Britney

Carnival of Masks presents Seattle, Washington based cosplayer, Britney, as part of our Beyond the Carnival: Interviews with Costume Folks Around the World series.

CoM: Britney, tell us about what you do.

B: I make costumes, style wigs, and (attempt to) make props because I like to do cosplay craftsmanship competitions and many of them require you (and only you) to make a minimum of 75% of your cosplay.

CoM: What inspires you?

B: This is a bit of a difficult question because I’ve never thought about this before... Back when I wanted to be a fashion designer, I was inspired by nature quite a bit. One collection I wanted to make was inspired by the street I lived on when I was in high school and what it looked like when I’d be walking to the bus stop. I just really wanted to recreate the colors with interesting silhouettes. I also enjoy very feminine and historical inspired looks. And I always gravitate towards chiffon and voile fabric because they are so light and flowy.

CoM: How did your life in costumes begin?

B: I loved Disney movies as a kid and I found myself drawing the character in dresses I liked over and over again. When I started really getting into sewing as a teen, I wanted to be a fashion designer. But I found that I was having way more fun recreating the pretty dresses I admired as a kid.

CoM: Do you attend costume events?

B: Yes, I very much love going to Emerald City Comic Con in Seattle. There’s a huge competition that happens there so I’ve gotten to meet a lot of amazing and skilled costume makers and cosplayers and talk to them about how they made their costumes.

CoM: What's your favorite thing about costumes?

B: I just really like wearing something out of the ordinary and feeling pretty or badass. With costumes in movies/TV, I love that they can tell you so much about the world the characters live in, the story, and their character. In the cosplay world, I love the little details that show how much someone loves whoever they are cosplaying.

CoM: Who do you want to give a shoutout to in the costume world?

B: Terry Dresbach did the costuming for the first few seasons of “Outlander” and I love how they mixed modern looks into the 18th Century. Burlesque Brigade is amazing and so skilled, I love seeing her progress photos.

Prince of Snark won 3rd place this year globally at London MCM. He’s from the Seattle area and his Ulmo cosplay that won him 3rd place is so packed with details, it’s stunning. He weaved fabric for the belts and leg wraps and embroidered almost the entire story onto the belt.

CoM: Anything else you want to share, Britney?

B: The Elsa costume in the photo above is a remake of the Elsa costume in the photo below which was my first cosplay! These two photos are really special to me because it’s so cool to see how I’ve improved over time.

WANT TO SHARE YOUR COSTUME STORY?