Interview:
Cosplayer and Designer Daisy Viktoria

Alltern8.com recently had an opportunity to have a chat with cosplayer and fashion designer Daisy Viktoria. In the interview below, she discusses how she got into cosplay, the process of becoming a professional costumer, and much more.

Alltern8: How did you first get into costuming, and how long have you been doing it?

Daisy Viktoria: I grew up in a family of historical re-enactors. As a child, Victorian fashion was the first fashion I knew. My parents supported my huge imagination and my dress-up habits, and I wore my Victorian clothing and my princess costumes as often as possible. I was obsessed with faeries and mermaids, and I always loved to dress up as fairytale characters.

I made my first historical costume when I was still in elementary school, and I played around with small creative projects throughout my childhood. Around the time I started college, I began to take my hobby more seriously, putting more effort into my research and striving to improve my construction methods and my level of detail and design. My friends introduced me to anime conventions, and that has also had significant influence in my costuming development over the past several years. Being an enthusiastic gamer, I was so excited about the opportunity to dress up as my favorite characters, and I have been an active cosplayer for about 7 years. I also joined the SCA (Society for Creative Anachronism) in college. Within the SCA, I have explored so many more historical periods, and I have met so many people who have pointed me toward resources that have helped bring my historical costuming to another level. Costuming has been one constant hobby throughout my life.

Alltern8: At what point did you go from being a costumer for fun, to being in the costuming business professionally?

DV: It has been a long transition, but this year has really been the turning point. I started taking commissions about 7 years ago, as a way to earn some extra money during college. I went to school for chemical engineering, and that had to take priority. My classes became very demanding, and I no longer had time to hold down a part-time job, so commissions provided quick income when I could find the time for them. There was also the benefit of having a fun sewing project when I had insufficient funds for my own costume.

However, throughout my engineering studies, there was always a huge part of me that wanted to pursue costuming and fashion, and my hobby continued to grow. I made bigger and better costumes and took on more commissions. Now, I am about to graduate with my master’s degree, and I have timed everything so that my professional take-off should coincide with my graduation. This year, I have made many new garments and started to bring my collection to life, and since February I have participated in several fashion shows with more to come! I have been working on several big costuming projects involving historical and fantasy themes, and I am also currently working on two feature films. This is definitely my year.