[Tutorial] Xander's Crown

Hello guys!

I'm here to share with you my first ever cosplay tutorial! Please forgive any errors or mistakes, as I tried to be as detailed as possible.

I recently decided to cosplay Spring Xander from Fire Emblem Heroes, and felt that this was a good spot to begin for tutorials. This tutorial can be used for any version of Xander's crown, from Fates to Heroes!! Lets begin. :)

First thing is materials and references! I used my phone to pull up a reference on his crown (front, side, back, etc). I used his Fates design for the crown as the crown in Heroes was the same.

Stuff you'll need:

• Pattern
• Scissors
• Pen and Marker
• Measuring Tape
• Foam of Choice (I used EVA foam mats)
• Exact-o Knife (not shown)
• Dremel (not shown)
• Mod Podge/Other primer (not shown)
• String (not shown)
• Acrylic paint (not shown)
• Gloss (not shown)
• Newspaper
• A towel
• A brush (big)
• Cup of water x2

Draw out your pattern. I did half length to save paper space. Make sure you measure around your head WITH A WIG ON to make sure it will wrap around just right. Always add a few centimeters to accommodate the sanding and possible errors while cutting (I am not immune to perfect cut lines).

Once you have your pattern drafted, cut it out and see if it fits. Adjust if needed or redo.  If it's 100% how you want it, take out your sharpie and trace out the pattern (mirroring it at the front).

Now that it's transferred, it's time to cut! This process hurts a but because the foam is thick but it's probably the hardest part out of the entire process. It's okay if your cut lines are not even or your edges are all jagged, the dremal will fix this!

Next step is rather messy and some what time consuming. Make sure your dremal is fully charged as this will drain the battery! Depending on how large and thick you made your crown, you may have to stop to recharge the battery if you do not have spares.

For this process, I get a towel to cover my lap from the foam, a cup of water for my hands (to keep my fingers clean from the dust), a mask to keep your breathing nice and clear, the dremal, and my phone reference! This process took about 2 hours.

Start demaling! Sand it down so the edges are nice and soft, do it until you're happy with the result! Mine came out like this:

I did end up sanding some more edges down after this photo was taken, but once you finish sanding and clean off the dust from literally everywhere (that's what the towel is for!) Now that the sanding part is done, time to get your newspaper, modge podge, another cup of water, and your brush to start priming! I used modge podge because I was trying to use things I already owned, however you're welcome to use other types of primer such as Plastidip, Wood Glue, or any other type of sealer/primer that can bend after drying. Kamui Cosplay has a GREAT video tutorial on types of primer HERE. 

​This part can take a bit long as well, depending on how thick you make your coats and how many coats you do. I did 4 layers total, 2 thick, 2 thin, and took about 3 hours total to dry.

(excuse my dog's hair ahaha)

Now that it's all primed and dry, it's time to paint! I forgot to take the photo before hand, but add the tiny little holes in before painting. My dremal has a set of interchangeable sanding tools and had a little hole maker and it worked GREAT. If you don't have one, you can either buy some for your model or slowly and carefully, carve one out with a smaller exact-o knife blade.

At this point, I have strayed from the Fates design and went with the Heroes color of his crown, which is a dark green. If you are doing his normal Fates design, please use black instead. This tutorial does not affect the rest of the crown if you use a different color. :)

Once it's all painted evenly and left to dry, it's time to add some gloss! You can use any type of gloss that's acrylic friendly. The more layers you add, the glossier (and foggier) it gets, to use the amount that best suits your judgement. I used 2 coats.

Now that all the painting is done, you're pretty much finished! The last bit is to add the string in the two holes you added on each end. I used basic white string I had left from previous projects. I will change them out for a green or black, so use which ever you would like! Try it on with the string and cut the string to your desired length. When you wear the crown on your wig, you can tuck the string in the crown pretty easily (it's better if you have a friend help). 

​AND YOU'RE DONE! 

My cosplay didn't turn out exactly how I wanted but at least my hat and crown look good ahaha. That's what cosplay is about, learning from your mistakes and aiming to improve next time. I still had fun in the cosplay so that's all that matters!

I hope you found this tutorial useful. I hope to make more in the future. :) Best of luck, cosplayers!!