Kids who cosplay: 5 young people who learned skills to build costumes
Dragon Con, the annual Atlanta convention that caters to lovers of gaming, anime, sci-fi and fantasy media, has been the catalyst for many young people and their families to learn the craft of costume building.
With elaborate outfits vivid in their imaginations, many have had to learn new techniques to bring their dream costumes to life, including sewing, 3D printing, laser cutting, molding, beading and more.
Meet five young people and families who upped their craft to build their own costumes.
Sydney Samples
Ryan and Jill Samples of Dacula first took their daughter, Sydney, to Dragon Con when she was 8 years old. The couple dressed her in a baby Batgirl costume, which turned out to be a hit.
“She got paparazzied all day and took a million pictures,” Ryan remembers. “She fell in love with it.”
The second year, she dressed as Mystique from “X-Men.” The third: Darth Talon from “Star Wars” and a zombie from “The Walking Dead.” By the fourth, the family was making four costumes each, one for each day of Dragon Con.
With each costume, the Samples learned new skills. For the zombie costume, Ryan taught himself through YouTube how to apply special effects makeup to increase the gore factor.
To make an Empress costume from “The NeverEnding Story,” Sydney, then 10, made her own headpiece using wire, beads and fabric. To go with her, Ryan built a full-body Rockbiter outfit using foam insulation spray he carved and painted.
Next, Sydney learned how to sew. At 14, she created an original Rapunzel ball gown from scratch.
“I researched and learned how to sew on YouTube,” she said. “I learned what fabric to get … how to make ruffles and skirts.”
She likes playing princesses the most.
“My favorite part is seeing little kids thinking that I’m a real princess,” she said. (She and her family will participate in this year’s Kids Track meet-and-greet Sunday morning.)
“We look forward to this weekend all year,” Jill added. “And as soon as it’s over, we’re like, ‘Oh, what can we do next year?’”
Henry Baxter Rice
Henry Baxter Rice, 18, from Atlanta, remembers the first time his dad took him to Dragon Con. He was around 7 and his dad helped him make a “Ghostbusters” outfit with a jumpsuit and elaborate proton pack.
As they wandered Dragon Con, Rice ran into members of the Atlanta Ghostbusters, a hobby club enthusiastic about re-creating “Ghostbusters” costumes. The club is known for creating over-the-top proton packs with lights, sound and special effects.
“They loved my costume,” Rice remembers. “I took a picture with them. That was probably one of the most inspiring moments, when I was recognized for my costume. That really drew me into wanting to make my own costumes.”
Over the years, Rice has made dozens. But a few years ago, his builds reached a new level when his dad introduced him to a friend with a 3D printer and laser cutter. The machines opened up new possibilities for crafting more elaborate designs. Last year, Rice tackled his most complicated yet: the NCR Ranger from Fallout: New Vegas.
The build involved 3D printing the base and, over two days, sanding it to a smooth surface. He also added battle scars with a soldering iron, weathered the material and wired up some electronics.
“It was the first time I was getting into using electronics and buttons,” he said. “And it was the first time I was making a full-on helmet.”
The costume took him about two months to build.
As a high school graduate taking a gap year, Rice said he has considered getting into prop design professionally, but prefers to keep it a hobby. The skills he has learned, however, are “definitely applicable to many fields,” he said. He intends to pursue something related to art.
CosMania competitors: Ansley Parkins and Maude Chapeau
Throughout June and July, the Gwinnett County Public Library hosted “CosMania,” a series of workshops at multiple branches designed to teach aspiring costume builders how to use the library’s stock of machines — including 3D printers, circuit makers, Cricut fabric printers, embroidery and sewing machines.
At the end of the series, participants could opt to compete in a cosplay competition where their costumes would be ranked by a panel of professional judges, including Lee Cox, Dragon Con’s costume track director since 2010.
“Sewing is a great life skill to have,” Cox said. “The social aspects of costuming and cosplay are just phenomenal.”
Ansley Parkins, 14, from Lawrenceville, and Maude Chapeau, 22, from Duluth, both attended many of the library workshops to learn the skills needed to build the costumes they imagined.
Parkins envisioned a costume for Corin Wickes, a character from video game Zenless Zone Zero. Corin is a maid in a world of monsters she must destroy. The costume is part maid outfit, with an apron and dress, and part warrior, with a spinning battle ax.
Parkins, who attended 10 of the library’s workshops, also enlisted family and librarians to help her build her costume.
Her father, Tim Parkins, an auto mechanic, helped craft and cut her weaponry using fiberglass. Her grandmother, who had previously taught her how to crochet and sew, helped her build a wire fastener to attach a crocheted accessory. And the librarians teaching the “CosMania” series taught her how to use a 3D program to print accessories like buttons.
“She’d never had the opportunity to do 3D printing … She learned so much. I’m really proud of her,” Parkins’ mother, Jodi, said.
Chapeau’s costume, Superboy from “The Man of Tomorrow” comic book, required custom fabric printing, sewing and 3D printing. Her most challenging step: wrapping herself in cling wrap and duct tape to draw a bodysuit pattern she would use to sew the costume from stretch fabric.
“That was an intense method,” Chapeau said. “I ended up almost passing out at the end … but the pattern turned out great.”
During the “CosMania” series, she learned how to use the Cricut printer to create a vinyl “S” which she later pressed onto the chest of her costume. She also learned how to 3D print a bracelet and stud accents for her belt and new techniques for sanding, filling and finishing the prints.
“I’m really pleased with how they turned out,” said Chapeau at the final competition. “And I am really proud to show off the final product to the librarians who helped me.”
Elissa and Barbara Cozart
This year Barbara Cozart, 44 from Peachtree Corners, and her 8-year-old daughter, Elissa, signed up for sewing classes at Duluth sewing school Cool People Sew. They were driven by one goal: to build their own costumes for Dragon Con 2025.
While the Cozarts made elements of their costumes in years past, they had never attempted to build their own until this year.
“I needed to step up my game,” Barbara Cozart said.
Her costume this year is particularly special to her. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention employee used the list of censored words banned from use on the CDC’s public-facing websites to create a black-and-white gown covered in text. She printed and cut out the words in vinyl, pressed them to the gown and made a cape.
“I feel cool, funneling my anger into something productive that feels like a little bit of resistance and rebellion,” she said.
Elissa created her own costume, too: Nezuko Kamado from “Demon Slayer.” The sewing school helped her build a traditional Japanese kimono in pink fabric with a hand-added geometric pattern.
“She cut it out. She sewed it together. She is very excited,” said Barbara. “She counts down the days to Dragon Con.”
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