Comics in Calgary

This past weekend Chad and I took a little trip down to Calgary for the comic and entertainment expo and had an awesome time. Much like any other expo, (bridal, home & garden, outdoors..) you can spend the day walking around the halls looking at everything the vendors have to offer, eating over priced food, and meeting other people that are excited about the same things as you.

As the name would suggest, this particular expo is all for the comic and entertainment junkies. Everyone from babies to seniors could be found throughout the show, some in costume, some uninterested dates, men, woman, and everyone in between. I think the can name lead people to believe the show is for comic book readers and star wars/trek fans. NOT THE CASE! They definitely have a strong hold on the show but you will find so much more. Game of Thrones, The walking dead, Steam punk, Disney, video gamers, board gamers...

There are 3 main parts to the expo. Panels, autographs/photo ops and shopping the vendors. Chad and I had a great time in all 3 areas. He met Carrie Fisher, yup, Princess Leia... I met John Rhys-Davies a.k.a. Gimli from Lord of the Rings and together we met Craig Parker. Craig is Haldir in LotR and Claudius Glaber in Spartacus. On top of who we saw there were actors from Game of Thrones, The walking dead and Star Trek, The princess bride and also writers and artists.

We went to watch several panels and really enjoyed all of them. John Rhys Davies was charming and deep and quite funny. A strong stage presence. Lena Headey and Peter Dinklage from Game of Thrones could make anyone laugh. Are these people really like this or just great funny/awkward/shy/vulgar on stage?? I don't know, but I like it anyway. We also saw Carrie Fisher, a writers panel and Stan Lee.

This now brings us to something I love. Shopping. Shopping at an expo is always fun because you are obviously a fan or have some interest in what is being offered... Or you just like paying to get in..? While walking around we saw a ton for sale. Books, comics, movies, art, clothes and I'm sure even more that I never found. The only thing we bought was art. And a lot of it. I've never heard of the artists before. Never seen their work. Loved it all. (In a future home related post you will likely be seeing some of the art.)

Lastly, I feel I should mention one of the more obvious and fun things about the expo. Costumes. Everywhere. Home-made  store bought, well known, random and just generally awesome. Being the overboard type of person that I am I went in full costume hand made by me. It only took me about a week to make the whole thing. Top, altered bottoms and accessories. I got plenty of compliments on it by the people who knew the character and even had people stopping by to take photos of me. How bizarre. And also very cool to have it appreciated..

By the way, the costume is from a video game. Final fantasy 9. Her name is Garnet.

See you soon!
xoxo