Nilou
(Genshin Impact)
Completion date: February 2023
Photographer: Adorables
Learn to make your own Nilou cosplay!⤵
![Nilou Cosplay Guide [Tutorial + Patterns Full Bundle]](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/649d441e8d1459364bbceac3/1689851923802-V9PH57D3U6AVYQR3DT8C/Nilou+Cosplay+Guide+FULL.jpg)
This DIGITAL DOWNLOAD pack includes a tutorial PDF and patterns to teach you how to make your own Nilou cosplay from Genshin Impact! This full pack includes:
74 page PDF tutorial
Sewing/foam pattern PDFs (top + skirt + sleeve cuffs + collar + veil + gold trims)
3D printing STL files (ALL costume accessories, including horns + vision)
SVG files for heat transfer vinyl costume details
Resource spreadsheet, including recommendations + links for all the materials you’ll need to make this costume
NOTE: The outfit patterns were patterned based on my own measurements (size XS/UK 6) and may need to be resized. These can be altered to fit your own size (there are many videos on YouTube for how to scale sewing patterns) or can hopefully act as a visual guide if you wish to draft your own patterns from scratch.
![Nilou Cosplay Guide [Tutorial Pack]](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/649d441e8d1459364bbceac3/1689852430817-E4VAXXA5L2AF74LZBZ24/Nilou+Cosplay+Guide+Tutorial+ONLY.jpg)
This DIGITAL DOWNLOAD pack includes a 74 page tutorial PDF, covering everything you will need to know to make your own Nilou cosplay from Genshin Impact! It also includes a resource spreadsheet, including recommendations + links for all the materials you’ll need to make this costume
Patterns, 3D printing files and more are also available, and can either be purchased separately or in a complete bundle.
![Nilou Horns [3D Printing STLs]](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/649d441e8d1459364bbceac3/1689854850444-1S9BZZ81AZN6VQGT66HC/Nilou+Cosplay+Guide+Horns+ONLY.jpg)
This DIGITAL DOWNLOAD pack includes the 3D printing STL files for Nilou’s horn headdress from Genshin Impact as well as an assembly guide PDF!
This headpiece includes 17 individual pieces, which the assembly guide will help you put together. The guide will also explain the attachment method I would recommend to keep them on your head.
I recommend using a resin printer for these horns if possible, particularly for the delicate pieces but it is possible to be printed using a regular FDM printer.
This listing is for the horn STLS only, but a tutorial for the full costume and other accessory STLs are also available individually, or can be purchased as a full pack.
![Nilou Cosplay Guide [Patterns Pack]](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/649d441e8d1459364bbceac3/1689850663385-8KYWTQF535FRKH028BOQ/Nilou+Cosplay+Guide+Patterns+ONLY.jpg)
This DIGITAL DOWNLOAD pack includes all the patterns you will need to make your own Nilou cosplay from Genshin Impact! This pattern pack includes:
Sewing/foam pattern PDFs (top + skirt + sleeve cuffs + collar + veil + gold trims)
3D printing STL files (ALL costume accessories, including horns + vision)
SVG files for heat transfer vinyl costume details
Resource spreadsheet, including recommendations + links for all the materials you’ll need to make this costume
NOTE: The outfit patterns were patterned based on my own measurements (size XS/UK 6) and may need to be resized. These can be altered to fit your own size (there are many videos on YouTube for how to scale sewing patterns) or can hopefully act as a visual guide if you wish to draft your own patterns from scratch.
A full costume tutorial PDF is also available, and can either be purchased separately or in a full tutorial + pattern bundle.
Costume Details
Nilou’s design is gorgeous, and I love that she is a dancer just like me! I knew going into this project that it would be detailed, but as I began working on it I kept discovering more and more details that I hadn’t noticed before! It features 68 unique resin-printed pieces, all 3D-modelled by me. Modelling, printing, sanding, priming and painting each individual piece was definitely the most time-consuming part of her costume.
I wanted to replicate the in-game 3D model from Genshin as accurately as I could, which meant I had to make the skirt quite rigid so it would keep its shape- this was achieved by making the gold trim from EVA foam wrapped in gold spandex. However, this meant it lost a lot of flow and movement. This was a hard balance to achieve and looking back on it I think I would have chosen a different construction method to allow it to move more freely, particularly for videos.
The horns are resin printed (hollowed out to reduce weight) and attach onto a headband using strong neodymium magnets. Check out my video above to see how it all assembles together! The headpiece is extremely delicate, since it consists of very thin resin-printed pieces. Printing this was a challenge as I only have a small resin-printer, and so it had to be split up into multiple parts then glued together. It’s quite secure when worn on my head, but transporting it is very difficult due to how fragile it is.
For her weapon I chose to make Xiphos’ Moonlight instead of her signature weapon, purely because I prefer the design! I 3D-modelled the whole sword in Fusion360, then 3D printed using my Ender 3 FDM printer. It splits in two pieces for transport and uses two metal rods as supports.
I debuted this cosplay at Katsucon 2023, and got to do my dream photoshoot in the legendary gazebo! I plan to upgrade this costume over time and take it to even more amazing locations over the world.
Character reference