Every month we pick two cosplayers and feature them on Geeks With Wives as our Cosplayers of the Month! Check back every second and fourth Monday to see who we are featuring that week!
This week, we decided to let you get to know one of our own better while she works on her profile for “The Geeks”! Meet Victoria, better known in the cosplay world as Nightmare Vixen!
Harley Quinn (Batman)
Where does “Nightmare Vixen” come from?
My cosplay name came into existence way before I even was cosplaying. As most people know, my real name is Victoria. When I was younger, I really liked the letters “V” and “X”. I wanted to find a cool online name I could go by when I went on forums and chat sites to roleplay. So, “Vixen” came into play. Back then, I was also super obsessed with vampires and their lore, so I was known as “Vampyr Vixen”. Around when I was 13, I changed the name to “Nightmare Vixen” to represent my life-long (and I mean life-long) obsession with “The Nightmare Before Christmas”.
How old are you and how long have you been cosplaying?
I am 22 years old and have been cosplaying at conventions since 2010.
What is your favorite cosplay to date that you’ve done?
My favorite would have to be Big Sister from a video game series known as BioShock. The reason being is that she was my first “from the ground up” cosplay. Meaning, all hand made. It was tedious and amazing. She took a group of four people (including myself) to build. There was my Dad, my friend Julia, and my friend Matt (https://www.facebook.com/bodypaintbynumbers). She took around two months with 16-hour days. A lot of blood, sweat, tears, and smiles were shed over her. Even though I have retired this cosplay, I would LOVE to put her on a mannequin and display her in my future home.
Are there any cosplays you’re working on right now or you want to do this year?
Right now, I am working on a She-Spawn from the artwork of Todd McFarlane. I’m not entirely sure if I’ll be able to get her done in time, but I’m hoping to have her done by late August. If I had the time (and money), I would TOTALLY love to do a Demon Hunter from Diablo 3, Wonder Woman, or join up with a group cosplay.
Big Sister (BioShock 2)
You participated in episode one of “Heroes of Cosplay”. What was it like and what are your feelings towards the show?
I had the best time! The crew from SyFy was super nice and was very apologetic for how much of the con this was taking away from us. It was a really time-hungry project, but I never minded it. I was in Big Sister, so it was nice to sit down for a couple hours. We were also given water bottles to make sure that no one was getting dehydrated while waiting and everyone in the audience was super respectful to each other. Yaya Han is one of the NICEST people you will ever meet. Even though I didn’t win a prize, she took time after the show to tell me I was amazing! That was such a great feeling.
As for my feelings for the show: I’ll keep it simple. I think this was a great representation of how the career side of cosplay is. Not the fun side. Not the side that involves you and your friends running around and hugging everyone or honking your horns in a Homestuck group. This is the brutal and stressful world of making a living with cosplay.
What conventions can people expect to see you at this year?
This year, I plan on attending Kumoricon (Vancouver, WA) for sure. Other than that, I hope to be able to hang out at Newcon (Portland, OR). Unfortunately, due to my last job, I was not able to attend Emerald City Comic Con (Seattle, WA) as planned and will not be attending Sakuracon (Seattle, WA) due to the fact that I have just moved.
What does “cosplay” mean to you?
Cosplay means expression to me. Clear as that. It means that you love and admire something so much that you are willing to spend money on it so that you can dress up from that world and show it to other people. To me, it means acceptance. That you are willing to put yourself out there in the hopes of finding someone who adores your fandom as well and accepts you as a friend. For some people, cosplay and conventions are they only place that they feel safe and can come out of their shells. In short, cosplay is amazing and everyone should be able to experience it in a loving and respectful environment.
Female Riddler (Batman)
Do you plan on making a career out of cosplay?
At one point, I would have. Now, after experiencing multiple years of stress and struggle with the craft, I wouldn’t. I want cosplay to be something that I run to when my life is being too hectic. I want it to be my release from stress. I am way too afraid that if I made this into a career, I would end up hating it.
What is one of your most memorable convention moments?
Since I’ve already talked about “Heroes of Cosplay”, I think the next one would be when I first cosplayed my version of Harley Quinn. Since Harley is such an iconic character, I didn’t know how people were going to take my version of her. It’s always hard to tell how an audience is going to react to a version of a beloved character that is just made up. I was hanging out with a friend that I hadn’t seen since the convention before and he had to go pick something up from the staff room. I waited in there and was super nervous since these were the people responsible for the con itself. All of a sudden, one piped up and told me that I looked amazing and that in the seven years of them attending the con, I was their favorite Harley Quinn. I immediately had a new bounce in my step and it lasted that entire weekend.
Is there any advice you would want to give to someone who is just starting?I actually wrote an article for Geeks With Wives filled with my personal advice to those getting into cosplay! Keep in mind, it’s all based on my opinion, which may differ from other people in the cosplay universe: http://geekswithwives.com/so-you-wanna-be-a-cosplayer/
If you would like to follow Nightmare Vixen’s work, you can find her on:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NightmareVix
Twitter: @NightmareVixen
All Photos By: Tom Good (https://www.flickr.com/photos/tomgood/)
If you would like to be featured in future “Cosplayers of the Month” or know someone who should be, please email Victoria@GeeksWithWives.com!