Cosplay Interview with Myriad

Cosplay interview with Myriad: Cosplay Character: Claire Redfield Facebook page: Facebook.com/myriadmargo Photographer name and/or link: Jimmy Talley

Interview Questions:

1. How long have you been Cosplaying and why do you do it? I've been cosplaying for 10 years, but it was on and off for four of those years. I do it because I enjoy going to shows and being in character. I enjoy it when I see the face of another nerd light up at seeing a character brought to life before their eyes. Its like working for Disney, but without all the crappy rules.

2. Do your family and friends support you as a cosplayer? Oh yes! Almost all my friends are cosplayers, and even my mom and dad do it too!

3. What was your FIRST convention you cosplayed at? AdventureCon 2007

4. Are there any charities you work with locally? I work with my local library, and I do fundraising for some small charities in my area, including a wildlife rehab clinic, and a local food bank.

5. Do you follow other cosplayers? Who inspires you the most? I really love Nana Bear. Ivy Doomkitty, too. I love that curvy, plus sized women can get far in this (the cosplay), world.

6. Are you an avid comic book reader? Which is your all time favorite? I don't read that many comics, except for old star trek ones. I like really off beat stuff when I can find it, and really inappropriate ones. I once found one called Battlepope which was amazingly hilarious and one of those things where you think 'I Shouldn't read this'...and I loved it!

7. Other than Cosplay, what else are your hobbies or interests? I love knitting and crochet and spinning my own yarn. I run a fiber processing business on the side, where I turn wool fleeces straight off the sheep, and into useable yarn and wearable products.

8. Why did you choose Claire Redfield? I'm a huge Resident Evil fan! I love the games, and the horror game genre. Claire always spoke to me as a character, I love what kind of a badass she is. I also love how simple her costume is, and comfortable for convention wear.

9. Have you done other versions of this character? I did her about four years ago, her 'Code Veronica' outfit. It wasn't flattering at all! I really hated how it came out, and I'm glad I got to redo it.

10. Are there any other characters you cosplay as? Oh yes! I regularly do Black Canary, which is my other 'go to' costume. I also do a version of Jubilee, which is one of my VERY favorites, since I get to be annoying and hyper and a lot closer to my normal personality.

11. Have you ever “CrossPlayed”? Define cross play? I haven't done a straight up guy character as a guy. I'm a fan of rule 63 if its done well. I've done a girl version of Hellboy (retired now) and I've done a girl version of Dean Winchester (from supernatural.)

12. Do you have any upcoming appearances? My next show is going to be Marble City MiniCon, a one day show in Knoxville , in October. I'll be part of a huge Game of Thrones group there. I'm doing Sansa's black raven dress, which I'm excited about!

13. Can you give us a detailed description of how you made your cosplay and props? For being such a SIMPLE costume, I really love this one. The Jacket was the hard part. It started out as another version that I had painted as a trade at a show (I did a favor for an artist friend, she painted my jacket.) But that jacket failed. I cut the painting out of it, and glued it onto the red denim version shown here. The red denim vest was originally a dress that I cut down. I purposefully didn't hem anything, since the character was a biker chick, I wanted the rough-edged look. The shirt was a last minute 'I ripped my shirt' stop by goodwill on the way to a show, but it looks better than the original. The jeans were the hardest part to find. I'm a big girl (size 12) and I'm short, and the character is very lithe and lean and tall, so it took some doing to find the right ones on a budget, that gave the right look. Everything else was a closet dive. The prop weapons were already in my closet, I have a habit of buying them and sticking them away just in case.