Saber Forum

IT HAS BEGUN!

Most of my materials from Amazon came today (including my amazing new dress form which I adjusted to my measurements) and I headed to the fabric store to get some canvas (originally wanted hopsack linen to match Darth Revan, but they didn’t have in the right color) and vinyl (the other colors weren’t thick enough to detail, so I’m going to be darkening them by hand).

I patterned about a quarter of the front of the breastplate today.

I’m glad the dress form worked out; I know you were concerned about that.


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Yup! It's fine for me, but still might be slightly big on some petites. I actually realized after I put the photo up that this doesn't show the actual current state, but meh

Well... that just means more pictures later, that’s all!  😄



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It looks like you're off to a great start! Exciting, can't wait to see it completed! (and some progress pics, too  ;) )

Breastplate jigsaw puzzle! I’ve figured out for to do it in two pieces but make it look like 1 continuous without visible connectors! :D

Vinyl dye tests

Cool. How long do you figure it will take to put together?

My wife recognized the armor. She just finished KotOR last night.

Armor plate pattern looks to be coming along nicely there, LR

Awesome! I’ve been doing a play through for the cut ending, but I think I need to start over since getting my new computer. Glad she recognized it though! Ambitious as it is, I would like to finish within a month so I can bring it to a con I’ll posdibly be attending in June. Raphael Sberge is going to be there, and it would be awesome to be able to take pics in it with him (that’s the voice actor for Carth Onasi).

Have a few more layers done. The front is almost completely patterned (the rest of the belt is actually part of the back)

Thanks Therion!

Wow LR, you never cease to amaze me with your creativity!

If the patterns are indicative of what's to come, I know that you'll have yet another fantastic ensemble  :)

Thanks, Dutch! TBH, I'm less concerned about how the breastplate will come out than the actual robes themselves. I'm pretty awful with a sewing machine, and typically hand sew everything, but that's just not practical for a fabric project this large. I'm also still in need of patterning paper to pattern the robes and hood (which is a whole other monster to try to pattern a hood) since the hard poster board doesn't really work for that purpose and isn't large enough).

I finally found some good reference photos of the back, so I can start patterning accordingly. I'm probably going to have to experiment quite a bit with the hand guards though, since engraving is difficult on vinyl and I'd rather not shell out on real leather for what is essentially a prototype.

Progress! All that’s left pretty much is the belt and a couple of side panels. New paint dried a little shinny, but I’m sure it can be dulled

Coming along nicely!! 😊

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Thanks! I'm excited to start the cutting and building soon!

Aaaaaaaaand related but unrelated, Amazon screwed up. System error charged the incorrect card, so now I'm dealing with that BS. Doesn't help that my bank didn't change the display and put the pending through until 4 days later, so any additional supplies will have to wait until this is straightened out... -_-

Ugh


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Tell me about it >.<

Olive color and buckles for the belt came today. I’m the meantime, I’m on my way to the bank

Curses!  When your costume is done, you can ride your evil jedi mount to their HQ and Force Choke them into repentance.

Hey! This one is light side Revan XD

The second lady on the phone seems to have submitted for the issue to be fixed at least, but I have to go play bank tag now so everything will go through correctly when it’s charged in the corrected card -_-

Always nice to see people making their own costumes, this is really cool, LR. 

Thanks Infinit! I’m just hoping I haven’t bitten off more than I can chew here

Having to send the buckles I ordered back to Amazon. Similarly to the coat clasps I found that would have been perfect for the top near the straps, they are too big for me. If you are a normal sized human though, I’ve found some lovely clasps and buckles that are perfect for a build lol

Can't catch a break today on costuming.  Better luck tomorrow.

ROBES

"normal-sized human" -- LOL

Ain't none of us normal, kiddo.  Some of us are closer to "common-sized" than others, maybe.

average sized adult humanoid then! lol

Update on the vinyl leather dying! I think it’s pretty darned close now.

Rethinking the buckles and clips though, I have some leftover Worbla and mirrored silver spray paint from the Darth Revan armor build last year, and I can probably mold thermoplastic ones myself then paint it to look like metal

patterning paper came today for the fabric bits. *gulp* Wish me luck. I've never patterned fabric costumes from scratch, and sewing machines and I are far from friends. All of the leather vinyl pieces are being hand-sewn, but the fabric pieces are probably going to need the machine....

You can do it! Sew the seeds of unite two pieces of fabric together!

It's not looking good. I successfully threaded the machine for about 5 seconds and now the bobbin is being stupid

Me, too! They are notoriously fickle to set up and then once you finally get them good luck with anything other than a wildly winding path.  :D :D

 

On the bright side, the last leather paint color I needed came today, so once I finish the couple side and belt pattern pieces left, I can begin cutting and painting, then stitch together. Once the Mannequin is free, it will be easier to start the robes. I'm saving the bracers and hand guards for last because I need to be able to measure the bracers with the sleeve of the robe on, and the hand guards have A LOT of detailing, so they'll probably need to be attempted more than once XD

Finalized leather vinyl colors

With the exception of the belt straps (I’m cutting those to size when I have the buckles) patterning for the breastplate is finished! I’m currently tracing out on the back of the vinyl so I can cut.

Definitely like seeing the notes on the pieces, telling you how they go together.
Very good plan

Yup! And what color they end up, since I'm using the same vinyl and painting for each one. The breastplate is a jigsaw puzzle, so I think it would just be completely unmanageable to attempt any other way. This way I can also save my pieces to redo the whole thing in real leather later, once I feel more confident that I won't be wasting money on excess materials. Even then though, I think I would get all the same color and dye it to the needed shade to save on costs.

Silly me needs to stop trying to do things in the middle of the night because I just realized that all of these pieces will be mirrored (right on left and left on right) because the patterns are right way up but the vinyl is right side down. Good thing it’s supposed to be symmetrical lol

Could have been worse, LR!

Still: looks like you're well on your way!  Can't wait to see the finished product  :)

I'm learning so much watching you go through this process. Thanks for all the updates and pictures! :)

Worst case scenario, I have enough left to try again (maybe try two more times)

Oh my goodness! I didn't see this when I replied before... You're welcome! I am by far not an expert on costume building, but I figure my own learning process can help others learn too :) 

PS, if you continue light side on your KOTOR playthrough, eventually you can get your own in-game robes when you reach the Star Forge :D

Yeah I like the how I built this format as well.  When I make stuff, a lot of times I'm in the zone and by the end of the day it's done and there's no pictures of how we got there.

I got some new clips and buckles today! Will try to post later when I'm doing more of the cutting of the vinyl

Didn’t get a chance to post my progress last night, but I finished most of the cutting (still about 23 more small pieces, bracer pieces, and under pieces to go) and started painting.

 I had the thought this morning that I might need to get a sheet of Worbla to do an under layer to help all the vinyl pieces to keep shape (certainly for the bracers, breastplate I’ll need to wait and see).

More pictures in a second post. Reached the attachment limit.

More pics! I’m going to make simple belt buckles for the front because everything seems to be too big that I can find premade :(

Going to have to do a second coat of paint on the cognac and dark brown colors to get rid of streaks

Moving along pretty fast.

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yup! I'm hoping to have it finished within a month...

Forgot to mention when starting: I'm submitting this for Saber Guild and for Rebel Legion, so I'm using the Rebel Legion CRL and some of the threads for the RL forum. Linking below

CRL: http://newsite.rebellegion.com/star-forge-revan-robes-kotor/ (http://newsite.rebellegion.com/star-forge-revan-robes-kotor/)

Thread on Build: http://www.forum.rebellegion.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=92733&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0&sid=1210955ae3f84514a24158e493ad98de (http://www.forum.rebellegion.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=92733&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0&sid=1210955ae3f84514a24158e493ad98de)

Photos of currently approved Rebel Legion member in costume: https://www.flickr.com/photos/117370117@N06/40227184101/in/album-72157663627797097/ (https://www.flickr.com/photos/117370117@N06/40227184101/in/album-72157663627797097/)

So I've almost finished cutting and painting all of the breastplate pieces! :D I did some corrections to the upper back design based on another reference photo I found where the hood was at a different angle. Pics soon to come!

New design for back! It’s not stitched together yet, but this is layered to get an idea

And one for the front too

This is looking really good! Super impressed with your skills. 😊😊

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Thanks! I’m super excited to start stitching pieces! Need to do a second paint coat and edge touch ups on a few pieces though, especially the dark brown and cognac. I’m hoping I don’t run out of dark brown paint, since all the largest pieces use it and I’ve used a lot of my bottle. I should’ve gotten all of the colors in the 4 oz bottle lol

Second and third coats of pain and starting some of the detailing. Pictured is the lowest panel on the back, which has thin horizontal lines running through it

You're welcome. Doesn't seem like you bit off more than you can chew in my opinion after seeing you build your Revan costume.


I love the little details that go into costumes, LR. Your work is no exception to the rule, really cool. I like how you map what you're going to do

It's really a necessity to may out given how complicated the geometric pattern is (and when you figure you have to adapt that pattern to fit your own body). None of the builds I've seen so far of the robes really do it justice (all close but not quite), so I'm hoping to get as close to accurate as possible.

---

UPDATE: After some debate, I've decided to do an under-layer of foam and paint the edges to give a little more dimension since the vinyl is so thin. I'm hoping this will also help it hold shape enough for me to not have to add Worbla anywhere other than maybe the hand guards and possibly bracers. Worbla without a foam core doesn't do well in Florida heat, so it's best if I can avoid it altogether

Sounds like you're taking it steady and working any problems you hit.
Keep it up, LR

Thanks! I got some matte spray I'm going to pick up at the hardware store tomorrow to deal with the obnoxious shine the leather paint created. End product I'm gonna spray it down. Also going to check to see if the hardware store carries the dark brown (or medium brown) leather paint. I'm almost out with the fact that all the largest pieces use it, and I still need enough for the bracers...

More supplies! Some sponge brushes for detailing, matte finishing spray, clean plastidip, and contact cement

Plastidip an Matte spray combo works like a dream! Trying to decide if I should do all of the pieces before or after they’re titled together. Before would probably look better at the stitching, but after is the most durable. Hmmm...

The thinner one on the left has the clear plastidip and matte spray

do they bend/flex OK?  Any risk of cracking?

Perfectly flexible. Plastidip is a spray rubber coating and frequently used for finishing armor. I wanted less flexible but not rigid.

The foam will help with thickening for slightly less flexible.

I got some medium brown leather paint and it’s really adding some great dimension and weathering effects on the cognac and dark brown colors

These look amazing, LR!  I can't wait to see your final product  :)

Thanks Dutch! I finally got my bobbin thread to cooperate, so I was able to start the fabric parts last night! Will post a pic when I get home.

A little look at fabric bits so far. Skirt part will be higher when I can attach it. I’m dreaming the sleeves right now lol

Already doing a LOT more for this than I have skills for

The sewing is pushing it, especially using a machine. I'm an awful seamstress. I just want it to be adequate right now. I'm going to remake later the whole thing in leather instead of vinyl and (hopefully) with hopsack linen instead of Canvas, then enter it in the Costume Contest for Star Wars Celebration Anaheim 2020 if it's finished in time! Going to do that before I submit it as a Saber Guild upgrade to get around the "you can't use your costume for profit" rule :P After the contest, I'll submit the upgrade. I'm going to also try to do some of the in-game headgear with electronics for the contest version.

The sewing machine betrayed me yet again (I think I’ll name is Malak) so I handsewed most of the bodice part today

Coming along nicely!

Betrayed, and yet you persevere. You truly are Revan

And Malak is an excellent name foe the machine that betrayed you

Excellent work, by the way

Haha, thanks. I got a lot done today in terms of the fabric pieces I'm nearly finished with the tunic. I'm super happy with how the Mandarin collar turned out, but I might shorten it ever so slightly because I have a relatively short neck. Tunic just needs Velcro, zippers, and maybe some tacking on a few of the skirt folds, then to have the skirt ironed, and to finish the seam cover for where the skirt meets the waist. I made the hood tonight too with Nimbranil's help! :D All that's left is the two layers of the mantle, and the collar for the mantle itself (and to attach the hood to the mantle, of course!

I'll take pics soon! my dress form now needs to "step in" which is kind of difficult XD

On mannequin with hood. More progress since this was taken though

Looking very much the part so far, Lady R

Thanks! You can't see it in the picture, but I'm really proud of how the robe collar turned out (there will be a second collar overtop of it though as part of the mantle). Hood will attach to mantle. Once the robes are done, I'm going to piece the breastplate overtop and then stick it on to measure myself for the bracers.

I'm at a pause currently searching for my sew-in Velcro. I made the mistake of cleaning the other day and now it's not where I remember having it last. My mind functions best in organized chaos.

I know the feeling, Lady R
You should see my workbench

I'll probably just buy another half a yard of Velcro tomorrow since I'm going to be near the craft store anyway. There's a JoAnn's in the same mall as the music school where I teach is. The moment I do that the other Velcro should turn up XD I have adhesive Velcro, but that would be a nightmare trying to use on fabric...

A more recent picture working on the mantle. You can sort of see the collar here too. There will be a mantle collar overtop though.

This is looking great!! Can't wait to see the finished product.

Wow! Look at all that progress.  I'm guessing this is the good version of Revan?

One of several, yes.

Looking to be coming along very nicely, LR

Sewing some thin pleats into the lower mantle for drape texture to combat the stiffness of the canvas. Mantle almost finished!

Not a tailor, but they look like they should help

Very nice work!

Wow very talented can't wait to see it finished.

Tony

I need to post some new update pics soon!

Fabric Parts other than the Upper Mantle (where the hood attaches to) are complete, and I'm currently gluing and sewing together the pieces of the breastplate. The Entire back of the breastplate is done minus a couple of parts of the belt, and I'm currently working on the front.

Once I finish that, all that's left is the upper mantle (minus the hood, which is made but not attached) and then measuring, cutting, painting, and piecing together the handguards and bracers!

Moving right along, LR. Keep it up

Looking forward to some new pics

I realized I needed to paint the backs of the loops for the O-rings at the top of the breastplate, so that paint is drying right now 

Lots of progress on the front top of the breastplate tonight!

For a moment, all I saw was the pics and I thought you'd made a saddle for a Battle Corgi.

All from scratch?  Wow, really cool!

Wow LR, your progress is remarkable!  And your skills continue to impress  :)

Point!

LMAO nah, but a battle Corgi would be awesome! Lol


Yup! Nowhere really makes Star Forge Robes and the few that I have seen were frankly either flat out wrong or just looked bad if you looked at them for more than a glance.


Thanks Dutch! I’m really excited to see all the pieces finally come together, knowing it’s so close to completion!

Wow!! This is come together really nicely! Very impressed. 😊😊

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Thanks, Jillian! There’s been a lot of progress just since those photos. I expect to be done within a week or so.

Excellent progress and I appreciate seeing the stages of work.  Keep it up!

Most impressive, Lady Revan.
Won't be too long now before you have the set ready

I'm hoping to get it submitted and approved in time for a possible event 4th of July Weekend. if It's not sent back for any alterations, then I think it's possible.

Nearly done piecing breastplate together. Weather painting to come to make it less one-dimensional (especially on the dark brown and cognac colors).

I’m so close!!!!!

Definitely impressed there.
You're right about being close

I've installed Velcro since this pic but am at a forced pause for the time being. The lid on my contact cement was loose and I knocked over the bottle and dumped the whole thing. I have more, but it's right in the center of my cutting mat and there's a lot on my hands too >.<

Got yourself into a sticky situation there. ;)

Points for Puns :)

Yes Lady Rev got overexcited and started to rush...that's an easy way to come unglued!

Slow and steady wins the day. Looking magnificent though.

Nah, I kicked it while I was moving the armor to the mannequin and didn't notice XD

*Beavis voice*   "Hehe  KICK IT!  KICK IT!"

Did some weathering painting. Also was playing with how to place the buckles.

Liking what you have so far, LR
Reminds me that I have some 'issues' I need to work on before September with my own gear

I just finished installing the snaps buckles and assembling the belt on one side. Working on the other now and I'm also going to put some velcro on the back of the center part of the bent to keep it in the proper position. Will post pics soon, once I finish! :D After that I just have to figure out the jigsaw of 3 side pieces then add a hidden side closure, secure the front strap clips and O-rinds, make the upper mantle and attach the hood, then do the bracers/hand guards.

Belt and weathering done! Little side pieces are connected. I just have to attach them to the main part and add hidden losures

Wednesday is the deadline for me. I'm submitting the costume so I can use it for a Saber Guild event July 5th where we're presenting honorary Saber Guild Membership to Jason Isaacs at Florida Super Con.

UPDATE: So piecing it together, I had a sneaking suspicion this would end up being the case, but I've since confirmed that I'm going to reed to recut and redye two of the side pieces so the armor will close properly. Seems like it will be easy enough to do, but I'm hoping it doesn't set me back too much for my deadline :(

Her'es hoping you can make deadline.
Liking what you have, though. Looks really sharp

Thanks! It's the two panels that look like flaps sticking out from the sides near the top in the images. I noticed mine ended up a bit different shape than the reference images (I had assumed curving accounted for it) but I see now that it's going to be better just to redo them altogether. The good news is it's an "easy" fix, it will be more accurate to how it should look from the game, and it will end up fitting better! I think I originally made them like that trying to account for arm movement on the mannequin, but that was before I had the sleeves now as clear markers.

UPDATE OF UPDATE: the piece under it is also going to have to be re-cut to accommodate the new size and shape, but this one isn't attached thankfully. Hopefully, I'll have all of these fixes done by the end of the night so I can start the bracers. O-rings have also been secured.

Just started the bracers. Reminds me why making bracers is such a pain in the a** without a second person there to measure and help fit (and who actually knows what they're doing).

When you get these ones right, trace a pattern to keep for future use. :)

I feel your pain on the bracers. I need to redo mine as they still haven't really fit right

I have one. Last time I made bracers My muscle mass in my forearms changed between when I measured and when I made them, particularly in my left arm

There's a joke in there somewhere, but I ain't makin it. ;)

Sabering is good exercise.  My problem always is I have to make or get custom made in most of that stuff (bracers, hand protection), because I am part giant...

The safest bet is to make them a bit big and have sleeves that help keep them in place

So I ran out of glue and am thus limited in what I can do until the hardware store is open and I can go buy more. I had just enough glue to finish piecing together the bracers, but I need more to finish the sides of the breastplates and the reinforcing layer of the handguards. Right now I'm painting detail on the handguards and might cut the upper mantle pieces before I head off for the night.

Forgot to post any pics, but here are the handguards. Bracers sitting close by but I didn’t think to snap a photo before I had to leave for work. Goal is to finish tonight!

Modeling the glove, bracer, and handguard

Once I finish tracking down the places where pins are visible, it will be complete! :D

is it done in time?

Looks like a lot of great work

LR, those look incredible!  I'm sure that Rebel Legion will approve this in NO time at all!  Great job my friend  :)

Person comes in about 5 hours, so I think it will be. I probably won’t have all of the Velcro in, but that’s what safety pins are for ;)


Rebel Legion isn’t who I’m concerned about, since it’s closer to the original than the only approved one I’ve seen (that the standard is based off of actually). The Saber Guild GCCs tend to be a bit picky recently, and I’m right at the deadline in terms of time for if it should be approved or placed as “pending” before when I need it. When I resubmitted Bastila it took 17 days. Turnaround is supposed to be 10 :/

Thank you though! :D I’m also submitting for Rebel Legion.... and also doing my Darth Revan reshoot for 501 (and submitting Dark Empire while I’m at it). So many submissions today XD 501st one I think will be a fast turnaround though. Last time they got back to me with feedback within an hour via my email submission. One of the squad leaders has already contacted me about getting in on troops as soon as next week after I said I completed the adjustments.

So I’m going to need to do some repairs already because thenewglue I got after I ran out SUCKS but here is the “Action Shot” from the shoot

Gorgeous results there, Lady R
Definitely looking the part

That looks freaking AWESOME!   

Sorry to hear about the glue issues.  What kind was it so we can all avoid it like the plague?

the bad glue is Elmer's Rubber contact cement. Weldwood contact cement is far better, but I've only found it at hardware stores or Amazon

Great great job, looking good!

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Ah, yeah.  It is pretty junk.  I have in the past had AMAZING luck with Barge, in the yellow and red can.  Learned about it working leather when I was employed at Tandy.  Cobblers use it, and it will stick till the heat death of the universe, I swear.  LOL

How quickly does it set, and what is the applicator for it?

That looks really, really good!


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IIRC it's not terribly different in that regard from other contact cements.  You press and hold the pieces for about 2 mins once it's tacky, and it's pretty well set.  As well, iirc, it comes with a brush in the lid, but you could use other brushes or the like.  I don't think sponge type applicators work well.  I will PM you some links for further info.

This looks so good! I can't believe how well it turned out. Excellent work! :)

Star Forge Robes were officially accepted this morning by Saber Guild (yay! Still haven't heard back from Rebel Legion. I've actually known this news for a few days now though (unofficially) because in the last few days I was also named a Global Costuming Consular for Saber Guild! :D I think that the Robes helped contribute greatly to my selection, so special thanks to everyone who has followed along in the journey building them, and especially those who contributed helpful suggestions for things such as materials :)

CONGRATS!!!!

Alright LR!  Congratulations are in order!!  That is fantastic news indeed  :)

Thanks! I'm really excited and looking forward to being able to help prospective and current Saber Guild members with their future costumes.

IN OTHER NEWS! I've decided my next project in me "Baskin Revans 32 Flavors of Revan" XD (my friend made the joke and I' keeping it!). DARK HORSE COMICS REVAN! Stay tuned! lol

Congrats!  And thank you for sharing the build pics!

Congratulations!

Thank you for your congratulations, and you’re welcome for sharing the process of the build.

As has been said by others, congratulations on the approval of your robes, and on being named Global Costuming Consular!  And has also been said by others, thanks for sharing some of that costume-building journey with us.

Rebel Legion officially accepted too! Thank you for the congratulations! Will keep updated on the next build. Right now I'm trying to figure out a custom sized helmet since the only place that makes them seem to be designed for XL heads....

Very very cool, Lady R

HUZZAH!