Cosplay Build Book Tutorial
What is a cosplay build book and why do I need one?
A cosplay build book is a compilation of photos and information from when you where building said cosplay. You don't need one, however many craftsmanship contests ask you to have one. And will doc points for not having one. This book simply shows how you made things and some of the process; proof that you made what your showing off. Its also a good way to highlight skills and small things you did. These can be well written out pages, or types and printed out. Just as long as there's a folder or something with everything to flip through without pieces falling out. These are single side printed/written pages.
Keep in mind if you commissioned pieces for the costume you need to show who you commissioned them from. Don't take credit for things you didn't do. And check you contest rules to see what's allowed.
What do I need in my build book?
To break this down, i'll be putting the table of contents. Than explaining each section from there as needed.
Contents
- About the Cosplayer
- About the Character
- Materials
- Build Breakdown
- Complete Costume
- Close-ups
About the Cosplayer;
This section should only be a page long. This is a short brief of who you are. Introduce yourself with your name, just your first name is fine. Your cosplay handle, and how long you've been doing cosplay. If you have people who consistently help you, this is a good place to name drop them and what they do for you. This page needs to have any major contests you've won(ex: Calgary Comic Con Craftsmanship contest or other BIG con contests). Make sure you track when you won and what costume it was. Check with the contest your entering; some may not let you enter with a costume that's placed at other cons. Some may not let you enter with a costume you entered with a previous year, even if you didn't place.
Summary: One page, introduce yourself, and inform of any wins or people who help.
About the Character;
Exactly what the title says it is. A brief overview of the character your portraying. Make sure to put in a small summary of their personality as well as who they are and what their from. Write this as if you are explaining the character to someone who has never heard of it before, but is in a bit of a rush. On my Beast Boy Build Book from 2021, I wrote the following. "Beast Boy, sometimes known as BB, is a former member of the Doom Patrol. Now one of the five founding members of the Teen Titans. He exhibits a very care-free jokester attitude which often causes a great deal of trouble. He does have a strong sense of responsibility, though its rarely shown." I didn't add the source he is from as it's on the front of my book. Though I should have specified again I was taking from the 2003 animated Teen Titans show. On this page you also want your reference photos, and where those are from. One picture should do, though if there's small details that don't show on a main reference you may want to add them. If using fan art as a reference be sure to credit the artist. If using someone's original character be sure to ask for permission and show proof that their ok with it on this page as well. Don't clutter it with too many references however. More can be added to the pages correlating with the item/piece built.
Summary: One page, character name, source and brief view of personality. Some reference images.
Materials;
This will vary per costume. Often best used for sewing based costumes, you can place fabric swatches on here. That way if you've used a detailed fabric or used fabrics for texture the judges have it up close to see. This allows a quick reference to remind them of details of your costume. Don't list every material you used. Instead use this to highlight if you used any unique materials or if there i something special about what you used. Do you thrift all your material? Did you order custom printed material? Did you dye it yourself? This is the place to bring this to light. Keep it brief though. Remember the judges are cosplayers too. This book is to highlight your skills, not act as a tutorial. The amount needed for this will vary on each costume. Though I suggest trying to keep it short at 1-2 pages.
Summary: 1-2 pages, highlight cool materials or unique build process
Build Breakdown;
This is multiple sections that can all be explained under one. This is the area where you separate the pieces of your costume from building. Most books advise having a "Big Three". These are the parts of your costume you most want to highlight from building. Such as pieces you used a new skill for, or parts that your the most proud of. The "Big Three" can be less or more than three. Though I advise staying between 2-4 depending on how many parts your costume is broken down into. Usually your "Big Three" group will have tabs for easy flipping back to them, though that's optional.
Breaking down your costume into parts is simple. You can split is as whatever is separate pieces. So any props you made, the different layers of the costume, the wig, ext. Each piece will have its own page(s). On the page(s) per piece you will want to include what the part it. I personally add in the time it took per piece. A small run down of your process(If you drafted your own pattern or not. If there was any new skills used/learnt. Struggles and successes), and pictures of the process. Take copious amounts of pictures while building your costume. Its easier to have too many and only select a few, than not have enough and risk being disqualified from your contest. The rough idea of pictures you'll want varies on item and work. Below is the rough guide I follow.
Sewing Parts: If you drafted your own pattern have one of the process of drafting it(ex, if you use the duct tape methods snap a pic of yourself in the saran wrap tape mess), the rough draft build, half built, if you had an issue you overcame you can chose to put in a picture of before and after solving that, than any structure details(ie: hidden zippers). You will want close ups of finished details however those don't go into this section of the book.
Craft Based Parts(Props and such): Rough draft or pattern if you do that(or if you make mini's pictures of those), 2-5 progress pictures depending on difficulty of prop and amount of steps taken, finished prop, functional design piece(does it open? Does it light up? ext). Some of the functional pieces pictures will end up in a separate section with detailed close up pictures.
Wig Part: The base wig as you received it, half done, finished.
An optional thing you can add as well is if the piece/prop/ext. is important to the character. Just a mention of how they end up with it, or why its important. If your cosplaying from a source where there's different skins/weapons/etc.. Maybe explain why you picked the item/design you did. Was is a theme expansion? Is it the starting/strongest weapon? Is it important to where you are in the game? Did it belong to someone important to the character? Keep this brief, maybe two or three lines.
Summary: 1-2 pages per item, pictures of process, brief on build process, optional brief of piece importance, optional "Big Three" pieces.
Complete Costume;
This page is exactly what it sounds like. A briefing of your adventure making it, keep it to a few sentences. Pictures of you in the full costume(This is a good way to show what it should look like with full makeup if your attending cons where facemasks are needed the entire time), and I personally like to put how many hours where put into the costume over how many days/months.
Summary: 1 page, 1-3 full costume pics, brief input on build
Close-ups;
This section is where pictures from the completed parts can disappear to. This is where you highlight small things you wouldn't see unless you where right close up. Such as embroidery pieces, small details on props, if parts light up, etc. This section is to bring to light things that can be missed on a quick pass over, and even missed in pictures. Next to the pictures you can put small fun facts from the detail. Such as the timestamp of where it's shown in your source, or how many beads you sewed on. Fun little things. You'll want to highlight anywhere from 4-6 pieces, though you can go over this guideline if you feel you need to.
Summary: 1-2 pages, 4-6 pieces, picture based page
Final Summary
Your build book is a reflection of you and your costume. As long as it shows that you made the costume, and credits where is needed its perfect the way it is. You can chose to make it look matched to the character, or you can just print out pages. Some contests you don't get the book back, so its advised to make it printable. Try using google docs, or for a nicer design option possibly Canva. Always check your contest rules to see if you need to add anything specific. At some point I'll post pictures of my build books, and they'll be linked by character names both here and on the masterlist.
As always feel free to ask for clarification or other tutorials!
~Paxton
