Chris
My introduction to cosplay came relatively late, back in 2004, after reading NEO magazine. With university looming the following year, I decided to take the plunge and attend MCM London in 2005. With a lot of help from my parents, I put together my first cosplay – Cloud Strife from Final Fantasy VII (minus the Buster Sword). I had absolutely no idea what to expect, ended up getting changed in the toilets, and was completely out of my depth… but I loved it.
Life moved on, and it wasn’t until 2016 -following a difficult breakup and a period of travelling around the United States – that I properly returned to cosplay. This time, as Tien Shinhan from Dragon Ball. Despite the years between them, both cosplays came with the same familiar problems: struggling to find suitable clothing to adapt, and having little luck sourcing accurate patterns to make what I needed.
These days, I’m primarily a fabric-based cosplay maker, with ambitions to branch into armour builds and LED-based designs. I’ll be the first to admit I have a perfectionist streak – garments rarely turn out exactly how I want them to – which can be a source of frustration for me, and endless amusement for Liz, who finds it hilarious when I get overly stressed mid-build.
Spending time in cosplay communities, especially on Facebook, I kept seeing the same issues come up again and again. International orders, poor-quality materials, and cosplayers being questioned, sometimes bluntly or insensitively, about their measurements. As a bigger cosplayer myself (I’m 6’6” / 198cm), I could easily imagine how frustrating and humiliating that experience could be.
At first, I considered making costumes for others. But after meeting Neill Gorton, my focus shifted. Instead of commissions alone, I wanted to create a single, reliable resource for cosplayers – a place where people could get quality materials, access commission services if they wanted, and stay informed about upcoming conventions.
That idea eventually became Silver Dragon Cosplay.
Silver Dragon Cosplay
Pablo is the mascot of Silver Dragon Cosplay. He’s named in honour of Chris’s father, who once told a story about a world that had lost all its colour. In that story, Pablo – admittedly a penguin – set out to find the seven gems of colour and restore colour to the land. The name felt fitting for a brand built around creativity, colour, and bringing ideas to life.
At its core, Silver Dragon Cosplay exists to be a single, reliable resource for cosplayers. The aim is to make preparing for a convention simpler by offering access to the materials you need, useful information such as maps and event calendars, and a growing range of services designed around the realities of cosplay-making.
Silver Dragon Cosplay is for everyone in the cosplay community – from complete beginners to experienced makers, from people crafting solely for themselves to those creating for others. While the current focus is on UK-based cosplayers and conventions, there are clear plans to expand beyond that as the business grows.
The product range is shaped by real-world making: insights from YouTube tutorials, discussions and feedback across social media, and first-hand experience working with a wide variety of fabrics and materials. Stock choices are intentional, practical, and driven by what cosplayers actually use – not what looks good on a product list.
As Silver Dragon Cosplay is still in its early stages, stock is not currently held on-site. This means orders may take a little longer to ship, but transparency is important. Customers will always be kept informed – whether that’s order confirmations, shipping updates, or any unexpected delays along the way.
Liz
When Liz met Chris, she did not expect to be caught up into the world of Cosplay – Attending her first event in 2016 (as a beautiful Harry Potter Extra) to say she enjoyed it was an understatement.
Liz is the steady support behind Silver Dragon Cosplay. While she doesn’t make the costumes herself yet, she’s very much part of the journey – offering moral support, keeping perspective when builds get stressful, and attending conventions alongside Chris.
When asked to describe Silver Dragon Cosplay in three words, Liz sums it up perfectly….. “COSPLAY FOR ALL”.