Leah Rose FTW!

Just as a note, this article is written for a yet-to-be-published fan magazine! Cosplay Spotlight is super fun and I hope it's successful- if you'd like to write or submit original content for your own site please send me an email!  Aloha, amigos! I'm Leah Rose, your friendly neighborhood cosplayer with real life bills- I'm assuming that's sounding pretty familiar. Nobody is denying that cosplay, and being a nerd in general, can be an expensive habit. Fabrics, wigs, shoes, undergarments, materials, commissions, source material.. I can't help much on that last one, but the process of cosplay shouldn't be something that breaks the bank. After over 10 years in the community, much of that on a poor student budget, I've collected a few tricks to help keep the cost down and keep enjoying the hobby we all love. I'll also include the base tools that you'll need, which are all relatively inexpensive but you may be able to find secondhand if the si...

I have to admit, I feel kind of bad. I was so intent on making this blog something... cool, maybe not something to bring me some extra money, but a personal journal of all of the things with a focus on the nerdstuff and the health stuff. But that's obviously not happening, and for once, I can say it's for lack of trying. My cosplay and costuming have kind of taken over my life. All I do is live that nerdness that I love to write about, and while it's not a bad thing, documenting it has kind of falls down on my list of priorities. And it's not really reasonable to try to make the blog something it isn't. SO AS IT STANDS this website will sort of transition into an official page for me, costuming, my calendar, and basically an expanded facebook fanpage (which you should totally go check out at facebook.com/leahroseaz) I'll still make posts as I have time, but I won't beat myself up for not getting to it. I'll document my conventions and work and every...

I'll be the first to admit, I'm bad at bashing myself. Not like self mutilation, mind you, but nitpicking about stupid things I don't like about myself. And where does it get me? What can I do about them? Not a whole lot. Granted, I don't verbalize it that much, but I'm always thinking something needs improvement. Why the hell do we do this? We keep looking at the negatives instead of seeing the awesome big picture. And you're always you're own worst critic, so it's not like anyone else even notices half the things we hate about ourselves. But others can tell what we take pride in and are most confident about, so why not focus on those? The big three things I have a problem with are mostly just genetics and by chance- nothing that I can help, so I shouldn't act like it's a problem. And I'm a big believer that for every negative thing you think abotu yoursself, you should remember a positive so you can realize how good you really have it!...