When Moana came out in 2016, I didn’t go see it in theaters. I was scared. Hawai’i is my home. Would Disney use this chance to represent diverse peoples, my own ‘ohana? Or would this be another Mulan, another Aladdin, another carelessly slapped together amalgamation of non-western cultures that Disney couldn’t bother to get right? …
Giselle’s Curtain Dress, Part 2
To recap! Children are scary! Be afraid! Be nice. But still, afraid. (Because people ask with all of my irrational fears, no, I have not had a bad experience with children, I haven’t been bitten by one—now that I write that I realize that actually, I have, but it wasn’t traumatizing or anything—I am just…
The Basics: Why is Cosplay so Expensive?
People are always excited, supportive, and above all, curious when I tell them that I’m a cosplayer. Even if they have no idea who that character is, people just love to see the pictures of my costumes or the latest work in progress shots from my new projects. It’s gotten to the point that, not…
The Lyme Life: Diagnosis Lyme Disease and Friends
Today we’re taking a look at my Lyme diagnosis! This is one of those big questions I hear a lot. Lyme disease? How did you find out? Were you bitten by a tick? Well, yes, I was bitten by a tick, when I was two and camping in the wilds of California. But I never…
Giselle’s Curtain Dress, Part 1
If there is one thing I learned from cosplaying as Giselle, it’s this: Disney cosplays, and particularly ones associated with the princess movies, attract little fans like magnets. Now, if you’re me, this is kind of terrifying. Why? Well, I love the concept of kids. They will say anything that comes to mind, and I…
The Lyme Life: Weight Gain, Anxiety, and Body Image
And we’re back! I’d say so is the Lyme disease, but that really never went anywhere. It’s like bringing sexy back—it never really went anywhere, so can it really come back? So I recently got some pictures back from a Harley Quinn photoshoot with Les, Daddy Pop Culture Photography (@daddypop_culture on Instagram) from our shoot…
The Lyme Life: Last Year in Lyme
So if you’ve been with us on these cosplay adventures for a while, you might have noticed that it’s been a while since I was last posting about my sewing process on various projects. Before the tesseract tutorial, it had been about a year since I posted anything, and the reason for that has really…
MCU Tesseract
“The power of creation! For a crustacean!” Oh wait… Fun fact: though I may act like a hermit, I am not, in fact, a crustacean. Although it does seem fun to have your home with you at all times. Since my personal evolution into a hermit human isn’t happening, I’ve consoled myself by making a…
Sea Witch in Disguise, Part 3, Arm Socks
I had such a crazy weekend at Rose City Comic Con (back in September, because life got crazy and I forgot to post this, even though I wrote it on the flight back)! Note to self: just say hi to people in cool cosplays, chances are, they are just awesome people and you’ll end up…
Sea Witch in Disguise, Part 2
Previously on the Chronicles of Ursula: The cups on my corset were the real poor, unfortunate souls in this deal, because those things were so sharp they could pierce the hull of a Fire Nation ship, leaving thousands to drown at sea! We tamed the cups, and all was well in Ursula land. But we…
Erika A La Mode's Cosplay Confectionery 
