Gillian Conahan is the author of The Hero’s Closet: Sewing for Cosplay and Costuming. A professional stage costumer, former sewing magazine editor, and award-winning hobby cosplayer, she has more than 20 years of needlework experience. Gillian has stitched on everything from corsetry to mascot suits. In her personal work, she is an omnivorous handcraft nerd with a repertoire spanning embroidery, leathercraft, thermoplastics, shoemaking, weaving, and chainmail. Gillian has presented sewing techniques and cosplay crafts at New York Comic-Con, Anime NYC, and elsewhere. Raised in Portland, OR, she received S.B. and Master’s degrees from MIT and now lives in Brooklyn, NY. She occasionally blogs at alltomorrowspatterns.com.