The Choi boys are so addicted to “Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild” video game on Nintendo Switch now.  As we would be going to San Diego Comic Con this year for the first time, we came up with the idea of Zelda Cosplay at comic con.  Since I never bought overpriced costumes for kids, DIY costume was the only way to go.

Owen wanted to be LINK from Breath of the Wild in the blue Champion Tunic.  Adam decided to be LINK from the Majora’s Mask at the last minute.  Yes, there’re different Link versions even though they are all green.  They also requested their specific swords and shields.

I had about 2 weeks to finish this project before comic con.  It involved a lot of googling, Pinterest, Youtube search, and of course, sleepless nights – a couple hours each night for 6-7 days.  But I did enjoy the process, somewhat like baking – therapeutic when I worked on it late at night alone – a little me time.  I found a couple sites that are very useful and helped me tailor the boys’ Link costumes.  Here, I’m writing this blog to share my DIY experience.  I hope that you would find this useful for making your Link costume – from head to toe.  I know there’re moms out there like me would just want to make easy and “cheap” costumes.  Trust me, it’s not that difficult.

First, I made a shopping list.   I don’t shop at Walmart but when it comes to bargain materials that you only use once or twice, that’s the place you go.  I actually found the t-shirts and leggings in the exact color that I wanted for less than 5 bucks!

1. Blue V-neck boys short sleeve T-shirt for BoW link @ Walmart
2. Green boys polo shirt for Majora’s Mask link @ Walmart
3. Tan girls leggings @ Walmart
4. White long sleeve t-shirt – we got some old ones already
5. Brown felt for belt and boots covering
6. Yellow felt for belt buckle
7. Green felt for Link’s hat – you can get them at any crafts store and I got mine at Daiso’s (a Japanese bargain store).
8. White fabric paint for outlining the blue tunic pattern @ Michael’s
9. Color fabric paint or markers (orange and green) for outlining the long white Tee pattern
10. Miscellaneous items are Velcro, foam board, duct tape, and masking tapes.

Tunic

Although I needed to work on 2 Link costumes, it’s pretty much the same approach.  The only difference was their shirts.

Okay, let me start with Link from Breath of the wild.  This is Link’s signature Champion Tunic.

You can actually buy this costume from the internet but it is expensive, totally not worth it (to me).  Hopefully, my DIY costumes would be “compatible” and cost less…

Perfect turquoise blue with V-neck so I didn’t have to cut the collar!  I got size small for Owen, who is 5.5 years old about 42-45” tall.  The length of the t-shirt is long enough to serve as a tunic for him.  Size small legging for him as well.  The boys love wearing leggings because it’s comfortable lol.

I found this youtube tutorial (https://youtu.be/dNVoImWL9j4) that teach you how to make champion tunic.  He even posted his tee shirt template.  Thank you, I am set!

I didn’t use iron vinyl technique, instead, I followed Carrieelle (http://www.carrieelle.com/diy-link-costume-breath-of-the-wild/) to draw the pattern with white fabric paint.

I outlined the shirt using Happyatom’s template and bust out my painting skill.  It’s okay when you look from far, haha.  I did it one side per night because you need to let it dry completely.

As for the long sleeve undershirt, I drew the pattern using orange and green markers that I got at Michael’s clearance.  Didn’t try permanent markers nor highlighter, perhaps that would work too.

For Link from Majora’s Mask, it’s easy.  Adam hasn’t decided which “green” link he wanted to be.  At the very last minute, he made up his mind to be Link from Majora’s Mask.  So I went to google what he looks like.

Again, it’s EASY.  All you need is an oversized green polo shirt.  We found the exact green polo shirt at Walmart too!  Adam is 8.5 years old but he’s very small.  Size large fit him well that the polo shirt looked like a “dress”.  He insisted not to wear anything underneath.  But since it’s cool in San Diego, we made him wear an extra green tee I got earlier and leggings.

Belts

I didn’t use leather belts.  First, I couldn’t find cheap ones with matching color.  Secondly, the leather could be heavy and became bulky on the kids.  Hence, I used felt; light and easy.  I measured the kids and cut the felt accordingly.  I used yellow felt for the “buckles”.

I ain’t no designer, here is my sketch and belt measurements for the boys, lol.

I used tacky glue to secure the buckle position, then I sewed it.

I got a tiny “affordable” portable sewing machine on Amazon (https://www.amazon.com/Portable-Sewing-Amado-Double-Machine/dp/B06Y2CJMWD/ref=sr_1_4?s=arts-crafts&ie=UTF8&qid=1500934714&sr=1-4&keywords=portable+sewing+machine).  It just sew like a real sewing machine.  I used adhesive velcro to attach the buckle to the belt.

Alright, their tunics are done!  I’m happy with the results.

Hat

Link’s hat is easy too.  I measured Adam’s head circumference.  Drew a long triangle on green felt.  Sew the sides, done!

Boots

The boots required a little bit more work.  The boys don’t wear boots. I didn’t want to buy them a pair of boots.  Instead, I made boot coverings so they could wear normal shoes underneath.  I used the boys’ ski boots to sketch the boot shape on a big piece of paper, cut it, and then staple it.  This was the prototype for fittings.

After adjusting the measurements, I sketched them on brown felt and sewed it.  Later, I decided to add the boot cuffs with lighter brown felt since I got extra from Daiso’s.

Weapon – Sword and Shield

All the swords and shields look the same to me until the boys specifically showed me which one(s) they want.  Owen wanted Hylian Shield with Master Sword.  Adam wanted Hero Shield with Kokiri Sword.  I didn’t have time to do any 3D weapon in wood nor model foam; okay, I DON’T know how to do 3D, yet.  To keep things simple, I googled the weapons, downloaded the image, blew it up, printed them in color, and glued them on foam board.  The Master sword seemed too long for Owen so I cut the blade shorter proportionally.

The foam got beaten up quickly, especially they started swinging with it.  I had to use plastic knives and popsicle sticks (something I could find at home) for re-enforcement so the foam swords won’t bend too much.   I didn’t expect that to last long but it held up for a day!

Hylian shield – http://doctor-g.deviantart.com/art/Skyward-Hylian-Shield-347554925

Master Sword – http://blueamnesiac.deviantart.com/art/TP-Master-Sword-298301830

Hero Shield – http://blueamnesiac.deviantart.com/art/MM-Hero-s-Shield-275512942

Kokiri Sword – http://blueamnesiac.deviantart.com/art/MM-Kokiri-Sword-285737514

First fitting

Asked the boys to put the costumes on so I could do a final adjustment before we left for comic con.  Looking good!  I also made two little pouches for Owen’s champion tunic attached to the belt.  He used that to carry his candy during Comic Con!

Getting ready

Everything looked good when we dressed up the boys at the hotel before we took off.  I used masking tape to tape their boot coverings to the bottom of their shoes so they won’t slip off when they walked.  I carried the masking tape with me throughout the day for “emergency”.  I am so happy with how the costumes turned out.  The boys looked cute and they were happy with it!  Whew!

Comic Con

There were not too many people dressed up as Zelda (Marvel and Justice Leagues were popular).  But we still bumped into a few Zelda cosplays.  I remembered one of the Links said that the greatest moment was when he saw other people dress up as Zelda – it’s like we are in the same world!  I was also happy to see Majora’s Mask and Guardian.  Those cosplays were awesome!

The kid told me that his mom got his weapons on Amazon

At the end of the day, I realized that I did NOT take a photo with my Links =/

Original Blog by Barbara Choi: Wonderbarmama