Cosplayer Interview: Shallon Enlow

Hey everyone! This is DeAngelo aka Darth Mexican here to present to you one of my new favorite cosplayers, Shallon Enlow! Unfortunately, I did not meet her but my friends did for a photoshoot and informed me of how kind she was. After checking out her Facebook page, I became a fan and still can not believe she only has under 200 likes! Her talent, beauty, personality, and cosplays should generate thousands of fans! But I suppose that is what we are here for, to inform our readers of awesome folks like her!

I digress! Here is our interview with the wonderful, Shallon Enlow!

The Geek Lyfe: Although I am a fan of yours, there may be a few Geek Lyfers who have not seen your work before, would you be alright introducing yourself?

Shallon Enlow: Of course! Hello, Geek Lyfers my name is Shallon Enlow I am a Surgical Technologist with a passion for cosplay.

TGL: I’ve followed you for some time yet never learned the origin story! Could you tell us how you got into cosplay and what led you to where you are now?

SE: I had my mother teach me the basics of sewing and from there I made my first cosplay which was Athena from Saint Seiya. I attended my first big convention, Anime Expo 2009 with Athena. The reaction I got was amazing! I didn’t know the character would still be popular because it is an older anime but the moment I walked in I had a lot of Saint Seiya fans asking for photos. I also had with me Reiko Holinger from Mobile Suit Gundam 0079 card builder which quickly became the cosplay everyone called my “no pants” cosplay. I stopped cosplaying for a while to get my degree and recently started again so I’m super excited.

TGL: What has been your favorite moment so far Cosplaying?

SE: The reaction is fantastic! Everything from pure shock to hugs. I like to share how I made things as well so it is nice when I get asked how I made something.

TGL: What is the most frustrating part?

SE: When someone doesn’t do the work. For example when a cosplayer will post “what pattern do I use for this character” but there are no patterns listed and that person just wants someone else to do the work for them. Nowadays there is site after site for cosplayers to look up information. I do get it can be overwhelming but that is part of doing the work.

TGL: Is there one situation in your cosplay career that you can always look back on and laugh? If so, what’s the story?

SE: I’ve had a lot of weird, crazy, serious events that I look back on and learn from. Some of them I laugh about but the one I learned the most from was about a few years ago. I learned that I can’t let someone dictate my cosplay just for their own benefit. One that I laugh about happened during my Galaxxxy Panty shoot. I was with Anthony from Bits Photography in the JW Marriot LA during Anime Expo and we got kicked out. We took maybe 8 shots in a hallway type area that had pink lights before we got the boot. So we just casually walked outside and shot in front of the restaurant.

TGL: When you aren’t doing making costumes and attending conventions, what do you do in your spare time?

SE: I pop bubble wrap, play a game, workout, hang with friends, watch anime, read. Cosplay is pretty much my spare time.

TGL: What geek medium(Video Games, Comic Books, Novels, Movies etc.) made the biggest impact on your life and why?

SE: That would have to go to Nintendo. As a kid, I spent a lot of time at my neighbors’ house playing Super Nintendo. I also played what I called “superheros” a lot. Basically it was between Power Rangers or X-men. You pick a character and pretend to be that character while running around the backyard.

TGL: If you could take one character from your favorite TV show/Anime/Novel/Video game/Comic book and bring them to life in our world with their powers and abilities intact, who would it be and why?

SE: I would feel so bad having one character come to life. They would have nobody. If I had to chose I would pick Jigglypuff. I would love to just fall asleep in a few minutes and feel so refreshed after.

TGL: Do you have any projects in the near future we should be excited to see?

SE: I have made a lot of cosplay costumes so I am trying to plan more shoots. Two characters I am working on are Noriko from Gunbuster and Aiz from is it wrong to try to pick up girls in a dungeon. I want to do an armor type cosplay but I don’t want to say the name of the character just yet!
TGL: What advice do you have for any aspiring cosplayers out there?

SE: There will be trolls and people that say bad things. Just think about why you cosplay and how it makes you feel. You will get frustrated with what you make but remember to take breaks.

There you have it, everyone!

Shallon Enlow was an incredible human being and wonderful in every single way, I am now a fan of her and will continue to support from as she rises in fame. If you’d like to check out more of her work, feel free to visit her Facebook page! She is seriously awesome! 

A huge thank you to Shallon Enlow for taking the time to answer our questions! 

Photos taken by Photo Arcade