Attending the Zhenjiang 920 Arknights Only Qianqiusui Anime convention marked my second time doing a Mizuki cosplay, and this time I managed to wear the hat. Since it didn't stay on well last time, I bought a massive variety of clips, including invisible hairpins I had never used before. This hat is notoriously difficult to secure—my makeup artist worked hard to reinforce it in the morning, but it loosened by noon. After tightening it again, it came loose when the event wrapped up in the afternoon, so I finally took it off in the evening. For me, as long as it stayed securely on my head during the day, it was a success—after all, walking around on field duty is tiring enough, and wearing it was my ultimate stubborn dedication to the styling.
I met many professional cosplayer creators at this Anime convention. I was particularly lucky to run into top creators like Mi Le and Da Xi Gua. As a dedicated fan of Mi Le—jokingly calling myself a 'first-year tenth-year fan'—seeing their looks in person was truly inspiring, and I immediately pulled them in for commemorative photos. The Doujin atmosphere at the event was vibrant, and I bought a huge pile of merchandise, just like everything covering the floor in Photo 2: badges, postcards, acrylic charms, shikishi art boards, and freebies distributed by creators, featuring a wonderful variety.
Taking photos together with other cosplayers felt genuinely rewarding; everyone was super friendly and eager to exchange tips on wig styling and makeup techniques. Even though the weather was somewhat overcast, the outdoor photo sets unexpectedly captured a great mood. Posing with the spark-effect prop brought the on-site atmosphere to its peak.
After returning home, I hand-washed this cosplay costume separately and ended up with a basin full of reddish-black tinted water. I couldn't help teasing about SanFenWangXiang's fabric bleeding issues at the time, but overall the tailoring of this outfit is quite good—the designs of the sleeves and collar are very distinct with great structural silhouettes, which is fantastic. Washing costumes is quite a chore, but it's a necessary step to keep them preserved for longer.
I don't have any further plans for Mizuki cosplay this year and plan to refocus on other projects. The next events on my radar are the Shanghai Code: PRTS and Sui Ru Chang He during the National Day holiday, and the outfits are already being prepared. An Anime convention is certainly physically demanding, but whenever I see a polished look and satisfying photos, it all feels completely worthwhile. I'll continue refining my styling for the next project—after all, that transformative process of looking in the mirror after makeup and seeing yourself become the character is what remains most captivating.