Nubia's Nonsense: costumes

New York Comic Con Is Almost Here!

As much as I'd love to comic con hop like many people I know, I don't always have the free time. My main jam will always be New York Comic Con. I've been attending since before Reedpop owned them in 2006. It's the Comic Convention I always try to clear up room for. I remember when there weren't that many people in attendance and there was such a special magical feel to it. Nowadays it's very populated and still holds some magic but in a different way.

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This past weekend I attended the Liberty City Anime Con with my brother and had a nice & interesting time. I walked the halls full of colorful wigs and DIY costumes with all sorts of props and contraptions and stopped every-so-often to take some cosplay photos of some of my favorite looks from the convention. They weren't all anime, I spotted some comicbook and video game characters as well. To be honest, I only dabble in Anime and I'm way more of a comicbook and comic con person because it's what I grew up with. However, I was intrigued when I heard about this con and I figured why not attend and open up to something new? I was impressed with the dedication these anime buffs have and understand why they have such a love for the genre. I've watched a few anime films before such as Princess Mononoke, Kiki's Delivery Service and other Hayao Miyazaki titles. I also recommend the super trippy Cat Soup anime film directed by Tatsuo Satō and inspired by the work of manga artist Nekojiru for anyone who wants to feel confused and be amazed at the same time . I've read a few manga titles. I think my first ever may have been Socrates in Love by Kyoichi Katayama in the early 2000's.

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Hello Nubians,

We Love To Cosplay...

I love cosplay. I also love going to New York Comic Con to Cosplay myself and to admire other people's looks. Whether it's from Marvel or DC Comics, video games, anime, & much more. I am often smitten by what other put together.

For those of you who aren't familiar with the word 'Cosplay' it's a mix of 2 words 'costume' and 'play'. A lot of people still get confused with the term... I think it's a lot different than a 'costume' for example like the one you wear on Halloween. When I think of wearing a costume I just think about it like something I do with no reasoning behind it. Perhaps I wear a costume on Halloween to look scary, or sexy, or look like a person or object... but that's it... It's all just on the outside. When I think about cosplaying I think about not just looking like a character but being that character. I think about cosplaying as a short escape from reality into a fun stress free place where I get to act like a character I like or admire for some particular reason.

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Hello Nubians,

New York Comic Con Was So Much Fun! Here's One Of My Cosplay Stories...

” A new journey to be started. A new promise to be fulfilled. A new page to be written. Go forth unto this waiting world with pen in hand, all you young scribes, the open book awaits. Be creative. Be adventurous. Be original. And above all else, be young. For youth is your greatest weapon, your greatest tool. Use it wisely.”

-Wonder Woman

You either die a hero or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain.

-Harvey Dent

I'd like to start off by saying congratulations to DC Comics Wonder Woman for being Designated as United Nations Honorary Ambassador for the Empowerment of Women and Girls. That is so HUGE!

How Exactly did the Wonder Woman - Two Face Idea Come To Life?

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Hello Nubians,

"We are all different but there's something FANTASTIC about that, isn't there?"

I am a lover of almost every Wes Anderson film ever I've seen. From the story line, the whimsical characters, the fashion and beauty, the gorgeous colors and decor, it's all amazing! One of the first films that got me into Wes Anderson was an animated film called Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009) based on the popular Roald Dahl book. Mr. and Mrs. Fox in the movie are voiced by George Clooney and Meryl Streep and they do a great job together.

About the Film.

Fantastic Mr. Fox is about a fox family. The head of the household Mr. Fox can't leave behind his farm raiding ways to live a peaceful life. Mrs. Fox is always trying to make sure he's behaving but I guess some habits are hard to kick and he always tells her white lies. After Mr. Fox gets his whole community in trouble and some farmers he raided try to get revenge, he must find a way to save and protect his community.

It's a very funny and charming movie. There are other very fun characters besides Mr. and Mrs. Fox that you'll get to know and love too.

About The Cosplay.

I always thought Mrs. Fox was sassy and daring so naturally, I wanted to cosplay her. My friend Mary which helped me with my Gambit cosplay also helped me out making this dress. We purchased the yellow fabric and she hand painted the apples! Isn't that awesome? I'm forever thankful. She also made the ears which we purchased faux fur for because they looked nicer than the ears we already found made in the stores. I purchased the wig at AliExpress and didn't have to make any changes to it thankfully. It was already perfect to me. I had the gloves already which I purchased at a thrift store many years ago. Everything else kind of just came together. I purchased the blue contacts at loveshoppingholics, I've had good experiences with them and consider them a safe site for something as sensitive as contact lenses.

I did the fox makeup with basic halloween makeup I purchased at Walgreens. The trick is to use regular concealer under the face paint and then when it's all done make sure you go over it with a finishing powder. This way the makeup doesn't look oily being that it's not the best quality. By adding a finishing powder you give it a nice matte finish and it makes it look like you used a better product. I pretty much just did the fox makeup free hand and looked at some photos for reference here and there. I was very happy with the final results!

Back to back comparison.

Mrs. Fox and her friend Aladdin.

A beautiful, complicated relationship like many.

Thinking of joining Josie and the PussyCats.

"Because I'm a wild animal"

As I mentioned prior with my Ghost Rider and Gambit cosplays, New York Comic Con was tons of fun. I loved putting this cosplay together and walking around with my sassy fox tail.

Have you watched Fantastic Mr. Fox? If not, you totally should! Do you have a favorite Wes Anderson film?

Cheers!

Xo Nubia Xo

Follow the Nubia Network for more of what I'm up to. Instagram/Twitter/Youtube/Facebook

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The Halloween Dog Parade At Tompkins Square Park Was So Adorable!

I decided to head over to the Halloween Dog Parade with my sister-in-law Kaori. It was in the St Marks area and I attended with my 2 little babies Bambi and Nala. I've featured Bambi and Nala on Nubia's Nonsense a few times. I absolutely love dogs and I have a crazy obsession with my beautiful chihuahuas. I dressed them both in little pumpkin dresses and they looked so kawaii! I myself wore all black and a purple wig with a gorgeous hair piece from NicCoCo Creations.

(Myself with Nala and Bambi)

There was proud owners walking around with their awesome pups all over the place in the coolest costumes. Chihuahuas, Huskys, Pitbulls, Boxers, Yorkies, and so much more. I saw a lot of dogs dressed as lions, dinosaurs, Star Wars related costumes, and a lot of unique do it yourself costumes. All the dogs were so friendly and beautiful. Bambi and Nala enjoyed socializing with other dogs even though they were a little scared at first. It was a bit over packed but I'm still so glad I went. It was cuteness overload and if you love dogs it would absolutely melt your heart. Enjoy the photos below.

Traditional Mexican style for this Chihuahua. Nice sombrero!

How smooth is this little guy with his sunglasses?!

I think this was a Starbucks Pumpkin Spice Latte above ha ha very clever.

A little cloud.

This must be a strong dog if he's carrying The Hulk on his back.

Octopus!

OH-MY-GOSHHH. This little lion is everything!

Bambi and Nala a little tired after the Parade.

My outfit of the day with little Bambi.

Remember to always love animals and make sure they have a good home. Spread that message anytime you have a chance!

What do you think about the parade? Which is your favorite costume?

Cheers!

Xo Nubia Xo

Follow the Nubia Network for more of what I'm up to. Instagram/Twitter/Youtube/Facebook

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Hello Nubians,

What Are You Going To Be For Halloween?

I know what I'm doing! But it's still a secret, SHHhhHHHhhHh. Spending anywhere from 60-200 dollars on a Halloween costume seems like something from the past and silly for something you wear once a year. I think most people are going way more for the Do It Yourself approach lately and honestly, it's much cooler and fun sometimes.

Beauty and fashion bloggers always give great tips, especially with makeup. YouTube is the place to go look! Some of these ladies are absolutely Ah-MAZ-ing. I've seen some insanely scary and gory looking stuff out there. Below please check out my top 5 favorite Halloween makeup looks I think are fabulous (In no particular order). It's hard to pick because there are so many to choose from!

1) Creepy Broken Doll Tutorial: Halloween 2015 | Dulce Candy.
OMGoshhh. Scary right from the intro. Something about old porcelain dolls is extremely creepy. Dulce did a great job.

2) Pop Art / Cartoon Zombie by Nicole Guerriero.
This pop art zombie is a little lighter than some of the looks I've featured here in terms of Gore, but the pop art makes it tons of fun and still pretty scary. It looks like something out of a colorful graphic novel. Nicole did a fantastic job. Make sure to check out her other Halloween videos too!

3) Zombie Princess Peach Halloween Makeup SFX Tutorial | Jordan Hanz / Alex Faction.
My never ending love for Nintendo's Super Mario Bros made me love this Zombie Princess Peach. A job very well done and extremely easy to follow.

4) Trippy Double Vision Makeup Look by dope2111.
This one gave me goosebumps and also made me a bit dizzy at first haha. Very original and cool. Another great job.

5) Harvey Dent // Two Face Special FX Makeup Tutorial ♡ Batman Series by Bonnie Corban SFX.
I LOVE DC comics and Batman. Seeing this Harvey Dent/Two Face tutorial made me sOoOoOo happy. I already have my costume for this year planned out but I might have to try this next year. So cool.

There you have it kiddies! My top five favorite Halloween makeup looks via YouTube. Give all of these talented ladies a follow and check out some of there other stuff. I hope if you don't have a costume planned out yet you give one of these a try. Let me know if you do.

Cheers!

Xo Nubia Xo

Follow the Nubia Network for more of what I'm up to. Instagram/Twitter/Youtube/Facebook

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My New York Comic Con Ghost Rider Cosplay Was Epic!

You might be asking yourself how this cosplay costume came to be... well let me take you on a little journey. It all started out with this young lad in the photo above with me, my big brother Daniel. Every year I attend New York Comic Con I cosplay different characters, I told him to pick one for me to do this year. He replied back with Marvel's Ghost Rider. I'm familiar with the Ghost Rider back story and all but it's not like I was a crazy super fan or anything. My immediate reaction was "Be Realistic" How am I going to get those flames going? I didn't want to use plastic or foam because I didn't like the way it looked. He stuck to his guns though with Ghost Rider AKA Johnny Blaze, so I decided to figure it out.

Enter this young lady below, My sister in law Kaori.

Hair

Cool kid ain't she? Besides being my sister in law (married to my other brother Dean) she's a woman of many talents. She has a beauty license from Japan and can do awesome things with hair. Kaori suggested I try to do fire hair! I must admit, I wasn't very confident at first but she painted a pretty picture and I figured anything is better than foam. I purchased a regular wig with the colors orange and red, the one below to be exact.

After Kaori applied her imagination and unique set of skills to the hair, she turned this regular synthetic wig into THIS.

I was BLOWN AWAY and highly impressed. It was everything I wanted and more. If you're wondering, there's nothing inside of the wig holding the hair up... all hair, molding, and layering. It's a work of art. If you ever need a wig or your natural hair done for cosplay or any special event, you should reach out to Kaori at [email protected] or [email protected]. I promise you, you wont find a lot of people that can do what she does in the time she does it. The was the center piece of the Ghost Rider cosplay and a VERY important part of the character.

Outfit

After I got my main concern out of the way which was the flames, I still had to make the outfit and makeup look good. For the outfit I started out checking what I had in my own home (This should be your first step for any cosplay, you'd be surprised). I was about to throw out this faux leather jacket I purchased at H&M a few years back because it was peeling. I'm so happy I didn't because it was perfect for my Ghost Rider cosplay. I also figured the peeling could look like pieces of the jacket were burned through so I didn't worry about that. I went to a few trim stores in Manhattan and picked up a handful of spikes to add on the shoulders of the jacket. I also found the chain at a trim store because I decided to not use aluminum or plastic. The chain ran me about $20. I already had a pair of Dr Marten boots because well... every fashionista does. I was hunting for a pair of faux leather pants but I couldn't find them anywhere surprisingly. I walked into Walmart and found a pair of leather leggings that looked like pants for about $12. I purchased medium instead of small because I didn't want them to look skin tight... I wanted them to look masculine and have a bit more of edge to them. Lastly, the gloves I found at a random little gift shop for 5 dollars.

Makeup

After the clothing was settled, the day I wore the cosplay I had to wake up a bit early to do my makeup. It's not that hard BUT I didn't use stage makeup so it was a bit annoying to layer. I purchased some regular Halloween makeup from Walgreens and I had to do a few layers to get the white face paint looking bold and evened out. I recommend putting on your regular primer and/or foundation under first for quicker results before applying the makeup. Before I started looking evil I looked like a Panda! Haha it was kind of funny. After searching the web for images, I took a little inspiration from everything and ended up looking like this. I think it came out nicely.

After the makeup was done, I applied the wig which was definitely the WOW factor and BAM! (Emeril Lagasse voice) my 2015 New York Comic Con Ghost Rider cosplay was done.

I had so much fun at the convention this year. This might be my favorite cosplay look I've done yet. The hair, makeup and outfit are all on point. The reactions I got on this look were amazing! I think this cosplay finally beat out my X-Men The White Queen from a few years back (which was pretty popular). I would absolutely wear this again. Not to mention it's probably the most comfortable look I've done. No heels or exposing too much flesh. The impact this had on people even left me surprised. I was very pleased. I took photos with a lot of people and had a lot of photos taken of me too.

Ghost Riders Meet.

Ghost Rider and The Joker.

Who knew Ghost Rider likes dogs.

Behind the scenes.

I guess there's a lot you can take from this post. Like always, life will show you anything is possible. I know it sounds silly to say something like that about a costume, BUT my first reaction when my brother mentioned it was something along the lines of "Get real, I can't make that look good or legit" and now I think it's my favorite cosplay I've done. There you have it kids, Cheers!

If you have any questions for me about the look, drop them in the comment box below.

Xo Nubia Xo

Follow the Nubia Network for more of what I'm up to. Instagram/Twitter/Youtube/Facebook

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