Top 5 Curvy Cosplayers

While I want to support being healthy, I also support the concept of body positivity. I think that taking your health seriously is a personal journey and it's about learning how to embrace who you are at every step along the way, not just the finish line. I don't think being thin makes you who you are. I think taking action to improve your life will show you who you are and that sometimes that can result in becoming a more fit person. 

One of the things that helped me embrace myself and see myself for all the things I could potentially be (rather than all the things I'd never live up to) was cosplay. Becoming Appa made me believe I was confident enough to show off a costume I'd made without feeling like I wasn't able to embody the character. Training to become Rainbow Dash for PAX East taught me that I loved running. Creating my Dragon Age costume has been a celebration of getting my body to a place where I am believable as one of my favorite characters who I find incredibly empowering and badass. Each costume has helped me become more of who I am through taking on elements of other characters that I'm not sure I can live up to!

When I first started cosplaying, I was terrified because of the prevalence of this kind of behavior:

Alexandra Dal

This week, I saw an article about a girl who posted a picture of herself portraying Lara Croft from Tomb Raider on Halloween. It was a character she loved and she went out with her friends on Halloween and took pictures like we all do. She posted the picture to facebook and as the internet is known to do, it got hold of the photo and it went viral with the caption "Fridge Raider." On the surface, even she found it funny, but what the internet did to the image ultimately went from trolls having their fun to viscous bullying and body shaming. People wrote responses telling her to kill herself. They weren't just having a casual giggle. They tore her APART. 

It makes me want to cry because this girl is braver than I will EVER be. She was self assured and she wanted to be Lara Croft. She didn't care that she didn't have "the right" body type (something I still agonize about before each and every costume I make). She went out there and she enjoyed herself. Her reward? Ridicule from a pack of anonymous "dickwolves" who vilified her for having the audacity to go out with her friends and dress up for a night of fun on Halloween. 

Cosplay should be fun for everyone. It's about using your crafting hobbies to express how much you love something. It's not about how hot you are or how many interviews you get (though that stuff certainly has it's place in the "pro-cosplay" world). For most people, cosplay is about being a part of something and finding other people who love that same thing. 

That being said, that article made me want to point you guys in the direction of some ladies who are taking the world of cosplay by storm while rocking their curves and their craftsmanship. I want to celebrate them both for having the confidence I didn't have when I started this journey and for standing out from the crowd with their excellent designs and craft skills. Without further ado, here are my top 5 curvy cosplayers! Hopefully they will inspire you to get your feet wet no matter what size you are!

1. Darkspawnhorror 

She has a bunch of pictures on tumblr of her work, but I came across her "Marian Hawke" cosplay when I was looking for some empowering photos of Dragon Age cosplay to help me get inspired to work on Tallis. She looks like she's having a blast in every photo and what's more, you can see she has an eye for detail. Check out her guantlet and all the leatherwork. With an attitude like that, I just have to believe she must have chosen every snarky remark for her playthrough of DA II. 

2. Ivy Doomkitty

As an L.A. based cosplayer, Ivy rocks her curves in every costume from Star Trek to Elektra. I love her redesign of Dr. Doom. She's rocking the corset to create an amazing silhouette and it's a really creative repurposing of a male character for the female form. She rocks the sexy all the time and is probably more confident in her body than I will ever be! You can like her on Facebook to see more of her work. 

3. Lady Annika "Magneto" Cosplay

What I like about Lady Annika is that she's short and she doesn't necessarily have the hourglass form that some of these other ladies have. Yet, there's something amazing about the creative way she redesigns male costumes for her body. My favorites are her Nightwing and her very recent Walking Deadpool. She makes really awesome armor and the SFX make-up on her Deadpool is great. Go like her on Facebook to check out more of her work. 

4. Becky Young

Becky was on Heroes of Cosplay and while she's not as obviously curvy as some of the other ladies on this list, she admitted to struggling with her weight and being self conscious about looking good in her costumes while on the show. Watching her get cinched into her Merida costume and seeing her tough it out on the treadmill reminded me of all the other struggles that go on in the cosplay world OUTSIDE of simply making the costume. Her Pinkie Pie costume stood out to me long ago, even though I didn't know who she was at the time. She was just so bubbly and fun looking! If anypony is going to have a little meat on them, it would be the one who lives above the cake shop and loves to party! She embodied the character perfectly in every image I've seen. I also love that she is constantly working to improve her craftsmanship and I admire her the most out of all the ladies on that show. She was just the most "real" to me. I hope you'll check out her work on Facebook and give her some support, whether you were a fan of the show or not. 

5. Bellechere

The QUEEN of CURVES is Bellechere. My. God. If you are not following her work on Facebook, then you should be! I would venture to say she's probably the most successful curvaceous cosplayer out there. She is a confident sexy craftswoman who loves taking on superheroes. Her Captain Marvel is epic. Her Power Girl is epic. Everything is flawless and just because she's curvy doesn't mean she's afraid to show her fair share of skin. Check out her Goblin Queen costume if you're wondering what I'm talking about. I adore her. I'm always excited to see what she's going to do next. 

Those are my top five. There are probably more out there that I'm missing and I'd love to hear about them. If you know someone I missed, please feel free to add links to your favorites in the comments! 

Top 5 Cramp Cures

This was me almost every night after a run when I first started. Every night in bed, when I would straighten out my leg to stretch or roll over, BAM. The worst charlie horses the world has known descended upon me to break my slumber. It wasn't just once or twice, it was every time. Even when I got on my knees to clean under my bed, I got an unpleasant attack. As soon as the top of my foot was pressed against the floor, there it was; the most twisted, gnarled foot/calf cramp in the land.

The issue was completely brutal. I began to think, who could be behind these CLEARLY evil shenanigans. WHY WHO OTHER than the owner of a terrifying death whinny and apparent purveyor of non-stop crampitude?!

BAD HORSE.

This appeared as a moral dilemma, cause at first it was weird, though I swore to eliminate the worst of the cramps that devoured my sanity. It's true I was vague on the how, so how can it be that you have shown me the light? It's a brand new day, and the sun is high, and the cramps are sayin' that I'm gonna die. First I hesitated. Now I wonder why. It's a brand new day.

See what I did there? At first I thought, "This is my body adjusting to my new running regimen," but when the problem didn't go away, I decided to do something about it. I assumed the mantle of NURSE TERRIBLE and began to look for cures. Following my research, I assembled this list of 5 things/products that have given me some comfort and have definitely helped me reduce this issue significantly. I'm not sure I've eliminated Bad Horse and the Evil League of Evil, but I'm pretty sure I've chased them into hiding.

...For now. MWAHAHAHAHAHA... AHAH HA HA, HUH HA! ...So that's, you know. Coming along.

Without further ado, here's the list of my top five cramp cures;

1. Drink Water: One of the most common causes of cramps is dehydration! Make sure you're getting at least 64 oz of water per day.
2. Potassium: A potassium deficiency is one of the leading causes of the common cramp. After a hard workout, I've started eating a banana after I get home and shower. It's delicious and it not only helps with cramps but they're said to alleviate muscle soreness overall. Diet wise, they are very sugary, so I don't recommend chowing down on them non-stop, but one a day or even every other day can be very good for you. 
3. Mineral Ice: Bad Horse might actually know about this one, so keep it on the D.L.! I got this recommendation from a friend who rides horses. Apparently this is a product that's used for our equine friends (or NEMESES), but is just as useful for us. You can slather this on your legs after a run and then leave it on for about half an hour to get some relief. I will say that this stuff is pretty greasy so make sure you use saran wrap or you'll get it all over everything as you go about your business. I was doubtful since this is something you do for horses, but it did actually provide some relief despite being a bit of a mess.
4. Icy Hot: You can easily pick this up at any drug store. I prefer the non-greasy balm and stick approach. I like to keep the stick in my purse in case I need some on-the-go relief.
5. Yoga: It's important to stretch and some nice Hatha yoga will often do the trick. Focus on deepening all the stretches as much as you can and breathing into the areas that seem tight. Take your time. It might not have a huge affect right away when it comes to cramp reduction (it's not like I'm going to get out of bed and start doing a sun salutation every time Bad Horse comes to call!), but it's a very good habit to adopt into your workout routine and will help keep your calves from seizing up quite so much.

If I missed your favorite cramp cure, then please feel free to add it in the comments!