Every year for Halloween people want to pick out the best costumes to wear, whether it’s showing off their fun side or it’s a character from a horror movie or TV show. Some find the costumes they want in stores and others decide to make their own.

There are so many cosplayers out there that have dedicated their lives to doing this and entering contests at comic cons and so on. Halloween is approaching fast. Perhaps this year is your year to go with a DIY Halloween costume.

23-year-old Naomi MC –who has been making a name for herself in the cosplay world with her signature Harley Quinn look– has been making her own costumes for quite some time. She is a huge fan of Harley Quinn.

“She was the first cosplay I went really far for.” Naomi MC said. I did do a lot with the Michelle Pfeiffer version of Catwoman, but Harley will always be dear to me…”

She uses a lot of supplies when she really gets into a cosplay. “Because my cosplays always have been the fabric kind, I always make sure I have a whole pack of sewing needles in every size in a small tin Batman box that I keep. The best thing you can do then is to cut the thread and carefully get the thread out. I say carefully because I ruined lots of fabrics because of this. Do NOT force it out, because you will rip the fabric.”

One day, Naomi hopes to make a Wonder Woman costume. The types of supplies she has bought range from EVA foam, Worbla and heat guns. “How I’d build the armor for Wonder Woman, you’d make a pattern with transparent kitchen foil and tape. When you foil yourself up make sure you have room to move, as cosplaying should be comfortable, and be careful when you cut yourself out. Tip, don’t do this by yourself!”

“Once you have the pattern, cut out the shape on the foam.” Naomi continued. She likes to use a very sharp knife as this makes nice straight lines. To cut things out, she also suggests buying a green cutting board. They are specially made for getting straight lines.

“I like to take a ruler and hold it on the foam and use the guidelines to cut straight. Once you have your shapes you want them to have the shape of your body. Heat the foam up and then you can start molding it to your body” said Naomi.

She instructed to be careful when using a heat gun since it gets pretty hot fast. When working with Worbla, everything needs to be done fast and carefully. Once it gets warm, it’ll be like a ‘’leaf of paper’’ so it needs to be done fast to get the right shapes.

Naomi also says that having ‘contact cement’ is essential for making costumes. When finishing with foam, “Don’t immediately paint your foam. This will result in the paint not sticking to the foam. Always use a transparent primer! There are many different ones, from a colored primer to a spray primer. Then you can start finishing your cosplay with your paint.”

Naomi has some advice for people who want to make their own costumes, “have fun! Cosplay should be a way of escaping your reality. It should always be fun. Another piece of advice: just do it. There are no limits to your imagination and there is NO bad cosplay. Don’t let others tell you that!”

It’s mid-semester, halloween is a few days away, instead of buying something expensive, take some of these tips to design your own costume!