Darkrai gijinka preview test!

Good day everyone!

A few days ago I posted my Cosvision plans and, because both of my chosen characters are new cosplays, I felt like I needed to do some quick test runs before the con, to see if they even look presentable! Actually both Hatori and Darkrai are, in a way, "closet cosplays", because both of their outfits I could put together from stuff I already own. Sssch, I'm cheap. Darkrai mainly consists of parts from other cosplays but I still have to admit that I am surprisingly satisfied with how it turned out.

But enough blabbering, now I'll treat you guys to a couple test run photos! ~

Photographer: Sacchan

I'm sorry about the overexposed white wig but
there was no saving it.

I most likely won't change anything on the outfit itself (unless I can find longer gloves) but the makeup was just a test and it's not the final look that I'm going for. I actually had no idea what to do and the preview shooting was kinda sudden so I just threw something together quickly, in terms of eye makeup, and prayed that it would look decent at least. I have some ideas now, after brainstorming with Sacchan, on what I want the makeup to look like and I hope it'll work out at the con. If anyone's curious the real eye makeup look is hopefully gonna be something along the lines of Jack Sparrow style. Fuck yeah!

Oh and yeah, the long ponytail will be tied in some way at the con because seriously, I can't stand having such a long thing hanging free – it feels like it tangles if I just look at it. It's gonna be in some kind of braid or something because that's just a lot easier and more convenient. I seriously don't have the patience to detangle long wigs and keep them neat, although I wish I had because there's several characters that I want to cosplay who has long hair...

Just a close-up selfie.

I plan to use different contact lenses too. The ones I'm wearing on these pics are the EOS Bubble Blue's and, while they'd be great for Darkrai's eye(s), they have dropped in comfort since I opened them back in October last year. I think it's better I open another bright blue pair because yeah, I can't stand wearing lenses at a con if they dry out my eyes already on the first hours; I need something comfy for a full day event.

Just a Darkrai reference for those that don't
know what it looks like.

I just hope that I'll be somewhat recognizable as Darkrai, even though Pokémon gijinkas (aka humanized versions) are not always that easy to tell apart from some random Original Character, a-character-I-don't-know or whatnot. Oh well, whatever the case I won't be gijinka-ing alone because Sacchan will do a shiny Umbreon gijinka to accompany me – we'll be edgy af together! :'D Dark types ftw!

That's about it for this time. A Hatori test run post is coming up before Cosvision too!

Shiro Samurai says bye.

First Levi makeup test & preview!

Salut!

Today I decided that it was about time that I did a first makeup test for Levi from Attack on Titan, aka Shingeki no Kyojin. Desucon Frostbite is stressing me up in the corner, SOOOOOOOOOOOON.
Levi is one of my favorites from the series (he's badass!) and one of the main reasons why I wanted to cosplay him was because of the makeup challenge. He has a very distinct look and I wanted to try my hands at achieving this, even though I knew it's not gonna be easy and that it's a challenging character look to achieve.

At first I kept screwing up the eye makeup and I had to redo it, from scratch, two times until I got it to look like something; half the time I had no idea what I was doing lol. Funny thing was that even on the third try I was thinking "ei tästä tuu helvettiäkään.." (lit. 'this won't even turn into hell' in Finnish) but I still kept on and well, when I put on the wig it suddenly looked okay. Dafuq!
It feels so weird to cosplay Levi though, I'm used to Jäätynyt Enkeli being Levi, ha ha ha...

But without much further talk, let's get to the pictures!

// EDIT: I am aware that I got a lot of shit for this makeup because it was posted in a godforsaken place on the internet. It is disgusting how humans can act towards one another as soon as they are granted anonymity. But whatever, I just wanted to say that I stress that it is a FIRST TRY for a reason and if you're so stuck-up on not seeing past the fact that everyone starts somewhere (and improves along the way) then please take your shit elsewhere and have a good day. Cosplay is a hobby for most of us and I do it for my own enjoyment, no more and no less. //

I was trying for a dark and almost gothic, surrealistic look instead of the more usual "natural" look that some Attack on Titan cosplayers seem to do. I like experimenting and doing things differently and even though it's not always a blasting success it is definitely always a learning experience – if we are too afraid to try new things then we don't learn. Doing makeup is not my strong point, but I won't learn unless I'm too afraid of trying.

I do know that it's still messy and all but I'm currently looking for new makeup brushes, more colors to shade with etc. I also have issues with finding light enough products/shades that go with my very pale skin. I'm not making excuses for myself but it is the truth that I am very unlucky with finding what I need (come and live in the middle of nowhere too with shitty internet connection and you'll understand my pain) and I really don't have spending money to throw on stuff that won't even necessarily work for me; last time I had an income was last year before summer vacation started. Beat that.

Regarding what makeup I used I mostly just used some brown for shadows and black gel eyeshadow and liquid eyeliner for the eye area. Yeah, most of the "eyeliner" is actually eyeshadow and it was applied with an angled brush, hence why it's not very clean-looking. I didn't even have primer at hand.
But all in all it was a fun to try to get the Levi look down – I had to keep my face as neutral/emotionless as possible. Levi just doesn't show a lot of different expressions so I better not be pulling faces either...

Oh, and I'm not wearing contact lenses this time; I didn't have any gray ones (I barely have gray ones to begin with, ffuu) that were good enough and since my natural eye color is blue-gray it was fine to go without. I'll probably add gray contacts later for this cosplay though..

I don't have much more to say... but I have extra material to share!

B-b-b-bonus pic!

"Heichou, you have a potato in your pocket... can I have it??"
– Sasha Blouse by Hasakitsuki.

Bye bye. Shiro Samurai out.

IMMAH HOERRRSSSS preview & Partykungen review!

 Hello!

Okay, remember that surprise horse-related non-cosplay outfit that I will rock at Oulun Animeseminaari? Well, I kind of said that I'd do some sort of photoshoot preview earlier, so now I will spoil the surprise reveal it for you! FOR YOOOOOOOOOOUUUUU ~

 Teaser pic!

You see, I ordered something from a Swedish online store called Partykungen. My order was shipped out fast and arrived a few days later; if you prefer it more detailed I ordered on 12th July and it arrived on 15th. This was an order within Sweden though, but they do offer shipment to Finland and Denmark as well! For some weird reason Norway is left out.

My ordered items arrived in a handy plastic bag.. bag. I assume if you order something more fragile you will also receive a more sturdy looking package. I didn't have anything that would break easily in mine; actually my stuff is basically unbreakable lol. The bag handles were appreciated because I was biking back home with this thing so it made the home ride nice and problem-free. Oh, and the service and all that jazz was fine with the site, I had no problems.

My order came in like this. I'm happy.

So, what was in the bag you wonder? 

– Well, remember the horse head pic on the cosplay plans post? It was a huge clue.

...
......
*epic drumroll*
TA-DAAH!! ~

Model: Shiro Samurai
Photographer: Hasakitsuki

I NEED YOU.

Can I help?

Come with me and we shall rule the world together...

WE CAN DO IT!

I CAN SEE A CARROT IN THE FAR HORIZON.

I know karate, kung fu and many other Chinese words!

HOO-YAH!

I'm fabulous and I know it.

I must say that the horse mask is quite hot/sweaty to wear (especially in warm weather) because it's rubber. My breathing also gets a bit restricted because of the limited air holes in the mask (nostrils and open mouth) and you don't see very well; I recommend you take it off if you need to walk up/down stairs, uneven surfaces and such or that you have someone to guide you. You have no side vision at all so at least personally I think it's better to have someone help you around in crowded places and such so that you don't bump into people all the time. Except for the vision and slight breathing limits it's a nice mask to wear, definitely lots of fun and laugh inducing! The quality is nice and it fits me well, even though seemingly I have a pretty big head.

Oh, and I must mention that when we went to photoshoot there was an older couple I assume outside who saw us when they looked up and at least the man cracked up heartily when I stroke some fabulous poses. xD

 But yeah, that's how I'll look at Animeseminaari one of the days! See you there!

...

......

.........

You thought that was all? Hell no! :-DD

BO-BO-BO-BONUS GIF!!

 (also known as: I can't dance to save my life, but at least I tried)

Fab horse dance!

Now I'm outta here!

kimono!Gakupo preview – The serious part (1/2)

Eiyoou guys!

So the night between 28 and 29th June neither me nor Hasakitsuki were tired so we decided to be vampires go and preview photoshoot my original kimono!Gakupo cosplay for Skecon outside. Yeah, it's the Gakupo preview I promised earlier in the cosplay plans post. 
So uhh, it was 3 in the night/morning and I was in cosplay outside our apartment having a shoot and the sun was up and shining – everything's perfectly normal! :D Ah, midnight sun is so handy; I wasn't even tired! Or just a little, towards the end of the shoot, maybe.

As far as the outfit is concerned it's all authentic pieces from Japan, mostly vintage. Earlier when I first came up with the idea to do a kimono!Gakupo design I pretty much instantly knew what kimono coordination to wear. Oh, and because Gakupo is quite fabulous I wanted to spice it up a bit and of course a violet kimono was a must to get a less bland/generic coordination, which is typical for male kitsuke.

Cosplayer: Valkoinen Samurai (Gakupo Kamui)
Photographer: Hasakitsuki
Photo editor: Valkoinen Samurai

This is a bit random but here's what the wig looked like before I had spiked the bangs. Hasakitsuki braided the long front pieces because I'm a derp and can't braid. Actually on the photoshoot pictures I'm pinning some of the bangs to the sides because otherwise this wig is quite the hair curtain.

le wig.

Oh, and about the shoot itself; it was a fun shoot even though it was surpsisingly cold. We were shooting for approximately one hour and well, at some point the I'm-tired-but-not-really-tired-so-I-will-just-do-stupid-faces-instead mood activated for me and... uh... you better go hide under your couch because this post will have a follow-up containing all this extra material! >8D Yeah, we actually got a ridiculous amount of not-so-representative pictures so instead of having a few bonus pics at the end I have gathered enough material for a whole Gakupo derp compilation post. *whisper* Stay alive, it shall arrive sooooooon...

You thought I'd let you go now? Hahaha noep!

Here's a teaser just so you'll get some foretaste of what is to come so that you can prepare accordingly. Or not.

Derpy arm dance!

Hueheuheuehue ~

Valkoinen Samurai heads off to prepare for making a fool out of himself...

Back to school, Okita! – Hakuouki SSL ~Sweet School Life~ photoshoot

Hello hello ~

For quite some time now I've been gathering all the clothing parts needed for SSL Okita's summer and winter uniforms! It's a bit ironic that the last piece of clothing I found was technically the simplest and should-have-been-the-easiest-to-find one – namely a plain white long-sleeved shirt. All the other parts were easier to find than a dang white dress shirt that fit me. xD Oh well, the search is over now and yesterday on 18th May I went out with Hasakitsuki as the photographer to have a photoshoot as well as a cosplay preview on school boy Okita. Yep, you're totally getting a sneak peek on my Desucon 2014 Sunday cosplay, woot woot!

Cosplayer: Valkoinen Samurai (Souji Okita)
Photographer: Hasakitsuki
Photo editor: Valkoinen Samurai

It's a bit funny because we were actually shooting late in the night; around eight or something and well, it was still surprisingly bright outside – ah, the joys of midnight sun approaching. Cosplay photoshoots are possible 24/7, eff yeah!
Actually, it was a bit cold towards the end but nothing too bad. Spring weather is coming, otherwise I wouldn't even have been able to go outside this lightly dressed without turning into a frozen fish stick, hah. Oh, and this surface I'm lying on is a bit risky to, well, lie on. If I roll too much and fall off I'd likely die... or at least get badly injured, oops. It's pretty high up haha, and there's only asphalt and poles down there – and a car or two, sometimes. But it looked cool on photos so it was worth being hazardous! And I'm careful anyways.

I keep thinking if I should still trim this wig slightly but I don't knoooooow. We'll see. I might style it as well when the con creeps closer. Oh, and this is random but I spent forever doing the makeup, especially the eyes. I keep experimenting to find what looks cool. And of course I took some obligatory selfie photos to show off my eyes more clearly. Have one!

That's all that I had to say. :) I'm out of here!
Valkoinen Samurai says sayonara ~

Quick rasetsu version Saitou preview

Yep, more Saitou coming through!

I've wanted to cosplay rasetsu!Saitou ever since I got me some red contact lenses. I had been looking for a decent wig for quite some time until I found one – it's a bit more silver-gray than pure white but I still think it will do... for now at least; I'll likely replace it in the future if I ever find a better one.

Oh well, today I had a quick preview test outside just to see what it will look like!

Photographer is Hasakitsuki.

It was a bit windy and cold so we didn't stay outside for long. I don't know really what's up with these contacts but when I put them on they were uncomfortable and I had to take out them and put them back on. On the second try it was bearable but I still felt them when I blinked and I'm sure that the earlier times I've worn these they haven't been as uncomfortable – maybe they are expiring? It hasn't been one year yet but at least half a year since I opened them. It feels like they dry out quicker than before and I took them off immediately after the shoot because blööörgh. I think I'll end up buying new red contacts for the summer con season because hey, who wants to wear uncomfortable contacts for a whole con day? Certainly not me.
Oh, and speaking of summer con season I'd just clarify that yeah, rasetsu!Saitou will hopefully appear in at least one summer/spring con this year. I have no idea yet which one though...

I don't have anything else to say really, I just need to start looking for new swords because my former wooden ones broke at Tracon last year and I have yet to find a replacement. I'm looking but it's proving to be much harder than what one would think to find a katana and wakizashi set that doesn't cost me my limbs, that looks decent (aka no wall-hanger crap) and is generic enough to work for most characters. I'd prefer dull metallic swords if possible but I'm checking for wooden ones as well...

Valkoinen Samurai out!

Souji Okita from Rurouni Kenshin photoshoot!

 Hi everyone!

A few days ago I received a few new wigs and one of them was a wig that I plan to use for Rurouni Kenshin's Souji Okita – the Tsuiokuhen/Trust & Betrayal OVA version. Yes, I do plan to cosplay him this year!
Okay, so today I tried the wig on and decided instantly that it needs to be cut a bit to fit him and so I trimmed one of the sides, the one with the longer end, as well as shortened and layered the bangs so that I wouldn't get the Rock Lee effect when wearing it, brrr. Yeah, it had way too much hair in the front. ._.

Wig uncut, without the ponytail clip.

With the wig styled I put on the rest of the cosplay – which is basically recycling parts from earlier cosplays, haha. The violet-blue kimono is new though and it's made by Hasakitsuki's mom as a gift, thank you. I wore my Volte Brown contacts for Okita and I think they are perfect for him!
I wanted a cosplay preview and a photoshoot on the same go and so we went outside the apartment and took a shitlot of pictures; it wasn't all that cold at the beginning but it was very windy and towards the end it got so damn cold I could barely move my fingers and hold the sword and, well, I was shaking quite badly... which could have been seen as being in character *coughsickcough* but oh well. ^^"

Cosplayer: Valkoinen Samurai (Souji Okita)
Photographer: Hasakitsuki

Nothing more to say, I'm terribly stoked to wear this to a con! I hope I will find someone who cosplays Battousai version Kenshin so that we could have an epic photoshoot. Would be so awesome!

But now Valkoinen Samurai goes samurai-ing elsewhere ~