DIY Piper McLean Cosplay

With Halloween coming up, I wanted to do a DIY for an easy costume. I love all things Percy Jackson, so I settled on doing a how-to for a Piper McLean outfit. (I titled this post “Cosplay” instead of “Costume,” because while my family doesn’t celebrate Halloween, I love doing cosplays.)

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I’m basing the cosplay off this drawing by the lovely Viria. It’s pretty much exactly how I pictured Piper while reading the books.

I’ll start with the basic outfit, then move on to some accessories.

-The Outfit-

T-Shirt

A staple in any demigod’s wardrobe is, of course, an iconic Camp Half-Blood shirt. Either buy one from Amazon (I recommend this one) or make your own. One way to make one is by using a bleach pen. In the drawing, Piper’s shirt has “CHB” on it in white letters, which would be super easy to make using this bleach pen tutorial.

Pants

Denim shorts would be perfect, but if it’s cold in your area around Halloween, ripped jeans are also a great option.

Shoes

Converse or combat boots would look great.

-The Accessories-

Jacket

Piper seems like the kind of girl who would wear plaid, and she wears it in a lot of fanart. Layer an open plaid shirt over the CHB T-shirt.

Jewelry

A simple bracelet and/or earrings would go nicely with the outfit.

Feather Headband

This is the hardest part of the whole cosplay.

You will need:

• Feathers
• Acrylic paint (optional)
• String
• Scissors
• Hot glue gun

First, we’re going to decorate the feathers. You can get them at a craft store, or find them outside (mine are from a mourning dove). I painted designs on two of my feathers with turquoise acrylic. You don’t have to decorate your feathers if you don’t want to.

Now we’ll make the actual headband. I didn’t measure my string, but it was long enough to wrap around my head, with about seven extra inches. I cut nine pieces of string because it was really thin. If yours is thicker (like yarn), you don’t have to cut that many.

Braid it until you can wrap it around your head.

Then tie both ends together. Do not cut off the rest of the string.

Separate the remaining string into three equal parts. You will be using the string to attach the feathers to the headband.

Weave three single braids out of the string, making them various lengths so the feathers don’t end up in a straight line.

Take a feather and wrap the end of a braid tightly around the shaft. Tie a knot, and then cover it with hot glue to ensure that it stays on. Repeat with the other two feathers.

It’s done!

Hair

Based on Viria’s drawing, I came up with this hairstyle:

Pull back two sections from either side of your head and secure in the back with a hairband. Make two thin braids, one behind each ear.

Put on your feather headband for the final touch.

You’re done!

I’ve got to say, I look very good as Piper. ;)

Sorry for the low quality picture. It’s dark now, so I can’t take a better photo outside.

What’s your Halloween costume? Have you ever cosplayed?