I really loved Vanille's design, in particular the richness of her ornaments and jewelry. It was technically demanding, especially for a beginner cosplay. It is one of the first costumes I made, and the whole project was a chance to learn a lot: sewing very different kinds of fabric, and dyeing them to get the right colors.
Final Fantasy XIII
Oerba Dia Vanille.
Hiding her sorrow behind a smile.
Jewelry
Every bead, one by one
To stay true to the original design, I shaped each bead by hand, one after the other. It was a long process, and in a way a meditative one.
Vanille taught me how to sew very different fabrics, and also how to do gradient dyeing on fabric, to match the colors as closely as possible to the original design.