Carbon Costume

Olivia (played by Elizabeth Alderfer) is a transplant to southern California from rural Iowa. She quickly gets swept up in the business of legal marijuana when her grandma’s fudge cookies turn out to be delicious when turned into edibles! It causes some problems with her and Travis – a one-time love interest who quickly becomes her best friend – but everything turns out alright by the end.

Olivia is put together but in a casual way. She wears her long hair down and opts for long-sleeve shirts, skinny jeans, and boots. But Olivia has a dark secret – she is The Whatnot Girl. An unfortunate meme, she made for a great Halloween costume for Jenny. And she’ll be a great cosplay for you! A pink bra under a camo tank top starts off the look. Then add in some jelly bracelets, shorts, and boots. Finally clip some blonde highlights into the wig and put in some feather earrings. Don’t forget your eyeliner! And, of course, some tooth blackout and the use of her favorite word: Whatnot!

Remember that song “Friday?” Its catchy yet obnoxious chorus about “looking forward to the weekend” was stuck in everyone’s head. From parodies to voice dubs, it became one of the most viral memes in existence. Ten years later, Rebecca Black returns with an fast paced, electro-pop remix featuring Dorian Electra, Big Freedia, and 30H!3. Its music video borrows elements from the original, but a grown up, glam-punk Rebecca is street racing as oppose to going to school. It surpassed 2 million views on Youtube and 650,000 streams on Spotify.

John Freeman is a character created as part of a fanfiction story written for the Half-Life video game franchise.  John is the brother of Gordon Freeman, the scientist players become when they play the game.  The poorly written fic was given new life when it was adapted into a five-minute YouTube video.  John’s character design is based on Citizen 07 from the original game, and he wears and fingerless gloves and a dark grey beanie paired with a grey vest and jeans.

2021 marks the tenth birthday of the one of the internet’s most beloved memes: Nyan Cat. Also called “the Pop-Tart Cat” or the “flying rainbow cat”, Christopher Torres created Nyan Cat as part of a donation drive for the Red Cross on his website LOL-Comics. It’s since faced some controversy as people tried to use Nyan Cat without permission. But its viral status is as enduring as the comic is cute!

Pop-Tart costumes are unfortunately hard to come by unless you can find an adult one on Etsy. Your best bet is a quick bit of DIY following this simple tutorial.

1. Measure the length of your Pop Tart, starting at the top of your shoulder and going down whatever length you want the costume to be. Add on an inch and a half for gluing and cutting mistakes, then purchase enough tan felt to cover the length twice (so you can make a front and back). Use this same measurement to buy the light pink felt, but only buy enough for one side. Add in a glue gun and hot pink felt dots to finish up the DIY shopping.

2. Cut the tan fabric in half width wise so you have the front and back of your costume.

3. Mark out how large a space you need for your head to fit through the top of the costume. Put a pin on either side of this head hole, then glue the top edges together, except the space where your head will go. Repeat this process on the sides while leaving holes for your arms.

4. Put a piece of cardboard between the front and back of your costume, then lay the pink fabric on the front. Trim it down so that a “crust” is visible around all edges of the pink felt. Glue the pink fabric down to the tan, making sure cardboard separates the front and back of the costume in any place you add glue.

5. Glue on the hot pink circles as sprinkles and glue your tail to your costume (on the side or at the back depending on how you want to interpret the meme). That’s it!

With your Pop Tart done, use a face painting kit to add in your cat features. Put on your ears and the grey underclothes, then slide into your pop tart. Grab a rainbow scarf to trail behind you and you are set! May you bring as much joy to your convention as Nyan Cat does to the internet!

At Joe Biden’s inauguration after defeating Donald Trump in the presidential election, Bernie Sanders, the firebrand from Vermont, was spotted in attendance. What made Bernie stand out was his choice of clothing for the formal occasion. Granted the Burton winter parka and wool mittens made from recycled plastic bottles were both practical for the chilly January weather and on brand for the conscientious politician. But the image of the seated Senator quickly went viral, right on the heels of his “I am once again asking” meme.

Ranch it up! Advocate to legalize ranch in this casual, mismatched outfit from The Eric Andre Show. Comedian and host Eric Andre goes up to people in Manhattan and talks nonsense, mainly about ranch dressing. You may recognize Ranch It Up from the “Cheers, I’ll drink to that bro” reaction meme. Crop the t-shirt with a pair of scissors.

Nathan Apodaca aka Dogg Face had a TikTok video go viral, when he skateboarded carefree along a highway while vibing to Fleetwood Mac’s “Dreams” and sipping a big bottle of Ocean Spray Cran-Raspberry Juice. The unexpected skateboard / Fleetwood / Ocean Spray combo hit a chord, this pure moment racking up over 25 million views. Soon after, Mick Fleetwood himself paid tribute by recreating the TikTok, and Ocean Spray hooked Apodaca up with a new truck and a truck-bed full of cranberry juice.

Yung Gravy (Matthew Hauri) is an American rapper/musician. Other aliases include the Young Steve Harvey, Mr. Buttersworth, and Mr. Clean, as referenced in his hit single. He is a Minnesota native. His music falls into the new genre of meme rap. His vintage inspired fashion comes from his music, which is a blend of trap beats and oldies from the 60s and 70s. His lyrics flex his wealth and flirtations with older women. He often collaborates with Canadian rapper/musician, bbno$.