(cos)WED: Mimi Reaves
Written by Riri (@lillyums)
This week's Cosplay Wednesday features Mimi Reaves, cosplayer based in Vancouver B.C. Here we have her Daenerys Targaryen cosplay from Game of Thrones; this might as well be our only fix for Game of Thrones since the next season won't be out until 2019! Daenerys Stormborn of the House Targaryen, First of Her Name, the Unburnt, Queen of the Andals and the First Men, Khaleesi of the Great Grass Sea, Breaker of Chains, and Mother of Dragons... she has many names and with that comes a strong, persistent, inquisitive powerful leader. Let's see how Mimi becomes the Mother of Dragons.
Cosplayer: Mimi Reaves (website)
Cosplay: Daenerys Targaryen
Series: Game of Thrones
Photographer: Mike Wu Photography (website)
Dick Charming as Jon Snow (IG)
1. How long have you been cosplaying?
10 years! My first convention was Anime Evolution 2007, and the obsession grew from there. Time flies so fast!
2. Why did you choose to cosplay this character?
Many reasons! Daenerys is a fierce leader, an emotionally strong person, and so very passionate. She's also hotheaded and impulsive, but I respect her because she's self-aware and is careful to not become like her father, "The Mad King". She has my favourite wardrobe of anyone on the show, and I love watching her costumes evolve as she changes into a more mature person.
3. How long did it take you to complete?
I started this costume a few years ago - I bought and dyed silk fabric and sewed it into the dress and cape, then only last year I did all of the smocking, embroidery, and bead work. The first part was pretty quick, but all the details took a very long time. I wish I had logged my hours for this!
4. Any difficulties when constructing the costume?
Yes, I kind of learned as I went along with this one. The silk didn't dye evenly, but luckily I was able to use the less perfect pieces as lining and all the nice fabric is on the outside. I got the hang of smocking fairly well, and the embroidery (although monotonous and kind of boring) was okay too. However, once I glued on the gold flakes, I realized it was much brighter than the material that was used in the show. It didn't quite look like one whole piece because it stuck out too much. I had to dry-brush gold paint over the smocking to blend it all together, so my costume isn't exactly how it is in the show. I'm happy with it though! This way it's my own interpretation rather than an exact replica.
5. What do you love most about cosplaying this character?
In general I love portraying strong female characters. Daenerys is one that I hope to cosplay many times in the future!
6. Where did you debut this costume? If you haven't... where do you plan to debut?
I debuted this costume at Emerald City Comic Con 2017.
7. What's next? Cosplay related of course...
I just finished making Claire Fraser from Outlander, and now I want to make more historical costumes! But for the near future, I'm planning on finishing up a few cosplays I've had sitting around for a while, and then my next big costume will be an upgrade of my Ariel mermaid cosplay.
We can't wait to see more of your work, Mimi!
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