Interview of Evilyn13 (Canada)

Here comes the interview of the amazing Evilyn13 from Canada !

1. For how long have you been in cosplay ?


I actually didn’t know cosplay was a thing for a long time, and I didn’t know it was acceptable to go to comic conventions dressed as your favorite character. I was always a huge fan of Halloween, so it was so exciting for me to discover that other people loved dressing up as comic characters and villains as much as I did. So although I have been dressing up in costumes for a long time, I actually never went to a convention until about 4 years ago. I was also a bit nervous to go to a convention as I read so many negative experiences from other women online where they were harassed for being a “fake nerd” or groped or touched without permission. I am happy to report I have had no problems at conventions with any of these things, so it has been a wonderful experience for me.



2. Cosplay is a time consuming hobby. how long does it take to craft your costumes ?


It really depends on the costume, some of them I do not make, and some I do. I do not make my latex costumes, but I have sewn some of my costumes, like my Orko costume from He-Man, but that just took me one weekend, as it is quite simple. I built my proton pack for Ghostbusters from fiber glass and items from GB Fans which had to be put together and the instructions were a bit hard to understand, plus installing the lights and wiring the sound with the sound card and adding switches took a long time. It is still a work in progress as I haven’t attached a speaker to the pack even though it is wired for sound, so that piece in particular has been ongoing for a few years and it probably doesn’t help that I travel with it wrapped in bubble wrap and stuffed in a suitcase, so it gets bumped, banged up and damaged all the time.


3. Any other hobby or passion besides cosplaying ?


I do a lot of non-cosplay modeling and have been on the runway from Berlin to Las Vegas and I love to travel, I have travelled to Toronto, Edmonton, Atlanta and Seattle for comic conventions and I am crossing my fingers that I might be able to travel to San Diego for SDCC next year. I also DJ at local events in Vancouver where I live, I have a DJ residency at Sin City Fetish Night, Madhaus (which is an alternative night) and Kitty Nights Burlesque. I really love music and dancing so its kind of the best job ever.



4. What materials are you using for cosplay crafting, worbla ? Foam ? Can you talk about that a little bit ?

Right now I have just finished up gluing a million crystals on a Jason mask (Friday the 13th) because Halloween is right around the corner and I am a featured guest at the Halloween Fair here in Vancouver. I have never used worbla, but I have seen some pretty amazing things people have made with it. 



5. Do you have any FAVORITE cosplayer ?


Oh gosh I have so many favorite cosplayers! Obviously I love Yaya Han, because she is so crafty and I wish I had skillz like that. I love Jessica Nigri because she is so funny and Leanna Vamp because she is into all things spooky (just like me). I love Kristen Hughey, Amber Arden and Luna Mars because they are adorable pinups, and Riddle because she loves animals and she is Canadian (like me). I also love the Hip Hop Trooper because he is so cool and Mark Meer cuz he does some really amazing prosthetic makeups at cons when he is a featured guest. 



6. Did you hurt yourself while making a cosplay or in a convention ?


Sometimes when I am in a costume for too long it can be painful. Some costumes I have worn are so tight they pinch, so I will be left with bruising and cuts when I finally have a chance to take it off. Plus, a lot of my costumes require me to wear heels, so I always pack a pair of flats so I don’t hurt my feet too much.


7. Do you sell your old cosplays, or just keep it in a huge closet ?


I keep them in my closet. I love my costumes too much to part with them. It is becoming a storage problem as we speak !


8. Who teached you to craft your cosplays ? Your family ? By reading books or watching youtube tutorials ?


Youtube tutorials are the best I find, so you can actually see what people are doing and follow along. Sometimes I just think of a concept I want to do and then figure out how to make it happen on my own, as a lot of my costumes are not exact replicas, I like to use different materials to make them more personal and more my style.



9. Which conventions are you going to this year ?


This year I was a featured guest at Power Con in L.A. Power Con is a He-Man and She-Ra convention and it was so much fun! I got to meet other cosplayers and some of the voice actors from the cartoon and geek out with other fans of the show. I have only been to Emerald City Comic Con in Seattle as my budget unfortunately shrank when my dog got sick in April. Bruno was my little Boston Terrier that I had for 9 years and he ended up with a brain tumor that was inoperable and he passed away. It was a very difficult time, and I am still trying to recover from many of the vet bills because I would have done anything to keep him alive. I will be a featured guest next month at the Halloween Fair in Vancouver as well as Fan Expo Vancouver in November, and I am very excited for both!



10. What is your limit budget for a cosplay ?


I do not have a limit. I would rather perfect my dream cosplay than do a half ass job because I didn’t have enough time or enough money. I guess that makes me a bit of a perfectionist and probably is the reason why I don’t have a huge collection of costumes like many other people, but I try to put all of my effort into one costume at a time.



11. Any future super secret cosplay project in mind ?


Maaaaaaaaaybe…. But if I told you it wouldn’t be a secret! 



12. What are you doing in "real" life for a living ?


In real life I work in nightclubs mostly DJing, working in the coat check, hosting parties, throwing parties, helping people make bad decisions, modeling and just being a gong show.



13. You best experience from a convention ? And your worst ?


One of my best experiences was my very first convention. The whole reason I came to the convention (it was the day after my birthday so I was a bit hungover) was to meet Elvira. I was a little sad that she was not dressed as Elvira, but I was super happy to get a photo with her and chat with her a bit because she is one of my favorite celebrities. I cosplay as her as well, but I didn’t have my costume at the time when I met her. My worst experience was probably when I went to Dragon Con in Atlanta. I made some poor decisions not knowing how humid and hot it gets in Atlanta, as I am from the cold great north in Canada.

I wanted to march with all of my Ghostbuster friends in the parade, and instead of wearing my Ghostbuster pinup dress I wanted to be legit and wear my full flight suit and proton pack. I ended up getting one of the worst cases of heat stroke I have ever had, and I had to miss a lot of activities for the rest of the day because I was so sick. I would really like to go back to Dragon Con and have a do-over so I can attend all of the things I missed, and perhaps skip the parade next time.


14. Any advice for cosplay wannabees or beginners ?


Have fun! Dress up as whatever you want and don’t let anybody tell you you can’t do something. Release your inner superhero (or villain) !



15. Do you have limits ? Some cosplays you will never make ?

Definitely. I love to travel so I have to keep my costumes small enough that I can get them in a suitcase. I had a friend help me make my Evil-Lyn staff collapsible so I can travel with it if I want to, and my proton pack is not sized to scale, so it’s a smaller version of what most people have so I can wrap it up in bubble wrap and fit it in my suitcase. I would love to get a giant mallet for my Harley Quinn cosplay, but I think it would be difficult to take with me on the road, so I got a small cork gun instead, but I even feel nervous travelling with that because if they scan my suitcase they might see something the shape of a gun and open my luggage. The cork gun is non-functioning and they would discover that upon seeing it, but when you are crossing an international border with it, it can be a bit stressful.


Her facebook page : https://www.facebook.com/evilynthirteen/

Her official website : http://www.evilyn13.com/home/