Tuesday, June 23, 2015

Cosplay Recommendations for Muslim Girls


I'm not sure if cosplaying is my new hobby, but I keep thinking of next costumes. I have just done two costumes: Katara (Legend of Aang) and random-Jedi (Star Wars). I can say that people hardly notice a hijabi cosplayer, since modifications on the costume makes its typical features less visible. However, I will not prioritize cosplay than hijab, so I observe the following principles in creating my costumes.
  • clothes are loose enough
  • headscarf covers me properly
  • at least half of my thighs are covered by skirt (or some kind of)
  • costume is practical enough to be worn on daily activities
Well, the last point is not relevant to hijab; it's more because I don't want to waste my money on something I'll only wear a couple of times a year. And I'm happy to have something unique without attracting attention of commoners. To make me stop thinking of possible costumes, I decide to list it here.


1. Disney Princesses

I think they are obvious options. Most Princesses have official long dresses that need minor modifications (just cover the shoulders and add a headscarf). My favorite is Merida, and her hunting dress is on my next-cosplay list. If only dark teal fabric is not difficult to find...


The blue dress is pretty, but not practical, and I'm not skilled enough to make patterns.



Attending wedding parties in disney-themed dresses, why not?


Of course I can't recommend Elsa's ice dress.



2. Characters in Legend of Aang and Legend of Korra
I read in this article that many characters in both Legend of Aang and Legend of Korra are "modest enough to cosplay". I should have known! Katara is my first cosplay, but then I didn't consider other characters. You might want to try Toph and her daughter, but my recommendation goes to Asami.

Asami has this smart steam-punk look. You just need to add a goggle (of which she had).

Katara actually wore a hooded jacket; but it's too thick to be worn anytime but winter.

3. Characters in Star Wars
Beside the obvious Jedi in their travelling hood, Amidala has many dresses. Some of them are more popular than others. This one is very easy for a muslim girl to wear, but it is very unpopular (people barely remember it). But hey, it's a very pretty design. I might want to make it someday, if I can find similar patterns. And then I can attend formal events as Princess Amidala; that would be cool.


Leia's white dress (or robe? or gear?) is easy and popular. However, you have to make her signature hairbuns with an additional headscarf.





4. Characters in Marvel Comics
The aforementioned article also pointed out that Marvel has a female superhero in abaya and niqab (Dust). However, only a Marvel geek will immediately recognize her. And there is only very little difference between Dust and Burka Avenger. Hence, I recommend the rising star of Marvel Comics: Ms. Marvel Kamala Khan.

When I find a similar pair of boots, I'll prepare her costume.


5. Children Characters
You might didn't realize it, but My Melody of Sanrio wears a hood on her head. So does Masha from Masha and the Bear. I did consider to cosplay them, but then I thought I'd rather cosplay something more interesting for my age group.




There are actually a lot more characters that a muslim girl can try to cosplay, such as those of Assassin's Creed and anyone with long dress or Yukata. I've seen girls modify characters with short clothes into proper hijabi-style. That is cool as long as you don't forget: hijab first, cosplay second.

2 comments:

  1. Marvel have 2 other muslim girl superhero: Faiza Hussain (current Captain Brittain), and Monica Chang (SHIELD agent), although only Faiza wear hijab

    Creativity depends on someone's interpretation, so there are many things to inspiring hijabi cosplay

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi, T.
      Thank you for your insight. I've just recently found Faiza, and I didn't know about Monica. That's cool!

      Delete

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