Today we’d like to introduce you to Tessa Trickster.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Tessa. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
When I was little my parents travelled a lot and we moved to many different countries in Europe including Germany, France and Italy. While I was living in France I discovered a hobby called “Cosplay”; it’s where young children or even some adults dress up at their favorite Anime or Movie character.
I was only 14 years old when I made my first garment, I didn’t even have a sewing machine or any experience, I just improvised and somehow it was wearable. The outfit I made was a character from a Japanese novel called D.Gray-Man and I was so proud of myself even though I couldn’t move my shoulders because I made the sleeves too tight!
From then on I continued to make the outfits of my favorite characters and when my sister gave me a sewing machine for my birthday I really stared improving. I am completely self-taught, I figured out how to make my own costumes by looking at how my own clothing was made.
I brought my hobby with me when me and my parents moved to Italy and met many other people my age that did the same hobby. When there was a character or design that really inspired me, no matter how high the level or difficulty was, I never thought that I was incapable of a project. Of course I made some sewing and crafting mistakes along the way but I always believed in myself, no challenge was never too difficult and I always try to encourage my friends to think the same!
Has it been a smooth road?
Of course with any passion or hobby there are a few bumps in the road. Sometimes a piece of my outfit, or even a prop would break and I would have to start all over again. I would get frustrated and blame it on the fact that I can’t find the right materials, or the materials I need would be too costly. The problems relied mostly in my tools and what I had at my disposition. I always made costumes on a budget, improvising with what materials I could find around town and what was available.
It got worse when I discovered the Garment District of Los Angeles, for someone obsessed in choosing the perfect fabric it was a paradise! Returning to Italy after seeing all that fabric and supply made me feel even more limited and I stared to feel like I had no more room for improvement. Fabric stores in Italy are hard to find, and when you do find them, they are either terribly expensive or have very little stock. Most of my favorite fabric shops went out of business, so that made it even more frustrating. On top of all of that, I am extremely perfectionist, but in a bad way. I can get stuck in a project because it’s just not turning out how I imagined it, and I won’t stop thinking about it until the problem is solved.
We’d love to hear more about your business.
With time and patience my following grew, I would post my work on social media and people would share it. Eventually I stared to print a few posters of my work that I would sell in Cosplay conventions or simply through the internet.
Because of this passion of mine I met the CEO of a Japanese clothing company; DIAMANT ROSE. They saw a picture of mine and asked me if I could model for them and promote their fashion. I already had an interest in fashion but my interest grew thanks to them. I was able to travel to Tokyo and to many of their events in order to help them in promoting their fashion. Now I help selecting clothing for sales and I promote their items.
I started to learn Japanese in school, and I hope that this will help me expand in this field.
Is our city a good place to do what you do?
Cosplay wasn’t the only area I wanted to explore, I started to become more and more interested in other fields. Such as Fashion and Costume design for movie and film. That’s why I decided to move to San Diego, attend college and start a Major in Fashion design.
I believe that living in the state of California will help me expand growth in all of the different artistic fields that I am interested in. I hope that this passion of mine leads somewhere and that I’ll find the right path. I would have never guessed that a hobby I stared when I was 14 years old would have accomplished already so much!
With the knowledge and experience I have acquired from living in Europe, I can already speak Italian, French and some German. I also did some courses of Fashion design in Italy. I will use this knowledge to my advantage here in San Diego, and see where it takes me.
As long as I’m doing something I’m passionate about, that’s all that matters.
Contact Info:
- Website: http://diamantrose-france.com
- Email: tessaandtinka@gmail.com
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TessaTricksterCOSPLAY/
- Other: http://diamantrose-italia.com
Image Credit:
Photographers & Companies of the pictures provided:
Diamant Rose
Manuel Moggio
PM Image Photography (Max Mussini)
Amy Hu Photography Cosplay & Art
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