Twi'lek Pam

This is the color file that was recommended by Jan Duursema, the creator of the IK's look. This image, along with the detail sketches she drew for our IK costumers, can be found in our Imperial Knights reference gallery. http://theflagshipeclipse.com/gallery/t ... p?album=24 Pam

I am pleased to see others making this costume from scratch! Remember, my interpretation of the blaster is just one idea of how it can look. When you look at the reference pictures from the comic books, you will see that the blaster looks different in each picture. Instead of trying to figure out the measurements of my blaster, just take a look at the comic book pictures and invent your own interpretation of how it should look. Use the measurements that feel right to you, and make it your own special creation! Pam

This tutorial will show the steps I used to create flexible "metallic" bracers for my Twi'lek costume. The steps can be used for many types of projects.... just use your imagination! When I first set out to make a pair of bracers for my Twi'lek costume, I thought about creating them out of solid material, such as styrene. The problem, though, was that nothing would stretch enough to let me slip them on, and then close tightly again to be form-fitting on my wrists. I finally decided to make the bracers out of flexible material. I originally cast them in latex, which worked well.... for just one event. Latex tends to dry out, crack, and stiffen with time, and the next time I wanted to use the latex bracers, I found that they weren't in very good shape anymore. So, I decided to cast them again in platinum cure silicone, which is far more durable and far more flexible than latex. These new bracers will last for years! A word of caution: Silicone is terrific stuff to work with, but most paints and most glues just won't stick to it. They'll peel off as they dry. If you choose to cast costume pieces in silicone, be aware that you will need to purchase pigments and adhesives that will bond to it. I like to use Smooth-On products. You can find everything you need right there on one website, and you'll know exactly what is compatible! -------------- I started out by using a piece of thick paper to decide on the size and shape of the bracers. I wrapped it around my wrist and trimmed it until I got a shape that I was happy with. (Yes, I made it asymetrical on purpose!) Be sure to use thick paper, not thin, to help mimic the bulk of cast materials. Once I had cut the paper to the correct size, I set it aside to use as a template. Then, I used a rolling pin to flatten a ball of oil clay to a 4mm thickness on an old cookie sheet. Cookies sheets are great for sculpting on. They're sturdy, transportable, easy to clean, you can work with the tray on your lap, and if the clay sculpture needs a quick warm-up or cool-down, you can shove the tray in the oven or fridge with no problems at all! Once I had the clay flattened, I used the paper template to cut it to the correct size and shape. Then, I used a variety of tools to create the designs. In addition to sculpting tools, I also cut up some stamps (the kind used for decorating cards and scrapbooks) and used them to create the swirl patterns. The stamps were small, but I was able to match up the patterns closely enough that the designs seem continual across the bracers. The domes were made with half-beads pressed into the clay, and the borders were made with a cheap little clay extruder I purchased from Michaels. When the sculpture was finished, I gave both the sculpt and the surrounding tray a light coating of Crystal Clear spray paint, and then let the paint dry overnight. The Crystal Clear creates a protective barrier which helps the mold release from the clay, but you have to give it plenty of time to dry before moving on to the next step! The following day, I used a strip of thick paper to create a low retaining wall around the sculpture. I used bits of water based clay to seal the wall to the cookie tray, and then I mixed up a small batch of Ultracal. Ultracal is stronger and far more durable than plaster, and MUCH better for mold making! Always pour the mold material BESIDE your sculpture, and let it flow up and over the sculpture on it's own. This will allow the mold material to push air out of its way as it spreads, preventing air bubbles from being trapped in the mold. I let the Ultracal sit overnight, and then flexed the cookie tray to make the rigid mold pop right off. Ultracal sets quickly and could have been removed faster, but giving it plenty of time to cure before handling is always better. The longer it sits, the stronger it becomes, and patiently giving it a bit of extra time prevents damaging the mold with chips or scratches that can be caused by handling it too soon. Silicone will not stick to the Ultracal (unless it was mixed to be very porous), but it is always wise to give any mold a light coating of release before casting something in it. Doing so lengthens the lifespan of the mold, makes demolding considerably easier, and often gives a better surface to the cast pieces. Be sure to use a mold release that was created for the type of silicone that you are using! For my bracers, I mixed up a batch of Dragon Skin. This is by far my favorite kind of platinum cure silicone! Before pouring the silicone into my mold, I added a very small amount of the metallic gold powder that is typically used for cold-casting with resin. There are a number of sources for cold cast powders, but I like to use Alumilite. (I had experimented first with small batches of Dragon Skin and Alumilite to make sure that the powder would mix in properly, and to make sure that it wouldn't inhibit the cure of the silicone. To my delight, it worked perfectly!) For the bracers, I mixed the Alumilite directly into the Dragon Skin. I also experimented with mixing the powder into Psycho Paint, and found that it worked perfectly there as well. Psycho Paint is a silicone base created for pigmenting silicone castings. You mix colors into it, and then paint it on with a brush or airbrush (if properly thinned.) This told me that I would be able to paint in metallic weathering or highlights with different metallic powders if I wanted to. Since the powders can be dry brushed into a mold before casting, I also could have brushed in some highlights with another color of powder before pouring in the gold-tinted silicone. The back side of the bracers have beautiful swirl lines and bubbles (since I don't have a pressure pot for casting). Neither the swirls nor the bubbles show up on the front of the bracers, though, so it's not a problem. This is how the bracers looked when they came out of the mold. They're wonderfully metallic.... and they're flexible enough to easily wrap around my wrists! I used silicone glue to permanently attach fuzzy sided velcro on the back of each piece, and then I used a piece of the hook sided velcro to secure them on my wrists. They're completely size-adjustable, and quite comfortable. Pam

I spent a few evenings working on my Talon saber, and finally finished sculpting and painting it. I'm pretty happy with the way it came out, though I may still tinker a bit..... I like the way it looks so different from each angle. On the left image you can see the screw used to hold in the blade, the power switch, and the recharge port. I'm playing with ideas for disguising the recharge port via a sculpted plug, though the other two I'm pretty much stuck with as far as their visibility goes. This picture was taken in a dim hallway with no flash. That's a white wall behind it... the red LED has some kick! Pam

Scott and I like to use Chavant clay. We use the reddish "medium" plasteline, which is sulphur free and won't inhibit the cure of silicone mold materials. It's a bit expensive, but you can use the same clay over and over again because it doesn't dry out. Hmmm.... for the scales, my suggestion would be to make one piece and then make a mold of that. There are two options. You can make a stamp to press the design into many pieces of clay as you are sculpting... or if all of the pieces are the same shape, then you can just cast multiple copies from the same mold. When I made my Dathomirian costume, I had some props that I wanted to look like they were made from leather scales... so, here's what I did: First, I melted some sculpting wax and poured it out on a tray, and then I let it cool so I had a wide thin piece of wax. I used the lid from something (a lipstick tube, I think) to cut out lots of little round pieces of wax. Then, starting at the bottom of my prop form, I pressed the wax circles onto it, overlapping each layer and creating an even pattern. The wax circles stuck to the form well just from the heat of my fingers, and before long I had a "scale covered" form. I used a blow dryer to gently warm the scales, which helped them lay flat and smoothed away any rough edges or fingerprints. Once the wax had cooled again, I made a mold and then cast the scales in it. Aside from some air bubbles in the mold because I was in a hurry and got sloppy, the pieces came out really well! Pam

Hmmm.... that looks like it would be a fun project. I would have a blast sculpting that face design! It all really depends on what materials you want to/are willing to use, how much time and money you want to invest, and what quality you want to get in the final results. If I were to do this project, I would start with a head casting, which I would then sculpt the mask and helmet on top of. I would sculpt them both at the same time, so that they would fit perfectly together. I would then make a mold from the sculpture, and cast the armor in fiberglass so that it would be very durable and easily painted. I have a tendency to do things the slow and complicated way... but I love the results that I get when I'm willing to invest the time and money it takes to make a great costuming project! Here's an example of a mask and "helmet" (we call it a bonnet ) being sculpted on a head casting, to show you what it's like. In this picture the mask is finished, and we had just begun sculpting the top area. The mask was molded in silicone and cast in fiberglass, while the bonnet piece was fiberglassed directly over the clay, since we didn't have to worry about detail work. (It's covered with black fabric.) Pam

. Here's a link for the Darth Talon reference gallery: http://theflagshipeclipse.com/gallery/t ... p?album=23 (This page is a stand-in until we get the usual "Links and Information" page written for her!) Pam

Karen, I'd say to go ahead and start your own thread here in the Maris section of the boards. That way we can discuss your costume individually, rather than having it mixed in with other stuff. (It's great for seeing the progression of the costume as you finish it up, too!) The reference pictures we have so far are located here: http://www.theflagshipeclipse.com/galle ... p?album=50 If you have any that we don't, please share! We're always looking for more references! Pam

More references... yay! Karen, can you post pictures of your Maris? And any reference image scans that you might have? We're still working on geting a Maris costume that is accurate enough to present to the council for the approval process. We're not 100% there yet... but we're getting pretty darned close! How about a challenge from the DL: Let's try to get an accurate Maris (and Starkiller!) costume ready to present to the legion council before the year is over! Oh, yeah, and.... welcome to the Flagship! Pam

Thanks, Dave. (I really missed writing tutorials, so I decided to upload a batch of pictures and do some typing. And then my students wondered the next day why their math tests still hadn't been graded yet....) You'd better be careful, Brad. If you write too many helpful posts like that, this Twi'lek is going to recruit you to help add more tutorials to our forum! Pam

. Asajj Ventress Asajj Ventress is a Dark Jedi apprentice of Count Dooku (Darth Tyranus). Despite being the apprentice of a Sith Lord, Asajj was never trained in the Sith arts. She led one branch of the Trade Federation's Droid Army alongside the mercenary Durge. Asajj had a long running personal feud with both Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi, ending only after she stole a medical shuttle and fled the known galaxy after the battle of Boz Pity. Asajj Ventress is the individual responsible for Anakin's facial scarring in Episode 3. Asajj Ventress Image Gallery http://www.theflagshipeclipse.com/galle ... hp?album=8 Visual Reference Sources These are the sources for LFL image resources. The purpose of this section is to show costumers where the character has appeared so far, and to tell them where they can look to get more information about the characters. Star Wars Databank Entry http://www.starwars.com/databank/charac ... index.html Cartoon Titles -Star Wars Clone Wars Book Titles - Star Wars Panel to Panel Volume 2 - Star Wars the New Essential Chronology - Star Wars Jedi vs. Sith - Star Wars Clone Wars The Visual Guide Comic Titles - Star Wars Republic: Issues 51, 52, 53, 58, 60, 69, 70, 71. - Star Wars Obsession Mini-Series: Issues 1 (cover only), 4, 5. Action Figures or Miniatures - Clone Wars Animated Series Action Figure (based on stylized art from cartoon series.) by Hasbro - Clone Wars series action figure. (based on realistic style art from Star Wars Republic Comic Books) by Hasbro - Jedi vs. Sith battle pack. (realistic art style figure painted in style to match animated style) by Hasbro - Star Wars Unleashed figure (larger style, not the more recent smaller Unleashed battle packs.) by Hasbro - Star Wars Miniatures. Asajj Ventress Jedi Hunter game piece and card. - Gentle Giant Maquette - Sideshow Collectibles 12" figure. - Mighty Muggs CW Ventress Novels Wth Character on the Cover - Boba Fett: Pursuit - Jedi Trial Games That Include the Character - Star Wars Battle Front 2 (X-Box version), downloadable character - Star Wars Battlefront Renegade Squadron Official Background Information Sources This is a listing of links or sources that will provide more information about the character. They may or may not have images. Star Wars Novels - Star Wars Cestus Deception - Star Wars Yoda: Dark Rendezvous Unofficial Background Information Sources NOTE: While wiki sources can be interesting and informative to read, they should NOT be considered accurate sources for character backgrounds or costume images due to the fact that anyone can go in and edit the text or images, regardless of accuracy. - Wookiepedia Entry for Asajj Ventress http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Asajj_Ventress - Wikipedia Entry for Asajj Ventress http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asajj_Ventress - Completely Unofficial Star Wars Encyclopedia Entry for Asajj Ventress http://www.cuswe.org/search.asp?t=ventr ... EandD=EyDn .

To see the official Legion CRL entry and a downloadable PDF file for this costume, please click here: http://www.501st.com/databank/Costuming:ViqiShesh. Costume Standards for Senator Viqi Shesh A Viqi Shesh Costume Must Have: (These costume elements are required.) Unitard: * The white form-fitting unitard must have long sleeves and a high scooped neck that is not visible beneath the capelet. * The unitard sleeves must end in a petal cuff. Long-Sleeved Coat * The body of the coat should be made of a medium or heavy weight fabric in mauve and purple, with swirls or a paisley pattern. * The coat must be ankle length. * The coat’s front opening and around the neck must be edged in an attached scarf made from pink fabric. * The long angel sleeves must be made of a sheer pink fabric. * The sleeves must be edged with a scalloped sheer grey fabric and decorated with gold stitching or paint. Gold beads may be sewn on. * A sheer overlay is attached to the back and reaches nearly to the bottom of the jacket. It must be made of the same sheer pink fabric as the sleeves. * The capelet must be made from a heavy, dark purple fabric. It should be top-stitched with gold thread on the bottom edge. * The capelet is closed at the neck with a gold brooch made from three joined circles. * The high stand-up collar must be made of the same pink fabric as the scarf. It is lined with red suede or fabric that has been dyed with horizontal purple stripes, and must be edged with gold trim. The collar should be supported by an interior wire frame or heavy interfacing in order to hold its proper shape and height. Epaulets: * The epaulets can be made of the same purple fabric as the capelet and covered with gold beads or gold braid, or they may be sculpted from a metallic gold meduim. Dickey and Cravat: * The dickey must be made of dark purple fabric that has been stamped or painted with small red rosettes. * The dickey collar must be high (almost as high as the stand-up collar on the coat) with a one inch trim made from solid red fabric. * A decorative “V” shaped opening is found at the center front of the dickey. The true closure should be located at the back. * The cravat must be made of a mauve fabric, or at least a redder shade of purple than the dickey. * The bottom of the cravat must have a ruffle made of the same red as the collar on the dickey. Sheer Skirt: * The skirt must be made of the same sheer pink fabric as the sleeves and overlay on the coat. * The skirt must be stamped with rosettes in gold fabric paint. Small rosettes are at the top, graduating down to large rosettes at the bottom. * The edges of the skirt must be painted with gold scallops. * The skirt may be attached to the back of the belt. * The costumer may sew heavy gold beads to the bottom edge of the skirt fabric to help keep it in place. Belt: * The belt must be two inches wide and made of very dark purple fabric or suede. * The belt must be decorated with gold paint and beads, including beads sewn along the top and bottom edges. * The belt must close at the back. There is no buckle in the front. * A metallic amulet of the correct design must hang from a gold or purple chain or cord at the front center of the belt. * Three swags hang across the front of the belt. They must be made from alternating round and oblong or tubular gold beads. Boots: * The low-heeled boots must be made of red fabric, leather, or suede that has been dyed with dark purple stripes. * The boots must be a pull-on style with no visible buckles. Jewelry * The brooch on the capelet must be metallic and of the correct triple circle design. * The metallic gold earrings must be triangular in shape. * The pair of hair ornaments, one on each side of the head, must be metallic and of the correct design. Metallic gold beads may be used. Hair: * The hair must be straight and black. The length in back is undetermined. * Four tendrils of hair are seperated from the rest of the hair and hang down loosely, two tendrils on each side of the face. Cosmetics: * The make-up should consist of pink eye shadow and pink lipstick. * The fingernails should be painted light pink. A Viqi Shesh Costume Should Have: (These costume elements are highly recommended, but are not required.) Contact Lenses * Brown contact lenses will complete the look of Viqi Shesh if you don’t have brown eyes. .

. Here's a quick overview for how to splice two lengths of stranded wire: Begin by using a wire stripper to remove about 1/2" of insulation off the ends of the wires. Twist the strands together. Create a strong mechanical bond by twisting the two wires together. Place the wires in a Helping Hands station so that they will be held securely while you are soldering. Tin the tip of the soldering iron, and then touch it to the bottom of the wires. Give the wire a few seconds to heat up. Begin lightly tapping the solder against the top of the wire. As soon as the wire is heated enough, the solder will suddenly begin to melt and spread across the wires. Capillary action will draw the solder into the wire strands, pulling it toward the heat of the iron. Move the iron and solder across the joint only as much as you need to, ensuring that every strand of the wire is encased with a thin layer of solder before you remove the iron and solder. Do not touch or move the joint until the solder has had time to cool! Finish up by covering the exposed wire of the joint with a piece of heat shrink tubing! Practice, practice, practice! Always make sure you get the hang of soldering with some scrap pieces of wire before you try to solder a joint in your electronics projects! .

. Soldering is a fairly easy task to learn. It does take a bit of practice to get the hang of soldering strong, conductive connections... but it's worth the time to learn if you want to add lightsabers, LED's or other accessories to your costuming projects! CAUTION: An iron hot enough to melt solder can do serious damage to skin and work surfaces, so always use caution while working with the iron. NEVER leave a soldering iron where a child or pet can knock it off the table or otherwise burn themselves! Also, remember that you will be working with lead wire. You don't want to get lead poisoning, so always wash your hands after soldering. Here's an overview of the tools and supplies you will need... Soldering Iron Don't bother with "Cold Heat" or low watt battery powered soldering irons. They're not much better than toys. If you're going to invest in a soldering iron, get a good one. You can get one that plugs in to the wall, or one that is attached to a control station. Either works well. A 30-45 watt iron is a good place to start for average electronics work. Don't get a soldering gun, those are designed for a much higher temperature than electronic projects will ever need! Soldering irons will oxidize quickly. They won't look brand new for very long at all. You should always keep the tip clean, because a dirty or oxidized iron tip will not conduct heat efficiently, resulting in a low quality solder joint that may break, or may not conduct electricity well. The entire tip of a soldering iron needs to be covered with a layer of solder before you begin to use it. This is called "tinning" the iron. This is the way I was taught to tin an iron: Plug in the iron and let it begin to heat up. As it heats, hold a piece of flux-cored solder against the tip. Let the solder cover the tip of the iron, and then wipe off the excess solder against the hole in a wet sponge. Shock the tip of the iron by pressing it against the clean area of a wet sponge to remove the oxidized layer at the tip. Now it's ready to solder! Repeat the tinning process each time you solder a joint. When you store a soldering iron, always melt a large bead of solder on the tip first. The solder will protect the tip while the iron is being stored. Here's a brand new iron, and one that has seen quite a few projects: Helping Hands While soldering, you must hold on to the soldering iron with one hand, and the solder wire in the other. That doesn't leave your hands free for holding the wires or components you're working on... so it is a very good idea to invest in a Helping Hands station. These come in different configurations. The most important part or the station is the arms. They have multiple joints and end with alligator clips, so you can bend them to any configuration you need. They will hold your wires and components in place while you're soldering, and will continue to hold them securly until the solder joint has cooled. This is the Helping Hands station that I like to use. I seldom use the magnifying glass, so it's usually bent backwards out of the way. I like the heavy (and secure) metal base and the little tray for holding components while I work. Here's another example of a Helping Hands. This one has a magnifying glass as well as a built-in coil holder for the iron, and a spong holder. It's too cluttered for my taste! Damp Sponge A damp sponge is used to keep the iron tip clean and free of oxidation or contaminants. It should only be damp- not dripping wet! The damp surface will not burn while wiping the iron tip, and it also serves as a "shock" or "steam" cleaner. I always cut a small hole in the center of my sponges. When I wipe off my iron tip, I use the edge of the hole. Any beads of solder left on my iron are rubbed off by the edge of the sponge, and wind up deposited safely in the hole as little beads of solder. I always use the left side of my sponge for wiping the iron tip while it is "dirty" and the right side for wiping when it's fairly clean. You don't want any contaminants on your iron when you're about to solder! Iron Holder Some soldering stations or Helping Hands come with a coil holder for soldering irons. If yours did not, then get a holder. You MUST have an iron holder! A coil holder is designed to keep your iron safely on the table (as opposed to rolling off and burning you or the floor), and the coils are designed to safely dissipate heat. It's a good idea to get an iron holder that comes with a place to hold a damp sponge. NEVER set your iron down on the table, not even for a moment! Wire There are many different types of wire, varying in thickness, type, and even how many lengths of wire are connected together. For general electronics work, it's best to get stranded wire. Stranded wire is lots of tiny wires twisted together and then covered with a plastic insulation coating. This type of wire is very flexible, and can be stuffed inside lightsaber hilts and other components without breaking. Solid core wire is a single thicker length of wire. It is less tolerant of bending, and can break if bent or flexed too much. Wire comes in different gauges. 24-28 guage is a good place to start for most electronic projects. The numbering system for wire seems strange, but it actually make sense. Wire starts out large, and then it is drawn through smaller and smaller circular dies. Each pass through the dies makes the wire become thinner and longer. The gauge number refers to how many times the wire passed through the process. Each time it goes through, the wire gets a bit smaller... so the higher the gauge number, the smaller the wire! It is often very important to keep track of the positive and negative wires when assembling electronic components. For this reason, I recommend that you always have black and red insulated wire on hand. Traditionally, black wire is used for negative, and red wire is used for positive. Wire Cutters and Strippers When using wire to connect electrionic components, you first need to cut the wire to the correct length, and then you must strip the plastic coating off about 1/2" of the wire to allow space for a good soldering joint. You can purchase tools that do only one of these jobs, or you can buy a single tool that will cut and strip a wire in one motion. I prefer to cut wire with a pair of wire cutters, and then I like to use the wire stripper on the left to remove the plastic covering from the strands. This kind of wire stripper tends to do less damage to the wire strands than the stripper in the center. (The one in the center has seen a lot of projects over the years!) Solder Always use rosin core solder when soldering electronics. This type of solder wire has a thin core of flux, which will help your solder flow well around the joint you are soldering, and it will help remove any oxidation from the metal as you solder. The most common solder found in electronics stores is 60/40, which means 60% tin, and 40% lead. This is a pretty good solder, but if you can find 63/37, use that instead. 63/37 tends to make better joints because it sets quickly and is less likely to be damaged by movement while cooling. When not in use, always store solder in a sealed plastic bag to keep it clean! A roll of solder is usually fairly heavy, and it's unwieldy to hold while working. I prefer to cut off a 2' piece of solder, which I then wrap into an easy shape to hold. Desoldering Braid or Solder Pump Sometimes you need to remove solder from a project. Either you put too much solder on a joint, or you need to unsolder a joint in order to make a change. There are two common ways to remove unwanted solder. The first is using a length of desoldering braid. This is braided copper wire that you place over the solder that needs to be remobed. Then you press your soldering iron on top of the braid, and capillary action will cause the melting solder to travel up the copper wire. There is a a spool of copper desoldering braid in the picture above. Another option is a solder pump, which uses a spring action vacume pump chunks of solder out of the way. I prefer to use the braid, so I have no pictures of a desoldering pump. Electric Tape or Heat Shrink Tubing You should never leave soldered joints unprotected if there is any chance that they can touch another surface. This can lead to damaged joints or shorting out of the electronics... two issues that can cause big problems! Whenever possible, use heat shrink tubing to protect soldered joints. This tubing slides over the wire and joint, and then shrinks down to a secure protective cover when heated with a hair dryer. Heat shrink tubing comes in many different sizes. Use a diameter that is just slightly larger than the wire that you are covering. If heat shrink cannot be used to protect a joint, then electric tape or a brush on plastic coating can be used. (I don't like them because they tend to be messy, and I prefer neat, orderly projects!) One very important thing to remember when using heat shrink tubing is that you often need to put the tubing on the wire BEFORE soldering a connection. If you are creating a closed loop, if you don't put the tubing on before you close the loop, you won't be able to put it on at all. Slide a length of tubing onto the wire, push it out of the way, solder the joint, and then slide the tubing into place and shrink it. Work Surface It's never a good idea to work with a hot iron on your favorite table top. Always work on a heat resistant surface. I keep a 2'x2' sheet of 1/2" plywood handy for projects that involve soldering, epoxy, etc. It's a safe work surface that I can put down anywhere I happen to be working that day... and if something drips, spills, or burns, it really won't matter! Fan The rosin inside a roll of soldering wire turns to vapor as it burns. It's never a good idea to breathe any type of smoke or chemicals, so you should always solder in an area with plenty of ventilation. If you don't have good air flow around your work station, put a fan nearby to blow the vapors away from your face. Flux Flux is a substance that prevents oxidation and removes any oxide from the material about to be soldered. Flux helps solder to flow smoothly and evenly over the surface of the wires or components being soldered, resulting in a stronger and more conductive joint. Flux can be purchased in a tube or bottle, or you can purchase wire that has a flux/rosin core inside of it. (That's your best option for most work!) .

(Heh... yeah, I tried to make a Starkiller gallery earlier this week, but Coppermine wouldn't accept my password for some reason. It kept sending me back to our old domain, which is inactive now. The problem has been fixed, though, so I'm planning to try again this weekend. I scanned some pictures from the graphic novel, but they're quite different from the other references that I've seen.) Absolutely fantastic references! Thank you thank you thank you!!! Pam

I appreciate that this thread was brought to the forum, and I have been following your progress with great interest. I enjoy watching others learn about the details of costumes and upgrading piece by piece, the same way that I make all of mine. I'm especially impressed by (and extremely jealous of) the saber... wish I could machine something like that! I'm looking forward to seeing more progress as you work on your Starkiller, and perhaps adding another designation to your TK ID... I think you're heading toward a top-notch costume! Wayne, he's right. If you cannot balance criticism with a kind word every now and then, you need to stay off the thread. Your comments are becoming hurtful, and I won't have that on this forum. But at the same time, Wesley, turnabout isn't fair play here. Please don't resort to that and bring the tone of the forum down any further. (Oh, yeah... and I finally got you added to the forum's 501st member's usergroup. Welcome aboard!) Pam

I will post them... when I get some! I haven't had a chance to buy the graphic novel yet, so no scans from me. There haven't been any uploads to the gallery yet, either. Online publicity sources can be used as long as we cite the source, since they were put up to promote the characters/games/novels/etc. If you get them from someone's personal website or gallery, though, then we need permission and a reference. People get unhappy when we "steal" their uploads. Pam

For now, let's just focus on the training costume. That is the costume with the best chance of approval in the legion. Thanks, Pam

I believe we will need 3 resources. The Lucas folks might have deemed it "cannon" but it is still an EU costume, and I believe the legion's movie-cannon diehards will require this costume to follow the standard EU rules. No worries... we've got the references, we just need to collect them together. I'm going to get the graphic novel and do some scanning, and I can probably get some good pictures of our Starkiller action figure, hopefully this week. I don't have a way to save screen shots from the game(s), though... I'll have to look to others for that. Pam

Yes, I think it would be a good idea to collect some pictures from there as well. As long as we note the source of the images, there shouldn't be a problem. I know that it's not identical to TFU, but there may be some valuable details to be found! Pam

First, my compliments to everyone for keeping the Starkiller costume research, costume building, and discussions rolling. I've been playing the quiet observer, reading your posts and watching the group's understanding of this costume develop greater detail every day. It's a fascinating process! I think we've come far enough along (and gained enough of a chance to get this costume approved for 501st membership) that it's time to start working on a set of standards in earnest. To do that, we have to start at the beginning... with references. We need reference images from three seperate sources, and we need lots of detail shots covering both the front and the back of the costume. We need pictures from the game, we need scans from the graphic novel, and we need good photos of the action figure. Also, I need to see those references housed here in our gallery, rather than scattered across the vastness of the internet, and I need to see them referenced by source. (For those who wonder why we need to host the images here, it's because we've experienced the loss of great references too many times in the past. One day we have wonderful reference pictures, and the next day they're suddenly replaced by messages saying things like, "This image is no longer available on Photobucket." Ack!) All pictures posted to the gallery must be approved by an admin, so there are two options for adding reference pictures. You may email them to me at mitji@aol.com, and I will post them. (I'll crop out extra background and resize them if needed, also.) Or, you can upload them to the gallery yourself. If you scroll down toward the bottom of the gallery page, you will see an album titled "Transfer- Upload event pictures here." Upload the pictures, and our webmaster or I will transfer them to a Starkiller gallery. http://theflagshipeclipse.com/gallery/index.php Thank you, Pam

Thanks, Jen. Are there any comments or suggestions for this costume before I set up a poll for the standards? Pam

Heh... that's not likely to happen. I despise Star Trek! Would you settle for a Cobra Baroness costume in the works instead? Pam

Ack! Don't listen to him! He's a member of the Rebel Council... he's a spy hiding in our ranks, poisoning our forum with propaganda, I tell you! But still... thanks for the laugh! Inviting dozens of boys to bring lightsabers was probabaly a bad idea in retrospect. (Although they loved every minute of it.) We had lightsaber battles breaking out all over the place, all day long. By lunch time I was starting to wish I'd taken a costume that came with armor and a helmet! Pam

Nah, we don't bother with decorating for Halloween. We live out in the country, and I can't remember the last time we had trick-or-treaters stop by. It's been years... Fiberglass resin comes in a tan color that has to be painted. You can buy black gel coat, but that's more expensive, and you still end up painting it anyway to improve the finish, so it's not really worth using. Pam