Cosplay Sustainability 101 The 7R Every Cosplayer Should Know

This article talks about cosplaying while saving the environment. And if you read between the lines, you’ll discover that these tips can save your wallet too!

Introduction

Cosplay sustainability is to consider the impact that cosplaying has on the Earth and the ecosystem, and taking actions to reduce our carbon footprint while cosplaying. Those actions can be categorised into (but not limited to) “7 R’s”. The 7 R’s of cosplay sustainability are adapted from the 7 R’s of sustainability¹ and the 7 R’s of sustainable fashion². The 7 R’s of cosplay sustainability are: Reduce, Reuse, Rent, Repurpose, Repair, Rethink, and Recycle.

Malaysia produces 195,300,000 kilograms of clothing waste every year, with most of it ending up in landfills³. Cosplayers worldwide are researching and implementing different ways to reduce overconsumption and waste while cosplaying⁴ ⁵. It’s time for us Malaysian cosplayers to walk the same footsteps, and show our planet that we care!

Reduce

The first step to being environmentally conscious is to think about your consumption of cosplay. Have you ever bought a costume, only to never get a chance to debut it in the end? Consider reducing your consumption by thinking before purchasing: “Why do I want that cosplay?”

Some factors that you can consider if you’re deciding whether to buy or not are:

– Do you have enough space to store the cosplay?

– Are you buying it just because the anime is trending, or is it because you truly resonate with the character?

– Will you wear this costume just once, or would you wear it again?

– Is there anyone in the community who is selling the same costume secondhand?

Perhaps you’re doomscrolling on Taobao and came across a sale, where it’s way cheaper to buy multiple costumes & props at once. However, a price like that comes at its own cost. You may find yourself disappointed with the material, durability, or the way the details look up-close.

Investing in a high-quality costume from a reputable propmaker can save you more in the long run (especially if you’re thinking of joining cosplay competitions)! Thinking about your purchase decisions will help to reduce the amount of cosplays you’ll throw away in the future.

Reuse

Reuse is closely related to reduce; you could say it’s like the “next step”. If a costume that you have is still in good condition, cosplay that character again!

Maintain the quality of your costume by studying the laundry information and storing your props and accessories properly. For faux leather materials, keep them in a cool and dry place; heat and moisture will cause the leather to crack and peel, so store them away from sunlight and use dehumidifiers!

If you don’t want to wear the costume anymore, but it’s still in good condition, sell the cosplay as secondhand — and even thirdhand! There are lots of cosplayers in Malaysia who are using the hashtags “#WTS (Want to Sell)” and “#WTB (Want to Buy)” on various social media platforms.

Plus, you can shop at thrift stores such as JBR Bundle and Jalan Jalan Japan! Shops like those import secondhand goods from Japan, so you never know when you might come across a hidden treasure for cheap! On the flip side, 2nd Street Trading and REFASH can buy your clothes that you no longer want.

By buying and selling from the cosplay community and thrift stores, you can reuse other cosplayers’ cosplays, and allow others to reuse your cosplay too!

Rent

Renting is another alternative if you don’t want to buy secondhand costumes, or if you only want to cosplay a character one time. Renting can save your money, your space, and also reduce consumption all at once!

How renting a costume works: generally, you pay a fee to use a costume for a mutually agreed period of time. The price and times depend on the renter’s terms and conditions, and how long you need to use the costume for. Once the time is up, you return the costume to the renter in the same condition as when you rented it.

Cosplayers in the community use the hashtag “#WTR (Want to Rent)” for renting out and seeking rentals on social media. Besides that, there are costume rental shops in Malaysia as well. Just type in the keywords “costumes for rent in Malaysia” in your web browser, and you’ll see several options for physical costume stores in Malaysia.

Repair

Here’s where things start getting interesting! What if your costume has a hole in the bottom? What if the handle has popped out of the sword? You most likely can’t rent or sell your cosplays in that condition. It’s time to repair it!

Sewing, gluing, heating, and drilling are essential skills in repairing cosplays. It’s good to learn repair skills, because it prepares you for emergency costume malfunctions at cons, and you can use those skills outside of cosplay too. But if a repair seems to be too much for you to handle, that’s where Qiqi’s Cosplay Medics⁶ come in.

Cosplay medics are cosplayers who love to help others in need by fixing cosplays. You might have seen Qiqi’s Cosplay Medics (QCM) before at an event; they’re the group that wears purple aprons and are usually seen hunched over fixing different parts of cosplays.

QCM accepts cosplay repair commissions outside of events, so if you need your costume repaired, send them an email or a WhatsApp text! You can find the link at the bottom of this article.

Repurpose

Repurpose means looking for new ways to use what you have. Let’s take a Naruto cosplayer, named Ali, as an example. Ali has been cosplaying Naruto for 5 years already, and he wants to retire Naruto to cosplay Jiraiya.

Instead of throwing away the costume, Ali wears Naruto’s jacket when it’s cold at work. He modified Naruto’s pants to wear as part of his everyday fashion. As for the wig, Ali sold it to Abu, who wanted to restyle the wig to cosplay Reiner Braun from Attack on Titan. Lastly, Ali reuses Naruto’s weapons for his Jiraiya cosplay.

Repurposing is all about creativity! If it’s not broken, what other ways could you use your cosplay?

Rethink

Rethink covers everything outside the box for sustainable solutions. There are plenty of other ways to make cosplaying more environmentally-friendly!

For example, you could make your costume out of sustainable & recyclable materials like scrap material, newspaper papier-mâché, aluminium, cotton, or industrially-compostable 3D printing.

Some cosplayers made chainmail out of soda can tabs! You could use biodegradable materials to make single-use stage props for cosplay performance competitions. For the ambitious, you may even explore and invent new types of eco-friendly materials!

What about transporting to conventions? If the event venue is connected to a train station, why not take the train! It reduces the amount of toxic fumes being released into the air. If you live nearby, skateboarding, bicycling, or even roller-skating are great options too!

When buying materials, cosplays, or anything else, it’s strongly encouraged to buy your products from local sellers. There are several benefits to buying locally⁷, which are:

– Boosting the country’s economy

– Improving the quality of local products

– Maintaining the optimal price of the products

– Knowing the source and processing methods of the product

– Preserving environmental resources

– Reducing industrial waste

Recycle

Nearly everyone has heard of recycling before, but recycling should be the last step in the 7 R’s of cosplay sustainability! Consider the other 6 options before recycling.

If you really, truly have to throw away your cosplay, take it apart and identify which materials are recyclable.

Materials that are recyclable:

Materials that are NOT recyclable:

*Real leather and other natural materials are biodegradable, but may not be recyclable

Take the recyclable waste to the nearest recycling center! Organizations like Alam Flora⁸, SWCorp⁹, and Jabatan Kesihatan dan Alam Sekitar¹⁰ have resources listed on their websites to help you locate available recycling programs. Before recycling, check with the recycling facility staff whether the centre has the ability to recycle those items or not.

Closing

This year, consider adding this to your New Year’s resolution: start taking steps to make cosplay more sustainable! Share this article with your cosplay circle and educate them on the many ways we can help the environment.

To event organisers and cosplay competition judges: consider implementing sustainability as a feature in future ACG events! Let’s work together to make cosplaying enjoyable for both humans and nature!

Links

1. The 7Rs of Sustainability
2. 7Rs of Sustainable Fashion
3. A review on textile solid waste management: Disposal and recycling
4. Eco-cosplay: Upcycling as a Sustainable Method of Costume Construction
5. Eco-Friendly Cosplay: How Green Practices Are Transforming Costume Design
6. Qiqi’s Cosplay Medics Social Media
7. Kepentingan Membeli Barangan Buatan Malaysia (Tempatan)
8. Alam Flora
9. Perbadanan Pengurusan Sisa Pepejal Dan Pembersihan Awam (SWCorp)
10. INTEGRATED WASTE MANAGEMENT KUALA LUMPUR

This article is written by Qiqi’s Cosplay Medics, the official cosplay medics for World Cosplay Summit Malaysia 2026–2028. Follow them for updates on their next event appearance, workshops, and projects!

For more information:
linktr.ee/qiqiscosplaymedics