– and other cosplay work-arounds.
Want to know something ironic?
Crayle, one of the Phoenix Sisters who writes this column, is allergic to glue. Super glue, rubber cement, contact cement, E-6000… She’s just allergic to a ton of types of glue. For a cosplayer and a professional artist, that’s kind of a big deal.
So she’s had to learn more than a few cosplay and crafting work-arounds, and she’s about to share them with you! And they’re not all just about glue.
Rubber cement can bounce… away from us
The worst cosplay supply for Crayle is rubber cement. And it can be hard for others to use too, as you don’t always have enough ventilation in your workspace to make sure you aren’t breathing in its fumes. Rubber cement, as you may know, is a staple in foam armor making. When you can’t use it though, some seams and folds can be held in place with good, old-fashioned sewing.
You may need to buy a curved needle for some foam work, or adjust what thickness of foam you’re using to make it easier to sew, but it can be done!
No glove – no love!
“Rubber” gloves are your friend! It’s possible to be allergic to some compounds only when they’re wet, because drying changes their chemical composition. In the meantime, protect your skin with neoprene gloves (or latex, if you’re not allergic like Crayle). This can also just protect your hands from mess in general, keeping you from transferring glues or paints onto the next material when you switch tasks in your craft space.
Skin-friendly glues are out there
Sock glue and eyelash glue can hold all kinds of things in place– if you’re not allergic to them! Test on a small patch of skin first, like any other product that goes directly on your skin. These body-friendly adhesives can hold your socks and gloves up by applying them at the top. They can also hold on lightweight prosthetics (similar to spirit gum) or help hold the hairline of your wig down.
Give it a try! It saved Crayle’s life during her Clueless photoshoot while she walked around the mall in her knee-highs.
Your adhesive doesn’t even have to be glue
Foam clay can also be used as an adhesive as well as a sculpting medium. If it’s too thick, you can trim or sand away any part that shows after it hardens. You can even paint it when you paint the item you were building. (Learn more about cosplay and foam clay here.)
Work smarter, not harder
Tired of making custom body suits just to swap out one emblem? Super hero cosplayers especially know what we’re talking about.
Well, you can make a blank bodysuit and swappable emblems! Attach snaps to your body suit and make squares of its base fabric to have swappable emblems for your super hero costumes. Make sure you make the emblem background out of the same color and a very similar material to your body suit’s base. Crayle likes to use thin vinyl for her emblems to give them a little stiffness, but fabric also works.
That’s what Crayle did when she realized her Phoenix base suit would also work for a Mia Dearden Speedy. The only difference was the symbols on the chest.
And while Crayle hasn’t used them before, you can also skip sewing the snaps in place, and use washable/removable glue to hold your emblem in place, then wash the body suit and have a blank canvas again.
Wigs can be any color you want them to be with a little bit of Rit
Fabric dye can be used on more than just fabric! Another popular use for fabric dye is to dye synthetic wigs. You can dye a whole wig, or add colored details to your wig style by dying clip-in wefts to get that character’s signature chunk of pink or whatever. Just know that you can’t bleach a synthetic wig to later dye a lighter color. This method is best for going from light to dark, not the other way around.
Color outside the lines when it comes to your make-up supplies
Make up is make up is make up. You don’t have to use each colored powder or liquid on the part of the face it’s designated for.
Use gray eye shadow under your cheekbone instead of bronzer for sunken cheeks. Test it first, but you can use a liquid eye shadow on your lips – the main difference is that it won’t taste good, and could be a little drying. “Bronzer” and “highlighter” are all relative to your skin tone. You can use a fair person’s bronzer as highlight if your skin is dark enough, and vice versa.
Crayle did this pretty “dead girl” make-up almost entirely in brown, gray, and purple eyeshadow all over her face.
The same goes for brushes. You can use a concealer brush to apply a wider swath of eyeshadow than your shadow brushes are equipped for. You can use a lip-brush to detail your nose. Just play around with your brushes and see what works for you.
Speaking of make up, check for tutorials from people who have the same skin tone whenever possible. That’s like putting your tutorial on “easy mode,” because you won’t have to make as many tweaks along the way to adjust for differences in skin tone. It helps even more to find a tutorial being performed on someone with a similar hair tone, and some make-up looks have a different effect under a different color of hair, especially when it comes to the eyes.
Beware the hot-glue hacks…
A WARNING: Many cosplay hacks involve hot glue. And some of them work!
But note that hot glue stays heat activated even after you’ve used it. So don’t use it on props or clothing items that will be held close to your skin, as your body produces heat. The item will gradually lose shape or come undone. You also can’t leave props or garments with hot glue on them in a hot car. Even if doesn’t “melt,” the hot glue will lose a little integrity over time each time it heats up.
We urge you to understand that a lot of hot glue fixes are better for temporary attachments, or items that won’t be moved or handled too much.
For example, we put shells on plastic tiaras by wrapping them in white pipe cleaners and hot gluing them on. But they aren’t in much contact with our skin, and they’ve lasted for years by us being mindful of storing them in a cool, dark place.
We hope these tips help!
As always, the Phoenix Sisters’ inboxes are open! So if you think you know a hack that works better for some of these issues, or just have recommendations you’d like to share, let us know.
Want to support the Phoenix Sisters in all their cosplay endeavors, while getting awesome perks?
Our Patreon members get early access to each monthly cosplay feature. They also get exclusives, like additional behind-the-scenes shots, member requests, and SPICY content.
This November, patrons will get a first look as Crayle’s Goat Girl arises!
Want to “stalk” the Phoenix Sisters?
Crayle and Kelly are always down to talk cosplay tips, or just give a word of encouragement. You can message us on just about any social media platform (though we answer most frequently on Facebook and Instagram).
