Fruits Basket: Souma Yuki (and a Tag)

Since Mr. Rock Out tagged me, and the last time I ever got to post a personal article was a Side Rant on the Ragnarok Cosplay of Sohee, I decided to first feature a cosplay of a character I most relate to: Souma Yuki.

Just like Hatori and Momiji, Yuki is a member of the 13 cursed Souma family members. His sign is the Rat’s, and he is very popular in his school, giving him the title of “Prince”.

And I really like this cosplay… Too bad this Yuki is a girl.

And so, as promised, here is Mr. Rock Out’s Tag…

7 Random Things About Nanao-Chan:

1. I tend to take the blame for everything. I think it’s something inborn, so, if something goes wrong, even with the universe sake, I can’t help but think I’m somewhat responsible for it.

2. I hardly ever go out. Why? My parents are so strict they almost didn’t let me work, haha! (actually, it’s not laughing matter, because it’s true) I am working right now, but the catch with this agreement is that I can’t go to company outings and stuff. Funny, because my parents let me go to business trips outside the country.

3. I have an “I don’t care” attitude, but I cry a lot. When I’m angry, depressed, or whatever extreme emotion you can think of, I get teary. So even the 1st Pokemon Movie got me crying when Pikachu was trying to revive a petrified Ash Ketchum.

4. I think being given a fanart is the greatest most awesome-est gift anyone has ever given me. o(^o^)o

5. I am extremely over-protective… Also an inborn trait. So if something happens to my colleagues, I would usually either a. take tge blame for it; or b. start a war to show how much we were wronged.

6. I believe the world revolves around money. It may not be able to buy you happiness, but it buys you everything else. People tend to look highly of the rich, and they are “untouchable”.

7. Someone once asked me: “Did you ever think about who would visit you in a hospital in case *knock on wood* you got into an accident?” My answer was simply: No one. I’m not being emo about it, it’s just that practicality speaking, I don’t really see why people would visit me in the hospital when my parents are sure to keep shut about it…

So there you have it. Random stuff about Nanao-Chan. Please don’t take them too seriously. It may sound emo (I re-read this a few times before posting), but I’m quite happy and content. As long as there’s a cute cosplay to feature, I’ll be happy. o(^o^)o

I guess that would be the 8th thing about Nanao-Chan: The simplest things in life make me the happiest person on earth. ^_^

I tag the following:

Tabby, §oL, and Ying Dong

Technorati tags: nanao, research, random, nanao-chan, fruits basket, cosplay, cosplayer, yukishiro, souma, sohma, rat, mouse, cute, pokemon, ash ketchem, pikachu, fanart, accident, hospital, attitude, emo, happy

Gundam Seed: Yzak Joule

Yzak Joule is one of the elite pilots of ZAFT in the series Gundam Seed and Gundam Seed Destiny. In Gundam Seed, he was under the command of Rau Le Creuset, leader of the prestigious ZAFT Le Creuset special operations team. He is very proud of his elite status, and considers Athrun Zala to be his primary rival.

This character may not be at the top of my favorite characters’ list, but it’s hard to deny how awesome this cosplay is. To explain why this cosplayer is covering his/her right eye, it’s because in the series, Kira Yamato gave him a scar in one of the battles they fought in. Technically, it’s on on his right eye, but above it, and across his face, but it makes sense to people who’ve seen the series.

Technorati tags: nanao, research, gundam seed destiny, gundam seed, yzak, joule, gundam, pilots, elite, mobile suit, athrun, zala

Final Fantasy VII: Aerith Gainsborough

First, I have to say… This girl looks like the same cosplayer as Felicia of Darkstalkers.

Makes me curious to know who she really is… But I unfortunately have no leads.If anyone can point me in the right direction, I’m all ears!

Anyway, Aerith, the flower girl of Final Fantasy VII who turned out to be the one who can summon the only force capable of repelling the ultimate destructive magic handled by Sephiroth known as “Meteor”. She unfortunately perishes in the game, but most Final Fantasy VII fans still see her as an icon of the series.

That weapon she’s holding look like it’s really made out of marble. Awesome job with this cosplay!

Technorati tags: nanao, research, final fantasy 7, final fantasy vii, aerith, gainsborough, felicia, darkstalkers, sephiroth, holy, meteor

Kelly Osbourne: Turning Japanese

An interesting video clip of Kelly Osbourne cosplaying Lacus Clyne from Gundam Seed… Her hair clip is on the wrong side but you pretty much know she’s doing Lacus anyway.

She doesn’t really do a good Lacus Clyne, but I’ll give her a ton of credit for doing something she has no idea what it’s about…

Enjoy the clip! Don’t mind the first 2 slides… I was just testing the video uploader thing in Sanriotown.

Technorati tags: nanao, research, kelly osbourne, turning japanese, discovery travel and living, cosplay, lacus clyne, gundam seed, sanriotown

Final Fantasy X: Rikku

Technically, this is the 5th Rikku I’m posting on this blog. But I didn’t label the post that way because she is the first Rikku I found who cosplayed the X version rather than the more popular X-2 versions.

Rikku is perky and optimistic. She has a close friendship with Tidus, as they are quite similar in their personalities. Since she is an Al Bhed, she suffered discrimination from the Yevonites, but this didn’t change her positive outlook in life. She did whatever she could do to save Yuna from giving her life with the Final Summoning.

I think I like this costume of Rikku’s more than the X-2 ones… I’m not entirely sure why that it. But I think a lot of people will disagree with me on this.

Technorati tags: nanao, research, final fantasy, final fantasy x-2, cosplay, rikku, al bhed, yevonite, summoner, yuna, tidus, final summoning, final aeon

Slow progress...

Well, I did get SOME things done over the holiday. The sword is about 1/3 of the way done. I don't have any photos yet, but I should have some when the process is a bit further along. It's just as well, so that you can see where it's all going.

After much planning and discussion, the original plan was sort of thrown out, or at least modified. No more "sandwich". Now, the main part of the handle has been made out of a baseball bat, and the wings were cut out of MDF (medium density fiberboard; available at any home improvement place). I put wooden dowels into the foam for the blade for structure and support, and the bottom end of the dowel will be put through the handle several inches.

The next steps are to carve and cover the blade, and dremel the design into the wing section. I will do those some time in the next several weeks, when I have access to the tools and space at home again.

I also spent about 2 hours simply detangling the wig. What an annoying process. When I next work on the sword, I'll work on the styling of the wig more as well. I got a curling iron with adjustable temperature which I'm hoping will help solve the problems I've been having with it.

In Gwendolyn and general construction news, I FINALLY got a shipment of Wonderflex in the mail, and will be playing with it this weekend with my heatgun. I'll also be experimenting with various combinations of craft foam, polystyrene, hot glue, and the heat gun to see what comes from it. I'll post my results next week.

If you are looking for Wonderflex, I got mine from Mainstage Theatre Supply, where I got a full sheet for around $30 shipped, MUCH cheaper than cosplaysupply.com's $70ish dollar charge for a sheet. (EDIT: I have reason to suspect that Mainstage, while nice people, do not have a website that is as secure as it should be for credit cards. Please use caution when using your card over the internet. I recommend trying to phone in your order and/or paying with a different method.) I will probably still end up ordering Friendly Plastic from them, though, unless I find it somewhere else. I'm thinking about ordering some Fosshape as well... but more on that another time.

xxxHolic: Watanuki Kimihiro and Ichihara Yuuko

This is probably one of the best cosplays I’ve ever come across!

Then again, I tend to say that about all the cosplays I feature here don’t I?

Watanuki Kimihiro is an ordinary student in an ordinary world… But he has a secret. He can see ghosts, demons, and spirits! He meets Ichihara Yuuko, a time and space witch, who claims to have to ability to grant any wish, for a price! And what price does Watanuki have to pay to grant his wish to never see spirits again? Work in Yuuko’s shop as a part-time job, which includes cooking, cleaning and other household chores!

I really love Yuuko in this picture… Watanuki as well! Thanks to DigiBook for sharing this picture!

Technorati tags: nanano, research, xxxholic, watanuki, kimihiro, yuuko, ichihara, time and space, witch, wish, price, digibook, cosplay, demon, ghost, spirit, photobucket