New Cosplayer - Help Me!!!

[Otaku_Heather]

Hey guys! FanimeCon 2008 was my first convention and this year I would really love to do some awesome cosplay. The problem is that I dont know what to do. Any suggestions?

Here is a picture of me from last year in my VERY short notice costume:
http://i623.photobucket.com/albums/tt317/otaku_heather/FanimeCon2008.jpg

I look about the same still except my hair is longer. Oh, btw I am only 5'.

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

[bahamutknightzero]

Well you shouldn't really let looks prevent you from choosing who to cosplay.

An easy way to figure things out is to go as one of your favorite characters. Another option is in the case that you're really new to cosplay is to go as someone with a not too hard to construct costume.

These are only suggestions/ideas/options, so I would say go with whichever method you discover that would be the best for you.

[Roguethe]

If you give me a list of Anime/Manga you like, it would be easier to help.

[Otaku_Heather]

I havent seen a lot of anime, but I really liked Ouran HS Host Club, The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzimiya, Trigun and Naruto.

I hope that helps.

:D

[EeveeGirl101]

I think you would make a good Haruhi Suzumiya~! If you can make the uniform in that picture, making sailor fuku shouldn't be so hard, right?

[Kitty_Ubel]

I think you would make a good Haruhi Suzumiya~! If you can make the uniform in that picture, making sailor fuku shouldn't be so hard, right?

Haruhi is a real popular character and I think you would be great to play her.  And it is not real hard to do sailor fuku. Most of the time you can get the shirt from a thrift shop and some patterns from a local fabric or craft store.

[WrentheFaceless]

Yea I'd have to agree youd look good as Haruhi and its pretty easy to pull off.  Or maybe Hinata from naruto or meryl from Trigun

[Roguethe]

Alright, well for 5' tall those have some good choices ^^
Like Eevee said, I think you'd make a good Haruhi. But I wouldn't recomment the sailor fuku outfit if you want to upgrade and be awesome in cosplay this year. Because you'd just be lost in a sea of other sailor fuku Haruhi's.
I'd recommend going as the Battle Ship Captain Haruhi.
It still fits your looks as Haruhi, but is more likely to be a rare sight at the convention.
And you won't have to worry about people not noticing who your supposed to be. (That's generally a worry of people who cosplay optional character outfits) Being as she never removed her yellow headband/bows.
Here is a ref if your not sure which outfit I mean.

(3rd to the right, aswell as other Haruhi outfits.)
Haruhi's a good starter for lots of reasons.
She's a very popular character, so you can find her accesories (Head band, arm band, etc.) Online and in abundance.
She has very distinctive movements and poses, so figuring out a pose for when people ask for a pic will be very simple.
Unlike some Anime characters, she has many outifts, so choosing one ranging from very simple to more complex is possible based off your cosplay comfort level.
Also, her hair is a common natural color, so no need for a wig! (And beleive me, wigs can be easy to mess up on if you don't know what to look for when buying.)

[Jun-Watarase]

All the anime you've listed are popular enough to the extent that any basic cosplay from the series are available for purchase in online stores. Like others have said, Haruhi would probably be the easiest to do. Just pick one you like and cosplay it. The point of cosplay is to show your love for a character you adore, and have fun "being" them, thus "costume play". If you're cosplaying someone just because you resemble them, but don't particularly adore them, then it defeats the purpose.

As for it being a concern that there are others cosplaying the same thing... honestly, all of those series listed are extremely popular, especially in The States. Pretty much every character from all of those have been cosplayed, all of which the main characters have a ton of other people cosplaying them. Again, do the cosplay because you love the character.