When I started cosplaying I bought pre-made costumes and altered them, now I love making things from scratch...even with all of the blood, sweat, and tears.
To see yourself transformed into someone or something else is magical in a way that I can't describe.
Nude photos and art are powerful. Personally, I use them as a way of reclaiming power over my body. They have the capacity to evoke strong emotions which can really drive a message home. In my own creation, nude art contains messages of freedom, liberation, vulnerability, and self-acceptance. There is nothing more raw and real and that is what truly inspires. I feel this sense of inspiration boil over when witnessing individuals of varying shapes, sizes, genders, ethnicities, and sexualities showcasing their nude bodies and art. It is something so natural and beautiful after all, so why hide it? Many of us have had to overcome difficulties in our minds to find the courage to pose nude. It can be such a cathartic and sacred experience when you finally let go of the doubt and take the plunge. In my personal experience, it has been empowering. I would much rather teach people that nude bodies are nothing to be ashamed of than perpetuate the idea that we should hide them in shame. We define our beauty and worth, nobody else gets to do that for us!
My BEST advice? You are your worst critic. Learn to love yourself and it all falls into place from there. Do NOT listen to the catty drama in the modeling world. It’s never worth it and it only causes you to lose focus. And NEVER compare yourself or your work to others. You are not them, and you never will be. You are you. And nobody else can ever be you. You’re one of a kind and you’ll never be replaced. Live for that NOW!
So long as a person's body is out of harm's way, all bodies are beautiful.
EVERYBODY has their own idea of what is attractive and their own set of kinks. There will always be somebody who finds an individual attractive.
Just as such there will always be people who will have negative opinions about someone and their appearance. As long as you love yourself and the vessel that carries you, to hell with anybody else's opinion on you, good or bad.
Every body is beautiful.
My advice for a beginner cosplayer would be to just be yourself.
For most people, cosplay is a way to escape reality.
Just because you cosplay a certain character does not mean you have to act like that character.
When I cosplay I'm not worried about being too into character, I'm mostly in it to have fun. Which leads into my second piece of advice, have fun. Always have fun when you are doing anything, whether it is for cosplay or not.
Having fun, to me, is one of the more important parts of cosplaying.