As a (former) lifelong Kanye West fan, Runaway has always been one of my favorite short films. It perfectly accompanies My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, one of the greatest albums of all time. The moment I first saw Selita Ebanks as the Phoenix, I was captivated—I immediately wanted to embody her. I wondered what it felt like to wear that costume, whether it was as lightweight as it looked, and if it made her feel exposed or completely free. That curiosity led me to recreate it for Halloween.

This was the first costume project of this scale that I fully committed to. I immersed myself in learning about different types of feathers, experimenting with dyeing techniques to achieve a natural yet vibrant effect without damaging them. Unfortunately, I didn’t document the process as well as I should have, but the entire experience is still ingrained in my memory.

Even eight years later, people still bring up this costume. At one point, someone even emailed me asking how I made it, and I was able to write out an entire tutorial—which I’ve included in the photos. With the knowledge I have now, I plan to remake this costume and take it even further by incorporating large, functional wings. This project sparked a new level of creativity in me, and it’s only the beginning.