#FeatureFriday with Grey Cosplay

Today's #FeatureFriday is with Grey, who loves to cosplay from Marvel Comics and Love Live! She is one of four members on the team rTheta. Grey also is on a Love Live dance cover team called U's Pleiades Project. Read her interview below!

How and when did you get into cosplay?
I got into cosplay in high school, and to be honest I'm not sure I remember how. I had a group of friends when I was really young (middle school) who went to ACen, and I think the first time I googled "Anime Central" I saw the cosplayers and was like "oh hoho yes." My first cosplay was ACen 2008, Kamal and I went as Light and Misa from Death Note, with all clothing we already had. We looked NOTHING like the characters, but we had a ball.

How did you come up with your cosplay name?
My middle name is "Grace", and I've always liked the word "grey" with an e, so I took the first syllable from my middle name! 

What do you do when you're not in cosplay or geeking out?
I work as a file clerk right now, and I'm hoping to get my masters in Theology soon! When I'm not cosplaying, I like practicing my makeup and cooking. 

How do you choose your next cosplay?
​I usually just let it happen, I don't go into any material thinking "okay, I have to choose a character". Generally, when I watch something I know immediately who I want to cosplay from the show/movie/media that I'm consuming. I don't even really "pick" next cosplays anymore, since my backlog of desired costumes is so long!! It helps that I have a group, so once all of us are done with what we're currently working on, we all take a look at our "to do" list and see if there's any common themes. Once, we all had an archer on our list, from different shows/pieces of media, so we did an archer group! 

Who is your cosplay idol/inspiration?
I really look up to my friend Angela Wang (Angela Wang Cosplay), she judged Kamal at a convention a few years ago and I got in contact to get some con-crit after the convention and we kind of just hit it off, but she's such an amazing craftsperson, and takes such care in her work. She has an immense talent for cosplay and an incredible drive, she's still cosplaying right now and she's getting ready for med school at the same time. She's down to earth, super friendly, but not afraid to tell it like it is. I love that about her.

I also really look up to DreamKitty Cosplay, she's a huge inspiration to me. When I was first getting started out on twitter I came across her account, and was really impressed by her work. More importantly, I was really impressed with her attitude. She and I are both bigger people, and she owns it totally unabashedly. She's proud of who she is and the size she is, and is extremely vocal about cosplay being for EVERYONE, something I so strongly agree with. Every time I feel afraid to cosplay a character, I think about her work and I feel inspired to go for it! 

I'm also honestly very inspired by my team. I know that's super corny, but rTheta has been such an amazing force for positive the last 4 years, I can't underscore it enough. Having a group of constant friends who I attend conventions with has made my self esteem go up so much, and my friends constantly inspire me to keep getting better at this hobby.

...also Yaya. Yaya is a big idol of mine. I've met her twice and I was NOT cool either time. Total dork. She's just so talented and so nice, I totally lost my cool. 

What cosplay(s) are you working on right now?
I am currently working on revamping my Sumia (Fire Emblem: Awakening) cosplay, totally overhauling the armor. It was my first armor build, and was craft foam. Not very sturdy! I'm re-doing it in worbla. Hopefully that will be better! The next cosplays I'm making from scratch are Kyoshi Warrior Suki for an Avatar: The Last Airbender group with my team, and another Love Live project that I'm keeping secret :3 

What is your dream cosplay?
I'm currently working on one of them (the secret one)! Another dream costume would probably be Commander Shepard dress blues, just because that character means so much to me. Something from Game of Thrones is up there too though!! It's so hard to choose -- I think I can honestly say every cosplay I've ever made is one that I really really wanted to do, and is sort of a "dream" for me. I don't make costumes I don't like. If I'm not doin' it for me, who should I be doin' it for? 

What is a random fun fact about you as a cosplayer or one of your cosplays?
I get ready to really loud music, and generally it turns into a singalong with the entire team (or Reagan, at least). I have a brother that was briefly into cosplay, but one of my dream cosplays is to do Robb and Sansa Stark with him, and have my mom be Catelyn. I think my mom would make an AMAZING Catelyn, and Jack would make an awesome Robb. 

Do you have any cosplay or convention pet peeves?
I HATE when competitions run late because people didn't make call time. I was always raised to believe that being late is wasting other people's time, and sends a clear message that you prioritize your own time over theirs, so when people are late and it pushes the schedule back, I feel as though they think they're better than everyone else competing, and that's not fair.

I also hate when my eyelashes lift off of my inner corners and when my wig slides back off my head, haha! 

Do you have any horror stories or mistakes you've made that others can learn from?
I don't think I've had any horror stories, but I definitely have some wisdom I've gleaned from mistakes made! Don't make armor out of gesso and thin craft foam. It will not survive one wear. It will crack and be so bad. Start small and learn thermoplastics! Remember that you get what you paid for with wigs, and they should not be treated like human hair. If the cosplay isn't done the night before the con, it's not going. Just set it aside, you will be miserable sitting in the hotel room all day, missing the con, to sew. It's happened to me more than once and the result is never what you actually want. 

Do you have anything else you want to say, or add to this interview?
I just want to shout out my mom really quick, she's the one who taught me how to sew and passed down her machine to me, and continues to encourage me and help me whenever she can. She even comes out to conventions to see me sometimes. She's a huge encouragement and I honestly would not be who I am today without her. 

Where can we find you on all things social?
You can find me on twitter @GreyCosplay, you can find our whole team @rThetaLabs! You can also find us on facebook and YouTube.

Photos for this interview provided by rTheta Photography and Just Like Switchblades.

Such an awesome interview!! Go check her and her team out on all social media. 

Thanks for reading!