Cosplaying (costume play) is when you dress up as a character from a movie, book, video game, or anime. Throughout the world, cosplayers and people of similar interests go to conventions like Comic-Con, Anime Expo, WonderCon, BlizzCon, and Dragon Con to show off their costumes, attend panels, buy fun merch, and have fun socializing and exploring. Whether you’re new to cosplaying, a cosplay veteran, or somewhere in between, cosplaying is a fun way of connecting to strangers who enjoy (probably obsess over) the same things you do. It’s like Halloween, but more than once a year.

Jessica Gerlofs first began cosplaying four years ago when saw other people doing it. Her first cosplay was Rin Kagamine from Vocaloid. From then on, she has spent good money and lots of hours creating everything she has now.

“I have one completed cosplay,  and countless started ones. I honestly don’t know how many wigs I have, so let’s say a lot,” Gerlofs, junior, said. Like many, she attends Comic-Con with them, wears them for Halloween, and sometimes even just wears them to the mall or

downtown. She is currently working on a costume for a Renaissance fair as well as Mercy’s normal skin and Ana’s Ghoul skin from Overwatch, but that’ll take a while.

Then, there always comes a time in a costume’s life when it gets too old, torn, over-worn, or outgrown and it’s close to seeing the end of it’s days. “I’ll probably just sell them or keep them as memories. If the piece isn’t quality, I’d just reuse the fabric from it,” said Gerlofs. While some people might sell them, other’s probably will be wearing them to their own funeral.