The last of the series of posts showing more details of how I made my Monster High Twyla cosplay – let’s go!
Choosing what to make
While accurate cosplays are very satisfying, I did not have a lot of time to pull this one together, and put most of my accuracy effort into the Book of Talismans book bag prop.
But I really wanted to get the spirit of Twyla into my costume & accessories, and had identified a few things that were very much part of her overall look: D20 dice, a purple bunny, a bunny bag and a fidget toy on her wrist.
Part 1: Dice
Dice first, as the first Twyla doll in my collection came with a teeny tiny set of D&D dice. In the animated series they play a D&D type game called Humans in High School, and I really wanted to bring dice into her look.
Being me, I had experimented with making resin dice last year and had a bunch of not-quite-perfect ones left over – yay!
Some paint, a Dremel, a couple of suitably coloured chains and some earring hooks later, I had the cutest jewellery set for Twyla – here they are with the dice that came with the Fearbook doll, for scale:
Part 2: Bunnies!
Twyla’s pet is Dustin the dust bunny, a little purple rabbit, and she also has a bunny themed rucksack.
I hunted high and low for a bunny plushie I could dye, but couldn’t find anything that would work, and just as I was about to give up and leave this for a later version of the costume, I found this for the princely sum of £3.99:
While usually I prefer to buy preloved for costumes, this was too cute to pass up, and will get lots of use as an actual bag as it’s ridiculous enough to be on brand for me almost anywhere. A quick dive into how to re-colour fake fur, a rummage through my craft stash for purple alcohol ink…
… and here we are! I couldn’t extend the straps enough to fit over my shoulders, or buy extension straps at short notice, as I literally found this a day and a half before the event, so I clipped it over my camera bag instead and it was a very joyful addition to the day! Probably not one I can use in the rain as I suspect the ink dye will leak, but it looks a lot better than I expected it to and I love it.
Part 3: Fidget toy
Twyla is the first openly ND character I’ve seen in Monster High, although of course all monsters have their quirks and unique traits, and she wears a fidget toy on her wrist. Her bio says it helps her to manage big emotions along with stimming, and I can relate (although I do tend to talk out my emotions alongside fidgeting with stuff, I think & process better when my hands are occupied).
Raided my own stash for this and found two Tangle toys in very Twyla-esque colours, so took out the pink bits, clipped them together and it worked a treat. Here it is with my two Twylas and their wrist fidgets.
And here’s how it all came together!
The accessory budget
Things I bought
Fluffy bunny rucksack, £3.99, Home Bargains
Total spent: £3.99
Things I already had
Various D&D resin dice
Dice mould & resin
Acrylic paint for the numbers
Coloured ball chains
Purple alcohol ink
Tangle fidget toy
Masking tape (for bunny’s tail)
Tools I used
Dremel
