Hello everyone and welcome back to Nerdy Shique Universe! Well, the summer convention has started again for Orlando! Yay! You know what that means! New cosplay advice posts! As promised, this will start with Naruto! Naruto, well Shippuden, has been going through a lot of story and about to end but the cosplay still goes on! No matter how long it will go but a lot of people are still fans. I know back on Blogger I did a post about the Akatsuki and knowing readers want things on Naruto, so here it is and may talk more about the Akatsuki since there are things needed to be added! Let’s get started!

Make Up Effects: This is really important for the cosplay world since a lot of costumes tend to deal with different make up effects, such as zombies, monsters, and so many others but Naruto has it too! The type of make up you can use may include the usual drugstore products that I tend to get or maybe some due’s sister or girlfriend because there are some good products that I will be mentioning down below, even with the girls in Naruto do have the beauty aspect of this, including Haku despite bbeing a guy still here’s the products I do recommend!

Maybelline 24 Hour Color Tattoo shadows: Reason why is that this product stays on! Trust me, I have one in the metallics line and boy does it melt into your skin after drying! This product is best when you’re doing eye shadowing for characters that need it, such as Kankuro and won’t melt off! A friend of our’s did cosplay as Kankuro and his make up almost melted due to glomps but this item is the best for that. You can also use these as eyeliners! Why? Because they glide on smoothly and will stay on pretty well, especially for any Kurenai cosplayers that need to have the purple lines. Tips with these, make sure you have a strong make up remover or baby wipes to get this stuff off and while working, after applying on both eyes adjust while working on one eye at a time! This stuff can get everywhere on the eye since you have to use your fingers or can use brushes to apply, especially pencil brushes for the liner version, so it won’t dry after applying both eyes, just do it after doing one eye and then the other so it would be easier to get off. And clean brushes wisely.

Pen liners: If you don’t like the idea of using the Color Tattoos for liners, pen liners are a wise idea to use because they are easier and provide a nice line, especially when being Itachi from the Katsuki or any other character that needs liner. The two pens I would suggest are the Maybelline Master Precise pen and the Wet N Wild liner pen. If you need color, I would have to say the liquid liners and gel liners from Maybelline’s Master Drama collection and L’Oreal’s gel liner collection as well. And I do suggest Wet N Wild’s liquid liners since they are easier to apply and don’t smear as much. A newsflash, tend to carry these in a make up bag or travel bathroom case because you may need to reapply if you are staying on hotel grounds, plus carry extras! People tend to lose things and the liquid liners and pencil brushes are the first to go, well the brushes since I did lose my Maybelline one but still had the L’Oreal! Make sure to stop by any brush section in your local drugstore to pick up these brushes, even Target carries a wide selection!

Nail polish: This is very important because you tend to have a lot of Akatsuki cosplayers and they tend to use markers for the polish effects but of course, ink is bad for you! Not sure what would be the averse effects for nails with Sharpies but using nail polish is your safest bet! Follow the Haku cosplayers because they use teal nail polish for that costume. I know a lot of nail polishes tend to come sparkly and metallic but there are flat polishes and that is what you need for Haku and the Akatsuki. I know for one thing Tsunade also takes on the red manicure herself, so what do I suggest?

Flower Cosmetics: Ms. Barrymore has flat colors that come in her nail polish line! One of them, which I have and may work for Tsunade is Budding Romance, a deep red color with no sparkle or metallic sheen. You may find some ruby colors for Pain, an orange for Konen, and lucky with Haku. Plus it doesn’t cost much, it is around the same price at WalMart with the line I will be talking about next!

L’Oreal: Why? They do have a lot of flat colors and this is where I got my polishes for Itachi. Yes, polishes, at first I used 550 After Hours when we thought it was Twilight Blue that he was wearing, but found out it was a very, deep gray almost black and now will be using Shine of Midnight. You can probably find other colors that go with the other Akatsuki and other characters you may be doing that need a manicure.

Sinful Colors: A good portion of the colors may be sparkly but there are a few colors you can find and one special color would be for anyone doing Deidara and the color is Rainstorm. It is a deep blue green color and it does deal with his ring.

Other possible candidates: Revlon and Wet N Wild because I tend to buy their nail polishes almost everytime and they tend to have flat colors in their lines Also, added note, a friend suggested Sally Beauty Supply, if you live in an area that has one but if not, try your local beauty supply store, because they also carry wide ranges of nail polish brands! Same with one store known as Alta since they would carry drugstore products besides the high end brands.. So watch out!

Costume Make Up: As in the stuff you find at Party City and other party/Halloween stores! You have the special cases in make up work in the Akatsuki and of course Gaara, Kankuro, and other people! But the hardest make up work would be for Zetsu and Hidan due to how Kishimoto drew them and it will take a lot of work to do! My advice, make sure you buy extra tubes for their work because you may have to use a lot of black and white and these make up tubes don’t cost much, around $1 or $2 depending where you go. With Gaara on the other hand, I did hear Sally Beauty Supply and CVS might sell it, liquid latex! You don’t want to shave off your eyebrows because you have to pencil them on after the convention and it tends to be tricky due to the browbone shape! Trust me, seen it before on Ambush Makeover years ago when a woman shaved her brows off for no reason and had to get them penciled in for her makeover! Back to Gaara, liquid latex will help because it covers the eyebrows and give off a skin look. I think it sells in certain skin tones but make sure it is pale since you may have to paint your face white for that. And of course, for his tattoo, I would say get red tattoo pencils since they might be still around, if not there is still the face paint.

Tip to do this make up: WAKE UP EARLY! And don’t forget to shower, because con funk is bad mmmkay? Why wake up early? These applications may take a long time depending which character you choose. Zetsu and Hidan will take the most work and so will Kankuro. So, if you are doing it all three days, wake up early, or just do it for one.

Forgot to mention! Zombies! If you kept up with the manga and played Ultimate Ninja Storm 3, you know characters came back as zombies but they are actually unique. As in Kishimoto made his zombies in the Eto Tensei have cracks in their armor and face and their solaras black! The contacts will be hard to wear for this but when I do Itachi zombie form if Yuri Lowenthal appears in Orlando or lucky enough for Metro, I would not ear contacts since I can’t see! Anyways, the cracks for the face should be used with the black costume make up or if bold enough, use the eyeliner pen and to add more detail, Maybelline came out with a liquid, double end eyeliner that you can use the thin and thick tips to include that detailing. Man, Face Off would be proud!

Parts: My parts section that deals with the costume portion itself! People already know that they can get the costume portions online, at conventions, and even at thrift stores and army supply stores since now it is at the Great Ninja war part where everyone wears uniforms close to Kakashi’s. But what are some costumes that need special detailing? Here goes!

Zetsu’s Venus Fly Trap Head Piece: If you seen the earlier episodes or played the games, you know Zetsu has a mega venus fly trap on top of his head! We heard that someone did do the costume but had a hard time getting inside doors with the head piece on at MegaCon. And our friend Tobi did say a girl did carry the piece and put it on for pictures, which is pretty good of an idea. But how to make it? I would suggest if you know someone who makes plushies make a plushie hat for this. It may be costly but most costumes and props are, but this will save time in trying to use paper mache or wood or anything else. Hat making is usually easy since you need to measure the person’s head and the fabric can be lightweight or heavy, depending on the finished product. I would say that if you or a friend that chooses Zetsu as their Akatsuki member, start looking around! Plus, pitch in for helping getting fabric and other materials because plush materials aren’t cheap by the yard, depending if the place has sales, which I recommend. Even look for coupons on top of that!

Patches: By Shippuden the patchwork has become more detailed and a bit bigger, How so? Well, not only Naruto and Sakura have new patches on their clothes but you have the kages to deal with. Plus if you have to do patchwork for any of the Akatsuki or Jonin, and so on, there are times you can only get the patches for the Jonin online. Of course they would carry the Akatsuki symbols and probably other characters but they tend to be small and you need to go by scale. I suggest getting felt! It’s cheap and easy to work with and best for making patches that are detailed. Not only that, it will be easier to work with the scale of what you need to do. Like the big circle on the bback of Sakura’s top in Shippuden as an example. If you need to go bigger, you may need to go with several yards of the plush material if necessary. I know with Sage Naruto it may need the plush material since that costume may take a long time to do.

Sandals: They are the iconic ninja shoes of the Naruto world. Even though some of the girls do wear a pair of sandal heels but the ninja snadlas are the most well worn type of shoes around the series! I even have a pair still and will be using them for Itachi again and if I can get it together, Kurenai and also Anko. These sandals can be found at conventions at the cosplay stands if you can find them. Yeah, sadly with some conventions according to the guys behind Florida Anime Experience, they mentioned during Friday’s opening ceremonies that conventions nowadays are focusing on the American animation aspect versus the Japanese animation aspect. Try seeing a lot of My Friendship is Magic cosplayers around! Anyways, you can probably find these online too but need to make sure your shoe size matches the range of the size of the sandals you’re getting. The two size ranges are kids and adults! But the adult sizes tend to reach to 12. What happens if you don’t fit? Well, you can make them or have a cosplay maker you know make them for you! It’s easy for this, you need cloth or socks, in navy or black, and you can use either snaps or zippers and heavy cardboard or whatever material your friend will find. Or at least old sandal bottoms that you can find around the house. Or tear up flip flops! What my fiance did for his, he cut up his old Converse high tops and used duct tape and socks to make the sandals. Plus he used the toe part to protect his toes along the way, trust me there are a lot of things that can fall or you might run into.

Leggings: There are two types of leggings and they are the fish nets and the sock type stirrup leggings. The ones I used for Anri, the stirrups, I am also using for Itachi. How can you get these? Hot Topic! They are known for carrying a lot of leggings online and in store! The good thing is they are one size fits all! And a great thing about them is that if they don’t have it in store they do have an in-store order kiosk where you can pay for the item with your credit or debit card, also swipe your HT +1 card to get your points, and pay a buck extra for delivery and it will take two days for it to arrive!

Gloves: You can also go to Hot Topic for these but there are times when you have to get them custom made, especially with metal attachments. If you know someone who does metal work, it will be your safest bet. There are also times when going online for the glove accessories can help since there are crafters around Ebay and a sight where I got one of my shirts from Aardvark and that is Etsie. Great thing about Etsie, you can use Paypal on there. Make sure you do detailed searches for the website since there are times when you can’t find what you are looking for.

Well, that is about it! I didn’t want to go into too much detail with everything because I did mention the Square Enix Akatsuki rings you can find online and at conventions back on Blogger, also the hats, the headbands are no brainers since you can still find them, but make sure you know someone who has a lot of knowledge of the series to know which village is which with the symbols. (A vendor sold a friend of mine the wrong Akatsuki headband for Pain.) So, that’s it! I only covered the parts that needed to be focused on and hard to do. If you need questionms on what I didn’t cover and have trouble with, please ask below! I never get comments and would love to hear from you, don’t be shy!

Well, next time, I have a major collective haul again and the next cosplay advice, I will try and get it up before Metro or AFO and MythiCon (in case anyone else is going to AFO), I will be doing my Soul Eater advice post again since I have new ideas, characters, and so on! Until next time!