Mineralblu produced this nice video celebrating the creative talents of cosplayers at New York's Comic-Con this year.

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Just in time for Halloween, this cosplay-adjacent dress inspired by the Haunted Mansion's Tightrope Girl (AKA "Ballerina and Alligator, AKA Parasol Girl, AKA Ally Gal, Sally Slater, Daisy De La Cruz, Lillian O'Malley), sold with matching cape and ribbon. It's part of the fabulous renaissance in Haunted Mansion merch, including this Haunted Mansion Ballroom dress. (via Welcome Foolish Mortals) Read the rest

Epic Nerd Camp is a 5-day summer camp for adults in Pennsylvania's Poconos Mountains that celebrates cosplay, LARPing, RPGs, Quidditch, escape rooms, swordplay, wizarding, and many other special interests popular among geeks. The Washington Post's Karen Heller paid a visit:

ENC was the brainchild of Kim Kjessler, 37, a former dolphin trainer, and her 26-year-old chef husband, Bentley. “I designed a camp that I wanted to go to,” she said in the Arts and Crafts shed, where campers created wizard staffs, leather apothecary cuffs and Edvard Munch-like portraits of a “Last Jedi” porg.

She was inspired by gaming gatherings such as BlizzCon, where she met Bentley five years ago. “I love conventions, but they’re not tailored to making friends. It’s hard to make friends as adults.” She wanted camp activities and camaraderie. A sort of Burning Nerd...

ENC promotes two overarching tenets: You’re free to be who you are, and this is a no-judgment zone. “If you’re looking for some nerds to troll/bully, ENC is not for you,” the camp website states. “We’ll boot you out and keep your money.”

Participants described middle and high school as an interminable hell. They had to become adults, and wait for the world to change, to gain acceptance, and find their tribe. Yet it can still be hard to fully unleash their inner geeky selves.

"‘Growing up, we were the weird ones’: The wizarding, mermaiding, cosplaying haven of Epic Nerd Camp" (Washington Post via NextDraft)

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This week Victorville, California police arrested a 14-year-old boy who dressed up in a sheriff's uniform, put emergency lights on his grandfather's car, and drove around "responding" to various crimes. After the real police pulled him over, they searched his room and found "counterfeit money, simulation firearms, ballistic vests and other law enforcement related items." No word on whether the youngster had cultivated cop speak. From the Merced Sun-Star:

Police also realized the teen had a busy night before he was pulled over: He had pulled over a woman in a fake traffic stop, and asked for her identification, police said. The teen let her off with a warning.

During a separate incident that day, the juvenile turned on his emergency lights, drawing a 16-year-old out of a home. The dressed-up teen told the 16-year-old he was responding to a domestic disturbance call. But when the imposter was told no one had made such a call, he left the scene, police said.

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After careful examination of several practically-identical products and a thorough delve into reader reviews, I can finally make my long-awaited recommendation for a strap-on unicorn horn: the YanJie Shiny (~$10, Amazon).

Aside from the critical rainbow model, it comes in various colors, is adjustable, and has the all-important strap so it doesn't come off your head when under extended or vigorous use.

It is five inches long, made of polyester, and a buck or two more expensive than the competition. For an item so important, though, it's worth splurging.

"I am an 'average sized' adult and I wore this for a party," writes D.T. "it fit perfectly."

"Using for cosplay and cosplay only," reports Queen of the Succubi. "It is legit enough."

"We love it, dog hates it," cautions Daniel. "What more can I say."

If you know of a superior shiny rainbow strap-on unicorn horn, tell us about it in the comments!

YanJie Shiny Unicorn Horn [Amazon]

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Tired: cosplaying the carpet at Dragoncon (even if you do get bonus points for attracting spurious copyright threats from the venue!); Wired: cosplaying the venue itself!. (via Neatorama) Read the rest

Jamie Kruger's 2016 Sexy Hallowe'en Costume Costume is a work of sheer. Fucking. Genius. (via Wil Wheaton) Read the rest

A ceiling, no doubt in league with the Devil, tried to steal a cross being borne by a fellow dressed as Jesus as he ascended an escalator. Spoiler alert - goodness prevailed.

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LilyPichu went to IndyPopCon with a melodica, then followed random cosplayers around while playing the songs from their game, film, or show. The different reactions are priceless. Read the rest

Magic Wheelchair is an organization that teams up with makers to build costumes for kids in wheelchairs. In this video, Adam Savage met with them to check out some cool Justice League-themed costumes. Read the rest

“My friend John Hodgman had never cosplayed before,” says Boing Boing pal Adam Savage, “So I invited him to walk the floor with me at Comic-Con as Chewbacca. (He's on the left.).”

Lordy, there are tapes. Read the rest

Samurai Age has created a line of samurai armor for kittehs and doggos, allowing them to show off their noble nature as honored warriors. Read the rest

A pizza dress and a taco gown by IMGUR-ian Avant Geek Art. Read the rest

Behold, “The Nicolas Cage suit.” Read the rest

Ian and Emily Pfaff took a couple of Little Tykes Cozy Coupes and turned them into the most awesome Mad Max-inspired vehicles this side of Fury Road. They even made little cosplay outfits for their two kids. Read the rest

Star Wars Celebration Orlando 2017 has come to a close. For my husband and me, both Celebration virgins, the event did not disappoint. Sure, there were ridiculously early mornings trying to get wristbands for key panels, crowds of jostling people, long lines and the fact that one can only humanly do a fraction of what is offered--but the things we got to see and experience were totally worth it. Read the rest

Melissa Ng wanted to make some cool armor, so she ignored all the guys who told her what women's armor is supposed to look like and spent 518 hours researching, designing and creating this masterpiece. Read the rest