Game of Thrones
Cersei Lannister
Lena Headey as Cersei Lannister
I'll be honest: Cersei is not one of my favourite characters in Game of Thrones, and she's not a character that I had ever considered cosplaying... until I was asked to model her dress for Simplicity at Costume-Con 32, and I discovered a burning need to wear that dress again. This costume was made just for fun, not as a competition piece or to be Super Accurate to the show.
Side note: intent does not always match results and I did end up competing in Cersei at the most prestigious masquerade I had access to. Oops?
My dress was made using Simplicity pattern #1487 designed by Andrea Schewe, and because initially I had a only a week to sew (between NFCC and Shelle-Chii's Game of Thrones birthday at Medieval Times), I mostly stuck to the pattern as written. I changed the trim on the neckline and the shape of the sleeves, just because they were the parts which were simplest to change while sewing and would be the most difficult to change if I wanted more screen-accuracy after it was complete. Material-wise, I was fortunate to find appropriate fabrics entirely from the clearance section of my local Fabricland (main fabrics from the drapery department and sleeve lining from fashion).
The front panel of the belt (version 1.0) was an experiment in combining metallic pleather, hot glue, and my zipper foot. The results are far from perfect, and much sloppier than my usual standard, but I think that it ended up being effective. That having been said, the velcro was terrible at keeping it closed, so in 2017 I decided to make a new one instead of trying to fix the original. Belt 2.0 features metallic mesh, Worbla plates, and a lace-up closure in the back.
The finishing touch for the costume is all the embroidery... given the options of trying to find an off-the-shelf applique which was appropriate or hand-embroidering everything, I chose neither and decided to paint the embroidered sections instead. Not nearly as impressive as actual hand-embroidery, of course, but I really didn't want to put in that kind of time and effort for a "hall costume". It was still very time-consuming to paint on individual stitches though, so you'll be able to tell the chronological order of each photo based on the amount of "embroidery" completed!
Progress photos of the faux embroidery process are available here and entire evolution of the costume is available here.
The wig I used is a lace-front "Matilda" from Arda Wigs, and while it's lovely, I was never happy with its accuracy while hanging down (I hadn't bought it with Cersei in mind). In 2016 I re-styled it into one of the up-do's from the show and I'm so, so, so much happier with it now.
Current status: semi-retired
Side note: intent does not always match results and I did end up competing in Cersei at the most prestigious masquerade I had access to. Oops?
My dress was made using Simplicity pattern #1487 designed by Andrea Schewe, and because initially I had a only a week to sew (between NFCC and Shelle-Chii's Game of Thrones birthday at Medieval Times), I mostly stuck to the pattern as written. I changed the trim on the neckline and the shape of the sleeves, just because they were the parts which were simplest to change while sewing and would be the most difficult to change if I wanted more screen-accuracy after it was complete. Material-wise, I was fortunate to find appropriate fabrics entirely from the clearance section of my local Fabricland (main fabrics from the drapery department and sleeve lining from fashion).
The front panel of the belt (version 1.0) was an experiment in combining metallic pleather, hot glue, and my zipper foot. The results are far from perfect, and much sloppier than my usual standard, but I think that it ended up being effective. That having been said, the velcro was terrible at keeping it closed, so in 2017 I decided to make a new one instead of trying to fix the original. Belt 2.0 features metallic mesh, Worbla plates, and a lace-up closure in the back.
The finishing touch for the costume is all the embroidery... given the options of trying to find an off-the-shelf applique which was appropriate or hand-embroidering everything, I chose neither and decided to paint the embroidered sections instead. Not nearly as impressive as actual hand-embroidery, of course, but I really didn't want to put in that kind of time and effort for a "hall costume". It was still very time-consuming to paint on individual stitches though, so you'll be able to tell the chronological order of each photo based on the amount of "embroidery" completed!
Progress photos of the faux embroidery process are available here and entire evolution of the costume is available here.
The wig I used is a lace-front "Matilda" from Arda Wigs, and while it's lovely, I was never happy with its accuracy while hanging down (I hadn't bought it with Cersei in mind). In 2016 I re-styled it into one of the up-do's from the show and I'm so, so, so much happier with it now.
Current status: semi-retired
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Set the World on Wildfire I was very nervous about entering Cersei at the Costume Con masquerade, because I didn't have a solid idea for my stage presentation component (I didn't think that my workmanship was "Master-Level" so I wanted to make up for it with a "Master-Level" stage concept). Luckily, with some practice getting the timing right and wise choice of music I at least came up with something that the judges liked... and hearing laughs from the audience as soon as Bowie started was such a relief - knowing that the lyrical punchline was going to work! |
Events:
2015 Medieval Times, Centre Island Picnic, Otakuthon, Forest City ComiCon
2016 G-Anime, Toronto Comicon, Game of Thrones Trivia Night
2017 Costume-Con 35, Canadian Toy Con (July), Fan Expo Canada
2018 Milton Culture Days
2023 Oxford Renaissance Festival, Halloween
Awards:
Honorable Mention for Fabric Painting (Master, Workmanship), Best Future Arsonist (Master, Stage) - Costume-Con 35
2015 Medieval Times, Centre Island Picnic, Otakuthon, Forest City ComiCon
2016 G-Anime, Toronto Comicon, Game of Thrones Trivia Night
2017 Costume-Con 35, Canadian Toy Con (July), Fan Expo Canada
2018 Milton Culture Days
2023 Oxford Renaissance Festival, Halloween
Awards:
Honorable Mention for Fabric Painting (Master, Workmanship), Best Future Arsonist (Master, Stage) - Costume-Con 35
Each photo in the gallery is labeled with its respective photographer; please visit their websites!
Alex Rose Photography
Dream Land Photography
Elemental Photography and Design
Everage Studios
Michelle Flannigan Photography
Paul Hillier Photography
SleepyMeow Photography
Very Frank Pictures
All photos are property of their respective owners and may not be used without permission.
Alex Rose Photography
Dream Land Photography
Elemental Photography and Design
Everage Studios
Michelle Flannigan Photography
Paul Hillier Photography
SleepyMeow Photography
Very Frank Pictures
All photos are property of their respective owners and may not be used without permission.
