Ewiderbuy Cosplay Review~! And the Greatness that is Aselia Con

Last weekend, I went to Aselia Con 2014, the one and only Tales of... convention in all of North America. I'm a huge fan of the Tales JRPG series, so I was very excited when I found out that my friends were willing to put together a dedicated convention! This was the con's second year.

Introducing Aselia Con~! I do not own this photo!

For the con, I wore two cosplays and a Lolita coord. I was sad because my cosplay from last year was still damaged, so I couldn't wear it. But that's okay; everything turned out well!

One the first day, I cosplayed one part of a set of twins. My super sewing bestie made both of our cosplays, so thankfully I didn't have to spend the big bucks! But my day two cosplay was where the money is at, and it was so beautiful that I had to write a review on the construction and of course, the buying process.

I purchased my Estellise Sidos Heurassein cosplay from Ewiderbuy Cosplay on January 17th. Ewiderbuy is supposedly a cosplay shop that primarily works with the Eastern side of the globe, though recently they have been able to become a global shop. The pictures on their website look great and don't have weird Photoshopping things going on with them so I figured it was safe to purchase there.

Ewiderbuy's Store Front

I ordered a custom sized cosplay (a dress and over dress) with boots, gloves and a shield, for about $180. After the extra $50 for EMS shipping and a $10 coupon, my complete total was $223.

In the world of cosplay, that's a pretty reasonable price for the amount of work put into the costume. When you add in the fact that this was made to fit my measurements exactly, I'd have to say that I got off on the cheap side, actually. The costume was definitely high quality, and LOOKED EXACTLY LIKE THE PICTURE. That was a big deal for me, because it's rare that you find a cosplay that looks exactly as advertised.

From left to right: Stock photo from Ewiderbuy (I DO NOT OWN), Me in the cosplay, and character artwork of Estelle (I DO NOT OWN!)

So, I was very happy to discover that the cosplay was exactly as advertised and everything that I wanted. It's so beautiful~!

My biggest issue with Ewiderbuy is communication. I'm pretty sure it's because I ordered my cosplay right before Chinese New Year, but communication with the shop was so very poor -- I was afraid I had been scammed.

I waited an entire month before I reached out to the cosplay shop about the status of my costume because I knew they were on vacation. I tried four different mediums to contact the shop, and my inquires received no response until I opened a Paypal claim. I'm really glad that Paypal gives international transactions a large window of error, because I'm not sure if I would have gotten my money back had this company actually been a scam. Thank goodness they weren't, though.

Once Ewiderbuy responded to my Paypal claim, they were in constant communication with me. I was notified when my cosplay was finished and when it would be shipped. I think all together, it took them a week to make my cosplay and about four days for it to arrive on my doorstep.

Cosplay Package

I have to say I was expecting a much bigger box since I paid $50 for shipping, but I'm assuming most of the cost comes from the fact that it would get to me in 5 to 8 business days. I ripped the package open as soon as I got into my living room...

Everything was wrapped neatly!

It really surprised me to see how carefully everything was wrapped and sealed. I just didn't see how all of it could fit in that small package. Clearly, I don't know the right way to pack a box, haha.

From left to right: Pink petal dress, white over dress, gloves and boots, shield, and random hoops that go in the skirt.

I was thoroughly impressed and pleased with everything I had received and it almost made me forget about the terrible communication from before. Alllllmost.

All and all I would give Ewiderbuy a 6 out of 8! I really love my cosplay, but I'm a bit upset that I had to open a Paypal claim for them to finally answer all my questions. I'm still a bit confused too, because the account I created on the website says that I was refunded all of my money and that the cosplay wasn't made, though that is certainly not the case. I'm really hoping that doesn't come back to haunt me later, though Ewiderbuy has assured me that it doesn't mean anything.

Due to the high quality of the costume however, I can say that I would order from them again. I honestly think (and hope) that they were simply behind from all the orders put in while they were on vacation for, and that's why no one could contact me. I'll keep any eye out from any negative whispers on the Web, but you certainly won't hear any harsh words from me!

Till next time my beautiful readers~! <3 <3

-J