Twi'lek Pam

That is coming along nicely. I like the shape of the sleeve cap. I think the collar might need to be a bit taller, it doesn't quite have the "turtleneck" look to it. When you walk in the red dress, does it hinder your movements or keep you from taking long strides? It looks like it might be a bit of a hobble skirt with the bottom edges turning in. (Though it looks okay, covered by the outer dress.) I have problems with those dots on pictures from time to time, too. I think it's from lint on the lens. It's always the most noticable with black costumes! Pam

That was very interesting to read through; thanks for sharing! (I giggled about the "bills" sections because I really don't want to know how much I've spent on costumes over the years... and I squee'd just a little bit when I spotted a Twi'lek with you!) Pam

The belt buckle you can get as a buckle blank from Tandy Leather. It's pretty easy to reshape them a bit to get the shape you need. A bit of sanding with a very fine grit wet-dry sandpaper (600-800) will give the metal the bright finish that you need. http://www.tandyleatherfactory.com/en-u ... 87-00.aspx For the metallic dots to each side of the buckle, you can use screw-on or hammer-on rivets or posts, also available from Tandy in their hardware section. Just look through the options to see what would work the best. (Or get a few different ones and experiment!) For the plates to each side of the buckle, the easiest thing to do would be to cut them from some thin sheet metal, which you can get at the hardware store. Cut it with some tin snips, sand the edges well because they'll be lethal sharp at first, and sand the top surface to give it some shine. The metal can be held in place with the rivets seen in the references... though I recommend scuffing up the back surface and bonding it to the leather with some epoxy or contact cement to keep it in place well. An example of sheet metal pieces: these were traced onto the sheet, cut out with tin snips, and sanded smooth. Pam

Much better pictures, thank you! The cape color looks perfect, clasp is good. The jumpsuit has a bit of a low neckline, but it's within the tolerable range. Shin guards and boots are acceptable, as are the goggles and the gloves. I'm not sure about the shoulder harness. A few slipped through in the past with the wrong back piece, and this looks like one of them. I am not certain if that will be approved. The LMOs might accept it if you tell them that you're planning to wear the cape at all times, so the back piece won't be visible... but they may very well tell you that it needs to be correct anyway. It's not an empty ring in the back, it's a solid piece: I would suggest giving the leather pieces a bit more TLC if you can, perhaps with a light tan dye or finishing treatment. The dye job seems a bit red and splotchy, so if you can tone down the red and make it look more even, you'll find that the leather pieces will look more professional. Of course, if the leather has been sealed, then the look may be permanent. Making sure that the cut edges of the leather are edge treated will help, too, if they're looking rough. You will need Mara's signature red hair, either by coloring yours or wearing a wig. You're well on your way (and you're in trouble now... this costuming stuff will get more addictive the more you work on it!) Pam

The squares do stand out much better with the suede side, so that can be a definite plus. Another option might be to use the leather side, but darken it with some leather paint or black polish to make it more visible. It's the final look that counts, so use the technique that seems the most accurate to you! Pam

It's a good excuse to keep working on the costume, and learning new skills! Pam

I noticed the standards posting on the RL forum the other day, and had a "Heh, cool!" moment. (Then I giggled to myself because it brought to mind the Robin Hood scene with Will and the catapult.) Pam

You make me so confused..... I hate Hate HATE HATE Caedus.... but you're such a nice guy... I can't decide if I should hate you when you're dressed as Caedus, or maybe just glower in your general direction when you're in that costume! You're welcome to try submitting the costume for approval, but I feel confident in saying that the Legion Membership Officers would defer the costume because of your armor. 501st armor needs to appear sculpted and quite professional, and in general the only armor made of Sintra that I've seen approved is Fett armor, since it just has a very slight curve, and no layers. Just as Darth Vader would never be approved with Sintra armor, I don't think Darth Caedus would be approved, either. Another new to the legion costume was just deferred recently for non-sculpted sintra armor, so I know that it is something that they watch for. They may also defer the belt buckle, since the only reference shows the buckle having a slight V shape that echos the shape of the chest armor. Pam

You are correct. He puts the rings instead of clips on all his sales, and we end up having to tell people to correct them. A few have slipped through, but most are told to go back and revise them. (Broken img link replaced with current CRL image by DarthTagion) Here are a couple easy solutions that I've seen people use: http://www.tandyleatherfactory.com/en-u ... 1-498.aspx http://www.tandyleatherfactory.com/en-u ... 8-020.aspx Pam

Hi, Yes, unfortunately the back-side view of your hood is more of a KOTOR (Knights of the Old Repbulic) Nihilus style, while the costume itself is in the COTF (Champions of the Force) Nihilius style. KOTOR has the hood that looks separate... though really, it's still a lot smaller than your hood appears in the back: Tattered COTF, clearly the hood simply hangs from the head and becomes the cape: KOTOR, a more separate looking hood, but still quite small: Pam

Welcome! Pam

Definite improvement! (And the phone matches, too! ) I just set your picture and the reference side by side, and it's a great match. Well done. Pam

Hi, Welcome back to costuming... it sounds like you've had some good reasons to put Visas on hold a while! (And a belated congratulations, several times!) For the veil, I recommend that you use something else for the gold trim when you remake it. The key to 501st costuming is giving the impression of professional work. While we DO make frequent use of supplies from crafts and hobby stores, the trick is to not let it LOOK like we used supplies from those places! Glitter paint is just a bit too "elementary artsy-craftsy" for a professional looking costume. It also gives a finished look that doesn't match the references well with the glittery look. I highly recommend using Jacquard paints; they bond very well with fabric, and have the right level of gloss. Also, since they're thin, they level well and don't look "goopy" on your veil. This is what I used, Lumiere in Metallic Gold. I purchased it at Michaels: http://www.dharmatrading.com/html/eng/1 ... aints.html Yes, the collar may be attached to the inner dress. No problems there. There has been some discussion about the pattern on the collar, and I believe the final decision is that it really should have the pattern on it, so that it matches the rest of the dress and looks like it belongs. It's debatable from looking at the reference, but is generally believed that it should be there, it's just not especially clear in such a small reference. I have the pattern on my collar, and you can barely tell it's there, since so little of the pattern is visible. But, it gives just enough hint to make it look like it matches the rest of the dress. I just realized, I never posted up the CRL submission for that costume! (Too much too keep track of, not enough brain cells to keep track of it all.) I'll take care of that right now, so you'll be able to see the finalized version that was submitted to the legion. Sorry about that. With nearly 30 sets of standards to deal with, I sometimes forget what has been posted where! Pam

Hi! Okay, let's see if we can get you on the right track with this costume. I've found that most "purchased" costumes tend to need a bit of work before they're ready for approval. I'll be happy to see yours getting ready to go! From the top: The hood looks excessivly large. It shouldn't be hanging down the arms. In the reference images, it's quite compact around the head. When you really look closely at it, you see that the hood creates a circle around the head and upper chest. It's not the hood that is attached with clips, but the capelet. You can see a much larger version of this image here: http://www.theflagshipeclipse.com/galle ... fullsize=1 The capelet should have a sideways, horizontal design, rather than the appearance of a mini-cape. The cape itself is really long. For accuracy and to stop people from stepping on it all the time, I suggest shortening it to just above ground length. The bridge piece between the chest and stomach armor appears to be a solid piece with lines drawn on it. It should ideally be made of leather or black vinyl with horizontal piping. The second choice would be a painted pattern that better matches the appearance of the reference images. (The following is not a canon character because of the lack of a helmet, but the armor's good, and you can see the horizontal piping lines in the bridging piece:) The straps holding on the ring are missing the greeblies: The sash belts need a bit of work. The black sashes drape through the ring from front to back, and then the red sash hangs from them, behind the ring. The red sash is actually supposed to be the back side of the black sashes. If you look to the left side of this reference image, you can see a trace of the red backing. Also, as mentioned, the red sash needs the vertical pleating/piping. The rest looks ready to go, I think. I appreciate that I can see pleating in the hakama... that's a detail that is often overlooked. Pam

Very nice work. I think you've got all of the elements needed for approval. (The blaster's a GREAT extra touch, but not required.) I personally prefer the second set of shin/knee guards, though I think either would be accepted. The ones on the top look really bulky in comparison to the others. Pam

We've gone back and forth on that. After my first discussions with two different generations of Sith Lord Detachment DL's, Savage was going to be housed here on Flagship. They wanted to keep true to their "Movie Sith Lords" focus, which was fine. However, since it makes the most sense to put him with the folks who really know Maul, we reopened "negotiations" again recently and agreed to have Savage be represented by the SLD. They can give the best advice about the paint, horns, etc. That's the final decision, and it has been approved by the LMO's. (And it's one less CRL entry for me to deal with... Woohoo!!) Pam

It looks like your costume is coming along nicely. I LOVE seeing build threads like this! (And yes, the pleats are designed to drive people crazy!) Will the final cast of the chest/tummy armor be rounded? It looks quite flat across the front, and I'm concerned that you would get dinged for that. We've seen both ends of the spectrum over the years: armor that was too flat, and armor that made people look like they were wearing a barrel. Both were sent back for revisions before they were approved. Nice work, it looks as if we have another artist on the forum. Pam

Welcome! I think most of us start with a "quick" costume, and then realize that we want to try something better. It's a process that we go through step by step as we learn more, set our goals higher, and find out what fantastic things we can make! Pam

If you have a stencil but cannot find a good spray paint, you could apply the gray paint with a stiff paint brush, and make the edges soft that way. A dry-brush stencil technique should work well... http://www.royaldesignstudio.com/howto_ ... hp?id=1040 http://www.stencilcafe.com/stencil_techniques.php If you are painting on vinyl (fake leather) fabric, make sure to use a paint that sticks well to vinyl. Some kinds of paint will scratch off over time, destroying your pattern! I sprayed my dress with SEM Vinyl paint in Presidio Gray. That paint is made for painting the vinyl in car seats, so it sticks VERY well to the vinyl! If your black dress is plain fabric, then make sure to use a fabric paint. Pam

Hi, Don't forget that the dress pattern is somewhat faint and doesn't have hard lines. It has wide, fuzzy edged lines, rather than lines with a thin, silver Sharpie look to them. You can somewhat tone down a too-sharp or too-bright pattern with a light coat of black vinyl paint when the design is finished, but it's easier to create the needed look at the beginning with toned down gray paint and soft lines, rather than having to make a lot of adjustments later on! Pam

Congratulations on your costume approval. Pam

Oh, that's not much of a list. You should be able to finish it in a week or two. Good luck, and we'll be looking forward to seeing the results! Pam

That really is some nice work! The lines are clean, the stitches are straight, and it looks solid. Very nice. I try to wait until I see pictures of a costume being worn before I make comments on them. Something can look very nice on a hanger, but when you see it on a person, you might find that the cut or design is completely off. The fit matters just as much as the material and the pattern! Pam

Hi, Did your belt arrive yet? I've been waiting to see how things are coming together for this costume. Pam