An Interview with Lara Lunardi from Geekin' It!
An Interview with Lara Lunardi from Geekin' It!
Recently, we were fortunate enough to talk with the lovely Lara Lunardi, the amazing mind behind Geekin’ It with Lara Lunardi, where she designs custom cosplay attire and takes you inside the process behind her cosplays! As one of her main sponsors here at Halloween Party Online, we are proud to have Lara as part of the family and really enjoyed getting to talk to her! We hope you will enjoy this conversation as much as we did!
Hi! Do you mind starting off just by introducing yourself?
Hey there! I am Lara Lunardi, the loveliest crafting geek! I make everything from costumes tutorials to makeup!
When did you first get into cosplay?
I was only 14 when I first got into cosplay. Randomly walked a convention and just fell in love with all the people dressed up as my favorite characters!
What sparked an interest in cosplay for you?
Ever since I was a baby my parents dressed me up. Carnival culture is really big in Brazil and growing up around that definitely made it easier for me to be interested in cosplay. My parents are also huge nerds! They introduced me to video games when I was 4 and ever since I just can't stop playing!
What’s one piece of practical advice would you give someone interested in cosplaying for the first time?
For your first convention, create a schedule! Separate time for the panels you want to see, the shopping you want to do, the celebrities you want to meet and most importantly, the meals you are going to eat! Conventions can be very physically exhausting, so remember to always fill up your water bottle and have a healthy meal. If you are cosplaying, double on the last one!!! Cosplaying at a convention makes it twice as fun, but twice as tiring.
What about one piece of encouragement you'd give to someone that might be nervous about cosplaying for the first time?
Cosplay is about the fun you have! It doesn't matter if you make your costume from scratch or get it from a store as long as you feel comfortable in the outfit you are wearing and you have the most fun!
When you have a new idea for a cosplay you would like to do, is there a process you typically follow in putting it together?
I am a very organized person! Every time I fall in love with a design and decide to recreate it, I budget the costume, time, study materials and construction methods and make sure that I have everything ready to start. While I work on the costume, I order my wigs from Halloween Party Online, to make sure everything is ready to go when the costume is finished!
Is there anything specific you do when putting together a new cosplay to add a personal touch to it or make it your own?
Do you have any advice for new cosplayers on that front?
There are costumes in which I follow a design verbatim, but adding a personal touch always makes it more fun to me. The great part about cosplay is that no one gets to dictate if you have to make it 100% accurate. You get to be creative and cosplay a character your way! When I idealize a design, I like to keep the key elements of a character present, such as color pallet, symbols, armor structures and hair.
I saw on your Instagram that your mom just did her first ever cosplay with you as Elistigirl and Violet from The Incredibles, which I thought was really cool! How was her first cosplay experience and how was it for you bringing her into your world a bit with that?
Yes! Mom and I have been talking about cosplaying together for a very long time. The first idea was to have her cosplay as Tsunade from Naruto, since she already looks so much like the character, but we decided to go for a mother and daughter type of thing, and honestly there was no better duo than Violet Parr and Elastigirl. Mom though it was incredible to see herself as another character. She didn't believe the final results!
What games have you been playing lately? What have you been watching?
I've been playing a lot of SMITE. It's a game I really care about getting good at. Lately I just got my Ra to Diamond tier and I am averaging 14 kills per match, which is pretty good for a mage character I think! As for TV, I just finished binge watching Sabrina. It is so lovely!
