Rules

1. No costume is not a costume.  Please be dressed appropriately for a family friendly convention!
2. This Craftsmanship competition is judged based on the assessment of the costumer’s skill at making a costume. Any costume that consists mostly of bought, unaltered, items (i.e. buying regular street clothes that require no changes) will not be considered for the Craftsmanship Contest.
3. All genres of costuming are accepted in this costume contest!
4. Please bring reference material for your costume.  We are not familiar with all of the characters in every universe, so having a reference picture will help us in assessing your craftsmanship skill and ability to recreate a look.  Original design costumes will be accepted for competition, but having a sketch or reference art for your idea would still be useful.  If you do not have access to a printer, using an Iphone or other device to show us your reference picture is perfectly acceptable.
5. Judging will be based on the quality of your construction and how closely it resembles the reference art.
6. Each contestant will have about three minutes to come in and talk briefly to the judges about the construction of their costume, so it may be helpful to have thought about your points of discussion prior to judging.
7. The Winners will be announced at the Costume Contest Panel on Sunday afternoon.
8. Judging will begin at 11AM Saturday Morning and will continue throughout the weekend.

Level Classifications

Youth:  Any costumers under the age of 16 may enter in this category.  We would like for you to have made at least 50% of your costume.  Youth participants are allowed to have had help with the construction of their costume.  If this is the case, please try to have your parent or helper there to explain what they helped you with.  Youths who have costumes that were made either by their parents, or that they didn’t make at least 50% of by themselves, are not eligible for the craftsmanship part of this costume contest, however, they are encouraged to participate in the costume showcase on Sunday afternoon!

All participants in the other Craftsmanship categories must have made at least 75% of their costume.

Placement in the categories is based on experience and Craftsmanship awards won at previous conventions.  Qualifying awards that are used to place you in your category are: a place award (1^st, 2^nd, or 3^rd) or Best in Show at any other convention, in any skill level division.

We ask that you take your skill level into account when placing yourself in a category.  If you have been sewing and making costumes for many years and just have not entered a competition before, please consider placing yourself in a category above the Novice division. If we feel that your skill level far exceeds the category you have been placed in, we reserve the right to move you up a level for prize recognition.

If you have won awards in craftsmanship contests before, please do not place yourself in a category any lower than your highest level award.  For example, if you have won 1^st place novice at one show, and 2^nd place journeyman at another show, please do not register for any class lower than Journeyman, since it is your highest level award.

Please do not enter a costume that has already won a placement award in any craftsmanship competition.  Costumes that have won Honorable Mentions, or Judges awards are still eligible for competition.  Costumes that were not judged based on craftsmanship, but have won awards in Masquerade skits are also eligible for competition.

Contestants are welcome to place themselves in a higher category if they feel confident in their craftsmanship skills.  The higher the level, the bigger the prize!

Novice:  Any participant who has not entered a costume contest before may enter in the Novice category.  Likewise, if you have won less than 3 awards for craftsmanship, you may enter in the novice category.  Anyone who has just started sewing, or made less than 5 costumes may want to consider entering into the novice division.

Journeyman:  This category is for any participant who has won between 3 and 7 awards for craftsmanship.  This is also the correct category for any participant who has been sewing for a while and has made 5-15 costumes

Master:  This level is for participants who have won more than 7 awards for craftsmanship.  Participants who have been sewing for many years and have made more than 15 costumes may want to consider entering in Master Class.

Group:  The group category is separate from the other categories, and requires no placement.

Awards

Best In Show: $300

1^st Place Master Class:  $250

1^st Place Journeyman:  $150

1^st Place Novice:  $100

Group:  Best Group $200

Youth Prizes, and other placement prizes will be provided by Ultimate Comics!!!  So look forward to some super cool Comic Swag!

The Costume Contest will be separated into two Categories this year: The Craftsmanship Contest and The Costume Showcase.

The Craftsmanship Contest

The Craftsmanship competition will be open to anyone who has made their own costume.  At least 75% of the costume must have been made or altered in some way by the maker to be eligible for competition.  Anyone under 16 years of age may enter in the “youth” category.  Participants in the youth category must have made at least 50% of their costume on their own.  Age restrictions are based on the age of the costume maker, not the model wearing the costume.  You may enter a costume that you have made for someone else, but both the costume maker and the model wearing the costume must be present for judging.

Due to last year’s overwhelming participation, the judging has been expanded. However, due to the expected increase in attendance, we believe that most participants will have to pre-register at NCComicon.com. There will be a limited number of registration slots open, and once they are filled up, we will not be accepting any more entries. Late arrivals and costumes expecting to be judged without a pre-arranged judging time will be selected via a first come, first serve basis while there are remaining available slots.  Once the available spaces are filled, we will not be accepting any more entries.

There should be approximately 125 spaces available for the Craftsmanship contest.  Group entries only count as one registration slot.  An online registration form will be made available for contestants to fill out and send in for registration.

Pre-Registered contestants should report to the judging area during their designated time.  Judging will take place both Saturday and Sunday so please make sure to check your scheduled judging time and be there promptly.   If you do not show up to your designated judging time, we cannot guarantee that we will have time to judge your costume at a later time.

The Costume Showcase

The Costume Showcase will take place during the Costume Contest Panel on Sunday afternoon.  The Showcase is an opportunity for Costumers at the convention to walk across the stage and show their costume off to the rest of the convention!  Anyone who wants to participate in the Showcase should show up to the panel half an hour early.  Participants will be lined up in order with Youth at the front of the line, followed by Ladies, and then Gentlemen.  Everyone is eligible to participate in the Showcase, even people who are participating in the craftsmanship contest.  For the showcase, we will have several Special Guest Judges to be announced at the convention!