One never would have guessed that Disney buying Marvel in 2009 could have resulted in anything good.....until now! Behold the Superhero Princesses!

Photo by Jason Holmes

Click the little blue button below to read my interview with each of these fantastic cosplayers! (Be forewarned: it's a doozy! Lots of pretty pictures, too!)

GPX: How on Earth did you guys come up with these designs, let alone the idea? They’re so incredibly original, yet still clearly recognizable!

Ashley Hay (Belle): I found this photo online from an artist on DeviantArt named Kreugan Mcgillicuddy; she had about eight of the Princesses drawn as superheroes. We took many of our designs from there while other girls made up their own.

Rebecca Denise Young (Rapunzel): As Ashley noted, she found an image on DeviantArt depicting the Princesses as superheroes. From there, we chatted and reached out to other girls whom we felt would have the passion to piece together their costumes and the love of Disney - as we do.

Carladawn (Aurora): Most of the group went off of Kreugan's picture, but I went off of this Aurora art.

Christa Spencer (Alice): The idea spawned when Ashley saw a piece of artwork by Kreugen on DeviantArt. I hopped on board immediately since it looked like such a fun project to be a part of, making my own design for Alice. We worked hard on deciding what features would make us recognizable, so thank you! I'm glad we were.

Chrissy Lynn Salazar (Esmeralda): Originally, I found the image from DeviantArt circulating around Facebook. Some time later, Ashley Hay tagged a group of us in the image and from there wanted to put together a cosplay group for SDCC 2011.

Raychul Moore (Snow White): This was all Ashley's awesome idea. She saw some concept art for warrior-like Disney Princesses and she thought it would be badass to get a cosplay group together.

Candace Miller (Ariel): The designs actually came from a Deviantart member who goes by the name of Kreugan; she had done the basic designs some time ago. As a group we decided that some of the designs may or may not have worked for what we were trying to do, and a few of our girls even had to design their own because there was no concept art for them to go off of. Needless to say, there are some VERY creative women in this group!

Laura James (Megara): We looked for ideas all over the web, mostly gathered research from DeviantArt. I based my costume of Megara from a Deviantart member, ‘steevinlove’, who did artwork of "The Defenders of the Enchanted Kingdom". My version of Megara, who is a Greek character, was highly influenced by the Greek goddesses. Also, because she's a tough cookie, I made Meg an Amazonian-like princess. The original piece was a wee bit "too sexy", so I toned it down, but I wanted to keep the Amazon feel; it was tough to balance.

Nobo Fett (Mulan): I came to the party really late. My housemate Chrissy invited me to the group in May (if I am remembering correctly), so I was pretty far removed from the inspiration process-which, from what I understand, started shortly after SDCC last year when Ashley was inspired by a Disney Heroines-to-Superhero art piece.

Photo by Mike Rollerson

GPX: How did each of you choose your Princess? Do you feel a certain connection to one over another?

Ashley: I think we chose according to what Princesses we liked or what hadn't been called for yet. I chose Belle because Beauty and the Beast had always been one of my favorite Disney movies. My mom and I have a special bond over that movie as it is her favorite, too. I was also Belle for Halloween one year when was I was 12twelve; I loved it!

Rebecca: We each chose the Princess that we loved the most! I portray Tinkerbell in Christy Marie's Sexy Disney Princess group each year at Comic-Con and had a strong passion to cosplay as Rapunzel from the Disney film Tangled. This group not only gave me the opportunity to be Rappy, but also to put my own unique spin on the character.

Carladawn: I was actually the last girl to be added to the group, I think, so I took what was leftover. Honestly, I don't like Aurora at all, but I really wanted to be a part of the group. Rapunzel and Tiana are my favorite Princesses, but seeing as Rapunzel was taken and I am by far not dark enough to be Tiana, I couldn't be either of those two. We ended up not having a Cinderella when the con finally came around, so next year I'm taking that character since I like her a bit more than Aurora. I have EPIC ideas for her...

Christa: Alice is my second favorite Disney Princess, a very close second. Since Belle had already been spoken for, I chose Alice since I still wanted to portray a character that I love. I definitely feel a connection to Alice, growing up with the movies and having read the books over and over.

Chrissy: I was originally tagged and very pleased with Snow White. Once the group opened up more ideas collaboratively among the girls for more Princesses, I decided to give up Snow to a more fitting girl: Raychul Moore. After that I chose Esmeralda due to the exciting time I had putting the costume together and because my dark hair and olive skin along with my Spanish blood just made sense!

Raychul: I was given a choice between a few Princesses that were still needed. I was never a Snow White fan; I am more of an Alice girl, but I am so glad I was able to do Snow White. Her costume was so much fun putting together and I look forward to upgrading her costume in the future.

Candace: Ariel has always been my favorite Princess over all the rest. It was one of the first movies that my mom ever took me to go see in the theater when I was little. After I chose the character, I began to get a bit nervous with the amount of skin showing and that her skin is completely green in the concept. I modified it a bit to make it more "superhero"-oriented without the bodypaint.

Laura: Meg is an incredibly sassy character who clearly decides she’s not the type of girl who needs saving. I applaud her bravado, and when she finally reveals her vulnerability, when that “right guy” finally comes along, it’s very real. I can identify with that.

Nobo: My first choice was my favorite Disney Princess: Princess Kidagakash (Atlantis: The Lost Empire). Surprisingly enough, she was already claimed by Chissy (who later changed to Esmeralda), so after evaluating who was left I snatched up the opportunity to cosplay Mulan. Let's get this straight: Mulan is no princess. She is a badass heroine whose love of her family drives her to challenge a great nation's sexual-social roles. I like that her motives aren’t driven by a love story (that’s just a side quest). Her good humor and down-to-earth personality make her one of Disney's most daring and beautiful females.

Photo by LJinto

GPX: Did you all work on your costumes separately? How long did each of them take to complete?

Ashley: Yes, we all worked on them separately. I had a friend, Bellechere, make most of mine and it took her about a month.

Rebecca: We each worked on our own costumes and posted our progress on a private board with the other girls via Facebook. This allowed us all to share ideas and suggestions to make it a truly collaborative effort. Since many of the girls are out-of-state, it was a nice way to bond and share as we prepared for Comic-Con.

Carladawn: I worked on my costume separately from the other girls because they all live sooooo far away from me. I think it took me about seven hours total to finish when I actually sat down to work on it. A lot of that time was spent planning.

Christa: Yes, we all worked on our costumes seperately, but we all stayed in very close touch. We also asked for advice, posting progress pictures for everyone to see. Alice was about two and a half weeks' worth of work spread out over a few months.

Chrissy: My decision to be Esme was made shortly before the convention and I did everything myself. Thankfully, so many girls among us had so many ideas to share that it was easy paint a picture in my head. In some instances there was team effort, whether it was loaning out wigs or doing make-up or hair the day of getting ready. We all had a contribution.

Raychul: Yes. Since we all live in different cities all over the country, we had to work on our costumes separately, but we were all in constant communication through a private Facebook group. Everyone was super awesome with helping each other when opinions and ideas were needed. I definitely couldn't have done it without the help of all the other girls!

Candace: We all live in various parts across the US and had to work on them separately. We are all friends who get together at SDCC, but we know each other online (or have heard of one another). With the amount of work that went into some of the costumes, I'd say on average about two months (give or take) per girl, per costume.

Laura: Meg took about three weeks to complete. We all kept in touch via Facebook, posting our progress as we worked. All the girls were encouraging; I feel lucky to have cosplayed with such a fun, brilliant group of women.

Nobo: Yes, we all worked on our costumes separately. However, we did keep tabs on each other's progress online. As I previously stated, I was the last to join the group/start my project, so I would say it took about two months (this is including me supergluing pleather strips to my wrists and shoes on the way to Comic-Con that morning).

Photo by LJinto

GPX: What was the most difficult part of each costume to make?

Ashley: Bellechere would have to answer that one, but I would guess the bodysuit.

Rebecca: For Rapunzel, this was actually my first time truly creating a costume from scratch. I've been cosplaying since 2005, but traditionally have either commissioned the large pieces of costumes from friends or pieced them together from purchased items. This year, I went all out by learning how to sew as well as creating my wig from scratch. The Rapunzel wig was by far the most complicated portion of the costume and also the most well received!

Carladawn: The most difficult part of my costume was the top: the cape is attached and wanted to pull the front of my shirt up. Fashion tape was involved! Also, the white straps on the top took some planning and re-pinning.

Christa: All of it! Haha, but no really, spandex is a rough fabric to work with and she's all spandex. The pants were probably the most time-consuming part for me. I had to sew each stripe together and switch out thread colors so you wouldn't see white thread on a black stripe and vice versa. That took a lot of pinning, re-pinning, and time.

Chrissy: For Esmeralda, I'd say it was the bladed tambourine.

Raychul: For my Snow White costume, the corset was probably the hardest. I found an old Snow White Halloween costume in my closet that I had never actually worn. So I cut it up and had to make a corset out of it. It was a lot of trial and error, especially for a sewing newbie like me, but it was well worth it.

Candace: Getting the greens right on Ariel was the hardest part. I had gone though tons of different fabrics to make it look right overall. The boots were also difficult because I refused to wear heels at SDCC knowing how much we were going to walk around. Getting the fins to stand up on the back of my legs was a pain that I had to remake at least ten times.

Laura: My little blue flame at the tip of my arrow. I really wanted my Hades “hellfire” to pop in a photo. I used different mediums before I settled on translucent clay. Next year it’s gonna light up!

Nobo: For Mulan, I think the hardest thing to accomplish was getting my shoulder pads to stick out right. It was the night before we cosplayed that one of the guys I was staying with made the suggestion to just string them through and attach them to the chest and back armor base (this may seem like the most sensical solution, but believe me when I say I was too far gone for sense). The end result was okay; if I had allotted more time to the outfit it could have been awesometastic! (Take this as a lesson!) The only other difficult part of the costume was all my fault: I insisted on individually gluing more than eight hundred sequins onto my sword's hilt.

Photo by Mike Rollerson

GPX: What is your favorite part about wearing these costumes?

Ashley: The response we got. Even if people didn't get who we were at first, they were happy to see something different and original. I also feel like I need to bring cloaks back. They are a lot of fun to wear!

Rebecca: My favorite part about wearing a costume is becoming that character. To many people it may just be wigs, heels, and makeup, but for me it is an opportunity to jump into the skin of a fictional character and truly breathe life into it.

Carladawn: My favorite part about wearing this costume was the reaction from the people who saw us!! They thought it was such a cute idea and so original! We definitely had a lot of fun.

Christa: Thats a tough question! I think the best part about wearing Alice is simply being with the group. These girls are all so wonderful and I'm so happy to be attached to a project with them. We all get along so well, it's a joy to be with them. And with that, I also love to meet people who love this idea just as much as we do. My other favorite part is that this costume is quite comfy! I've dealt with uncomfortable costumes in the past, so wearing Alice is a nice break.

Chrissy: The best part as any is dressing up, but it's more than that; combining efforts and working with a creative bunch of girls resulted in a life-long sisterhood, if you will. Every year we are able to swap off, add, and change up characters. I wouldn't want it any other way. I love these girls and just knowing them aside from cosplaying with them is more rewarding than you think.

Raychul: My favorite part of the whole experience was definitely getting to spend the day with all of the other girls. I adore all of them. Some of them I have known for years and some of the girls I had just met for the first time that day. But these girls made the whole thing amazing and I can't wait to see them all again next year!

Candace: I love how different and how recognizable they are. I appreciate that they are STILL heroines who are more or less "role models" without taking that away from them by being overtly sexy.

Laura: I was so surprised by people really excited to see Meg! I have always felt that she’s a less popular Disney heroine, but was proven wrong by so many who would exclaim, “Meg’s my favorite!” It was nice to know others identified with her, too.

Nobo: My favorite part about wearing the costume was hanging out with the other girls in our cosplay group. It was awesome to finally meet them and see their costumes in their entirety. It was a great group of people and we had a blast!

Photos by Jason Holmes

GPX: What was the public’s reaction like when you first wore them as a group? I can only imagine the amount of tiny children (and adults, for that matter) thinking the Princesses have formed their own Justice League!

Ashley: People were really receptive and awesome! We took pictures with people of all ages. We were getting stopped a lot and we had a pretty good system down for moving around by the end of the day.

Rebecca: People were very impressed with the hard work and dedication our group put into it. It's always fun to see people standing there trying to figure out which Princess you are and coming up to their favorites for a photo.

Carladawn: The public reaction was very positive! Children were especially excited, as were their parents. A funny thing I noticed was that it was like Disneyland: people wanted their picture WITH us, not just OF us, which was amazing!

Christa: People seemed to receive the costumes really well! It was awesome to see so many people excited about what we are doing and to come up to us to get a picture or just chat. I think that's one of the best things about costuming: meeting people who love the same things you do.

Chrissy: There was a lot of praise for our originality and creativity, for going that extra mile from idea to execution. We definitely did something different and a lot of folks noticed. It was refreshing to have people pointing out who we all were individually. Very exciting and proud!

Raychul: The reaction from everyone at the con was even more supportive and exciting than I expected! I adore the crowd at SDCC; they are the reason I adore cosplaying so much.

Candace: It was actually funny: kids who had no clue we were supposed to be superheroes recognized us instantly solely on the fact that we actually looked like the Princesses with the same hair/makeup that they would have. A lot of adults appreciated them because they were still the role models that we all grew up with and the overall designs of the costumes were something that no one had ever seen before.

Laura: Very positive! I hope to see more little girls running around wearing their Tinkerbell dresses while brandishing makeshift swords!

Nobo: The people at the convention were very positive and everyone wanted our pictures! We were asked to do a number of interviews throughout the day. It wasn’t until later on the Internet we had any negative comments thrown our way. Oh Internet, you cruel mistress.

Photos by LJinto

GPX: Are you planning on adding more Princesses to the group any time soon? Or making different variants of the warrior designs?

Ashley: We plan to add a lot more Princesses. There should be around fifteen of us next year!

Rebecca: With so many amazing ladies from the Disney universe, our ranks will definitely be growing. Keep an eye out next year for new Princesses and updated costumes!

Carladawn: We are planning on adding many new members! I'm changing my character, but most of the girls are sticking with their characters or revising them.

Christa: We are definately adding more Princesses! We may even have a full roster next year. I'm not sure if they will debut before SDCC, but we're filling up empty spots for sure. As far as redesigns go, I know a few of us are planning some changes for the better. I'm still on the fence about some Alice designs I have floating in my head. I guess you guys will just have to wait and see what I come up with.

Chrissy: Yes and yes! We have already a roster of at least twenty! Branching out from Princesses to main ladies of Disney, and we are definitely changing our "super" costumes up a bit.

Raychul: Yes and yes! Next year at SDCC we will have more girls and fully upgraded costumes!

Candace: Yes, you can expect to see more girls next year (I have no clue how we are all going to fit in the halls) and more Princesses that you haven't seen before! I think everyone is going to be making some major changes to their costumes and a few of the girls are switching to different characters than they were this year.

Laura: Definitely gonna add on to Meg, and our lineup has increased!

Nobo: There will be additional Princesses and Heroines next year! Someone will be taking my slot as Mulan (doing her own version of her) and I will be taking on my favorite Princess: Kida. I am very excited!

Photo by Mike Rollerson

GPX: Where will you guys be next?

Ashley: For now we focus on SDCC, but a few of us go to other cons where anyone is encouraged to wear the costume. Even out of the group they are pretty awesome!

Rebecca: We are a Comic-Con group. As many of the ladies are out of state, SDCC is our opportunity to come together as the massive force we are!

Carladawn: We all go to Comic-Con, but I know if I go to a different con with some of the girls, we would probably pull them out. It's better to have us all together because people still get it and it's still fun.

Christa: The only time we will all be together is at SDCC. Some of us live across the country and it's just not in the cards for us to be together before then. I know a couple of the girls talked about how awesome it would be to go to D23, but I'm a few states over and would not be able to attend. Man, I need to move to California!

Chrissy: Depending on next year, we may only be at SDCC mainly due to many of us living outside the state, but thankfully there are a handful of us in the LA area. We might end up at another convention. Disney Expo would be ideal!

Raychul: San Diego Comic-Con 2012! Can't wait!

Candace: The major event that we can all get together is San Diego Comic-Con 2012. Other than that, we might pop up here or there in bits at other events.

Laura: Comic-Con 2012!

Nobo: We will see you at San Diego Comic-Con 2012!

Photos by Mike Rollerson

GPX: Do you have any parting words for our readers out there?

Ashley: Thanks for following us and supporting us. We do it for people like you and to have fun. Princesses Rock!

Rebecca: When you truly love something, do it. Create it. Make it yours and no matter what: have fun and enjoy the fruits of your hard work. And remember: it's all for fun!

Carladawn: Don't forget to have fun! That's what it's all about!

Christa: Thank you so much for taking an interest in our project! I appreciate all of the support we have gotten so far from so many different people! So thank you, thank you!

Chrissy: Don't hesitate to jump in on concept art or an idea! There is a lot of growth in a cosplay group and free range to be creative and make art, wear art, and be art. Trust your instincts as a cosplayer and don't be afraid to go big. Be grateful for being a part of a group; solo cosplay is nice, but a group becomes family.

Raychul: Make sure to check out and "like" our group's Facebook fan page! Also, for more of me and my cosplay, check out Raychul.com and my Twitter at twitter.com/theRaychul.

Candace: Never give up on what you're working on just because it isn't working. Some of the simplest designs can be some of the hardest to make look right. If something doesn't work, keep trying until you make it work! Please support our group and "like" our Facebook page!

Laura: Imagination is a gift, and the ability to turn imagination into a physical, tactile form is an expression of that gift! So don’t be afraid to use your gifts! No matter what anyone says! Please support our group and 'Like' our Facebook page! 

Nobo: Live long and prosper.