Create Your Own Otaku Senshi: A Sailor Moon Fan-Character Help Site
Outfit
Your character's outfit, or sailor fuku, will define their appearance as a sailor senshi. There are lots of options when it comes to designing the outfit for your character.
Screen capture curtesy of The Oracle <3
Sol Fuku or Non-Sol Fuku?
Sailor Senshi from the Solar System (which includes all the stuff that orbits our Sun in our star system) usually have a bodice, skirt, front and back bows, sailor collar, gloves, chocker, shoes, and a tiara. Otaku senshi creators will often refer to this style as a 'Sol-based outfit' or 'Sol fuku.' In Sailor Moon canon, sailor senshi from outside of the Solar System have different styled outfits. One example is the Sailor Starlights. These characters are from a place far from the Solar System and their outfits are very different from the senshi of the Solar System. Think about the origins of your Sailor Senshi when designing her outfit.
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This image used with permission from Masamage. Thank you!
The following are the detailed stats for a Solar System senshi basic outfit:
- Tiara: (The color and style of tiara or any other head adornment, usually the tiara is gold with a gem at the center so be sure to describe the appearance of your character's tiara if if varies from this)
- Chocker: (Color and style of whatever goes around her neck and any decorations on it)
- Collar: (The cape over the shoulder, tell us the color and length, sometimes these have stripes on them, any other details or decoration.)
- Bodice: (The basic body suit of the outfit, color, style, any additional adornments or details, usually, this element is white - some canon senshi have sleeves or shoulder pads attached to the bodice; you should include this information here as well if your senshi has anything similar that attaches to the bodice)
- Brooch: (Whatever is at the center of the front bow. In the Sol Senshi regular form it is a circle, in super form it is a heart and remains a heart throughout the rest of the anime. In the manga, the brooches become stars when the senshi obtain their final forms. This brooch can really be anything you want it to be.)
- Front Bow: (Color of the bow in the front, include any alterations in style or length)
- Gloves: (Length, color and style of gloves, include any padding)
- Skirt: (Number of layers, length, color, style, any other skirt details)
- Back Bow: (Color and style of the bow in the front, length of tail ribbons)
- Footwear: (Color and style or what she wears on her feet)
- Other: (Any thing that doesn't fit anywhere else that you have added on or taken away from the basic formula.)
Sometimes otaku senshi creators start with the Sol-style outfit as a basis and alter it to fit their character. There is a whole spectrum of outfits that range from this basic format to outfits that have very little or no resemblance to the canon characters.
Remember, most likely, your character will have to fight in her outfit. Overly complex outfits might restrict her ability to fight. Alternatively, a senshi not often involved in physical combat with mainly magic based or distance attacks might not have to worry about such restrictions. Consider these things when designing your senshi's outfit.
Getting Inspiration
Some otaku senshi have designs that are very, very different from anything that is seen in the original story. If you want to create something that's a little different, there are many ways you can get inspiration for your new design. The quickest and easiest way to start working on your design is to check out fashion! You can use internet searches to find trendy clothing from just about any time period. Looking at outfits, old and new, might spark an idea for your senshi. Here are some sites to get you started:
- Fashion Era - This site "contains 630 content rich, illustrated pages of Fashion History, Costume History, Clothing, Fashions and Social History."
- PromGirl.com - Tons of awesome dresses in many styles.
Selecting Colors
Once your outfit has been designed, you will need to color it. Selecting colors for your otaku senshi can be tricky. It's a matter of finding colors that both represent your senshi well and look nice together. It might sound easy, but many otaku senshi creators struggle with this section. Here are some links that might be helpful for selecting colors that work well together:
- The Art of Color: Color Wheel & Color Relationships - An extensive guide to color theory from Maryville University
- Kuler - Provides pre-made themes as well as the opportinity to create from a base color. Very powerful and useful site.
- Behr ColorSmart - Got to "Find Your Color" and start following the instructions - allows you to select a starting color and coordinate accents. Pop-ups must be allowed.
- Valspar Coordinate Colors - Various tools for selecting colors and accents that match.
- Color Palette Generator - Select an image and this tool will create a color palette from it for you.
- Exploring the Spectrum: Designing With Color - A resource for color theory
- Learn Color from Sailormoon by KinnoHitsuji - A short tutorial on how canon Sailor Moon character colors relate to the color wheel.
- Art Concepts: A Guide to Color Theory - Information about color theory, suggested by Valley Book Club
- Using Color Theory to Enhance Your Room - more about the science of color theory, suggested by Ms. Graves's kids
Sailor Collars
For more information about sailor outfit designs and the choice to include a Sailor Collar, please see the Sailor Collar section of this site.
Need Help?
Some people have trouble coming up with ideas for their new character's look. Others have some basic ideas, but need some help fleshing them out. If you want some help with the design or redesign of your senshi, check out Sketch Our Senshi by Pysi. There, you can request a design or redesign of your character.
Also, check out DollDevine's Sailor Senshi Maker which allows you to design and print a custom outfit for your senshi, and Diana's SG's Kisekae Sets which allow you to create sailor senshi by KiSS doll!