#FeatureFriday with Kinpatsu Cosplay

This #FestureFriday we have another cos bae, the gorgeous and so talented Kinpatsu Cosplay. She makes her own cosplay, takes her own photos, and edits her own pictures. Not only is she so amazingly talented, but she's willing to share her skills with the world via Youtube and Patreon.

Keep reading to find out all the amazing things you ever wanted to know about Kinpatsu Cosplay.

​​How and when did you get into cosplay?
I started cosplaying in October 2012. It was kind of a spur of the moment decision the week before the convention, I decided I want to just give it a try so I threw my costume together from stuff I had in my closet and then I couldn't stop.

How did you come up with your cosplay name?
My name (Kinpatsu) actually means blonde in Japanese. When I was trying to come up with something I tried to think of any kind of defining features I had, and one of them was my hair colour. I've pretty much been blonde my entire life, anytime I change my hair colour it's only temporary and I always end up going back to blonde, so I thought it was a good fit. When you call someone blonde it kinda means they're a bit ditzy too, which I am so I thought blonde cosplay was kinda funny.

What do your friends and family think of your hobby?
Well most of my friends are cosplayers too so they entirely understand. My family thought it was kinda weird in the beginning but they've pretty much gotten used to it now. Every now and then when I have to do photos I end up walking around the house in full costume and they don't even bat an eye now. They are super supportive about it though.

​If you're still cosplaying in 10+ years, do you think it will have an effect on your cosplay choices, or the characters you choose to portray?
Definitely. I would hope in 10 years time I will be able to sew better, so maybe one day I'll be able to take on huge intricate sewing projects and stuff like that.

What do you do when you're not in cosplay or geeking out? (aka day job, other hobbies)
I'm currently doing a 1 year course in graphic design. 

You recently lauched a Patreon page. This is a new concept, how different or similar is it to other crowd funding sources, or other social media?
I must be honest I'm not particularly familiar with other crowdfunding sites, but from what I understand Patreon is different in that you actively give back to the people supporting you. I just think the whole model of Patreon is really amazing, I support a lot of other patreons myself and I think it really is changing peoples live and changing not only the cosplay economy, but also gaming, art, music, etc. It's opened doors for people that previously weren't there.

​How does having a Patreon help your cosplay goals?
Well previously I was making a new costume maybe every 2-6 months, I wasn't putting out tutorials very often either. Because of patreon I now make a costume every single month, sometimes even in 2 weeks. It's really pushed me to work faster and get better at making costumes. It's made me far more organised and it's motivated me so much to do my best cause I really don't want to let anyone down.

You also do cosplay tutorials on Youtube. What made you want to start filming these?
Well the thing that I've always loved about the community is how willing people are to help and share information, if it weren't for Youtube I wouldn't know how to do any of the stuff I do, so making my own tutorials was like my way of trying to give back and add to that vast database of knowledge and maybe try help people with their own costumes.

What cosplay(s) are you working on right now?

I'm currently making High command Katarina from League of Legends and Crystal Maiden from Dota 2. Then next month I'm going to make Bellona from Smite and Widowmaker from Overwatch.*********

​How do you choose your next cosplay?
I have a whole lot of characters I want to cosplay so I generally tend to pick from those, I'll see what other people are doing so I can maybe cosplay with them or I'll see what conventions are coming up and then I choose that way.

​Sometimes new characters will come out and I fall in love with them and them and then they get put at the front of the list. Kinda like Widwomaker with the Overwatch hype at the moment, I've changed some of my plans now so I can make her while I'm still super excited about it.

What is your dream cosplay?
Desert Queen Zagara from Heroes of the Storm.

What is holding you back from making your dream cosplay becoming a reality?
The Zaraga cosplay is beyond anything I have ever made scale wise and would include stuff like animatronics which I have no experience with at the moment, So I would want at least another 2-3 years before even think of attempting something like that. I Just don't think I'm experienced enough yet to do it as well as I would like to.

What is your favorite cosplay you've made?
I think my favourite cosplay at the moment is Li Ming from Heroes of the Storm.

​What cosplay did you put the most time into?
My Kayle cosplay from League of Legends.

Do you have any horror stories or mistakes you've made that other's can learn from?
I have a lot actually. I think the worst one for me was in my first year of cosplaying, I tried to take on 2 huge armor projects which were my first ever armor costumes and underestimated the time I had and how fast I could work.

Ultimately when it came to the convention, I didn't sleep the first night at all. I finished making my costume at 4am, went and started putting on bodypaint then went to the convention without sleep. I still hadn't finished the second costume either, but I couldn't stay up for 2 nights in a row. So I went to bed and tried to work on it in the morning. I ended up being late for the convention the next day and I never actually finished my costume.

So that was probably the worst experience for me. So what I learnt from that was just to really try manage your time effectively, and not to try take on too much at once. If you really do want to try push yourself, then at least try have a backup plan in case it doesn't work out :) 

Do you have any tips or words of encouragement for other cosplayers?
The internet is your best friend! You can literally find everything and anything on the internet, google-fu is the best skill you can possibly have.

Also don't be scared to ask other cosplayers for help if you get stuck, there are lots of cosplay groups where people are super friendly and helpful and you can also message cosplayers on their pages and ask them questions 99.9% of the time they will be more than happy to help you and answer your questions.

​And lastly if something goes wrong or doesn't work out, don't get too despondent about it, we learn through our failures and it makes us better and stronger.

Where can we find you on all things social?
Facebook
Twitter: @kinpatsucosplay
Instagram: @kinpatsucosplay
Youtube
Patreon

All photos in this interview courtesy of Kinpatsu or Eric Solomon.

I've been following her for quite a while and her tutorials are so helpful and it's just awesome to see all the cosplays she makes! This is a talented artist. Go find her on social media, and consider supporting her Patreon page.

Leave a comment!

​*kiss kiss*