Booth
After two cancelled flights I finally made it to DC on Friday evening (instead of Thursday morning) to attend the event.

Katsucon was a bit of blur since everything happened so fast. It was whirlwind of seeing old friends and making a few new ones like Keren Lin ;), and photoshoots. I really feel like I missed out this year since I didn't have time to settle in as I arrived nor did I get any time to attend panels and events.

Friday
I got settled into the hotel with my roomies, got dinner, got my badge and slept I arrived.

Saturday
I took my time to get my Tera Castanic ready in the morning. (A new costume page will be up shortly after I accumulate some photos and doa  write-up). It is such an uncomfortable costume that is super impractical. I am so grateful for all the people that helped me through the weekend. I started the  day (at 2pm :p) with a shoot with SoulFire Photography, quickly followed by another with Anna Fischer and then some video with Andy of OTL Productions. I ran into Elysiam and did a brief and frigid shoot with the setting sun outside.
Saturday night was pretty mellow after trying to get into a restaurant for a while and ending up at a good Mexican place. I spent the rest of the night packing and having a drink with my roommates.


Sunday
 I wore my Cruella De Vil, a costume I was supposed to complete last year for Katsucon. I spent an hour or two helping out at the Crunchyroll booth. I got to meet a fellow ambassador Ani-Mia before getting lunch and shooting for a second time with Andy. The rest of the day was spent saying goodbye to everyone. And just like that, my day was over and I was back to the airport. Luckily there were no delays on my way back home. 

Overall it was short but sweet. I always enjoy the collection of beautiful costumes at Katsucon. Looking at all the beautiful photos and videos being released really inspires me to create more

Here are my few photos. I couldn’t take any  over the weekend since I had gloves on for both of my costumes

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Katsucon 2013

19/2/2013

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Fountain in the hotel

It was my first time at Katsucon and it was a costume whirlwind. There were so many things to see.
I was stuck at my artist table for most of the weekend but I still had a great time. I wasn’t able to finish my Cruella in time but I am more than satisfied with my Hana cosplay.

Here are the details...



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