Dress As Princess Zelda from the Legend of Zelda

As one of the most famous-and beautiful-female video gaming icons, dressing as Princess Zelda makes an instant impression at costume parties and cosplaying events. This article will help you create a character-accurate cosplay to wow even the most dogmatic Legend of Zelda fan.

Steps

Getting Started

  1. Choose your Zelda. Generally Zelda is depicted as a blue-eyed, blonde young woman wearing an ankle-length pink or white dress. She has a jeweled diadem, wears golden pauldrons (shoulder armor) with a gold chain suspended between them like a necklace, and has a banner with the Triforce falling from her hips held up by a golden belt. She may also wear gold Triforce earrings.
  2. Find game-specific character art for the Zelda you wish to cosplay. This will provide detailed front, back and side character and costume sketches. Below are the important main details of each Zelda.
    • The Legend of Zelda and Zelda II Zeldas only appear briefly. Atop their permed blonde hair is a simple gold chain with a suspended red jewel that lies directly over the forehead. They also wear a red bead necklace, and a pink dress with long sleeves and puffed shoulders. Zelda II's Zelda has a white ribbon and bow trim along the hem of the dress.
    • Link to the Past Zelda wears a red beaded necklace, spiked golden diadem and Triforce earrings. Her white dress has short sleeves striped with two thin teal lines, a pink torso and a single thick teal stripe near the hem of her dress. She also has a pink apron like-garment that overlaps her skirt. The apron is pink, bordered in orange, and features a red Triforce design. This Zelda wears small golden pauldrons linked by a chain that runs across her collarbone, and extended gold cuffs that cover her arm from wrist to mid-forearm. Her red and gold belt is thick, and has two crests with golden tassels on her left and right hip. Her blonde hair falls freely, except for two pieces that lie in front of her ears.
    • Zelda from the Ocarina of Time has two versions: a young version and an older version. Young Zelda wears a white dress with sky-blue long sleeves, puffed to the elbow, and has a pink sleeveless over-tunic that bears the Triforce. A golden chain belts her waist, while simple gold bangles adorn both arms. She also wears a gold necklace with a red jewel in the center, and a simple white and pink head cloth with a Triforce medallion on her upper forehead. Her hair is completely tucked under this head cloth. Older Zelda wears a sleeveless dress with a two pink stripes, one thick and the other thin, near the hemline. Her pink over-tunic no longer extends past her waist; the familiar Triforce banner hangs from the gold chain instead. She also now wears opera-length gloves and linked pauldrons, and her strawberry blonde hair resembles that of Link to the Past Zelda.
    • Oracle of Ages and Oracle of Seasons Zelda wears a sleeveless, Mandarin-collared pale pink dress. The upper portion (torso) is a darker lilac color that dips in the back like a shirt-tail hem tunic. Her dress has a lilac stripe border near the hem, and she wears a white cape. Her accessories are similar to previous Zeldas: Triforce apron (in red, blue and gold), opera-length pink gloves, golden diadem, gold pauldrons with chain, golden belt and Triforce earrings. Her hair is the same as previous Zeldas.
    • Four Swords Zelda is very similar to the Oracle Zelda, except for her hairstyle and pauldrons. She has a ponytail with a small gold comb at the base, along with two red bat-ear like additions flaring from the comb. The pauldrons are absent, however, the golden chain still remains as an adornment for the neckline of her dress.
    • The Wind Waker, Minish Cap and Spirit Tracks Zeldas all share a similar design. Their dress is dark pink on the torso portion, has a lilac skirt, and is sleeveless. A hint of a white undershirt shows at the sides of the dress near the underarms, and a jagged dark purple stripe runs near the hem of the dress. The Triforce hangs from a chunky golden belt, and while the pauldrons are absent the collarbone-skimming golden chain is present and anchors a lilac cowl. Opera-length white gloves, two triangular hair ornaments evoking the wind behind each ear, a thick red beaded necklace, and a red-jeweled diadem are the main accessories. These Zeldas' blonde hair flows freely, and also has two frontal sections lying over each ear.
    • Twilight Princess and Super Smash Bros Zeldas are blueish grey-eyed brunettes with white ribbon-wrapped front hair and a partial French braid. They wear a sleeveless white dress embroidered along the bottom with the royal crest and hemmed with gold. Like many other Zeldas a purple tunic-like garment covers their torso, and a Triforce banner hangs from their hips by a gold belt. The accessories are also similar to past Zeldas but more ornate in detail: opera-length gloves (with subtle embroidery details on the back of the hand and cuffs), jeweled golden pauldrons with chain, and a jeweled belt and diadem. The earrings appear to be thick iron rings, with a small gold triangle on the bottom. They are commonly pictured holding a sword.
    • Skyward Sword Zelda, unlike previous games, is not a princess. She is pictured wearing a pink long sleeve dress that hits below the knee, topped with a white shawl. The dress has a rectangular yellow border along the hem and sleeves, and the neckline has yellow polygon-like details. In the center of her dress' bust is a blue diamond. She wears a gold medallion chain and brown wrap belt around her waist, and a blue Triforce banner edged with a sky blue border sits on her right hip. This Zelda wears practical knee-high brown boots with a fold-over top, and gold bangles on both arms. Her hair is blonde, with the two front sections and the low ponytail part wrapped in blue ribbons.

Dress

  1. Decide if you are buying a Zelda dress or making the dress at home.
    • Buying a ready-made dress is expensive, but saves time and worrying about the details.
    • Modifying and sewing two garments, such as a vest and a sleeveless dress can be a simple way to make a Zelda dress.
  2. Take your hip, waist and bust measurements.
    • Measurements are key for determining what size pattern you need, as well as ensuring the dress fits well.
  3. Make or purchase your pattern.
    • This will allow you to determine how much material you will need, as well as how to cut the dress panels.
    • For more detail on sewing with a pattern, go here: [Sew Using Patterns].
  4. Choose your material carefully.
    • Medium-weight cotton weave is generally a good, economical choice as it comes in a wide variety of colors and will not pucker around stitches.
  5. Pin the fabric to the pattern.
  6. Start sewing.
  7. Add embellishments.
    • Fabric markers allow you to draw designs directly onto the dress and are highly suggested for detail work.

Accessories

  1. Use fabric markers or sew cut fabric scraps to make the Triforce banner. This is a key element to nearly every Zelda, but the exact color scheme and design should be based off the specific character art.
  2. Visit a hobby or craft store to find finishing details. Show employees the character art—they may be able to direct you to beads, fake jewels or metal charms that closely match what you need.
  3. Buy craft foam for the diadem, Triforce earrings, pauldrons and belt. Craft foam is a cheap and durable material that can be easily cut, painted, layered, and reinforced with wire or cloth backing. It is also lightweight and easy to wear. See below for a quick tutorial on how to use craft foam.

Working with Craft Foam

  1. Make your armor pattern, piece by piece. To make Zelda's diadem, for example, you will have to draw each “leaf” individually.
  2. Trace each pattern onto the craft foam using a pencil.
  3. Carefully cut out the shapes with scissors. Foam can tear easily, so go slowly!
  4. Glue each piece together.
  5. Shape the piece, if necessary, with gentle heat. The foam will go “floppy” in your hands, but should not start to melt! [1]
    • To curve, roll around an object and hold for a few seconds to set.
  6. Reinforce with wire or a cloth backing if necessary.
  7. To emboss designs, push into the foam with a rounded tip or a ballpoint pen.
  8. To make a raised design, either layer on another piece of cut foam, or use 3D fabric paint.
  9. Seal the foam by brushing with a layer or two of glue.
  10. Paint it gold! Use smudged black paint to age the accessory if you wish.
  11. Glue on fake jewels.

Make-up and Hair

  1. Use a cat-eye, neutral eyeshadow look for most Zeldas, except The Wind Waker, Minish Cap and Spirit Tracks Zeldas, who have blue eyeshadow.
  2. Most Zeldas have a neutral or light pink lip.
  3. Insert colored contact lens if necessary.
  4. Purchase fake elf ears from party or costume stores.
  5. Reference your character art for specific hair details, but generally thin elastic bands, some ribbons, mousse/hair gel and basic hair braiding skills are all you need. Go here for more details: Style Your Hair Like Princess Zelda
    • Consider styling a wig if your own hair is short, or otherwise difficult to adapt to Zelda's hairstyle.

Tips

  • If you are new to sewing or have not ever sewn a costume before, you may want to buy a little extra fabric or have a backup plan if something goes wrong with your stitches or if the finished product is not to your liking.
  • Remember costume and cosplay events usually require a lot of movement and check your costume for durability and comfort.
  • Remember, you may not look exactly like the character.
  • Don't try to make it too perfect or you may end up frustrated. People will love you even if you're not perfect!
  • If you aren't a big fan of wearing dresses, you can dress like Sheik, Zelda's other form, who wears pants.
  • Use a picture as a reference.

Related Articles

Sources and Citations

  1. ↑ http://entropyhouse.com/penwiper/costumes/helmsdeep.html

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