Prior to the completion of my Chun Li costume, I felt bad about critiquing anyone on their Chun Li cosplay. You can always say that you “would have done this,” or that “they should have done that,” but until you make the outfit for yourself, you really can’t say.
Well, I’ve made mine. And I feel that I’ve earned the right to say that a good Chun Li cosplay can be done (I'm not great, just good, I know there's room to improve). This isn’t a blog about demeaning anyone or ripping on bad costuming, but it is a rant about how simple things can be done, and act as a sort of guide for future Chun Li cosplayers.
Do your research. Sometimes I feel like people who cosplay as Chun Li don’t bother to find source pictures. Depending on the game/artist, her sleeves are different, and sometimes the cut of her dress changes, or the number and size of the spikes on her bracelets is different, but there are things that remain constant; she has bangs, she wears giant pearl-like earrings, her bracelets only have spikes (no studs unless you’re an Alpha Chun Li, no flowers), her waist band in white, etc.
First of all, Chun Li has tights. Her legs are not naturally that much darker than the rest of her skin. If you’re going to dress up as her, find a pair of brown tights or hosiery. It’s not that hard, people. I found mine at a local K-Mart, of all places, and only spent a few dollars on them.
Secondly, Chun Li doesn’t wear high heels. It’s a huge pet peeve of mine to see Chun Li cosplayers tottering around in stripper boots that zip up. I understand that Chun Li is a fictitious character wearing fictitious clothing, but similar items exist in the real world. Trust me, you can find flat soled boots that have laces. Granted, it can be a bit of a challenge locating them. I searched on sites like Ebay for a while before coming across the ones I bought (which are actually Lonsdale wrestling boots). They’re practical and comfortable. Which would you rather have when you’re out busting some drug-ring thugs? Heels? Or wrestling boots?
And for the love of God, people, put on some underwear! I thought it was obvious that she had something on under that dress, but there have been some cosplayers who didn’t think that far. I’ve actually read forums about girls flashing people doing kick poses. I’ve even talked to a cosplayer who told me that it was too windy one day and her butt was hanging out. Play the games. Look up some pictures. Chun Li has undergarments that match her dress! I made an entire swimsuit/leotard to prevent any panty-mishaps (bunching and the such) as well as provide frontal support so I didn’t have to worry about a bra. You don’t have to go that far, but make sure the undergarments you chose to make or wear are cut so they aren’t hanging out of the dress, or so they show your waist.
Also, Chun Li wears makeup, yes, but don't goth your eyes out by outlining them in an inch of charcoal. It makes you look ridiculous, not Asian.
Practice poses for pictures, too. Chun Li is famous for her legs, so work on balancing for a kick. Kikouken.com is a well-spring of knowledge when it comes to Chun Li, so I recommend going there and doing some research, for poses and images.
Actually, go to cosplay.com. It's full of forums to help with costume construction, links to various cosplay sites, and is generally a nice place to be. ^_^
2 comments:
Aaaand one more note to add since I'm as well a Chun Li cosplayer (links to my cosplay here ->http://ed-elric-cosplay.deviantart.com/gallery/33274343 I know the sleeves turned out a bit different but I intend to remake the costume later on ;) ) I do COMPLETELY agree to all you've said and wanna add just one thing - for her poses and so on is relatively good (if not obligatory) to train or have trained at least some sor of martial art. Helps with the poses and the action and prevents looking like an idiot XD - but it's at least my point of view. I've been training for like 10 years and more and could cover most of her moves and poses :) And as I said - it's not obligatory but still - a couple of months are enough more or less to do a better job and fully get into character. :)
Does wearing chin li costumes give yeast infections?
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