Hi all, a couple of weeks ago I managed with the help of excellent friends to get my dead butt over to KupoCon. What is KupoCon you say? It’s a convention for fans of the popular Japanese video game franchise Final Fantasy. A lot of people cosplay at this con and given I’ve had to miss several cons due to illness this year and am still unwell, I thought I’d put together something comfy and simple for the one day convention.
Designing the Costume
I was keen to create an original Viera character but wanted to keep in the theme of the Viera costumes so looked at the Viera class designs from Final Fantasy Tactics game for inspiration. Mostly the Sniper and Red Mage classes:
Viera Sniper Final Fantasy
Viera Red Mage Final FantasyOfficial Viera Images from Final Fantasy Wikia
I took ideas mostly from the sniper concept art primarily for the huntress feel but then added the long boots and double split skirt from the Red Mage. I kept the bow and arrow from the sniper and all the belts and gloves but added a corset. This was partly for the ‘sexy’ aesthetic that most viera have and also because i’m currently awaiting surgery on my kidney and needed some protection for the area from crowds! Safety planning in costumes, haha!
Making the Costume
The iconic ears for the headpiece I commissioned from the talented ‘The Ragdoll Workshop‘. My friend Kez of MegaButt who cosplayed the Fran inspired viera with me also commissioned their ears from the same place and the quality was amazing. I’ve not worked with fur very much and these ears were really cool in how the fitted together. There’s a headpiece which goes under the wig and prongs which the ears slide onto.
For the outfit itself I bought a cheap dress for a fiber off ebay which I then cut up both sides and re-hemmed and added a boob window. I also used bronze fabric paint to add a bit of detail. I wore the dress with the corset I made for my Yennefer Cosplay and the bow and belts I made for my Tauriel Cosplay – Yay for cosplay recycling! The wig cost me under a tenner off ebay too and I cut a fringe in, combed it out and plaited the back. To get it softer and less shiny I soaked it in fabric softner for a few hours and rinsed out too.
The Finished Cosplay
This costume was sooo much fun to wear and for someone very body conscious, I actually felt okay in it. I was also nice and protected from any crowds accidentally knocking my painful kidney are due to the corset (thinking ahead)! Thank you again to Kez of MegaButt Cosplay (facebook page here) for being an amazing fellow Viera and looking after my ill-ass self at the con <3
Full Gallery of the costume is available here
At the Con
KupoCon Birmingham 2018, also known as Pomathon was a one day con held in the Birmingham Conference Center. The con had a range of tickets from the basic day-only one (me, haha!) through to ones which included additional merch and signings and the evening ball. I hadn’t been to a Kupo before so I got the cheapest ticket as I wasn’t sure what it would be like. Next time i’ll definitely get the one which includes the evening party(though I managed to sneak along this year) as it’s a fab event with a load of lovely people.
The con was spread over three floors in the conference center, so there was a tonne of room to explore, pose and hang out. However, the con schedule was really vague and I found it oddly hard to know when anything was happening. The masquerade was also a bit weird as it wasn’t a formal set-up and literally the whole audience went on stage! The vibe was mega friendly and chill though which I loved!
I had to take breaks and unfortunately had a seizure at the con due to how much pain I was in but I hope to attend another UK Kupo Con in the future, hopefully in less agony 😛
Remember you can view all my costumes here, and also on Instagram and Facebook
Laters, Ruthy xo
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