Cosplaying at Katsucon 2025 with Dessi-Desu
Every year in February, anime fans gather at Katsucon for a convention weekend of celebrating the art form known as anime. For those who are new to the world of anime conventions, it is where fans get together to celebrate anime in a number of ways. You can attend panels, view animated shows in screening rooms, meet your favorite voice actors or artists, explore the vendor hall and artist alley, and of course, cosplay. You are not required to cosplay at an anime convention, but it is one of the ways that myself and many others enjoy attending a convention.
Photography by: Focus Button
Selecting and Planning My New Cosplay
Each year before Katsucon, I plan a new costume months in advance and steadily build it so that I’m ready to wear it for the big weekend. For this year, I chose to create my own design inspired by Yui, a dragon priestess from the classic anime Fushigi Yuugi. Last year, I challenged myself to create a cosplay project with machine embroidered details and felt inspired to try something new with digitizing and embroidery for this project. For my Yui design, I wanted to do some work with colored threads in combination with gold metallic thread. I drew up a sketch and envisioned a design with flowing sleeves trimmed in dragon scales and a dragon that wraps around the dress.
Finding Embroidery Inspiration
My next step was to figure out how to create some gradated shading in embroidery form like I drew in my design. One of the things that I think is important to remember when learning about digitizing and machine embroidery is that information can be gleaned from designs that come included with your machine. Don’t be afraid to run some designs on your machine and pay attention to how the files are set up. I actually drew inspiration from a ginkgo leaf file included on the bernette 79 Yaya Han Edition for figuring out how to set up my scales and dragon files. I was really inspired by the layered color blending on this design.
Digitizing and Embroidering My Dragon Scales
For my dragon scales, I ended up using the textured edge tool in the BERNINA Creator 9 Software to create a gradated effect between two colors. Once my files were digitized, I then stitched them out on my BERNINA 535 E using the Mega Hoop and water soluble stabilizer. For a tutorial to learn more about how I used the textured edge tool to create my dragon scales, you can check it out here!
I also used the textured edge tool on the dragon’s body. You can see below how I used the textured edge tool to create shading on the face, fur, and the scales on the actual dragon.
Packing Costumes for Katsucon
Once my costume was complete, it was time to pack for Katsucon and head to the convention. Cosplayers often bring multiple costumes to wear on each day of the con. Two of my costumes I brought in addition to Yui may look familiar. I brought my Sailor Cosmos that I made on my bernette 79 Yaya Han edition and my Cinderella that I completed on my BERNINA 535 E. I also packed my Howliday Draculaura. I love re-wearing costumes to conventions because of how hard I work on each of them. Each wear is an opportunity to improve it or to have another chance to enjoy wearing the costume. I encourage other cosplayers to also have this perspective with their costumes, despite the pressures we may feel from social media.
Cosplaying Yui
Saturday was the day I wore Yui. I wore her with my friends, who also each made their own costumes for our Fushigi Yuugi priestess group. In sequential order Breathlessaire_designs as Miaka, myself as Yui, Hsc_Abby as Suzuno, and Wolfsbanesky as Takiko.
Photography by: Focus Button
There are multiple ways you can enjoy cosplay at a con, including social cosplay with friends, entering a cosplay contest, and also having your work documented with a photoshoot. Our group booked a photoshoot in advance with Amie Photos, who directed each of us and helped with our posing for each photo. I really love the collaborative experience between the cosplayer and photographer. Creating another piece of art through the medium of photography, using a sewn work of art you created, is one of my favorite parts of cosplay. You can check out some behind-the-scenes footage scenes and the final result below. Thank you so much to photography assistants, Qilincreations and Lunatiquerose Cosplay, for helping with gown arranging and cape tosses.
Afterwards, we explored the convention until it was time to grab some lunch. While exploring, we chatted with friends, admired the creations of fellow cosplayers, and connected with fellow fans of the Fushigi Yuugi series. Getting to chat with fans about a series is one of the most rewarding parts of cosplay. Fushigi Yuugi is a nostalgic series in the anime community for those of us who discovered anime in the 2000s, so it was really fun connecting with everyone who recognized the characters we were cosplaying.
Photography by: Charles Lan Photography
On Sunday, it was time to pack up and head home. I explored the Artist Alley and Dealer Hall and socialized with friends before leaving the convention. Until next year, Katsucon! Thank you so much for following along on this cosplay build. I hope it gives you some ideas for your own projects or even inspires you to give cosplay a try. To see what else I am up to, you can follow me on Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook!
