Star War Celebration 2019 Cosplay Contest

The Contest

At my very first Celebration, one of the most impressive events I attended was the Cosplay Contest. I was amazed at the effort that went into each costume. I wondered if this year’s contest could live up to that one? Well, the Star War Celebration 2019 Cosplay Contest did not disappoint.

Due to my palindromic rheumatism flaring during the convention, I didn’t try to get to the stage and take pictures.

Instead, I choose to sit in the ADA section, relax, and take the best photos I could from that section. Some are straight photos and some are photos of what was projected on the TV screens.

The organizers of the contest broke up the cosplay contest into different sections: needlework, armor, special effects, mashups, and kids.

Needlework

This category’s costumes were breathtaking. Whether it was done by hand or by sewing machines, these cosplays took lots of time and attention to detail to make work. The best word I can use to describe them was exquisite.

Haelstorm Designs‘ Queen Amidala was stunning in its accuracy. Not only was her needlework perfect, so was her makeup and hair. In other words, yassssssss Queen!

Lau Skypainter entered her Ahsoka Tano cosplay. Headpiece and makeup were flawless. The cloak was exquisite, and her outfit was full of small details that the cloak could have easily covered if she was pressed for time. Again, simply amazing.

Frankiesarus cosplayed as our favorite villain, Asajj Ventress. Her helmet and outfit were on point and her hair and makeup were straight out of Christie Goldie’s Dark Disciple.

Jeneyre’s Padme Amidala took home the prize in the needlework category. Her dress was amazing but I think it’s the perfection of her shawl that put her over the top.

Vorantares’ Scavenger Rey captured the spirit of the character. Having watched The Force Awakens just a week prior, I couldn’t find anything that didn’t belong.

Mannequin Femme Cosplay did bounty hunter Aurra Sing from the Clone Wars. Again, this was just a perfect representation of that character and quite a transformation for the cosplayer.

Amelia Marie dressed as Padme Amidala from Attack of the Clones. Again, it was a near replica of the film’s dress.

Armor

The armor category has changed a lot in the last decade. 3D printers allow for more accuracy for less money. Still, a lot of handiwork has to go into these outfits (it’s a requirement of the cosplay contest).

The entrants into this category were:

• Marishika as Squad Leader Shoretrooper
• Frank as Ronin Samurai Jango Fett
• Cykick as K2S0 (her first cosplay!)
• Andcosplay was Enfys Nest
• Shining Polaris as Captain Phasma

Frank’s Ronin Samurai Jango Fett took the top prize in this area.

Special Effects

These cosplays are truly jaw-dropping. These costumes have that something extra whether it be hydraulics, custom masks, rotating parts, etc. These costumes required days of work. Each was amazing in it’s own wayy.

The particpants in this category were:

• Lucky Justin McQueede as Loader Droid MC-219
• Malia as Madewu Serelek
• Marietta Ivonova as
  Darth Plagueis
• Lisa Mei Ling Fon as Bantha
• Kai as Keesha
• Darth Plagueisis the Wise as DArth Plaguesis (Hey, I’m just going off the title cards!)

Lucky Justin McQueede won this competition and the overall cosplay!

Mashup

Mashup requires cosplayers to create a new costume from a Star Wars costume and one from another fandom.

Paricipants include:

• LadyDragon Creations made a great Sith Maleficent
• Grinning Geek did a an amazing Elizabethan Leia
• Lego Fett did Lego Boba Fett
• There was also a sailor moon but I didn’t catch that cosplayers name!

Grinning Geek won this competition

The Kids

Man, the kids are alright.

While, these costumes were cute beyond belief, they also provided the cosplayers and parents hours of quality time. My mind is racing with ideas to do with our little one especially if we do it as a family.

Since these contests are kids, I will be not sharing their names, but here are some pictures of their amazing cosplays.

Verdict

As you can see, the Star Wars Celebration Cosplay Contest was a great one. The creativity that goes into these outfits never ceases to amaze us. Considering that most of these people have day jobs, their accomplishments are even more awe inspiring.

The passion these cosplayers have for their craft is evident. What is even more amazing, we saw a few that didn’t enter the contest that were just as good!