my Biggest cosplay mistake (an elaborate requiem)
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 10 ม.ค. 2025
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/ heylizardleigh
Listen. There is simply no succinct way to tell this tale. Living through the rise, heyday, and eventual fall of Overwatch over the last few years changed my brain chemistry- and while I want to just tell you The Fiesta Blend Story, I also simply MUST provide context, and also explain to you the unfathomable lengths I went to crafting an interactive gamified cosplay experience for 2017 con-goers. This remains one of the coolest dang things I have EVER done, and I hope you love this unabridged novel.
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Hey! I'm Lizard Leigh! I'm a designer who turns abstract concepts into obsessively constructed cosplays. This channel is where you'll find every weird DIY cosplay build, shared with you in a detailed breakdown or build log! And when I say that, I really mean.... flying by the seat of my pants to make it work and catch that cosplay vibe lmfao.
We're building the airplane as we fly it y'all, and having fun getting WEIRD with original cosplay.
If you're new to making cosplay costumes, you're in the right place for cosplay advice- I've had a lot of time to learn a ton of things to keep me inspired and motivated for over a decade in this scene. Let's hang out and turn our big build schemes into some blessed seams!
The fiesta blend slowly overwhelming the background! This video is so so well made. The pacing with your editing keeps everything on screen so engaging that even my short attention span didn't think to switch tabs before it was over
aww thanks friend!!! getting the pacing right on this video was such a journey, also cleaning up all the blend HAHA
Came to say the same thing!
this wasn't just a cosplay story, it was a love letter, essay, full on statement on fandom, growth, finding new roots and going out in the world.
Hope more people find it, because this was super high production and deserves every view
Yes!
My friends have at times expressed shame for their teenage obsessions, but anything than brought happiness and didnt hurt people should be cherished, even if only as a memory. I have for example a lot of great Harry Potter convention memories, and i will cherish those even if i absolutly will not support any new merch, films or games.
thank you so much for such a meaningful comment!! I really feel like I had lofty goals for what I wanted to do with this video and it truly means the world to hear it landed, so thank you from the bottom of my heart
Fiesta blend is forever. Fiesta blend is eternal. Everything began with fiesta blend and it will end with fiesta blend. Our lives have no meaning without it, there is no purpose expect fiesta blend. Those who deny this will die in hopelessness. All is fiesta blend.
Damn I felt that video in my BONES. After loosing fandom after fandom because of creators turning their back on us (Disney, Marvel, Sherlock, HP, WoW, Game of Throne, Pokemon, and just recently DnD to only name a few) it is very interesting to see how different type of creative mind reflect on their time in the fandom they loved once. I never cosplayed, but I've put my heart and soul for years at a time into writing complex and compelling fanfictions, dealing with deadlines I would put on my shoulders just to make my readers happy, the same way you did with all those loot boxes... and yeah, I totally understand. The mixture of pride for doing something that made you feel so accomplished, yet the irks of knowing everything that it is now linked to that (the deceptions, the betrayals...) it's a very weird blend of emotions, and you captured it perfectly in that video. So glad I found your channel with your korok cosplay, and I can't wait to see the result of what you're working on right now!
oh thank you so much for such a kind comment!! it's so true, I really feel like people who create their OWN works based on our fandoms have so much in common no matter what we make! it sucks being betrayed by the people who originally created the things we love, but sharing experiences with fellow fans makes it a lot better :)
The first tiny hint of the fiesta blend had me cackling. This is such a wonderful look back at that brief, incredible moment where Overwatch really was doing something new and exciting, it really changed how I viewed games and I met so many cool people doing amazing things in the fandom.
Overwatch TRULY changed the landscape, I genuinely think that the first two years of that game it belongs in hall of fame one of the best games of all time territory. Thanks for watching!!
the dread i felt when i heard “10 pounds” 😂😭 my gf bought us a 10 pound bag of polyfill for a plushie project we have planned, and we no longer have closet space 💀
oh my god I can IMAGINE.... a less colorful behemoth than the blend, but a behemoth nonetheless!
I have the same box currently sitting in my basement, waiting
I got one of those when I was 7 and I still use it to this day. It's not even halfway gone and it's been a long time
Tracer’s reveal as a lesbian had a really big impact on me, also being absolutely obsessed with overwatch at the time, since in 2016 I was 12 and realised like literally a month or 2 earlier that I was a lesbian myself. I feel like that reveal very much solidified why representation is important in media, and the character of tracer became a core part of me for many years after
I didn't realise how deeply this story affected me until I found myself furiously writing and wax-sealing letters to hand to people in my Violet Evergarden cosplay for MCM London next May. Thankfully her outfit includes a little leather suitcase so I'll have enough room for them 😅
Oh gosh. You'll be finding that fiesta blend in that room for months/years from now... It's still hilarious to watch it grow, though.
I honestly think that I will find the last of the fiesta blend when I eventually move out LMFAO
@@HeyLizardLeigh my condolences to your sanity as you continue to be haunted by the fiesta blend lol
The gradual growth of the fiesta blend killed me.
this was the cathartic memorial for Overwatch I never knew I needed, thank you
tbh it was wildly cathartic to make, i am SO glad to share
You could put a little baggie of fiesta blend in any send-out to your glorious kofi buyers as like in joke
I'm in love with the original Zarya. What they did to her character is a travesty. Like Rise of Skywalker, GoT season 8, and Drakengard 2, I will pretend that Overwatch 2 doesn't exist.
They did my boy Zenyatta so dirty. I still want to cosplay Zen even after kinda falling out of the fandom.
tbQh Zen was the only one I felt genuinely devastated I'd accidentally forgotten when I tried to name all the heroes haha- and I feel that, I still almost bought Zarya merch at literally magfest just a few weeks ago! the love never dies!
i think my favorite thing about this video was just watching the amount of fiesta blend in the background slowly grow with every cut 😆
I truly will need to make a short or something with behind the scenes because it was SUCHHH a process hahaha!
@@HeyLizardLeigh YES😂
the blEND ABIDES no but seriously this is such a great way to not only tell your story with this great cosplay and how it traveled with you, but also how this fandom traveled with you. the way you portrayed the space in your life that overwatch filled and what happened to that shape over time, and the game that filled it, and the critique of the game and the support and the community ... idk it's just GOOD VIDEO. you are so good at telling stories, leigh.
;; thank you for such a kind comment friend!!! I appreciate you!!!
It's kinda a relief to know there's at least one other non-binary person out there who was figuring out their gender identity while looking at Zarya and thinking, "idk which I want more: to marry you or be just like you!" I was also really disappointed by her redesign.
I feel this so so deeply. Overwatch was a fandom of so many good memories, and to just watch it slowly deteriorate for all these years has been awful. Thank you for articulating my exact feelings and making this incredible love letter
I once purchased 10 pounds of candy necklaces and they were actually not that much more expensive than your fiesta blend, certainly less expensive than the 2022 price. I ate all of them too, my dentist was not happy with me
Bulk listings are a danger!! I love that though!
This is an EXCELLENT video essay, 10/10, would fiesta blend again
HEYYY I'm the DVA standing next to you in the group shoot! :D I received one of your fiesta blend loot boxes at DragonCon that year. This was a trip down memory lane learning about the history of the boxes. That Overwatch meet up at DragonCon an absolute blast - meet ups are not like they were back then. So much fun! I still have my Overwatch at Dragoncon shirt.:)
this video was a work of art and i will never not be jumpscared by the absolute poundage of fiesta blend. ive never once committed the poundage to memory. you could ask me tomorrow and i still wouldn't know. as far as i know it's infinite and that my friend is a-okay
when I saw that box in the staples it may as well have been infinite....... I still can't believe they just THREW IT IN A DISINTEGRATING BOX with no other bounds of containment...
This video is PERFECTION. And for those who doubt the persistence of the fiesta blend, I found some in my home in the year of our lord 2022. I have no doubt I’ll find more this year 😂😂😂 also i was fully cackling over you telling this story. Iconic. Amazing. I am so glad the world knows of your 10 lbs of crinkle cut paper sins. Overwatch is dead and I mourn her deeply, but Fiesta Blend Is Eternal. The “dead to me” random list increases but the friendships, love, and memories are eternal ❤ And I’m assuming you’re still cleaning fiesta blend from your set now ahahhahahah
Righttt like I love looking back and thinking of all the relationships that've lasted years and years beyond my love of a show or game!! and I am SO VERY GLAD that the fiesta blend lives on across so many locations HAHA 💜💜💜
Fiesta blend reminds me of a set of costumes I decorated with marabou feathers. Literally ten years later they were still peeking out under the skirting boards. Great story & fab costume! 🩷💛🩵
Oh my gosh I can IMAGINE.......... and thank you!!
I know I'm late to the party, but I love this video so much. I feel it on a personal level too. One year for AKon in Dallas, a group of friends and I invented an entire anime and cosplayed characters from it. It was so much time and effort, just because I wanted to see how many people would claim they had heard of it and they thought my costume looked familiar (4 of them).
I think our attachment to memories like this are in part linked to how much effort we put in. And how much fiesta blend still haunts our lives.
you could definitely convert the fiesta blend to recycled paper to doodle on
Your commitment to the bit (and the cleanup!) is certainly worth a like! I experienced a similar scenario when buying fiber fill for plushies, so I definitely know how it goes.
I met you 43 minutes ago and I have made three fiesta blend jokes ever since and I'm afraid it's not gonna stop anytime soon
The "personal journey and cosplay" combination format is really good.
I’m hoping to make lots more of em!! thanks for watching!
Thank you for touching on the multiple blizzard controversies, I honestly pushed off watching this video because i was worried it was going to be all sunshine and roses about blizzard. I REALLY LOVED your message in this video, because I also had such a great time with overwatch in 2017. Hell, the cowboy character was my comfort character, so all of that news broke me ya know.
anyway, thank you for the great video.
absoLUTEly!! I get that, it's so hard to revisit things you once loved when you don't any more, especially if you're not sure if the person talking about it is on the same page. the cowboy character was so so so good, and that news was so rough....
The background slowly changing is *chef's kiss 😗👌
I love the increased fiesta blend as the video progressed. Tho I will say how close it got to the candle made me nervous...but still hilarious 😂
I really love your editing style!
And how in a cut suddenly the blend of the paper was all behind you was great, but like I can not stop staring at the candle with the open flame. My anxiety is rising.
thank you!! and HAHA felt, to be honest I have.... so much experience with the structural integrity of fiesta blend, it was deployed VERY sensibly around the jar candle so there was no risk of catastrophe
I think the fiesta blends will outlives all.
1. You are amazing
2. I love the game idea and interactive part of your cosplay
3. OMG on the Fiesta paper
4. I LOVE how you keep adding the paper all over your office. LOL Blessed Be ♥
i'm glad that the convention side of this story ended up going well! i never got into overwatch personally, but i feel for all the fans who felt let down as the years went on. also wow that's a lot of fiesta blend LOL
Me, a handmade paper enthusiast - omg the paper that repulped fiesta blend would make 🤤
2017 Blizzcon was a good year. Too bad I never ran into you, I love little odds and ends like those loot boxes.
The last shot was like a horror movie. This is how humanity ends: devoured by an encroaching pile of pansexual-colored crinkle paper.
When I heard ten pounds I froze for a second and just stared at my phone (I put your videos on in the background when I crochet
This is a cinematic masterpiece
thank u :')
The fiesta blend slowly encroaching on the background was quite literally terrifying
I keep coming back to this video and decided to have a think why... it's just so comforting. Truly like a friend (who's fab at telling stories) recounting this tale in the most captivating way for my silly little brain.
So much so I've added this to my "Eventime" (sleepy/relaxy/comfy) playlist.
This is high, high praise, Lizard. Well bloody done!
Also.. all Hail Fiesta Blend
Oh my god. I used to live in a town in France that had a prelenten Carnival celebration that involved a confetti fight in the town square. They used recycled paper confetti and by the end of the day you would be up to your hips in the stuff. It took years for me to stop finding bits of it around. Now I live in New Orleans and I have the issue that I will always have at least a little glitter on me no matter what I do. So in some ways I feel you 😂
All hail the fiesta blend!
this video was a lovely summation of the full overwatch saga as well as capturing some of my favorite parts of pre-covid cosplay: the interaction! it's not that it's not still there, but i do feel like that element of cosplay's gone down since then. also, glad to see another person who wasn't really a fps person until overwatch who also kinda dropped it after they instituted the role selection. i miss the early days of it where you'd end up with a full team of torbjorns or all reapers and one lucio! it was fun and silly!! the roles made everything more Serious and Competitive which i was specifically avoiding by never doing their actual official competitive mode. i'm just a silly little guy here to have a silly little time. :(
FIESTA BLEND TIME! 10 seconds in and OMG I CAN"T WAIT FOR THE BEAUTIFUL RETELLING
I clicked for fiesta blend. What I got was such a well put and succinct mirror of my own feelings and grief for the game that defined so much of my teen years. I cried while watching this video and I think you discussed really well how the changes to the game just left it feeling vacuous, and how a game that was once so full of life and lore just became a hollow shell of what it once was. I also now want to make my own Ozymandias of a cosplay, I've always wanted to but now I'm wanting to even more, and am actually planning one now. Amazing video, very well put. I also loved the background gag of more and more fiesta blend, it got a good laugh out of me even when I was tearing up. Thank you for making this video :)
the fiesta blend draws you in and then never lets you go :) but seriously, thank you so much for such a thoughtful and kind comment!!!!!!!!!!! i'm SO glad this video connected with you, that was truly my goal because I know so many people had similar experiences with this game. I truly hope you end up making something great, and sorry my comment responses are so late!! 💜
I've done some similar things, & also feel the need to take responsibility for my errors in judgement! I can't afford to support you financially right now, but love rewatching all your videos, so hope that helps.
that's a-okay!! and thank you for watching! :D
WHEN YOU SAID 10lbs i about died this is so funny lol. i love your storys your amazing!
35:21 "I know that you got excited because you thought of a pun that involved objectifying someone, but you sound like a serial killer" that quote weirdly applies to a lot of things
Blizzard’s treatment of BlitzChung was the ending of my love for them and for WoW, a game and community I’d been deep into for years. I mean, much like described here I’d been losing touch with the game as it was treading water a lot in 2019, but I figured something would change to bring me back in. But then it really crystallised that they did not care about even people who had put the most time and emotion into their communities, and the only thing I could do in response was cancel my sub. And then I never opened Battlenet again (2020 killed my love of gaming in the end, it was much harder to enjoy being inside on the computer when it was suddenly all I could do). I still have a deep affection for my memories of Azeroth, but my story and my time within it is over.
I feel this!! It's hard to leave behind all that time in such a great community, even if you know that time is over... And it really is such a shame seeing Blizzard turn into such a bad guy in the industry :C very here to treasure the memories though!
You are a legend. Your filmmaking and storytelling abilities are incredible. 😭 And I can’t WAIT for the workroom video 😍
I'm excited for it!! It'll definitely be a few weeks since I need to finish a whole other cosplay first, but it's been a long time coming and I'm hype!
So I've watched this video twice now, once as I was editing and then I had Allen watch it with me. We were both were big Overwatch fans and so this hit home in many ways. Although Allen did say if we left NYC in April without a cup of Fiesita Blend then it was all for naught. xD You're killing it, Lizard.
I'm catching up on youtube comments and just want to formally note that we WILL make this happen HAHA
I am so much like you on how much I loved Overwatch, rest in peace Mercy. I hate how they killed it, OW was my first real videogame, started playing in 2015, stopped 2 days after they forced us over to OW2.
fiesta blend is Lizard's glitter
This is such a good video! I was never into Overwatch but the MCU was my life so listening to your experiences was pretty relatable lol. I absolutely love the way you edit your videos and the concepts and designs you come up with for your cosplays are so inspirational!
Oh my gosh I sure could make a whole other video like this about the mcu man, talk about another beloved universe that I just... have very mixed feelings on now!! and thank you so much, I'm glad to have you here watching! :D
I am also in the camp of "flared pants are back in style so what do I know."
I recently discovered your channel and I'm having a great time binging your channel
When it comes to Sherlock and how disappointing it was, I still remember the sense of community I felt when I was waiting to watch it with my friends, so just because a show turns out to be sh*t, that doesn't erase the happy memories that you built with people because of it. :)
That is so true.
this story was a wild ride from start to finish, thank you for sharing
thank YOU for watching the absolute rollercoaster
great video! i hope the clearup for all that fiesta blend went well because it makes me slightly insane to look at and think about pulling bits of fiesta blend out of that thread pegboard
thank you!! man I cleaned it up right away but still ended up finding little bits for weeks after LOL
This was so cute and made me see the light in what has turned so dark.
Thanks! 🖤
As a longtime WoW player, the Blizzard shade is so perfect 😂😭
yuppp! it’s really so deserved haha, can’t talk about the positive memories without some dunking
as someone who feels creativity stunted for reasons, i think cosplaying as the lootbox itself is cool outside of the box thinking already, but interpreting it as a cigarette girl is a stroke of genius
this was such a lovely and wholesome story!!! thank you for sharing it with us. th video was fantastic, as well as the EPIC COSPLAY!!
I really want blizzard to see this video tbh, I had a very similar overwatch experience to you and I want them to know the love they lost
18:52 omg yuri on ice is still my favourite cozy anime. I rewatch it every winter. Seeing that you have a original sketch of victor is killing me that’s so fucking cool💍🐶🐯🍛⛸🥇❄️🏳️🌈
I never played Overwatch and I’m not very big on video games at all but I do love cosplay and creating things. You are such a fun person and I absolutely LOVE your content. Can’t wait to see more :) also thank you for making me smile and giggle over the fiesta blend. I needed that 😂
thanks so much for watching!!
22:50 LMAO it took me until this moment to notice that you had been slowly adding more of the paper everywhere. i haven't heard the rest of the story yet but this is so funny
This was such a cool story omg
Me: hahahaha who would let a bag of scraps overwhelm their entire life
The bin of miniscule fabric scraps in my workroom: 8DDD
This is my first video I've seen of yours. 1- Now I kinda feel sad for missing all of overwatch since I don't care for fpses. 2- MAN that wand seller does sound awesome. And yes, screw terfs. Buy all fandom stuff from indie creators until that ahole no longer gets any money :). 3- An idea for the fiesta mix... Have you made a to scale version of a dress form? You could use the crinkle paper as a core and do something softer on the outside?
I started playing when the switch first came out. I loved the game and still do just, it’s not the same as it was and I miss the old charm. Loot box’s were my favorite thing that they chose to take away
Ok…a way to use the rest of the fiesta blend….Fiesta blend. Themed. Cosplay. 🤔 haha
Loved seeing it slowly take over the background. And, as others have said, what a great eulogy to such an important time in your life. Really enjoyed this video. 🙂
I have TRULY been considering a fiesta blend themed look, I think the possibilities are endless LOL. thanks for watching!!
This is what makes the cosplay community so amazing, people like you who spend so much time and effort to create a great experience for people in the fandom you love ❤ This was so heartwarming (and a little sad, rip Overwatch)
It's so funny listening to this video in the background because every time I look at the screen there's so much more fiesta blend
Thank you for sharing your experience with your once beloved franchise. You are not alone with mourning the loss, as a once thriving game. As a shared gaming and cosplay community, we all felt the pain. Also my anxiety was slowly rising as the fiesta blend grew closer to the open flame LOL. Keep being awesome and sharing your experiences.
FIESTA BLEND EVERYWHERE!!!!!!🎉🎉🎉
Really enjoyed the video. I’m not into shooters so I didn’t know the original Overwatch was dead, that’s a shame.
Also, you have my admiration to the devotion to the fiesta blend. I don’t think it’s on the same level as glitter, but you’ll definitely be finding bits and pieces around after this video.
Literally just last night I was jumpscared by some on the shelf, it's truly here forever!! thanks for watching!
this is defintally gonna be one of the videos I listen to in the background while I draw
the way you tell the story too is really fun
this means so much to me, thanks for watching! :)
God overwatch is so nostalgic to me. It was my comfort when I was going through a rough patch and I had so much fun playing it. Hell I still have my Winston plush and a DVA chair (which was bought a week before the lawsuit dropped…oof).
oof indeed, I still have so much overwatch stuff as evidenced by my zarya collection haha. it WAS such a great and comforting game!
Omg I love the fiesta mix growing and taking over
This was an absolute delight to watch. I know nothing about Overwatch but was riveted the entire time. Bravo!
I'm SO glad!!! I really wanted to make sure that the video would still be fun to watch even for people that never got into the game back then! :D
Man all this really warms my heart
Giving me a lot of motivation todo a cosplay of characters I’m attached to
The fiesta blend just feels like the cute anime version of an Eldritch horror, just creeping into your home! Really cool video! Theres always something sad about an era of video games just ending, but also always great to hear about the experiences it brought to people
I'm getting nervous watching the fiesta blend slowly getting closer and closer to the candle
I absolutely LOVE the way of story telling in this video! And the way your cosplay story also tied into essentially a deep dive into Overwatch was really neat!
thank you!! it definitely made this video a bit of a behemoth to edit haha, but I'm so happy with how it turned out!
The bit of the fiesta mix slowly just covering everything was so funny. Bless
Your loot box cosplay is such a fun idea! I love it when people have some kind of interaction with their cosplays. It can really make people's day at a convention
It was truly SO wholesome to just spread joy and bring good things to people's day, 100/10 con day experience
you are great at storytelling, loved watching this even though i never got into overwatch! XD
wow i have never felt so seen in terms of my experience with overwatch... i too had never played FPS games and really enjoyed it for a period of time and lost interest around the same time for similar reasons. what a journey you have been through with fiesta blend.
I was waiting for fiesta blend to peek out from under your shirt collar, so thank you for satisfying that yen.
I was also so obsessed with OW in 2016 and had such a fun time doing cosplays and playing the game with friends so this was such a fun relatable topic! People who give little things away at cons are always make my day, 750 boxes was pure dedication! The fiesta blend slowly taking over had me giggling ♥
It was truly a PERFECT con experience building so many things to give away to people, the joy was truly mutual!! I'd love to make something like this again but we'll see if that ends up happening!
This was just _so_ good to watch! I had my own trip down memory lane with bulk orders that followed us for so many years 🥲
Many said it here, but the video was just amazing. Love the commitment! The editing! The intertwined story! The pace! Well done 🎉❤
One of the best finds on yt ❤
The clair de lune with the Fiesta blend was bizarrely beautiful to me 😢
okay but that candle makin' me real nervous next to that fiesta blend tower
your enthusiasm for cosplay makes me want to cosplay!
“mercy- i missed pharah, oh i missed genji” SHISJS that’s how i know you were REALLY in the ow 💀
Thankyou so much for this entire thing. I had such a similar love for Overwatch and fallout from it, but sadly without quite diving into all the cosplay potential because materials are expensive outside of the US 😅
I'm currently in the process of making my own overly ambitious interactive cosplay; I was joking about Hatsune Miku performing at my birthday party...and I'm going to do everything in my power, for Miku herself to be there (as me, Im the Miku), complete with lightsticks with custom artwork wrapped around to hand out and everything. And I managed to find a secondhand Jynx wig that I could maybe transform, so hopefully it will all happen!!
Great story and storytelling
Hey so I just found your channel and I’m amazed at the quality of the content. Please keep it up
Also you’re giving me the good energy to finish my projects lmao