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Fashion Inspiration: Nintendo Characters – Pt. 4

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Zelda N64

If you’re an avid reader of CF, you know that we believe fashion inspiration goes beyond storefronts, magazines and runways. In the past we’ve found inspiration from Disney characters, books, TV shows and even music. However, until now, we haven’t really covered one of the more recent forms of media entertainment, video games.

Many of you requested some outfits inspired by the Zelda series of video games, so this week’s post will feature wearable looks inspired by popular characters in the series. There are currently 17 Zelda games (with even more being released this year), which have been available on every console from NES to Wii. For this article, I created four outfits inspired by Link, Princess Zelda, Midna and Ganondorf.

Finally, if you haven’t read them already, be sure check out the other articles in the series based on Nintendo’s Mario series: Part 1 (Mario, Yoshi, Peach & Bowser), Part 2 (Luigi, Daisy, Toad & Wario) and Part 3 (Donkey Kong, Rosalina, Waluigi & Toadette).

Link

Link

This is the main protagonist of the Zelda series, Link. He has a humble yet very brave personality and is the chosen bearer of the Triforce of Courage. Link is also the holder of the magical Master Sword and is known for his excellent combat skills.

Link Inspired Outfit
Tunic, Trousers, Hat, Boots, Ring, Belt

For an outfit inspired by Link, I recommend starting with the basics: Match a green tunic with a pair of skinny tan-colored trousers. Use a brown belt to define your waist and add some matching wedge-heeled riding boots. Accessorize with a kitted green hat and a shield-shaped ring to complete this look.

Princess Zelda

Princess Zelda

Princess Zelda, a member of Hyrule’s royal family, is a kind and generous ruler. She is very self-sacrificing and willing to do anything for the good of her subjects. Since she is the bearer of the Triforce of Wisdom, Zelda is also extremely intelligent and wise beyond her years.

Princess Zelda Inspired Outfit
Cardigan, Dress, Necklace, Pumps, Clutch

Channel Princess Zelda’s style by wearing a soft white dress with some delicate embroidery. This pretty cardigan is a similar color to the overlay on her dress, while the bronze pumps pick up on the color of the bottom of her dress. Zelda’s outfit has lots of detailed elements, so add some ornate pieces like this necklace and clutch to finish the outfit.

Midna

Midna

Although she looks sinister, Midna is actually Link’s helper and guide throughout The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. She is a member of the Twili race and is portrayed throughout most of the game as an imp. Midna is a little cynical, but has a playful and mischievous sense of humor. She also possesses many magical powers, such as levitation and psychokinesis.

Midna Inspired Outfit
Hair Clip, Dress, Ring, Pumps, Tights

Even though Midna doesn’t actually wear clothes, I chose a formfitting dress with a unique shoulder embellishments that reminded me of her markings. This metal hair clip mimics the helmet she wears, while the ring is the same orange hue as her hair. Some simple black tights add warmth while the turquoise pumps are similar to the blue detailing on Midna.

Ganondorf

Ganon

Ganondorf (or Ganon, in some incarnations) is the main antagonist of the Zelda games. Like most other villains, he is ruthless, egotistical and calculating. Ganondorf’s desire for world domination is amplified due to his possession of the Triforce of Power. His lust for power causes him to seek out the other parts of the Triforce, which creates conflict throughout the series.

Ganondorf Inspired Outfit
Coat, Top, Pants, Earrings, Booties, Ring

For this Ganondorf-inspired outfit, I chose a warm coat with detailing that reminded me of the armor he wears. Pair the coat with a burgundy top and black trousers which have a slight olive-colored tinge to them. Finish this look with some edgy heeled booties and these earrings and ring, which continue the tough-yet-stylish vibe.

What do you think?

Do you like these outfits? Which is your favorite? Are you familiar with Zelda games? Be sure to leave a comment and let me know your thoughts!

Posted on on January 15, 2011 / Filed Under: Inspiration / Tags: , , , , , , ,

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70 Responses to “Fashion Inspiration: Nintendo Characters – Pt. 4”

  1. 1
    January 15th, 2011 at 12:04 pm

    twenty something

    What a hilarious post! Adorable.

    artfashiontwentysomething.blogspot.com

  2. 2
    January 15th, 2011 at 12:06 pm

    Paula*

    I love Zelda’s outfit! I am such a nerd, but I was really excited when I saw this lol.

  3. 3
    January 15th, 2011 at 12:09 pm

    Isabel

    Haha! This totally made my day. Zelda was the love of my life back in the day. Love the one-shouldered, beaded dress!

  4. 4
    January 15th, 2011 at 12:11 pm

    Robin

    I wish some of these totally cute outfits were for guys, it would finally be a way to get my video game loving boyfriend into a cute clothes!

  5. 5
    January 15th, 2011 at 12:13 pm

    Amy

    This is legit.

  6. 6
    January 15th, 2011 at 12:13 pm

    Emmie

    ahh! these are adorable! i got really excited when i saw this on my facebook wall! great job. :)

  7. 7
    January 15th, 2011 at 12:30 pm

    Kylie

    This is probably my favorite post so far. Every outfit represents the characters so well! Amazing job!

  8. 8
    January 15th, 2011 at 12:33 pm

    Paula*

    I wish we were able to like each others comments on here! lol

  9. 9
    January 15th, 2011 at 12:51 pm

    Lenu

    This is just too amazing.. I mean video games PLUS fashion. Two loves combined. :D (especially because Zelda is my favourite game of all times.^^)
    I love the two outfits inspired by Ganon and Midna.! They’re awesome..
    The others are lovely, too but not my style.
    Very good job, CF, very good job.!

  10. 10
    January 15th, 2011 at 1:25 pm

    Bee

    these are SO cute! i love how they are all rocker-esque…just my style!

  11. 11
    January 15th, 2011 at 1:28 pm

    phimugirl

    oh my gosh I adore this post. I’ve been a Zelda player for years! Thank you so much for this post and thank you for this blog. I come on here everyday just to get my fashion fix. Keep up the good work and I speak for all of us collegefashion fans when I say PLEASE DON’T EVER QUIT!

  12. 12
    January 15th, 2011 at 1:45 pm

    Shanise M

    In honor of this post, I’ve started my Saturday playing Zelda :) Lol I love the post, you captured the essence of each character and I’m DROOLING over the Midna outfit! Great job :)

  13. 13
    January 15th, 2011 at 1:46 pm

    Taylor

    Zelda is my favorite game of all time! Just when you think College Fashion couldn’t get any better!!!!!

  14. 14
    January 15th, 2011 at 2:00 pm

    Anna P

    Woah. When I saw this post, my nerd/fashion-hybrid heart leaped. Zelda is my favorite game EVER (I can list the 17 games at will and have played almost all!) and I have tried to recreate Zelda’s outfit in cosplay style….this is brillliant. Link’s look is perfectly aligned with his character with just the right amount of subtle femininity. Zelda’s look is satisfactory although since I have played all the games, I was sad you chose the Twilight Princess dress to play off of, which was my least favorite edition of her costume. Midna’s is cute, and Ganondorf’s is definitely tough-girl…overall I am quite impressed :D I’m going to tell my boyfriend and we’re going to have to wear some of our own editions of this post…thank you for the fabulous inspiration!

  15. 15
    January 15th, 2011 at 2:19 pm

    Karinnnnnnnn

    your best Nintendo post so far. I love Princess Zelda and Midna’s one :D

  16. 16
    January 15th, 2011 at 2:25 pm

    Lolwhoa

    Do final fantasy games next!!!! :D

  17. 17
    January 15th, 2011 at 2:46 pm

    Rose

    Best post ever! I especially love the Midna outfit- not only is she one of my favorite characters, the outfit is so close to her style! Thanks guys!

  18. 18
    January 15th, 2011 at 2:55 pm

    couturemepink

    Oh, god, what a fun post. As I was reading, the Ocarina of Time song was playing in my head.

  19. 19
    January 15th, 2011 at 3:15 pm

    Anna

    LOVE love love the ring in the last one! The link isn’t working though, can anybody help me find it?

  20. 20
    January 15th, 2011 at 3:22 pm

    Ashley - Flagler College

    Anna, here’s the correct link for the ring:
    http://needsupply.com/womens/accessories/3-pyramid-stud-ring.html

    It’s also one of my favorites :)

  21. 21
    January 15th, 2011 at 3:24 pm

    Meredy

    I’m a big fan of video games, and zelda is one of my favorites. totally love the outfits, they’re faithful to the spirit of the characters, and still so stylish and girly. I especially fell in love with the ring on link’s outfit.
    Good job.

    (P.S: sorry for the bad english, i’m french…)

  22. 22
    January 15th, 2011 at 3:32 pm

    Hannah M.

    These outfits are the perfect translation! ::))

  23. 23
    January 15th, 2011 at 4:20 pm

    Tiffany

    I absolutely love Zelda’s outfit. Perfection.

  24. 24
    January 15th, 2011 at 4:33 pm

    MandaPanda

    Wow, love the Link outfit!

    You guys should do one dedicated to SEGA.

  25. 25
    January 15th, 2011 at 5:05 pm

    Kate

    ohh, I love the zelda look! They are all pretty cute though :)

  26. 26
    January 15th, 2011 at 5:26 pm

    Liz

    Haha okay I usually skip over these posts, but I AM a Zelda fan so this made me smile :)

  27. 27
    January 15th, 2011 at 6:38 pm

    Lisa

    Best ‘inspired by’ post ever :D

  28. 28
    January 15th, 2011 at 7:53 pm

    sinrkid25

    The next game fashion inspiration should be on Crash Bandicoot!

  29. 29
    January 15th, 2011 at 10:09 pm

    April

    Thank you! Made my day. I would love to see another one for Link… :)

  30. 30
    January 16th, 2011 at 12:35 am

    Adou

    Zelda is my favourite game! I love what you came up for Link’s outfit, the shield ring was especially a nice touch.

  31. 31
    January 16th, 2011 at 1:11 am

    Amy

    I really like the blue suede pumps…

  32. 32
    January 16th, 2011 at 2:03 am

    jo2007

    So your first picture (cartridge) is ocarina of time but your character pictures are from twilight princess. Just as an fyi. :-)

  33. 33
    January 16th, 2011 at 2:19 am

    Evelina

    Ohmigosh… This is brilliant! :DDDD

    I love the Legend of Zelda, and you translated their outfits beautifully. Great job. :)

  34. 34
    January 16th, 2011 at 3:28 am

    Tamara

    AWESOME. Thanks for doing this! The fashion is spot on, and, as you can see, you’ve got a good bunch of CF readers who are Zelda fans! I’m bookmarking this one for… science. Yeah. (By that I mean I’m gonna try ALL of these outfits!)

  35. 35
    January 16th, 2011 at 8:53 am

    Serena

    I loooove these! :)

    I know he’s not a Nintendo character, but please do one for Sonic the Hedgehog!

  36. 36
    January 16th, 2011 at 10:11 am

    Rin

    I’ve never really played this video game (or any, to be honest; in fact, I thought Zelda was a boy), but the outfits you created look awesome!! I could really see myself wearing any of them.

  37. 37
    January 16th, 2011 at 10:50 am

    Tiffany

    I’m really impressed by all these comments! Who knew there were so many girl-gamer / fashionistas out there :)

  38. 38
    January 16th, 2011 at 12:35 pm

    Becky

    I haven’t played this game (I had sega growing up) but I really like link and zelda’s outfits!

  39. 39
    January 16th, 2011 at 1:27 pm

    April

    My girlfriend and bought N64′s last year($25) and tons of games. It’s really fun to play retro games every once in a while!

  40. 40
    January 16th, 2011 at 2:15 pm

    Leah

    I was SO scared when you started the video game character line that Zelda wouldn’t be covered. But then I was scared that you wouldn’t do her and the games justice.
    BUT OH MY GOD these are amazing!!!

    (Gamer since I could hold a controller)

  41. 41
    January 16th, 2011 at 3:20 pm

    Rachel

    I LOVE LOVE LOVE THIS! Zelda is my favorite game and I LOVE these fashion inspiration posts! You should do more on movies like Pride and Prejudice!

  42. 42
    January 16th, 2011 at 3:56 pm

    Angelyn

    I am in love with the last two outfits :D

  43. 43
    January 17th, 2011 at 4:40 pm

    Rebecca

    These are awesome!! I love your interpretation of Zelda’s outfit!!!

  44. 44
    January 17th, 2011 at 7:32 pm

    Ava

    Fabulous! Taking inspiration from the color palettes used in video games – I love it! Game designers put a lot of work into the art featured in their projects, so I’m glad you recognize and appreciate that, rather than writing them off as just “cartoon characters”.

    I love to see a Final Fantasy-themed series of these blog posts!

  45. 45
    January 17th, 2011 at 11:19 pm

    Nathan

    I think there should be a men’s line

  46. 46
    January 18th, 2011 at 3:38 pm

    Hillary

    This was absolutely my favorite video game inspiration post you’ve done. Not only did you get the colors and the embellishments down beautifully, but you also captured the actually style and personality of each character in your outfits.

  47. 47
    January 18th, 2011 at 9:25 pm

    Janice

    I agree with Ava. You should do Final Fantasy, since there are so many characters and the game designers have really created some interesting looking characters. I think that Final Fantasy Versus XIII would be great: like a Noctis and Stella themed one….that would be amazing!

  48. 48
    January 20th, 2011 at 9:51 am

    Julie

    Frankly this is your best one yet! These outfits are are wearable and unique! Love the one-sleeved dress!

  49. 49
    January 20th, 2011 at 9:51 am

    Julie

    Also I agree with Robin: let’s get more guy outfits!

  50. 50
    January 20th, 2011 at 11:49 am

    Cierra Sharp

    Zelda is my favorite game of all time, I love the Link outfit, it’s just my style and I can’t wait to dress like my favorite video game character and not be wearing a costume :] Great idea!

    I think you guys should do Final Fantasy characters, their outfits in the game are amazing and they would make translations into wearable everyday clothes would definitely be stunning.

  51. 51
    January 20th, 2011 at 12:58 pm

    kitty

    i think the princess zelda and link look the best out of all of them…you should try making one for the ocarina of time character i.e: malon and saria and sheik or the gerudo or from majora’s mask: anju, cremia, deku princess, kafei and from Twilight Princess: Agatha, beth, ilia,

  52. 52
    January 23rd, 2011 at 11:20 am

    Jessica_Iowa

    What I love the most about these round ups of Nintendo fashion inspiration are the baddie rings! I love most rings, but the baddie rings are just so much fun!

  53. 53
    May 5th, 2011 at 5:20 pm

    Tish

    Wonderful post! I love, love, love it! BUT…Where’s Navi?

  54. 54
    June 19th, 2011 at 10:37 pm

    Janise

    I think you should do some more Zelda characters! Like Navi, Sheik, Nabooru, Saria, Malon, etc. It’d be pretty awesome!

  55. 55
    July 24th, 2011 at 7:20 pm

    Zoe

    This is the greatest thing I’ve ever seen. Thanks!

  56. 56
    July 31st, 2011 at 1:00 am

    katelyn

    this made me, like, pee my pants.
    so much love for this, you are brilliant.

  57. 57
    December 21st, 2011 at 2:58 pm

    K

    I know this article was posted almost a year ago, but has anyone thought of Wind Waker or Skyward Sword-themed outfits? I think those would be super fun! WW Link’s lobster tunic, for example… :)

  58. 58
    December 24th, 2011 at 3:24 pm

    K

    actually, i did my own research, and i found some awesome pieces that could defs make a great Wind Waker Link-inspired outfit. :)

    first, here is a picture of WW Link for reference:
    http://images.wikia.com/zelda/images/a/af/Link_Second_Quest_(The_Wind_Waker).png

    here is a top thatd go quite well, it has a similar design and color:
    http://www.modcloth.com/shop/tunics/lighthearted-and-lovely-tunic

    and here are some pants (no, im not modcloth spamming, it was just convenient to look on the same site!):
    http://www.modcloth.com/shop/pants/poppy-and-paste-pants

    so there we go, if anyone still looks at this article and would be interested…though im not sure-this comment area seems to be gathering some dust! :P

  59. 59
    December 24th, 2011 at 7:09 pm

    Ashley - Flagler College

    K- Thanks for sharing! I love the outfit you put together :)

  60. 60
    January 25th, 2012 at 12:37 am

    Kathy Joy

    I LOVE the Zelda outfit! The link to the cardigan won’t work, however; is it sold out? What was it’s name so I can look for it?

    My sister in law does photo-shoots of updated fairy tales, so she’s going NUTS over this! Well done.

  61. 61
    February 17th, 2012 at 12:26 pm

    Erin

    This is a little off topic for this post, but I would love if you guys did a series for Final Fantasy or Kingdom Hearts. They have such great costuming.

  62. 62
    March 6th, 2012 at 4:34 am

    Kaiti

    I would love to see a Pokémon inspired set!

  63. 63
    March 21st, 2012 at 6:45 pm

    Marin

    I love this so much <3 thank you!

  64. 64
    March 28th, 2012 at 1:20 pm

    kira

    I love love love these and the disney inspirations! It’s amazing how you can pull such cute outfits from animated pieces. I wish i could buy them all

  65. 65
    April 1st, 2012 at 1:11 am

    Trina

    Oh, wow! I love this. Great eye, great sources. Love the accessories especially. All of them. Midna is my favorite, though.

  66. 66
    April 8th, 2012 at 1:32 am

    Rachael

    im really loving these nintendo characters posts. do you think you could to pit? he my fav <3

  67. 67
    April 10th, 2012 at 8:18 pm

    Patricia Streeter

    I am in love with this post. I am a total Zelda fan. These boards look awsome!

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