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DENNIS: Before we talk about cosplaying, let's get to know a little bit about you. Where were you born and raised?
KIMI: Born in West Covina, California and raised in Rowland Heights, California! Currently living in the same house for my entire life! "Killa Kali" rocks! I’d live no where else!

DENNIS: How did you get the nickname "Hikkles"?
KIMI: I used to frequently visit Yahoo! Chat in 1999. My chat name was "flame_knight_hikaru", taken from Magic Knight Rayearth's Hikaru Shidou. From then, chat friends called me "Hi-chan" or "Hikki" and it stuck as my online name. After reading and loving Angelic Layer, I found that the nickname basis of Hikaru to be really fitting since Angelic Layer's Hikaru is based off of MK's Hikaru! Wayne Kaa started calling me another version of it by taking the Hikki nickname and making it into "Hikkles."

DENNIS: If a friend traveled to your area to spend several hours with you, where would you take them or what would you do for fun?
KIMI: I would probably take them to Diamond Plaza. One of the best places is AI (Arcade Infinity). It’s the best Arcade in the United States for your rhythm and video game needs. It’s always crowded on a weekend night and has plenty of games to play. It’s heaven if you’re really into DDR, Para Para, iidx, GF, and other rhythm Bemani games. If you’re hungry, you can get good drinks at Ten Ren’s and yummy Takoyaki and Crepes at the nearby vendors. Life Plaza is also a good place for cute accessories and car fresheners! Not only that but there’s also the store Cue with the sole purpose of taking sticker and card pictures! It’s really fun for people who haven’t had a really feel good cute Asian experience!

DENNIS: Since you are a martial artist, how about we modify that last question with... What if Jet Li or Jackie Chan came to visit you, where would you take them or what would you do for fun?
KIMI: I would have no idea! If it were Jet Li, I'd probably take him out to play badminton, since I know he loves the sport! It would be fun to play with him, knowing that he wouldn't become bored or uninterested. Jackie Chan, I would have no idea. I would probably try Disneyland or something that had lots of entertainment options.

DENNIS:  If someone were in the passenger seat of your car, what kind of music would they expect to be listening to?   KIMI: I just recently got a new car, so I don’t have a CD player yet! If it were a CD, it would either be Linkin Park, Gorillaz, 50 Cent or a Hello Project CD. On the radio, I listen to hip-hop, rap, r&b, alternative, rock, classical, anything! DENNIS:  If a friend came to visit you, what kind of shows would they expect to see Kimi watching on television? KIMI: My favorite television that I must watch ever week is "ALIAS". That show is too addicting! I’ve gotten a few friends into it too and we always rave online during commercials while we’re watching the show! I also must watch "Yu-gi-oh!" on Saturday mornings. Those are the two shows I must see or my world ends! Besides that, I usually watch "Everybody Loves Raymond", "6 Feet Under" and an occasional WWE show. DENNIS:  What kind of student were you back in high school? The cheerleader, jock, computer person, library person, band person, stoner, etc? KIMI: I think I was a mix of a person. I went through a lot of phases. In Jr. High, I was one of those trendy popular Asian people who sat at the “Asian table.” (laughing) In high school, I realized how silly it was, and went through a huge withdrawal from social life and concentrated only on studying, tennis practice and Tae Kwon Do.

PHOTO: Kimi cosplaying as Dark Chi from the anime series "Chobits". Photo by Linus Lam Network News of usagichan.com.

I then got the shingles and realized I needed to “lighten up” and enjoy life. After I found my best friends and we sort of made our own group of being “anime” people… if that’s a group! I think I was mainly known as resident bad-ass.” (laughing) Well… in a sort-of short-cute way.

DENNIS:  You are heavily involved with martial arts and compete at wushu. How did you get involved in martial arts?
KIMI: I have been involved with Tae Kwon Do actually since age 8. My parents enrolled me at a dojang (school) and I've been going since. When I was 17, I became an instructor at the dojang I currently go to, which I still instruct at. I've always wanted to take Wing Chun and the stylized kung fu that they showed in lots of HK martial arts films and at 19, I found a club in college that actually just started a class on it! It was a one-unit class in its first semester. I joined and have been hooked since. Not too many people know what wushu is. The way I explain it is "What Jet Li studied before becoming a movie star." It's the style I've wanted to learn forever, because I'm not the type of person who enjoys sparring. I've always preferred forms to sparring. I love the beauty and artistic flavor that wushu gives. It's both strong and beautiful. I've also never been in a real fight my entire life. I think most people who know me, are scared of me because they know I can kick their butt. (Laughing)

DENNIS:  You're a fan of HK films? Do you happen to have a favorite?
KIMI: "Hero". Hands down. I can't think of another martial arts movie that is done as beautiful, artistic and so martial arts impacted. A lot of people claim "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" to be the best martial arts movie, but I see that as more of a personal struggle, inner conflict movie. Hero takes all of that to the next level. Not only that, it has the best cast ever. Jet Li, Tony Leung, Maggie Cheung Chen Daoming, Zhang Ziyi and Donnie Yen! It's directed by Zhang Yimou and the action director is Tony Ching Siu Tung. Emi Wada, the costume designer is my new hero after watching this movie! All of her designs for this movie are breathtaking. My favorite character would be Maggie Cheung as Flying Snow. She is so powerful and beautiful. My old favorite movie, before "Hero" was also a Jet Li movie, "Fists of Legend". "Hero" wins because every moment captures your attention.

DENNIS:  If there was one word to describe you as a person now, what word would that be and why?
KIMI: “Genki.” No matter how tired I get, I’ll keep going if I know that something has to be done. I’m very high-spirited when it comes to tackling new obstacles. I’ll rarely get in a depressed or bad mood and like to try to see the brighter side of everything. All of my teammates say I seem like I’m on a constant sugar high, but that’s just how I am. When I get excited is when I get scary. I talk about a million words per minute and constantly repeat myself since I’ve said everything so fast.

DENNIS:  So, tell me how you got involved with cosplaying?
KIMI: Anime Expo 1999. That was our first “official” cosplay. I say “our” because I was in a group at the time. Prior to that, we had worn and made some ghetto costumes of The Turks from "Final Fantasy VII" and worn them to Halloween 1997, but we didn’t know what cosplay really was. I just remember that at AX 99, we decided that we wanted to wear costumes, since we’ve seen people do it before. My friend Maryanne had taken a sewing class that year and sewed my first costume! I made the mask and gloves and I cosplayed as Larva from "Vampire Princess Miyu". Funny story actually, because my first impression of my future cosplay “career” was that I would always cosplay as masked boys, since I thought I was extremely “un-pretty.” I’m surprised at how things turned out!

PHOTO: Kimi cosplaying as Hikaru Shidou from the anime series "Magical Night Rayearth". Photo by Mike Tatsugawa, Anime Expo.

DENNIS:  Do you spend a lot on your costumes? KIMI: I try not to. Fabric-wise, no. Accessory-wise, yes. Wigs, shoes, make-up, jewelry is what makes the price go up. Usually I’ll hope to spend around $30 on materials. Wigs are anywhere from $20-110 for me. Shoes and boots always add an extra $10-60. Sometimes fabric is just expensive if you don’t know where to get it. Edea’s fabric alone cost me almost $100. $~20 per yard for 5 yards. It’s a shame because now I can find the same material for $5 per yard! Knowing where to buy materials is very important so that you’re not ripped off. DENNIS:  Do you feel stressed out when a con nears, that you have to finish a costume or a numerous amount of costumes quickly? KIMI: If I let myself feel stressed, I do. I don’t really stress, unless there’s certain circumstances. Things happen and there’s nothing you can do about it after it’s done. The best thing is to think of how to fix it and get back to a balanced level. Even if I have to sew 3 costumes, as in Ani-magic 2002, I’ll try not to stress. I usually get in an “It has to be done, so it’ll be done. If I worry, it’ll distract me.” I wait until after the masquerade to crash. If I made a commitment to finish something, I will never get a thought of “I am not going to get this done.” DENNIS:  Are you one of those cosplayers that travel around the country going to different cons? KIMI: I’ve only been to one out-of-state con, and that as this year. I went to Katsucon in Washington D.C. and I’ll tell you... I can’t afford it! I really doubt I’m going to any out-of-state cons again… ever. DENNIS:  How does your family feel about you cosplaying?

KIMI: My dad doesn’t mind it but he hates that it makes a mess around my work station. He’s really obsessive over cleanliness, so when I have thread, fabric, and other materials around the place, he can’t wait for the costume to be finished. My mom thinks it’s alright. She doesn’t like when I make crazy weird costumes because she says I spend too much money and time on it. She likes my simple cute costumes best. She’s happy I know how to sew and can help mend clothing. My bro thinks it’s funny. He actually likes to bug me whenever I’m in the process of construction/sewing. I remember I was trying to sew a costume for him, Hero2 from "Suikoden 2" and he wouldn’t stop running around in the vest doing cartwheels acting like Cisco. He also has way too much fun wearing the wigs and pretending he’s someone else. (Laughing) He’s 19 by the way.

DENNIS:  Do your co-workers or non-cosplaying friends know about your hobby? Are they supportive?
KIMI: As for co-workers and friends, I actually try to keep it as much of a secret as possible! It’s like a secret double life. It’s embarrassing when they find out, they are always interested since they’ve never heard of “cosplay” and never knew people did these kinds of things. Half of my Wushu team knows I do this abnormal hobby and half doesn’t. Whenever they find out, it’s always, “Oh my God! Kimi! I saw you wearing this costume with such-and-such!” It’s really funny because their image of me at Wushu is that I’m the “resident bad-ass” because I’m one of those people who just surprise you as being really explosive when it comes to martial arts. When I find out they’ve seen me in a costume like Chii, I always get this feeling that they don’t take me as seriously. Maybe just because I think of myself as a big dork who has this dark secret of dressing up at conventions. Which I am.

DENNIS:  When you make your costumes, do you make your own costumes or do you have them created by a professional?
KIMI: I have three costumes which weren’t sewn by me. Larva and Edea were both sewn by my friend Maryanne. That was pre-sewing skills. I only knew how to make crafts, like Larva’s mask and Edea’s head-piece. The third costume is Nanami from" Suikoden 2" which I had commissioned by a seamstress of my friend Chris. After that, I realized I really wanted to learn how to sew. From watching Maryanne a couple times, I started practicing and just stared at patterns. I think of it all as a big puzzle and I love puzzles!

DENNIS:  If you do create the costumes on your own, do you use an expensive sewing machine or a basic machine?
KIMI: I use a basic sewing machine. (Laughing) The majority of my costumes were made on this old 70's sewing machine that my mom bought when she first came to the country! So, I don’t really think you’d need an expensive sewing machine unless you’re going to go professional. If you have the money or if you feel more confident in your end product if you have more expensive equipment, more power to you. One thing that I do have, that is expensive, is my serger. It’s such a great tool to have. It’s not necessary, but it makes life so much easier if you want to have clean edges or if you have fraying fabric. It’s a giant bullet to your wallet, but it’s a great advantage.

DENNIS:  Giving one example of your favorite costume. Tell us the history on the making of the costume. How much? The challenges? Where to buy? Material? And all that cool stuff. KIMI: Favorite… I have so many! Every time I make a new costume, it becomes my favorite! Each has their great moment in the spotlight. Overall though… it’s close between Edea from FFVIII or Hikaru from Angelic Layer but I think Edea has more significance. Edea was a tough one. It was for our group "PhoeniX SeeD" in 2000. We decided all of this actually in 1999, who would be who and I was originally planned as Quistis. I was extremely tanned from tennis then, so I kept dreading being her. Finally I asked if I could be anyone else, and someone suggested Edea, the bad guy. I love villains, so I decided. I hid from the sun for the entire year hiding under long sleeves, pants, and hats to lose my tennis tan. The “fabric district” was unknown to us now, so we were searching for materials at Joann's. I kept rejecting all the fabrics I saw until I saw a yard of purple stretch velvet. I had no idea what type of fabrics there were, I still am really bad with fabrics now, but I decided after seeing the purple stretch velvet, that was the fabric for my costume. It was almost $20 per yard! None of the local Joannes had it in supply either! I had to special order it, which meant paying shipping and handling also!

PHOTO: Kim cosplaying as Edea from the SQUARE video game "Final Fantasy VIII" with friend Maryanne cosplaying as Rinoa. Photo by PhoeniX SeeD cosplay/www.phoenixseed.com.

The fabric alone was about $100. Maryanne found a pattern that I approved for the dress. I didn’t sew the dress, due to my lack of sewing knowledge, and it was sewn by Maryanne. It only took her 2 days to sew the dress. That’s "skillz". I did have to make Edea’s intricate head-piece/helmet, which took me lots of trial and error in different materials. I had never made anything like that before, so a lot of experimentation. Finally I finished it and didn’t like it! (Laughing) The first time the entire costume was worn with make-up was at the convention. I loved how I looked on me after I saw the entire picture. I remember being amazed at just how “cool” I looked in the mirror. I had to remind myself that the reflection was really me. It really helped open my eyes to girl-cosplay, since that was the first time I had worn something so fancy. I think it really shocked my friends too. It was funny too because I had braces, so I never wanted to open my mouth, plus I lost my voice! People said I looked “in character” and scary! Also, since I wasn’t talking, I had random people speak to me in Japanese, thinking I was a cosplayer from Japan. I couldn’t answer since I lost my voice, so I had to whisper to a friend to relay my message. It was just too much fun. Edea would have to be my most memorable costume. I point is that I pulled it off! Something I never thought I could do or wear or go through and it happened!

DENNIS:  You talked about your Edea cosplay but can you tell us a little how you made that cool headpiece?
KIMI: It was really strange how it came out so well! It was made with model magic for the initial frame and helmet. It was then fitted on a mannequin head, which I later found was smaller than my head. Luckily or unluckily model magic melts, so I was able to heat it up and shape it so it would fit my head. I then used that as a frame to paper mache the top. I waited for it to harden, sand-papered it, then spray painted it purple. Each of the other pieces, the horns and snail shell were also made out of model magic and painted with acrylic. The fan part of the headpiece was made out of foamies and skewers that were sharpened, then all painted. After all of that was done, I painted this coat of shiny stuff, to make it hard, to keep its shape, so it wouldn't melt and also to make it shiny! A headband was attached on the inside of it, so that it wouldn't fall off my head. Different tassles and beads were used according to the picture. It's funny because to me it looks horrible alone but 100x better when it's on my head!

DENNIS:  When you create a costume, do you try to make it look as authentic as possible? Do you add your own creativity to it?
KIMI: I do and I don’t. I do try to go for accuracy but if there’s something dreadful about the costume or something I’d like to change, I’ll go ahead and change it. The more comfortable I feel in a costume, the more in-character I’ll look. Feel good, look good. Good example would be Hikaru from "Magic Knight Rayearth". She has knee high red nylons/socks but I had just taken up knitting and really wanted knit red slouch socks, so I went ahead and made them.

DENNIS:  Are you a perfectionist when it comes to your costume? How thorough are you when it comes to researching for your costume?
KIMI: I try to be! I don’t like it when laziness sits in because that means I’ll go crazy after and repair it so it would be perfect! I don’t like taking short cuts but sometimes... time makes me. I do my research by looking for pictures online, other cosplayers who’ve done the costume, photo books and then I do sketches on angles where I can’t see the costume. I then think of clothing practicality and construction. “How will the costume be made so it’s wearable?” That’s when calculations on fabric, notions, accessories, and costs come in. It’s always best to have a plan.

DENNIS:  How many costumes do you own or have created?
KIMI: I have about 30 costumes. Three weren’t 100% made by me and 27 were.

DENNIS: Among those costumes, do you happen to have a favorite?
KIMI: Out of the 27 I’ve made, my favorite is my Angelic Layer Hikaru. "Angelic Layer" is one of my favorite manga and I love that AL Hikaru is based off MKR Hikaru! AL Hikaru is a petite and quick fighter. I love her design and base. She’s one of my best creations and favorite characters! Can’t go wrong there! I also love my "Kago Sannin Matsuri" costume because it makes me feel so happy! People around me told me they couldn’t help but smile when I was near them! She’s not a perfect costume yet, so Hikaru beats her out.

DENNIS: Let's talk about that awesome Angelic Layer Hikaru