Super Sailor Moon
This is completely unexpected! I never thought in my cosplay life that i would cosplay as Usagi. A few friends from the Mid Atlantic were looking to fill a Sailor Moon group for Katsucon. They wanted to do the Supers form. I was going to pick Mars because I already had the costume done, however, Mars was already filled by the group leader. I decided that I could go for Sailor Moon. I wanted to take upon something that was much more challenging than a standard sailor fuku fare – I’ve done regular, super, and eternal. I thought it was about time to take it to the next step.
Also, in wake of the Nostalgia Critic’s half baked critique on Sailor Moon and a SJW at Anime Expo preaching that Sailor Moon is a bad, bad role model, I’ve been defending Usagi Tsukino a lot more than I usually do. Also, because my favorite part about cosplaying as Cure Marine is an excuse to make derp faces. One of my favorite things about the 90s Sailor Moon anime was the plethora of expressions drawn in the show.
Putting it Together
The group had to have a consistent look to it. I ended up ordering a Jaile gymnastics one piece pattern. The group leader mentioned that we would be doing chest armor and she was creating the patterns for them. It took me about a week and half to finish Super Sailor Moon. The group leader had chest armor, cascading bows, collar, etc patterns for the Super Sailor Team. I haven’t used this methodology before, but I was willing to learn new skills.
Most of the fabric is either from previous projects or bought new. I got a lot of the white peau de soieu from Windmills in Chinatown. The red bow is mainly from Kaleido Ruby (casa tango red satin). The blue is leftovers from Forever Star (casa…I think it’s cornflower?). The yellow is just a bunch of yellow casa satin I had lying around.
I used a lot of tutorials by Sparkle Pipsi. I thought they were very helpful and user friendly. The only part where I had some confusion was the hip roll (seriously naoko?).
This was the also the first time I was using a pleated skirt for the fuku. I usually do circle skirts and let the whole thing flounce creating an illusion of fullness. Pleating wasn’t too bad. Sparkle Pipsi’s tutorial made it really easy with how much I had to take in before going to the next pleat.
The bias on the end of the skirt were made from 6 inch custom bias folded in half and sewn directly onto the skirt.
The hardest part was working with the chiffon. Chiffon can be a pain in the ass to work with because it doesn’t really have a consistent shape. It took me almost two hours getting the sleeves set about right. Mind you, Super Sailor Moon has three on each side. The back bow wasn’t too bad and I’m quite fond of the shape of the cascading bow.
I made the hair clips from craft foam and modge podge. I just painted circular jewels from Michaels white and hot glued them on.
The boots and were from Katzia Collectables. I usually get everything from Katzia, but I realized this cosplay was going over budget. The wig is from The Five Wits. It’s the right kind of blonde to go with my tan skintone. The accessories are from Southern Moon Creations: broaches, dango guards, and earrings. I would rec. them if you’re on a budget to complete a Sailor Moon cosplay right away.
Because of the amount I spent on this cosplay, I’m probably going to be touring a lot of the cons wearing this. It does not end at Katsucon!
A friend of mine said I look like Anza Ooyama from the musicals. So far, the best compliment I got as Super Sailor Moon!