Meet Kendra Griffen

We recently connected with Kendra Griffen and have shared our conversation below.

Kendra, so great to be with you and I think a lot of folks are going to benefit from hearing your story and lessons and wisdom. Imposter Syndrome is something that we know how words to describe, but it’s something that has held people back forever and so we’re really interested to hear about your story and how you overcame imposter syndrome.

Imposter syndrome is still something I deal with on projects and even after I have completed them. I frequently find myself frozen to continue progress on a costume or even start one because I am fighting this battle of how I will pull this one off and the last costume was just me getting lucky. This turns into procrastination and then more stress when you’ve fallen behind. I have had to count down to ten and get myself up and moving on something that will further my progress even if it’s just sanding or sketching out a blueprint for armor. Recently, someone at work suggested that I journal all my successes in one notebook to look back on in the future as evidence that I have done these incredible creations and am capable of doing many more in new and different ways. Then, when you finally get to the end result of a costume or prop you can pat yourself on the back for putting in all that time and effort in creating something you enjoy.

Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?

I am a cosplayer and prop maker. I mainly create costumes from movies, tv shows, and games and build them with foam, or 3d print them. I then wear costumes to charity events or cons around Washington State and work within the cosplay community to bring movies and scenes to life.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

The three biggest teachers I’ve learned that are effective in my career as a cosplayer is the ability to be patient with yourself. You will mess a lot of things up and some mistakes can be an easy fix or some will force you to start all over again. It is okay to fail as long as you keep persisting. It’s all about learning what worked for you and what didn’t work. I have journals full of failures and lessons learned along the way. It is also crucial to me to have them documented so when I question which method to take for a project I can look back on certain strategies and techniques that could apply to something I need a solution to. Secondly, it is important to find people locally who work in your field of creativity. I have learned a lot simply by texting someone to see what they would do for certain costumes and props. I am thankful enough to have a whole community of people who are extremely talented in cosplay. We always get together and work on costumes and help each other out on each other builds as well. Those workshop sessions are a great way for us to get items crossed off our to do list and run by ideas for tackling other costumes. Finally, there needs to be a structure of organization when I am building a costume. During the first phases of a new costume, I always sketch out the parts that need to be made and take a library full of reference pictures. Once I have done that I can then look at the pieces and tell what materials I need to make the costume and set deadlines for each piece and when everything should be done. As I am working on the costume I take pictures and videos of my progress as yet another form of documentation to use for future builds or for someone to look back on my socials and use them as references for their builds. Every artist has a method and structure that helps them gain progress and keep them motivated.

Any advice for folks feeling overwhelmed?

When faced with the feeling of being overwhelmed I will always take a step back from what may be causing that feeling to surface and address both physically and mentally why I am feeling that way. It could be stress from falling behind, it could be a sense of being stuck or burnout, etc. Once I have addressed the problem that is causing it I take to my journal and write about what led up to feeling overwhelmed how I felt during that moment and what possible solutions I can do to lessen or prevent the feeling of anxiety. This and talking to someone close to you or a therapist to gain advice from others or simply to get it off your chest. You should never fight these battles alone or bottle them up without addressing them.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: Trillasupremacy
• Twitter: Trillasupremacy
• Other: Tiktok: Trillasupremacy

Image Credits

Ted Warner

Datsu Wota