We attended our first pop culture and comic convention on Thursday, September 25 in Salt Lake City. Seth and I had toyed with the idea of going to one, but Miriam was the one who really pushed us to get out and go. It was tricky working around Miriam's marching band schedule, but we notified her directors well ahead of time and made sure to go on a day that allowed her to not miss any performances.
Everyone chose their own character to cosplay. Seth was Jet Black from Cowboy Bebop. I was Jareth the goblin king from Labyrinth. Miriam was Corazon from One Piece. Winnie was Steven from Steven Universe. We got dressed up the morning of the con, called the schools to excuse the girls, then drove south for some fun.
Seth in his Jet Black costume. He ordered the jumpsuit, then he and I did some altering. The shin guards are some catcher's gear that he spray painted silver. The wristbands are the cuffs on some old socks. The arm sleeve was ordered on eBay. The cigarette is fake.
On our way down to SLC.
Winnie's costume was the easiest. We found a red T-shirt at D.I., and she stitched on a yellow felt star. Miriam's costume included a pink dress shirt (from Goodwill) that she painstakingly covered in hearts, thrifted pants and shoes, and a fabulous black coat from Amazon.
Andrea's costume was all thrifted except the cute little worm that Ana crocheted for me. The girls thought it was funny that he was poking out of my back pocket while we got our final touches ready in the Conference Center parking garage.
Winnie acting a little nervous in the Conference Center after parking the van in the underground garage.
Seth in his full costume inside the Conference Center. We only went inside long enough to use the restrooms.
Group picture as we wait to enter the con. We arrived early and had to wait a while. It was fun to see everyone's cosplays.
Miriam and Seth with their fake cigarettes. At one point, a random lady really got after Seth saying, "There's no smoking in here!" He wordlessly pulled the fake cigarette from his mouth and pressed the "burning" end into his head. The lady realized it was a fake and laughed loudly. Ana crocheted Miriam's hood.
Once the gates opened, we wandered among the vendors selling food, bags, shirts, costumes, trinkets, art and everything else you can imagine. We attended a few of the breakout sessions and heard Danny Elfman music played by a saxophone quartet, learned about the Muppets and watched an illusionist. We walked past the celebrities but didn't pay to get autographs or pictures. The longest line was for David Tennant (from Good Omens (that Ana and Miriam love) and Doctor Who (that Miriam and Winnie love), but we also spied Sean Astin, John Rhys-Davies, Miranda Otto (all from Lord of the Rings), Henry Winkler (who looked like the sweetest guy), and others.
It was energizing to see people who know what they like and aren't afraid to show their enthusiasm for it. Most of the cosplaying we saw was for animes, but there were many others. And just when Winnie was afraid no one was going to recognize her character, a couple of girls pointed her out and started singing the theme song. Everyone we encountered was good-natured about getting their pictures taken with like-minded fans. I even got asked to record a short birthday message for a vendor's husband.
Miriam buying a pocket watch from one of the many (MANY) vendors.
Winnie and Miriam posing with Tech from Clone Troopers.
Miriam posing with a guy who is cosplaying Corazon's brother. We kept track of how many people recognized and acknowledged our cosplay. I was the first ("David Bowie!" someone shouted as we walked down the sidewalk on our way to get our passes), but Miriam definitely had the most. One Piece is all the rage right now. Miriam took pictures with lots and lots of people dressed up at One Piece characters.
Andrea with her worm and two darling girls who were also cosplaying Labyrinth characters. They said their parents were dressed up as the main characters from the movie, but I never saw them. But how cool is it that I saw someone dressed up as my little worm?!
Winnie with a Steven Universe character.
Seth with a Cowboy Bebop character.
Walking back to the garage after a long day surrounded by joyful nerds.