Tayrex Cosplay Interview

How did you get involved in cosplay?

I got involved in cosplay accidentally, actually. Just after my high school graduation, my friend Megan asked me to go to a photoshoot with her at a local gathering spot because she knew I was in to nerdy stuff as well. So, I went with her and I looked around, saw all of these nerds and was like “….yup. I like this!”

Who was your first character and why did you choose them?

My first character was Bill S. Preston esquire from Bill and Ted. I chose him because I was on this weird 80s-90s movies kick and it just felt right haha.

What do you LOVE about cosplay?

I love most of the people I meet. I love the art of taking flat materials and turning them into clothing and armor. I love being around people with a common interest, and I love sharing my creations with the world.

Tell us two things that annoy you about cosplay?

One thing that annoys me about cosplay is when everyone seems to have an opinion about what cosplay “is” and what cosplay “isn’t, then they aggressively and often times rudely try to tell someone else how their costume doesn’t fit the highly subjective mold around what cosplay “is” or “isn’t”. It’s also annoying how much drama can exist in a community that should just be about building each other up and not constantly trying to destroy one another. Like, didn’t we as nerdy-folk deal with enough bullying growing up? Why do we have to bring it into the world of dressing up as fandoms?

What’s been your hardest cosplay so far?

Every costume I make I learn something new, so oftentimes, my larger builds feel like the hardest until I do another large build. I would say that my Demon Hunter Charizard was probably the most difficult as far as patience and perseverance goes though.

Tell us about your Starfire cosplay and what made you choose this Princess?

I don’t think I will ever do self applied full body coverage body paint again. It ended up frustratingly blotchy after only a few minutes and it was just too much to keep track of while also trying to avoid being sprayed by the water….at the water park….that I chose to do full body paint at….But I chose Starfire because my friends Kiki Aran, Danielle Denicola and Danisaurz and myself wanted to do a Teen Titans group and the personalities all just seemed to fall into place!

What about your perfect Princess Zelda cosplay?

First of all, thank you!! Second of all: Legend of Zelda has always been my most favorite video game, particularly Ocarina of Time. I told myself when I got started in cosplay that one day I would do a Princess Zelda costume when I finally had the skills to do her justice. Luckily, I met my friend Bre (@bobbinweavecostumes) and she had all of the sewing skills to compliment my armor building skills and we collaborated to create something I’m really really proud of.

What’s been your favourite photoshoot?

My favorite photoshoot so far would have to beeee…Any of the photos of me in my Business Fish costume. Mostly because it was so silly and ridiculous that I got to just go over the top with the way I posed my body, and I didn’t have to worry about what my face looked like since it was in a gigantic fish head hahaha. It was great! The funniest part about that costume was that even though my face was covered, I was still posing my face even though I literally could have been doing anything in there!

Funniest?

The funniest was my Macho Man Randy Savage shoot with Kevinertia and Kiki Aran. While Kevin was taking the pictures, Kiki was literally raining slim jims upon me, tossing them onto my body, dropping them into frame and every now and then she would sneakily eat them. I also poured a coffee creamer into my mouth for the photo, which was surprisingly not too disgusting, but definitely behind the scenes shenanigans with that one.

Who do you hope to cosplay in 2017 and beyond?

I have about 5 costumes I am working on right now, hoping to have finished by the end of 2017. Some of those are silly like Yzma from Emperors New Groove, some are bigger and more thematic like a female Predator. I try to keep my focus on only 5-10 costumes at a time so I don’t get too incredibly overwhelmed though.

If you had unlimited money and time, which character would you create and why?

This is a tough question, because the truthful answer is I would make a s**t ton of costumes instead of trying to focus in on one. But I suppose if I had unlimited time and money I would really love to make a super legit t-rex costume, or something really big and robotic like that….Or I would just use my unlimited money to have someone else build it for me so me and my dog could run around in a t-rex car.

What’s the coolest thing you own?

I don’t like to think of it as ownership, more of a companionship, but I would say my dog Ollivander. He’s definitely the coolest thing that always lives in my house. If you mean possession-wise, I guess it would be a house. I’m finalizing all of the paperwork and signing the contracts, and I think it’s pretty cool to be like “This is my house. I live here. I poop here.”

Geekiest?

You’re asking a person with a closet full of anime costumes what the geekiest thing they own is? Hahaha, oh boy… This is a tough one to answer…I have a small but mighty collection of pop-figurines and anime statues of various anime villains and characters who I love. Usually my non-convention friend group comes over and holds up my Piccolo statue and goes “…really?”

Who are some other cosplayers that you look up to?

I really love Kamui Cosplay. I feel like she has remained consistent in her growth while simultaneously allowing the rest of the cosplay world into her secrets for how she creates her masterpieces. It’s really amazing when someone is willing to share what they know rather than try to ferret their information away like a dragons hoard of cosplay knowledge.

Have you ever combined all your hobbies into one?

Yes indeed! Yoga isn’t exactly a hobby since it’s what I teach for a living, but I am currently working on pushing out my video series of yoga classes for nerds/beginners/people who don’t want to go to an actual physical class. I teach beginners level yoga classes on Twitch 1-2 times a week right now as I work out what schedule works best for people, and I’m hoping it continues to take off and grow!

Lastly, if you could have one super power what would it be and why?

Teleportation with the ability to take others with me. I would choose this because I love to travel and I have friends all over the world who I don’t get to see enough because of timing or financial reasons, so it would be great to be able to just go to Europe for the day just because, or to go rock climbing in South Africa because I didn’t feel like going to the gym that day…typing that out makes me sad I don’t have the power of teleportation, actually.

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