Cosplay Couture

Here's another solo shoot, just me and my phone camera. This is around the same spot that I did my first Naked Snake photoshoot, although they have since destroyed that beautiful little alcove of trees I had used. Still the area provided the kind of scenery I needed, with bonus authentic mosquitoes. I was being eaten alive, it was worth it. It's nice to see how far my costume and my physique have come in about a year. That STABO harness was a nightmare from beginning to end. It's been my white whale for years, I finally found authentic parachute clips online, but they only shipped to the United States, so I needed my dad to order them and ship them to me. I thought sewing the straps would take an hour tops, instead it took nine hours. It's a complicated system to begin with, but then in the game, there's no adjustment straps, so I had to tailor to fit me exactly. Then on top of that I had to figure out a bunch of hidden tricks to make it conform better to my body.

Carpe diem: I’ve wanted to do a Peace Walker Kazuhira shoot for years now, but I could never find a photographer to do it. The old community of amateur photographers has all dissipated. I decided to not let that stop me, you want a job done right, do it yourself. This shoot was struck with a case of Murphy’s Law however, anything that could go wrong, did go wrong, but I charged ahead anyway. I accidentally packed my wig tape and cap in my storage unit. I forgot to put on my holster belt. The stand for my phone broke, my DSLR just would not focus on me. But the weather was nice, there was hardly anyone on the beach on a Monday afternoon, so despite it taking longer and being more challenging than expected, it all came together in the end.

These photos were shot on both my phone and DSLR, I don’t think you can even tell the difference between the two these days with the way the technology is now.

@vespaphotographyperth hosts an annual pink themed photoshoot event raising money for breast cancer. I figured this was an excellent opportunity to finally make my Marge Simpson Chanel suit. Turns out I bought this fabric and wig mere days before I was hit by a car over two years ago. So, naturally, this project fell far to the wayside. Thanks to @stephanie.cullingford for not letting me give up on this costume and for the fabric suggestion.

I made this costume in about 30 hours over the course of a month. On the day of the shoot I was madly sewing the costume and styling the wig right up until my makeup artist @twistcreativ arrived. She did a fantastic job bringing my vision to life. I wanted to embody Marge in a way that captured her beauty and humanity rather than trying to garishly force a cartoon character into the real world without translation.

It's a shame I could not find pink heels anywhere! It really would have tied it all together. Oh well, next time. I'm overall just proud to see how far I've come as a seamstress, this might be the best tailored jacket I've ever made. And that black velvet trim was a nightmare to sew! But it all came together in the end.

Cosplay couture Kazuhira Miller

Photography by Vespa Photography

Costume by Courtney Coulson

Despite Miller’s limited wardrobe and static body language, I find him endlessly inspiring. The challenge of portraying him through cosplay, and reenvisioning him through fashion is all about subtlety and the little details. I kept the silhouette functionally the same, but draping the trenchcoat like a cape to entirely obscure his missing arm added a touch of theatre. Essentially I built everything around the velvet double breasted blazer, it read to me as the formal fashion equivalent of his military uniform.

COSPLAY COUTURE HERBIE THE LOVEBUG

Photography by @itzu.me Car belongs to @inatski

Costume and makeup by Courtney Coulson

I think I drew the design for this costume about a year ago, then just this past weekend I finally got to bring it to life with a beautifully restored Beetle at my side. I can’t thank my collaborators enough for helping me with this project, it couldn’t have happened without you.

Photography by Luke Milton

Makeup by Kat Winslade

See my complete Bumblebee/Charlie Watson photoshoots in the links below:

https://traviandesigns.com/2021/05/30/charlie-watson-and-bumblebee-camaro/ 

Cosplay Couture Spock Costume and styling by Courtney Coulson Photography by Jacinta Matthews Location: Supanova Perth 2016

While I haven’t had the opportunity to do a proper Cosplay Couture photoshoot in a while, my friend Jacinta was gracious enough to take a few photos of my interpretation of Spock when I wore it at Supanova back in June. I made it as tribute to Leonard Nimoy. I love Michael Kaplan’s designs for the new Star Trek films, but I felt I could push it further, more futuristic, more alien. I used velour which is an exact replica of that used in the Original Series, I used vinyl for the raglan-pagoda shoulders. That feature alone took hours to construct, I don’t think I’ve ever seen shoulders sewn this way before, but that’s me, boldly going, as they say. At the back is a corseted spine and a velour shawl collar completes the look. There are slight references to my previous Khan design, thematically they share much in common, both are triangular in design.

Bonus photo of Troy Baker, because he was amazing! I wanted to hang out with him all day.

Non-Cosplay Couture Furiosa Costume and styling by Courtney Coulson Photography by Luke Milton Location: Rockingham Salt Flats 

Cosplay Couture interpretation of Pee-Wee Herman Costume, styling and set by Courtney Coulson Photography by Luke Milton Location: Courtney’s backyard

This is probably one of my more subtle redesigns and I think that’s appropriate for Pee-Wee. He might be this eccentric character, in a colourful, surreal world, but his costume by contrast is subdued and restrained. I chose a suit with black accents and pagoda shoulders for a sharper, more fashionable look. The bow-tie was something I gave a lot of thought to, it’s Pee-Wee’s most iconic accessory (other than his bicycle).  In the end I wanted to create only the suggestion of a bow-tie and I think the red collar creates that illusion well. Finally, the white moccasins were swapped with white leather Converse boots.

Conveying that contrast between Pee-Wee’s costume and his world was important. This is my first time making a set, I made the door and Pteri out of cardboard and a lot of acrylic paint. The door wasn’t all that stable and kept falling over, but it got the job done. My dog Bailey makes a cameo here as Speck as well as my bicycle Reuben which I may or may no have bought just because I’m a big fan of Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure.

Cosplay Couture interpretation of the Seventh Doctor Costume and styling by Courtney Coulson Photography by Luke Milton Location: Nedlands

Cosplay Couture interpretation of the Fifth Doctor Costume and styling by Courtney Coulson Photography by Luke Milton Location: Taylor’s College Nedlands

Peter Davison’s run on Doctor Who is among my favourite eras on the show. I love the family dynamic, the stories and the unique approach to the Doctor. He was the youngest Doctor at the time, yet the most paternal, he was kind and honourable and irresistibly endearing. His costume reflects his sensible nature and love of cricket, as such my approach to this costume was to create something elegant yet practical. I ended up looking primarily to the 50’s and 60’s for inspiration, it felt like a natural fit and as a result this is possibly the only Doctor in the series that is classically feminine. I sculpted the celery stick myself.