To start with please tell the readers a little about your background.
I’m currently working at Blockbusters but will be starting a fashion design and business course in September. Before that I was doing A-levels in photography, english and film studies.
How long have you been cosplaying? Which costume was your first?
My first costume when I was 12, that was back when MCM was still a new convention. It was Edward Elric and I remember getting my mum to help out with everything. It wasn’t amazing for what we consider a good costume these days but back then I thought I did a pretty good job. I’ve been cosplaying on and off since then and I am now 19. I recently came back from Japan though and that’s inspired me to cosplay more often and get more involved.
Is there anybody you would like to cosplay that you haven’t or can’t?
I would love to cosplay Ai Rin from Anarchy Reigns! I think she is my dream cosplay at the moment and I one day hope to achieve it. Just Anarchy Reigns designs are slightly over the top.
Who’s your favourite character to cosplay?
I really like cosplaying Celty Sturluson (right). It’s a comfortable costume to wear around and it feels like i’m wearing PJs. Another good thing is because no one can see my face I don’t have to worry about pulling weird faces in photos. Not only those things but I also love the character.
Have any of your cosplays ever gone wrong?
I tried making the jumper for Yata from Project K but it just went really wrong. I scrapped it and just edited an existing jumper after that. With the Celty helmet I tried window tinting the visor at least 8 times and my first time cutting a wig went really wrong.
Have you been to any conventions?
Yep! I’ve been to quite a few though I’m looking to expand the variety of conventions I go to. I usually go to Hyper Japan and MCM but I’ve also been to LFCC and a couple of other ones. Next year I hope to go to Kitacon and maybe a few more conventions where it’s more enclosed and have limited spaces. My dream convention is of course Comiket in Japan though.
Do you make your own costumes?
It’s a combination of making, modifying existing things and buying costumes. I would like to make more costumes but I just don’t have the resources at the moment or the skill. I hope during the course I am starting I can start making more costumes. I don’t know if I am good at sewing but Johnny Joestar (right) was the first time I ever made a shirt. With props though I like to try and make them myself, for example the Celty helmet was my own work at modifying a motorbike helmet.
What game(s) are you playing at the moment?
Saints Row the 4th! I’ve been really enjoying that at the moment. At the end of this month though I have a bunch of games I’m looking forward to such as Killer is Dead, Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure All Star Battle and Project Diva F. The most recent game I completed was Catherine which I really enjoyed.
What’s your favourite game or gaming genre?
I like any games that are interesting but I think I prefer platformers and button mashers. It’s hard to pick a favourite game, I think I am tied between Shadows of the Damned and Psychonauts.
Thanks for taking the time to answer a few questions for our readers, that concludes our interview for now. If you’d like to know more about Gulper Eel and see more of her awesome cosplays you can do so at the below link. A majority of these photos were taken by Carlos Adama Geek Photography. To check out more of their incredible images, use the link below.