We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Mutant Glue a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Mutant thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. If you could go back in time do you wish you had started your creative career sooner or later?

If I would have started this career sooner, I feel as though I would have gotten more accomplished and more opportunities. Essentially they would help me in the long run, but I’m happy with what I have received this far.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

My name is Crystal but my cosplay name is MutantGlue (people call me MG). I’ve been cosplaying since 2017, and it all started because a friend wanted to go to a convention and didn’t want to dress up by herself. At that con, my very first cosplay was a genderbent version of Gambit from The X-Men. It’s been a wild roller coaster ride ever since then.

This wild roller coaster that I speak of….selling prints of my cosplays. I never knew that people liked my work so much that they would actually want a picture of it. Let alone a signed picture of it, and they want to pay for it! Never in a million years did I think that would happen. Also, conventions inviting me to be a guest at their events. Also…brands wanting me to be an ambassador for them, again I never would have imagined.
As far as what I offer…I sell prints of my cosplays. I have shirts that I sell that have my logo on them. I also have started to take commissions for props that I have made in the past.
I think what sets me apart from everyone else is the fact that I LITERALLY WANT TOGETHERNESS. I want to be that person that people can go to for advice or to be a safe space or representation for more black nerds in the community. Not saying that no one else wants that, what I mean by that is I’ve started a group to help achieve that caller the Chameleon Coalition. What started out as a tiny group of friends has grown to a slightly bigger community of amazing and talented people. It continues to grow and as it does, it makes me love the community that much more.
If it weren’t for my supporters and friends and family, I wouldn’t have gotten to meet the man….the legend Keith David. I wouldn’t have gotten the chance to meet Rosario Dawson through video chat. I wouldn’t have become friends with some very important people. My community is one of the best ones I have ever been in, I’m just upset it took 30 years for me to find it.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

I had to unlearn trusting people. There are several stories that can back up this claim. All of them have the same structure though. I meet someone new. We hit it off especially since they find out I’m a cosplayer with alot of followers. I let them in. I give them opportunities here and there. Almost always the same thing happens, they drop me like a bad habit and take off with their rewards. I’m still learning that you can’t trust everybody and that includes family as well.

Are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

There are websites now that are cosplayer friendly when it comes to sewing patterns. I had to learn the hard way how to read the patterns you find in craft stores and I still have a hard time with those. These websites have made it super easy to print what you need. They tell you exactly what to do without using confusing terms and show you diagrams. YouTube is amazing for that as well because you can follow along with the video.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://mutantglue.wixsite.com/mutantglueportfolio
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/mutantglue
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/crystal-hurt-15b426231

Image Credits
@photojonin @the_dr_black