Atsusacon 2012!
Atsusacon Stuff! xD uploaded by one_writer_girl on Flickr.Right. So. You've probably never heard of it, b-but Atsusacon happened a while ago? x'D
It's the one and only anime/manga convention that takes place in Antwerp & even though I'd heard it wasn't very spectacular last year... I couldn't help wanting to check it out? See for myself, you know? That is, until I found out tickets were €10! WTF? I missed out on the pre-sale tickets - those were €8? - but even THAT is a lot of money for a small and unknown convention without any guests. For example, F.A.C.T.S. tickets are also €10 and you get a discount if you show up in costume. Sorry, Atsusacon, b-but that price is ridiculous. ^^;
So... I decided not to go? B-but, then I remembered madmodesty would be selling her awesome art there, and, well, €10 is a small price to pay to hang out with her for a while! =')
Anyway, I headed over to 't Bouwcentrum (AKA ANTWERP EXPO!) ridiculously late. It must've been 2PM? I got dressed in a hurry and left the house without even knowing for sure which tram I had to take to get there. *grin!*
BUT IT WAS WORTH IT. SORT OF. I GUESS.
I do have to be brutally honest, though: the convention was kind of pathetically small. There were only a few merchants & artists there - which was a bit disappointing? I did appreciate the fact that for once all of the manga/anime was in English and Dutch rather than 100% French, though! That was very nice... I mean, I found Natsume's Book Of Friends vol. 12 there! I would never have been able to find that at a convention in Brussels where 90% of all the merchandise is in French and the sellers don't understand a word of what I'm trying to say to them. ^^;; (I ain't judging. My French is horrible. I'm just saying: A CONVENTION IN ANTWERP WHERE PEOPLE SPEAK FLEMISH IS NIIIIIIICE.)
They also seemed to have a pretty good assortment of obscure!fandom merchandise? I've never seen that much Natsume Yuujinchou at a convention before! They had a good mix of One Piece popular & less-known-fandoms, IMO. When I first walked into the hall I thought, "OH GOD. THIS IS SO TINY. BOOOORING." b-but I ended up being very pleased with my - admittedly small! x'D - loot?
The atmosphere was very nice, too! It wasn't as crowded as other conventions so I managed to look at all the shops without getting elbowed or pushed around by people - it was very relaxing! Although, if you were a vendor... it was a little too quiet. ^^;
Anyway, ready for the pictures? There's quite a few more than you'd expect! :O! madmodesty needed someone to keep her company & help out at her booth so I stole her extra merchant pass went back on the 15th! I had such a great time hanging out with her! It was nice just spending time at a convention without the added pressure of "COSPLAY PICTURES = GOTTA CATCH 'M ALL!!" because, ahahaha, all the great cosplayers walked right by madmodesty's booth! It made it super easy to get a few nice shots! ;)
Starting out by showing off my loot! =)
I got Natsume's Book of Friends vol. 12 for €9, the Nyanko-sensei plushie for €8 and the adorable uchiwa for €6! I call that A VERY GOOD DAY! :'D
The lovely madmodesty & meeee! :D
The fabric + irregular braid hairstyle is pretty popular right now! The girl across from madmodesty's booth was selling the mimi-headbands so madmodesty went over to buy one & I showed her how it's done. Afterwards, the girl selling the headbands also wanted to know how to do it so I explained it again...! =')
In case YOU want to know how to do it, too: Bubzbeauty has an awesome tutorial! It's ridiculously easy and it looks good on both medium length hair and long hair! Even ridiculously long hair like mine? PLUS IT KEEPS IT FROM GETTING TANGLED. WIN WIN WIN. :D :D :D (... no, I'm not getting paid to advertise either Bubz - who is my idol! - or the mimi-headbands, haha.)
I'm 99% certain this is Chihayafuru cosplay - despite the Nyanko-sensei plushie?? Correct me if I'm wrong! It'd be kind of funny if it was completely accidental Kanade-chan! O.o;
I love Chihayafuru! One day, I'm cosplaying Chihaya... I just need to get myself a hakama first! :D
IEEEEEEEEH! ♥____♥!
SHION. IT'S SHION OMG. :D :D :D
I got all embarrassingly awkward & stutter-y when I asked for a picture... and it only got worse when Shion - SHION!!! - told me there was also a Nezumi cosplayer around. *laughs!*
Cute Lolita with Eiffel towers on her dress! :D
The lovely lady who was responsible for the Kimono display & Hasselt's Japanese Garden booth? I think, anyway. x'D She was super friendly - & I was so happy to see someone doing it RIGHT! - and said I'd definitely see her around in the future! Yay!
It wasn't until I got home that I realised the yukata she's wearing is the same one they used for the Kimono Workshop at the Japanese Garden in Hasselt's 20th Anniversary Celebration. (... woah, what a sentence. MY APOLOGIES. BRAIN IS TIRED. x.X)
LOOK AT THAT PERFECT MUSUBI. :D
Obligatory Bathroom Picture. Sorry, guys. ^^;
Kuroko No Basket!! :O
Awesome cosplay is awesome??
NEZUMI! Gah, I finally found Nezumi! x'D
I totally embarrassed myself again by asking for a picture & then realising I left my camera at madmodesty's booth. URGH. I AM AN IDIOT.
B-but, I did get my picture in the end? I really hope I didn't bother them too much, ahahahaah.
Misa! I'm not a big fan of most Misa cosplay because of reasons, b-but I thought this girl was adorable. =)
You can see the seller with the mimi-headband behind her, haha.
I also ran into that ex-classmate I keep running into? Seriously, I keep seeing him everywhere! Once, I ran into him three times in one week. One time was at Krëfel when we went to buy a washing machine. The other at a book fair. It's a small world. O__o
Chopper for sogep as usual! xD
The adorable Sara from Fluff 'n Tuff! She's one of madmodesty's friends and I just felt, like, ~instantly comfortable~ with her so I was really happy when she agreed to walk around the convention with me for a while. It's more fun than walking around alone. =)
Paparazzi picture of Nezumi/Shion photoshoot? :') IDEK.
Helping madmodesty pack up her table was fun! =') (LET ME KNOW IF YOU WANT ME TO TAKE THIS DOWN, NIEK? LOL.)
THE NEXT DAY. :D
First thing we did: DO OUR HAIR! *laughs!*
madmodesty and her friend from another booth! I forgot his name? Bruno? Bram? Ack. Too many B-names. O.o;
EPIC PICTURE. LOL.
You can tell my ohashori is waaaay too long there! I am too short for this kimono! Next time I will cheat & tie my obi a bit lower... x'D
Interesting musubi spotted! That's the shopowner of Kupuku, by the way! I am so jelly! :D
GIANT NYAN-CAT OMG.
NOT THIS DUDE AGAIN. ;) His signs were so hilarious & I had a lot of fun talking to him, though! *laughs!*
He should be an actor. =')
This one kind of freaks me out a bit, haha. x'D
Right.
Yukata-san! :D
madmodesty's friend was selling this dress... I wanted to know if it'd fit me, so madmodesty tried it on for me. ;)
Family portrait~! x'D
Maaike-san and her boyfriend looked so fabulous! It's too bad that my picture is a bit blurry. ^^;
TABI SHOT.
Maaike-san took a picture of ~my humps~ for me! x'D
Okay, so, honestly... I don't like this combination at all. The komon has grass patterns on it, and that obi has maple leaves and butterfly? The only thing that matches is the fact they're both silk. X.x; B-but, I wanted to go with the redxblue colour scheme as a nod to the awesome lady in yukata from the previous day and this is all I have! *wry smile!*
AMAZING COUPLE IS AMAZING.
These girls were just lovely! ♥
We had a ridiculously giggly conversation about people who tie their kimono right over left (... this is the way they're tied for funerals. OR ZOMBIES.) after I fixed her musubi for her because the tare part was poking out and I know how to do it by heart now. It could've been either incredibly awkward or vaguely insulting, b-but it really wasn't. I made a fried. O.o;
Musubi shotto~! xD
See, it looks all nice again now. YUKATA ENVY. GUH.
Panda vs. ????
Funny sign! xD
Awesome people being awesome!
Intimidation does not work on madmodesty. ;)
Fluttershy! :D
This was it, pretty much. There were workshops & cosplay competitions upstairs, b-but...
From the opposite direction to really drive home how tiny it was. x'D
Oops, sorry madmodesty. ;) (IT WASN'T ME!)
Someone randomly came by to feed us cupcakes! :'D
Plusle! :D
Sadly, not the real Tom Hiddleston. He came by to talk to madmodesty while we were cleaning up & all of the girls there kind of fawned over him for a bit. LOL. =')
That's it! No more conventions for a while! Next up: a pimp-y post about madmodesty's art because I can't properly fangirl about it without actually showing you all, can I? ;)