Getting Measured for Costumes

The art (and activity) of cosplay demands that one be measured for the costumes that are about to be worn. This applies for any kind of costume, including the ones I have for Pokémon cosplay. Being that I've cosplayed for almost nine years now, I've been through the measurement process more times than I can remember. However, while the process itself may be easy, the results may be complicated, and that's what I would like to deal with in this post.

Most of the time, the measurements for my costumes have been appropriate. A good sign that this is so is that for those costumes, I've been able to wear them with no major problems ever since the time they were created. Even my fourth-generation (DP) costume that was created nine years ago still fits me this day, which indicates good measurements by the tailor, and perhaps to a lesser extent, good maintenance of my own body for the most part. I would have to keep up the latter, and to praise the former. In either case, I'm glad that they are so.

In some isolated cases, though, some measurements have been off, and that resulted in costume parts with somewhat undesirable fits. A few pants for my costumes fit a little loosely at my waist, and thus they cannot take to be worn without a belt; this is no problem for active cosplay as the pants can be tightened with a belt, but for "casual" cosplay, this may not work as well (I'm actually of the sans-a-belt type of person). Meanwhile, there are also some articles of clothing that were meant to fit tight but after development became a bit too tight, and understandably more so over time. These will have to be fixed somehow to ensure continued usage of the costumes in question.

Since most (human) Pokémon characters have typical human attires, I can go with (and do prefer) slightly loose-fitting clothing. Even so, for characters that have tight or seemingly tight clothing, I would prefer that for my cosplay purposes that they are measured slightly more loose. Apart from the fact that I actually don't like clothes that fit tightly in normal wear - yes, I do consider cosplay as "normal" - I do prefer a greater "wiggle room" in case the unexpected happens, like the current situation that has forced cosplay events to take a backseat. That, and I expect that my costumes to last for as long as possible, since I intend to use them intermittently.

If there is anything that the above demonstrates, it is that taking measurements is important for cosplay as it is for fashion in general, for which cosplay is partially that. The right measurements will likely lead to a costume that one can wear happily, comfortably, and even extensively. The wrong measurements will likely lead to discomfort and/or displeasure sooner if not later. I'm sure that I as a Pokémon cosplayer as well as those involved with different aspects of cosplay will make sure to heed this aspect in different ways as necessary.

One year ago: Faults in Some Stars

Two years ago: Pokédex Texts and Information

Three years ago: A Song for the Lonely, et Cetera

Four years ago: My Path Through the Main Series