MeltingMirror Cosplay

What a treat for the eyes if you like high fashion and enough embellishments to last you till eternity. For anyone who like fashion, creating garments, or sparkly things, then I can see you enjoying this exhibit. I broke down the photos I took by themes although they may not have been in the same rooms.

Musings of a Cosplay Judge:
The majority of the pieces were amazing and feats of construction, but there were also a few pieces that had okay construction that wouldn't win a best in class in certain competitions I've been to. This is crazy when you think about it but also a reminder to calm down and take it easy because even a high end fashion designer can make a few sewing mistakes. Who hasn't dealt with puckering seams. Occasionally you'll lose a few beads. Sometimes you need that applique on stat, which means 1cm wide stitches.
​Lastly, lamé is kind to no one.

Which look or theme is your favourite?

Busy but fun. Otakuthon is one of my staple events for the year and it delivered good times with my friends. I came into the city on Thursday evening and I was able to grab a few drinks with a friend on a patio and catch up after a few years apart.

On Friday I wore Nidalee, I didn't forget my necklace this time, and I got to shoot with White Specks. I immediately had to run to my panel afterwards and it went surprisingly well considering I thought it was cancelled and I had to make due without my notes.​Afterward I had an amazing seafood dinner at the Captain's Boil. It's a pirate themed restaurant with bibs, gloves, and food in bags. It was glorious and delicious.

On Saturday I got dressed in my Fall Sawsbuck costume after attaching some last minute flowers to the skirt. I'm so stoked to get photos back for this costume. I felt majestic af in this. I love it so damn much with its warm colour palette. I also hung out in the Otakuthon lobby for a bit and I was pleased to see how warmly the costume was received especially since it's an original gijinka design.

The rest of the day was spent judging the masquerade and Otakuthon always has stiff competition. This year was the year of WOW. There were so many talented Sylvanas cosplayers, in addition to a lot of Hakuouki and Madoka Magika. 

On Sunday I wore Ducklett and I took it pretty easy. I watched the WCS Canada performances, then jetted out for a fashion inspired shoot, then came running back for the award ceremony. I spent the rest of the day eating great food with friends and catching up with them.

All in all it was a good weekend despite the questionable weather.

I had a great relaxing time at Montreal Comiccon. I'll take any reason to go to Montréal!

I only wore one costume, Pharoah Nidalee, and it was briefly on Saturday for a photoshoot with Erik Paredes. Note to self: do more test runs of costumes before wearing them. It was surprisingly uncomfortable to wear and a few pieces didn't stay put.

​Most of my time was spent hanging out with friends, exploring the dealer's room, grabbing food in Chinatown, and going on little Pokemon adventures.

Notable events: I spotted Patrick Stewart twice over the weekend. Once in the dealer's room on his way to his signing and again while he was walking through Chinatown. 

This was my 9th year at Otakuthon. Wow! It has always been a favourite of mine thanks to the venue, location, and friends. I had a great time this year even though it's getting harder and harder to spend time with friends since the event is so photoshoot friendly that everyone tends to wandering around shooting all day.

This was a much more relaxed year since I skipped competing in the WCS Canada preliminaries/finals and judged the masquerade instead of competing. Although after a year of judging events I feel due for a good stage performance.

It was my first time attending this convention and I had a great time. It's held in the same venue as Otakuthon but there are significantly less crowds which is nice. I set out with the goal of pumping out a new costume to go to the masquerade. Ravenna was an easy choice since I knew exactly the skit I wanted to do. I bought a prop mirror month ahead in anticipation for the skit.

Calamity, Kudrel, and I took a bus to Montreal in the afternoon. I spent the day hanging out with friends and finishing up my costume. I actually went to bed at a decent time! No crazy late night crafting this time around.

Friday was a jam packed day. I had three shoots earlier in the day. I was my first time working with both Lexa One Photographie and Pit Fire Photography. They were both great. Very nice people and I recommend shooting with both of them if you have a chance.  I also shot with an old friend, Belziir Photography, where we trekked up a small slope in a park in my ridiculous 6in heeless shoes. It was a sweaty mess of a day - 28-30C weather - and my cape was a heated blanket plus my dress was made with synthetic taffeta so it didn't breathe. After I wrapped the shoots I did some final checks on my costume then went to the masquerade.

I had a great time in the greenroom. It brought me  back to the early days when I would compete to climb the rankings and meet so many new people. I made friends with two lovely first time masquerade participants as we waited to get into the greenroom. Cosplay Sempai mode activated! I gave them some tips and told them what they could expect out of the whole process. I was so proud to see them on stage. They were well prepared with audio and everything.
I also got to chat with many of my fellow den mates: Arc-Frost, Jessica Rousseau, and many more (Zelda group and friends you better send me your info if you read this).

You can watch my entry below starting at 1:19:10. Video by MrJechgo.

It was the first time in a long time I was nervous for a performance. I had quite a few lines to remember, my costume was cumbersome to move in, plus as we were lining up to go backstage I dropped my crown and even through I dropped it multiple times throughout the day on concrete, this time a piece broke off when it hit the carpet. Luckily my den mom hot glued it back together just in time and it looked good as new.

Casual day! I was sore all over from carrying my costume and its pieces so instead of dressing up I spent my time taking photos of other cosplayers and exploring the event. Kudrel and I also went location scouting in Old Montreal. Later that day I attended the award ceremony from the hallway. They had it in a small room and it was packed. Luckily I was able to hear my name being called. The awards I received were Best Recreation (craftsmanship) and Best Characterization (stage). I'm very glad my skit was well received.

Here's a few photos I took on Sunday of some talented cosplayers. Montreal is always filled with cool costumers.