FFXI Cosplay {Can I have it?}

Once again I'm going to be attending Anime Weekend Atlanta, from the 19th to the 21st. And once again, my Japanese studies have not progressed far enough. And once again, I don't have a costume.

Before I got into FFXI, I had planned to cosplay as Jet Black, from Cowboy Bebop. I had some ideas on the prosthetic arm and the rest of his duds. I was kicking around some facial hair ideas too. And then FFXI consumed me.

Yes, if at all possible, I intend to cosplay as my character. Yes, I know she's a chick, and a cat-chick at that. *NO*, I will NOT be going in RSE. I don't have the figure for that ^^ And besides, crossplaying is going to be weird enough for me as it is. (Please no flames - I have NO problem with cosplay, crossplay and/or furries. I'm just new to it IRL.)

No, my plan is to go in something similar to my current setup: Noble's Tunic + AF pants, feet and hands. Since I won't be cosplaying this year, I'll undoubtedly have different in-game gear next year, so my apparel selections may change to match.

As for the ears and tail I think I have some solid engineering ideas that I might try out. I also have some thoughts on the wig but I doubt I have the skill to pull that off. And my IRL clothcraft skills are nowhere near where they'd need to be to assemble all the armor pieces so I'll probably have to commision them.

The Light Staff should be easy enough and I've been kicking over some ideas on how to "holster" it on my back without having to fudge up the tunic. IOW, I want to be able to wear the staff and have easy access for wielding it, but if I want to ditch it altogether, I don't want anything showing on my back other than the tunic itself.

I've also had some thoughts on the pouch. I think it would be nifty to scale the staff head down a bit and make the "globe" detachable and have other element colors in the pouch. Couldn't be too many of course but maybe 2 would work.

Skin-wise, I have thoughts on that. I don't want to go with body paint/airbrushing for my arms since I don't want to mess up my outfit but I can't go bare-skinned either - I'm too white. I'm thinking velour gloves made of (or dyed) Mithran brown would give a nice effect and be easy enough to put on or take off. Facially though, it's gonna have to be makeup, for the overall tone, the stripes, and the black nose-tip.

Accessories would have to include the earrings, necklace and belt. Finger rings are a maybe, especially if I plan to doff the Healer's Mitts regularly. And speaking of the Mitts, mine would be cheaters: individually-fingered white gloves with a white elastic panel over the backs of the fingers for the mitt look.

I doubt I'll wear the AF "condom hat" because of the wig (also because I hate it), but a crown or pin might do. And the cape would be the last thing added to the ensemble, if at all. But it would be nice to have a good one.

The whole point of blogging all this is to have a starting point for requesting a commission. After I reread this a few times I might change up some of the pieces but once a final set is locked in, I'm going to start my research. And yes, I know this sort of thing is going to cost me a fortune. I am tempted to beef up my real-life sewing skills (currently languishing at 2.3, HA!) and/or borrow a sewing machine.

It doesn't help that my previous girlfriend (the one who introduced me to my wife) was a seamstress and made many of her own clothes and dresses. She even made a very nice prom dress. The idea of crafting stuff you can use is appealing to me, and other than cloth, I'd love to do wood (furniture) and metalwork (automotive).

For anyone who reads this, if you have cosplay experience or know anyone who can help me with this, please hook a Mithran up!