I’ve always liked to dress up. Up until I was eight, I would wear gittery tutus, mermaid tails, ribbon-festooned headpieces, and silk scarves over my clothes out in public. (That is, when my parents let me!) So it shouldn’t be surprising that at 22, I’m still going out of my way to wear costumes. For example, my last post included a picture of me dressed as Mako from Nerima Daikon Brothers, pink hair and all.
But that’s not the only costume I have! The extremely unflattering photo above shows me in my Civil War era camp dress. I wore this at a couple reenactments last summer. I haven’t been reenacting this year (I broke up with the boyfriend I used to go with and don’t want to go alone), but I hope to try it again sometime because it was so fun to dress up! I loved wearing a hoop skirt- crowds parted to give me enough room to pass! Tossing my shorts and t-shirt for a weekend to wear more a more restrictive style of womens’ clothing (still worn by the Amish today) made me really appreciate how comfortable fashion has become.
So naturally, upon seeing all the steampunk and Lolita costumes at Otakon, I’ve fallen in love with both styles! How unusual! How fantastic! How extremely ruffly! This coat pictured above, the Rocket Mistress Steampunk Victoriana Gothic Corset Bustle Jacket by Love Child Boudoir (click the photo to visit their shop), could fit for both costume styles, either over a loli-esque jumper or a pair of lady adventurer’s trousers.
One steampunk accessory that I would LOVE to wear is a proper corset. I’ve worn cheap corsets before, but in the Otakon dealer’s room I had my first opportunity to be fitted for a real corset. I went to the Scarlett’s Corsets (once again, click the photo for the store) booth, where a seller somehow shaped my usually wide waist (at 26 inches, it barely curves inward from my torso), into a mere 22 inches. It was not, as you would expect, at all like that scene in Gone With the Wind; it didn’t hurt, it didn’t feel uncomfortable, and my organs felt like they were all in their correct locations. The corset didn’t smoosh me, it just forced me to maintain straight posture instead of the usual slumping. I not only felt like I’d gone down two dress sizes, but taller too. When I have $135 to spend, it’ll definitely be at Scarlett’s.
In fact, all of the costume components are pretty expensive. Most on brand goth lolita dresses go for $260 on average, off brand go for at least $99. Then there’s tons of accessories (more is more seems to be the encouraged view here). Since I expect to make well under ten thousand this year in my meager TA position, all of which should go towards my rent and books, there’s no way I can afford to buy costumes right now. Still, that’s not going to keep me from window shopping online…