Dragon Con Pro Tips
DJ Spider Cosplay is an award winning Cosplayer and costumer who enjoys doing lesser known versions of comic book costumes. We love her!!! She is also the queen of conventions, so here are her best tips:
1) Start walking! If you're not used to walking more than 15 minutes a day at a time, get going!
2) If you have new shoes for a costume, start breaking them in now! Put 'em on and walk around the house!
3) Febreeze is your friend. Pack a small spray bottle of that magic stuff!
4) Drink lots of water, but figure out how to de-costume to go to the bathroom by yourself. The PeePee Dance is not sexy.
5) Know when to costume as what. No one wants to see your ass cheek at breakfast. O_o.
6) Drink plenty of plain water. Despite evidence to the contrary, mixing it with alcohol doesn't count.
7) For the love of all that is spandex...MEN! Buy a freakin' dance belt! Remember kids are eye level with your junk! (Dawn's note: BWAHAHAHAHA!!!!)
8) Hit an ATM before you get to Con - the food court ones empty pretty quickly over the holiday weekend.
9) Eat at least one "real" meal a day, not just chips and snack bars. Also, the ConSuite in the Hyatt is your friend!
10) Shower at least once a day. Walk like a gamer, talk like a gamer, just don't smell like a gamer!
11) BE NICE TO YOUR CON STAFF!! These volunteers deal with more crap than you can imagine. Make it a point to sincerely thank at least one of them a day! (this also goes for the hotel staff!)
12) One safety pin and one length of ribbon -- zip your back zippers up all by yourself!
13) Bring a full-sized garbage bag. You've seen the tiny wastebaskets in hotel rooms, right? Plan ahead! Plus, the hotel staff will thank you!
14) Tag your damn bags, even if driving in. "It was a black bag" ain't gonna cut it at the front desk check-in chaos!
15) Check, then double-check your badge is secure! Make "Badge-check" your rallying cry before you leave the room!
16) Party smart when it comes to alcohol. Do you really want to clean your costume on the second day?
17) Taking a page from CONvergence: "A costume is not consent!" Ask before you touch! Don't be a creeper!
18) It's always polite to ask if you can take a photo of a costume. If they say yes, MOVE OUT OF TRAFFIC to do it.
19) Catch a panel. Find at least one that you want to go to and DO IT - they can be AWESOME experiences!
20) The most important tip? HAVE FUN!
Some of her other great advice for cosplay includes:
