Carbon Costume

Arwen is a minor character in The Lord of the Rings. Her full name is referred to as Arwen Undomiel or Arwen Evenstar. She is the daughter of the Elrond, the half-elf Lord of Rivendell, and an Celebrian, an elven noblewoman. Tolkien describes her as one of the most beautiful elves, resembling her ancestor Luthien. Like her ancestor, she falls in love with a man. Like Luthien loved Beren, Arwen loved Aragorn. When he is crowned King of Gondor, they marry, and she becomes queen. She decides to stay mortal so she can die with Aragorn. While she never appears in the books, Arwen appears in all three film adaptations. She carries Frodo across the Ford of Bruinen and fights the Orcs with her sword, Hadhafang. The role is played by actress Liv Tyler.

Esther de Groot is meddlesome in the lives of her friends and others. It’s really from her love of a good plot. Esther likes English literature, which is how she became an English major. She prefers a goth style to her look. Despite being a tad dramatic, her friends know Esther is a loyal person who protects those closest to her. Esther is trying to survive college in Giant Days.

Renge Miyauchi is a nice, caring girl with huge curiosity. She attends Asahigaoka Branch School, and is an excellent student. Renge enjoys her days in the countryside with her friends, Komari, Hotaru, and Natsumi in Non Non Biyori Repeat.

Gwen (voiced by Megan Fahlenbock) is one of the original contestants on Cartoon Network’s “reality show” Total Drama Island. She is, at first glance, the stereotype of an emo girl. But as the series progresses she sheds the stereotype and is show to be a much more fleshed-out character.

Gwen’s signature is her emo look. So dark hair with teal streaks and dark clothes are a must. She is usually shown wearing a black corset, black mini skirt with teal paneling to match her hair, black leggings, and tall black boots. She also wears a short-sleeve blue bolero shrug over longer green sleeves.

Finding a shrug like hers – or a skirt – is a little tricky. So green compression sleeves and a blue shrug can replicate her top while you might have to find fabric that matches your wig and add some fake panels onto your miniskirt to complete this look.

Nazz is the “it” girl on the Cul-de-Sac. She is the head cheerleader at Peach Creek Jr. High, and almost all the guys swoon over her. Nazz is sweet and kind, bringing a freshness to the neighborhood in Ed, Edd, n’ Eddy. Despite her sweetness, she can also be loud and speaks her mind.

In Tuca & Bertie, Roberta “Bertie” Songthrush (Ali Wong) is a songbird who is best friends with Tuca. Bertie is career-driven and anxious, working as a senior analyst at Conde Nest but aspiring to be a baker.

Are you a well-known superhero looking for intel while incognito?  A celebrity crime fighter just trying to have a quiet lunch out on the town?  Then the “I’m Just a Civilian” starter pack is for you!  In almost every Marvel movie, one of our cherished Avengers dons a baseball cap, a hoodie, and a pair of sunglasses to blend in with their surroundings.  Depending on whether you are trying to emulate Tony Stark’s Iron Man, Steve Rogers’ Captain America, or another member of the team, you can play around with the color of your hat, your glasses, and what you wear beneath your hoodie or jacket.  This is a great way to use your favorite superhero t-shirt as part of a simple–but clever–costume.

Netflix has some pretty interesting cartoons but one of the most unusual is Dino Girl Gauko. It’s set in a world that is like ours yet utterly bizarre with aliens, sentient comets, robot teachers. And, of course, a middle schooler who turns into a dinosaur when she gets angry. And that’s part of what makes cosplaying Naoko/Gauko (voiced by Naoko Matui or Corina Boettger in Japanese and English respectively) so tricky.

Cosplayers can choose to be her human form which is a fairly simple and cute outfit. White Mary Jane flats, white cuffed socks, and a white Dickie collar accent a flared coral skirt and a yellow t-shirt. When Naoko becomes Gauko, however, she loses her socks and shoes though everything else about her costume stays the same including her curly brown hair with bangs.

Cosplaying Gauko on the other hand requires green opaque tights and long green gloves. Cosplayers can look up a tutorial on making invisible shoes to go with their costume or they can grab a pair of green flats since Gauko wears no shoes. Gauko’s head is the real challenge though. She has the face of a dinosaur which means either using a mask or using face paint. If cosplayers choose the mask, though, they need to make sure they can keep their wig in place!