Carbon Costume

Hester Shaw (played by Hera Hilmar in the movie) is a remarkable heroine. She is strong-willed, smart, and determined. She is also easily identified by her scar, received at the hands of a man she now wants revenge on. The scar is less obvious in the movie but still an important part of Hester’s story. And that’s where any good Hester cosplay is going to start.

Scar wax is key for  Hester cosplay, as is a long auburn wig. With those elements in place, Hester’s outfit becomes a snap. A long dark green coat, a long sleeved grey shirt, black fingerless gloves, black pants, black boots, and a long red scarf wrap up the rest of her look.

Tom (played by Robert Sheehan) is a young historian working on the city of London. He idolizes Thaddeus Valentine and wants to serve his city through his work at the museum. His life takes a wild turn, however. And for all that he starts out a London boy, it’s not long before he’s swept up into wild adventures that take him far from home.

A windswept brown wig starts off any good Tom cosplay. Unless, of course, you already have dark hair of a similar cut, in which case all you need is a little styling. From there you’ll need to layer a dark blur shirt under a silver brocade vest and add a black military-style jacket. Black pants, a black belt, and black boots finish off a look fit for anyone hanging onto their roaming city.

Fiona is a character in the Shrek movies. In the first movie, Fiona was introduced as a beautiful princess placed under a curse that transforms her into an ogre at night. Initially, she seeks a prince to kiss and break the curse, but she ends up meeting and falling in love with Shrek instead. However, in Shrek Forever After, she is an empowered warrior in an alternate timeline where she never meets the anti-social ogre. She leads an ogre army to take down Rumpel and the Dragon.

In The French Dispatch, Juliette (Lyna Khoudri) is a student revolutionary leader and girlfriend of Zeffirelli. Both are fighting for a world without borders, but lines of division soon form among the protestors. The fiery idealist Juilette stands opposite the blithe Zeffirelli and the pragmatic journalist Lucinda Krementz.

Roddy St. James (voiced by Hugh Jackman) is post rat who gets flushed down the toilet in the Dreamworks film Flushed Away.  Roddy teams up with Rita Malone to find his way home.  Roddy’s penthouse wardrobe consists of doll clothes.  At the start of his journey, he’s wearing a fancy tuxedo, though he eventually loses the jacket and bow tie.  To apply a rodent nose prosthetic, you’ll need spirit gum or liquid latex, but don’t forget to purchase remover as well to make the process of taking it off more comfortable.

In Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, while the Dursleys intended to send their nephew Harry Potter to the local state school, they enrolled their own son Dudley (Harry Melling) in the fancier Smeltings Academy. Dudley proudly models the Smeltings uniform, which consists of a maroon tailcoat, orange knickerbockers, a straw boater hat, brown socks pulled up to the knees, and a knobby wooden cane called a Smelting stick, which was mainly used to hit other people.

Julieta Madrigal (voiced by Angie Cepeda) is the daughter of Alma and Pedro and the sister to magical siblings Bruno and Pepa in the Disney animated film Encanto.  Julieta has three children herself, Isabela, Louisa, and Mirabel with husband Augustín.  Julieta can heal people with the food she makes.  Julieta’s clothes come in soft shades of teal and blue, with a blouse, skirt, and apron embroidered with a mortar and pestle as well as herbs, to symbolize her magical power.  When accessorizing your costume, don’t be afraid to take whatever fresh herbs or flowers you may have on hand and add them to your pockets.

In the latest film adaptation for the DC hero Batman, Riddler (played by Paul Dano) is a sinister terrorist intent on exposing the dark secrets of Gotham’s elite.  The Batman‘s 2022 version of Edward Nashton is a far cry from previous iterations, and the grittier tone of the film is reflected in the character’s far more understated costuming.  To recreate this Riddler, you’ll need an army green anorak and balaclava.  Use some white fabric paint to add his custom insignia to the jacket and layer a pair of clear framed glasses over the hood, in the style of the Zodiac Killer, reportedly a strong influence on the updated characterization.