Debut: Anime Central 2007

Notes: Errr....I couldn't help myself. When I first saw Fran's artwork, I loved it (this was about 3 years ago). I then came to a realization that I would never be able to make it, and lacked the skill, so I told myself no, and it would remain a dream. Years (literally) later I actually get my hands on a copy of FFXII. I fell in love with Fran all over again.

My skill level had definitely escalated by this time, so I decided to give the outfit a try. All of my armor pieces were hand crafted out of foamies. They were then coated several times with acrylic gloss medium, a goopy substance that made the foamies non-porous and shiny. Everything was then painted black. My favorite element of this costume is probably the helmet. I've never made such a complicated headpiece before, and I couldn't be more happy with it.

There are however 2 huge downsides to this costume. 1 being, it is incredibly uncomfortable. I can barely sit down, which is hard not to do when you're walking around in 5 inch heels. This costume also makes me ridiculously sweaty, particularly on my forearms and under my arms. Not to mention the super long nails make it hard to do ANYTHING. Secondly, I am fully aware that in all my pasty whiteness I am nowhere near Fran's beautiful olive/milato skin tone. All I can say is that I attempted to be tan the first time around with this costume, but the results were anything but perfect. The important thing is, I love Fran's character and her character design, which was the reason I cosplayed her- not because I looked just like her. I realize this is the neverending cosplay argument, but, that was my situation with this particular costume. At least I know now, no more tan characters for me! =P