On Closet Cosplay and Hetalia

While I´m not a fan of "closet cosplay", I must admit that sometimes this sort of costume comes in handy.

For those of you unfamiliar with the term, a "closet cosplay" is any cosplay that can (and is) made out of items that you can pull out of your closet or wardrobe and put on. No modification or sewing is needed, just an eye for coordination and a brain capable of computing and generalizing.

This kind of cosplay can lead to attempts such as this one:

 Sorry, you´re cute, but......two pigtails and a Death Note do not make a Misa-Misa cosplay....you need something more in-character and similar to what she´d wear, at least...

On the other hand, it can also lead to attempts like this one:

In which the color of the vest might be off, and his formal outfit not worn, but the general look of the character and what he´d wear is pretty much spot-on.

Why mention this kind of cosplay? Well, I´ll probably embark on my own casual closet cosplay soon. With exams coming up, and having had to cancel (probably) one of my December cosplays.....I want to dedicate what little time I have to Thor.

Yet, I have been invited to a casual Hetalia Invasion of IKEA in two weeks...I have no time to make anything decent, and no wish to spend time doing so. I still want to meet people (new people!!), and I still want to wear something nice if I can, so I´ve submitted (pending approval by the Hetalia group coordinator) my idea:

The idea is cosplaying Female England, Gakuen version (the blondie to the right). This is apparently from "Nyotalia".......a genderbending of the Hetalia characters.....go figure.....I´ve only watched the first season of Hetalia, frankly.....I might pick up where I left off, though. I´m fascinated by genderbending.

So, I have the tartan short skirt; I have a white shirt, I have the wig, I have the hair clips, I have the beige-ish v-neck sweater.....I even have school-issue shoes and a red neckbow (which I might substitute for a red or black tie.....as I´ve seen in other images of her). If needed, I even have a black blazer (it´s apparently a part of the uniform, though it doesn´t appear here). I´m only missing the black socks (I only have a pair of  navy blue and a pair of white  kneesocks), which is easily remedied going to the cornerstore.

I could technically go with either a tie or a bow, or a black v-neck (which I also have) instead of a beige one....As well as a solid red skirt (which I don´t have--lucky there´s a tartan uniform version!).






So, that is a closet cosplay. I literally have everything I need for this character, without having to buy anything--after all, I could probably use the navy blue socks if I wanted to. The tartan might be slightly different, or the beige lighter than in the pictures.....but it´ll still be recognizable as the character.

I think that that´s what´s especially important with closet cosplays. Since it´s something you get out of your wardrobe and supposedly don´t modify, it´s natural that it´s not exactly the same as what the character is wearing in its series. What´s important, really, is that it´s similar or it´s something within the style of what that character would actually wear. Insomuch as an animated character can pick what to wear, of course.

What do you think? Do you like or dislike this kind of cosplay?