September 2018 Costume Writeup: Maid Magilou

What they're from Tales of Berseria (Video Game)
Variation Maid DLC
Created June 2017
Debuted Maple Gel Con 2017
Also worn Otakon 2017
Groups Niho from Trimeriad Cosplay as Eizen
Wig Arda Wig: Chibi in Dark Ash Blonde (CL-052) & Arda Long Ponytail in Dark Ash Blonde (CL-052).

This wig was actually bought in 2015 in anticipation of making Driselle from Tales of Xillia. Since I hadn't continued those plans, I repurposed it. Using only the existing Chibi and Ponytail, I harvested enough wig fiber to make the hair buns and bang extension.

I had already done a double-bun build for Milla's maid DLC, so I went into this pretty confidently with 6" styrofoam balls. I shaved out the center and stubbed the ponytails, then went straight to harvesting wefts for the hair buns. Before gluing any fibers to the styrofoam, I covered the styrofoam with felt in a brownish blondish color. The rest is patience, wrapping, and hot glue. I think if I had to do it again, I'd plan a longer build and do silicone caulk instead, simply because the little webs hot glue leaves are a pain to clean up. For the bangs, I glued in some pipe cleaners in the closest possible color to the wig, then glued and sprayed the heck out of it. I might actually be proudest of this part of the wig despite the difficulty level of the hair buns!
Special Makeup N/A
Patterns I used the same sloper from the bodice of Velvet's anniversary dress for the upper portion, then went online to use the calculator for the circle skirt.

I made the bodice with sew-through boning that went up all the way up, as my bust isn't the proportion I wanted it to be for that outfit. It functions like a binder/corset, so I have to be careful about wear time, but I'm incredibly pleased with the result.

Another important part of the build was the tail. It attaches via elastic and loop rigging in the inside back of the dress and is anchored to a detachable belt that sits immediately under the apron. Another person is necessary during the dressing process to accomplish this.

Niho helped with the ruffles and tail during the time crunch.

What went wrong:
The tail was a last-minute "I THINK WE CAN DO IT" and honestly hurts my back to wear. I need a different system.

What went right:
The shoes were super painless! I'm also very proud of the overall build given that I was using leftover fabric and crunching for time. The wig the wig the wig the wiiiiig.

What I'd do differently:
Do y'all even know I've forgotten to wear my ears every single time I've worn this?? Please remind me next time! I also never did finish those garters, which is a shame, but honestly a minor detail. I would make the skirt just a little bit shorter. I'd also use iron-on vinyl instead of heat n bond for the detail on the front of the apron, but that's only because I now have vinyl that matches that color gold. Lastly, I'd make the tail fabric something sturdier so the stuffing looks less... turdier.

Would I wear it again?

You bet! I actually love making and wearing maid outfits. There's something so satisfying about clean lines and predictable colors.

Why I chose this character

I always knew I was going to make a variation of Magilou to cosplay and this one seemed the easiest to me. I still want to do her Japon DLC outfit! Magilou's character reflects aspects of surviving trauma that I don't personally go through, but I could recognize it as being trauma early on. I really do adore her. I'm also psyched that she's an adult woman with a pear-shaped body. Her proportions are actually much closer to my own than other characters I cosplay.

Any other anecdotes?:

Niho was a huge help when it came to the tail, even bending the wire and stuffing it. We were pretty tired and there was a moment when she was stuffing the tail where she turned to me and said, "IT LOOKS LIKE LITTLE POOPS... LITTLE POOPS IN AN INTESTINE" and to this day, we still laugh about it. She was right, though. I still want to enhance that tail.

Photo by me.

Check out Magilou's gallery | Return to the Costume Writeups Home Page