Meet Kai Burns of North Hollywood

Today we’d like to introduce you to Kai Burns.

Hi Kai, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
Stories were always my favorite thing as a kid, seeing myself in and relating to characters helped me understand who I was at a very young age. Later, I came to LA when I was in high school to tour the FIDM costume museum and fell in love with the detail and art of clothes and how they could tell stories and make the characters I’d loved. I would then come back and attend FIDM where I would meet some of the best and most talented costume designers and tailors currently working in TV and film.
Through those connections I’ve had some of the most fulfilling opportunities to make, wear, photograph, and style costumes of characters I love and my own. On top of that I’ve been so lucky to get hired with a custom cosplay company I’d been using since I was 13 years old. KineticSocks are arm and leg tights that are used to simulate full body paint without the transfer or time of traditional face paint. We’re a small business (2.5 employees, not including our owner), and seeing what people create using our armsocks has been a full circle moment for me I could never have imagined, and I’m so happy to now be the person helping others emulate the characters they admire!

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Not everyone really understands what I’m doing here for sure. I’m from Tucson, and while it is a pretty artsy area comparatively and my parents are supportive, sometimes trying to explain that I make my living making toe socks for arms does turn some heads. I’m very fortunate to say most of my biggest challenges haven’t been in the way of my creation, burnout and mental health aside I’ve been able to keep most motivation through helping those around me with their own projects!

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
Of course I have a day job on top of the small business I work with, but on my own I’m a cosplayer. Cosplay is a fusion of the words costume and play, coined by Nobuyuki Takahashi in “My Anime” back in 1984. Generally as a subculture the hobby originated from a want to reuse halloween costumes, attracting those who liked to play dress up into adult hood. All that to say, now in the 21st century cosplay has completely evolved as a subcategory of the fandom space. Dressing up as your favorite character, creating costumes based on or emulating movie or tv characters, and then posting content of these things all are part of cosplaying. Personally, I’ve been cosplaying and posting online since 2017, and have been attending Comic Cons with my mother since I was even younger. With that history of winging it, I’ve become somewhat a jack of all trades, I edit, I sew, I wig style, I completely make myself over, and I try to remember to film and capture it all.

Alright so before we go can you talk to us a bit about how people can work with you, collaborate with you or support you?
Currently I’m scheduled to attend Nijifest on May 15-17 in Anaheim as a cosplay guest and am set to do a live modeling session with my fellow cosplayer @burningsxge at Draw Cosplay LA on July 12th. Other than that I post on Tik Tok, Instagram, and occasionally Youtube all under my username @BarbaricTeatime! I also run the @Kineticsocks social medias and help pack orders! If interested you can find all armsock drop information on our Instagram, and find our current stock at kineticsocks.shop! I love collaborating and planning events/meets so please feel free to reach out in my DMs or linktree!

Pricing:

• Armsocks 60$
• Tights $12

Contact Info:

• Website: https://kineticsocks.shop
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/barbaricteatime/
• Twitter: https://x.com/dreamyMuralist
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/BarbaricTeatime
• Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@barbaricteatime

Image Credits
@the.kith, @tone_y_photos, @theghostofsalem, @burningsxge, @allmattcosplays, @contagiousfanatic