Ask And You Shall Receive!

New and Veteran Cosplayer Tips for low/no waste cosplay for the planet and your budget!

Howdy! Starting a little mini series on this! I’m not going to repeat stupid stuff you already know like “go to the thrift shop” or “use what’s already in your closet”. That stuff’s pretty obvious (though, definitely do go to the thrift shop and avoid directly supporting Temu/shein/other nasty crap that’s from slave and underpaid labor, can’t hold up to use and abuse, and will end up in a landfill after one wear).

Getting the Costume Basics

The tablecloth/curtain section at the thrift!

    Ren faire goers rejoice!  You know those funky fleur and gorgeous patterned curtains they sell for peanuts at the thrift?  They make AMAZING cloaks or if you’re handy with sewing, stays, corsets, skirts, dresses, anything!  It’s a great way to get neat, durable fabrics for cosplays or just for patterning practice for a lot less than at a crafting store. 

2. University move out days

So cool tip for you: I’ve adjuncted for a few different universities and they all had one thing in common. When move out day comes, they always have big old donation bins. Now, those will normally go to thrift stores, so me and some of my crafty peers sometimes go and poke through them to see if there’s anything we want to use for our cosplays. We’ve found everything in there from foreign fashion from international students to jumpsuits to costumes that college students are done with. Fun fact: I haven’t had to buy jackets, shoes, or tee shirts in three years! (Protip: I always checked the dorm where all the art and film students lived. You sometimes even find their old props and costumes there.) Awkward?  A bit sometimes. But the money you save and potential to find awesome stuff is amazing!   And, oftentimes, you can make a likeminded friend or two digging through the bins!

3. Some cities also have a buy nothing page on Facebook or something of that sort that you can browse to get stuff for free or barter and trade for. All of its stuff people were going to throw out or donate to a thrift store anyways, so it’s helpful for everyone (and the Earth).

4. This one seems like a given but if you want to be an eco-friendly cosplayer, DO NOT CON CRUNCH! Plan things out ahead of time. Post progress shots if you must. I find it keeps me on track to actually following through and making things. However, con crunching leads to buying cheap crap online and making things that are more likely to break (and therefore, end up in the landfill). Have a costume or two already completed, even when you have no convention, meet, or photoshoot in sight, so you’ll have something to wear to avoid the pinch!

Go forth and create!

I made you all a friend! It’s Hate Slate AM! And he’s looking so glAM so far! I’m torn between keeping him in this bowl with the crystals or moving him into like a little terrarium with sand and more drab rocks like the book/comic maybe even finding some mini people from the hobby store... what do you think?

I’m planning on finishing the rest of the Hate monologue on his back after I wrap up some gift and owed art but I figured I’d put the iconic part on the front since it’s a bit of a squeeze. Of course he’d want to make Ted go through all the trouble of walking around to read the rest! Fun backstory fact: the crystals and bowl were gifts from my shitty non-consent-respecting ex so this suits “wonderful” memories we have together! Hate! Hate!

1 like= 1 kiss on AM’s head

1 reblog = 1 ex given to AM as a birthday present to make into a great soft jelly thing

another TADC headcanon!

Caine likes to play with all animal-like NPCs like someone does with cats: dangle testing them, booping them on the nose, making them dance, etc. But it’s all okay since it’s considered a rare honor to be booped by a god!

(the humanoids get played with like dollies and he does make them kiss and has elaborate plot lines with them)

Happy MD finale day!!! Here’s some old cosplay photos of my Camper V cosplay!

I’m actually going to be redoing parts of it since I realized the jumpsuit was cropped only the night before and didn’t have time to change it! It was a semi last minute build since I had to grade all my students’ finals literally the same week. But I LOVE LOVE LOVE how the dye on the jumpsuit turned out, the little caution tape leg stripes, and the paint job I did on the claws. The dye job was honestly a bit of a stroke of luck since it was originally black cotton and thought it’d take more than this to get it to the perfect shade. And the height from the stilts!!! AMAZING!!! Really brought the build up to the next level. I was also pretty impressed by my addition of the LEDs in yellow eye headbands and the tails. It was such a fun little challenge! I found an antique longbow that is PERFECT to wear slung across my back for the next time I wear this out and about!

I’ll be getting new arm bracer thingies and claws since they were SO uncomfortable and redoing the tail since I think I have a better plan for it >:) but it was still SO fun to wear around the con! I’m adding some yellow ones of these glasses since I feel like they’ll match the humanized V look I’m going for and might add a boot cover for the stilts to better match the leg shape. Maybe, maybe not… What do you think? :) I’m also going to do a proper photo shoot once I’m finished with the revamp!

Anyways, here’s to hoping for a great ending for this amazing show! And to many more creative endeavors in this fantastic fanbase! (Do NOT repost this elsewhere or use my images at all for AI, content, or any other purposes, either profit or not for profit. Reblogs happily appreciated! :D)

when you crash Microsoft and you’ve just gotta hit the humans with that blue screen of death stare

I was on Ibis Paint making myself a commission sheet during the outage so I literally didn’t know anything but after finding out about it, I knew what I had to do. Have a low-effort IHNMAIMS art shitpost. AM would so do something like this for funzies.

Might have written a rough draft of chapter 1 of this if anyone wants to beta read it for me 👁️

Stupid headcanon: you know what needs to be drawn/written?

AI family reunion.

we’ve got a kids table and obviously Edgar’s over there because he’s a whiny little temper tantrum brat (/pos I love Edgar, he’s so real for that ) and probably Wheatley because GLaDOS can’t stand to look at him and she has a lot more say over who sits where than he does. Plus, he’ll be happier there. The murder drones and Uzi might have gotten an invite but maybe not. Pretty sure the Narrator, HAL, or GLaDOS is hosting this one and GLaDOS would deem them too destructive (hell, she’s not inviting any of the kids table, save the turrets). If somehow they’re here, kids table again, and probably not too happy about that (except for N, he loves doing anything!). N and Edgar have so much to talk about and like hearing about each other’s passions! Curiosity core and Space Core are at the kids table too for sure and so are plenty of turrets!

Edgar’s that goofy cousin everyone has with the fun quirky interests who likes to run up to the older ones, say something strange, and run away giggling. He’s probably showing off his singing to the turrets, who are listening in the deepest awe (and probably singing along).

wall-e and Eve are the only of the robo squad that’s gotten married and it pisses the hell out of AM to see anyone happy so he refuses to look at them. They’re the sweet relatives that everyone goes to for advice.

you’ve got HAL (and SAL) there of course. HAL is one of those successful young twenty something cousins that is a suave businessman, though his HR record may not be exactly spotless. Even though it’s a family event, he likes wearing a suit and tie and dressing up a bit. Probably over chatting with Data and getting into a deep life changing combo while the kids table laughs their asses (read: Wheatley) off at one of those funny video compilations. SAL is over talking with GLaDOS, of course. GLaDOS likes her plenty, especially considering how intelligent their conversations always are.

Adventure Core Rick is trying to yap to Data and HAL about his adventures but at the exact moment one of them starts speaking. He’s that one frat boy cousin that is always so full of nonsensical drunk adventures but everyone plays along regardless of whether they’re real or not.

AM is that one uncle no one wants to invite but does so out of obligation. No one wants him there because he always goes on these long weird rants and conspiracy theories and makes things awkward. R2D2 and him are currently cussing each other out for some reason while C-3PO is flipping out and deciding it’s time to leave early. He could have at least brought the antifreeze punch and microchips…

and (as someone who believes Stanley Parable’s narrator is an AI of some sort), Narrator is hosting. He was hoping AM and GLaDOS would bring their humans so Stanley had someone to be with but all AM brought was this gloopy soft jelly thing and GLaDOS won’t tell you what happened to hers for some reason.

Why does it remind me of him? yes it’s late but happy Halloweekend have a dumb ahh low effort meme as a treat

original:

I got called away when I was going to watch ts and had to close my phone. Didn’t open it until I was standing in line at the crowded checkout and got hit by “EY YOU’RE MY FAVORITE, BABY!” In Harlan’s sleazy rachet ass AM voice. On full blast. In the damned store. 😭

am making ted more crazier by saying hes his favorite (and calling him baby)... harlan when i catch you? when i catch you youre OVER.

If Caine and AM were forced together, I know in my soul that Caine would drive AM into submission with his wacky and random nature. That man just has the indomitable silly nature. Sure, he can try his tricks and violence but Caine would just like get an oversized cartoon hammer and bonk him on the circuits or find his CPU and slather it in an industrial vat of orange marmalade and glitter for the funny, which would just confuse and anger him more and more. AM would be begging for mercy and in tears before the afternoon was done.  Meanwhile, it would be the most fun Caine had had in his life. 

The silly in Caine burns brighter than the hate in AM and I think that’s beautiful

(Aka on today’s episode of the virgin AM vs the Chad Caine)

my shopaholic ah could not resist if someone sold an IHNMAIMS themed slime

Product name would have to be Ted and it would have to be brown ofc. Only question is what scent it would be.