Nefthys

That is the pattern I used to make my Nihilus. You will have to make some adjustments, but it is a good pattern to start with. Cheers, Nef

Hello! 1. Amount of material you will need roughly depends on your size, but most COTF Nihilus costumes need about 20 yards. I am 5'8" and 180 pounds and I needed 18 yards for mine. If you are taller or bulkier, then you need more fabric. I hope that gives you a good idea for a starting point at least. 2. Get boots that will be comfy first and foremost. After that, any black boot that does not have visible laces or buckles are acceptable. This will come down to your price range. You can get very expensive or fairly reasonable boots. I found some great black boots in a second hand store. Here are some boot ideas to look at: http://imperialboots.com/products/millenium-boots/ http://imperialboots.com/products/jack-boots/ http://imperialboots.com/products/dark-lord-boots/ http://imperialboots.com/products/id-boots/ 3. You can get the black studs from Tandy Leather. http://www.tandyleather.com/en-usd/search/searchresults/11309-17.aspx I hope that helps you start on your path to the dark side. Cheers, Nef

Great to have you back in action! Cheers, Nef

Glad to have another Nihilus being created! I look forward to seeing the progress on your costume. Cheers, Nef

I would not recommend this one based on the fact they list the fabric as monks cloth. It has been heavily discussed and most agree that monks cloth is the wrong fabric to make Kylo Ren's robes out of. It is still such a new character that there aren't many purchasable costumes out there yet that would be Legion standard. Amidala has posted an excellent thread on the making of her Kylo Ren. I would recommend checking it out. http://www.theflagshipeclipse.com/forums/index.php?/topic/1747-kylo-ren-tutorial-image-heavy/ Cheers, Nef

I generally advise to stay away from ebay for costumes if you are looking at getting into the 501st. Especially when there are a few red flags that stand out in that post. They list it as a 'KOTOR' Nihilus, when it is in fact a COTF Nihilus. Also, the mask in the first picture is not the same as the mask in the second picture. Which means one of those images is probably taken from somewhere else and not an actual photo of the costume itself. Just my two cents. Cheers, Nef

Looking good so far!

Hello, As Paradoxdj said, we used piano weave linen, similar to what the jedi use on their robes. The company that a lot of Nihilus costumers order from is Dharma Trading for the raw silk. Raw Silk also known as Silk Noil fabric. http://www.dharmatrading.com/fabric/silk/black-raw-silk-35mm-45-inch.html For the sleeves I just used a regular black cotton fabric with a light quilting baton in the middle for the padded look. Hope that helps! Cheers, Nef

I used this pattern for the base of my COTF Darth Nihilus robes with some modifications. It works rather well.

This is all amazing information! Thank you for taking the time and dedication to post up your progress on every step for others to learn from. Your costumes are always top notch! Do you have a similar write up for your Rey costume? Cheers, Nef

Looking good! I love trooping symphony shows! They are always such fun and it's great how much the crowd love Star Wars. We did one a few weeks ago where we got to escort the conductor on stage for the encore where they played the Imperial March. Loved it!

MWA is a decent starting point, but is just a start. In order to make it 501st Legion approvable, there are some changes and tweaks that need to be done. I find that while the MWA pattern is technically correct for the robes, they don't use a decently weighted fabric to give the robes a good hang to them. If you look at a picture of Obi Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor version) robes, you will see what I mean by a good weighted fabric with good hang. You want the same idea, but in black for Nihilus. I also find that there isn't enough fabric in the robes to give the proper "billowing" look that you need with a Nihilus. So some people add in extra panels of fabric for a more proportioned look. There are other minor adjustments like a properly sized obi/belt ratio, under tunic neckline showing and cowl shape. It depends on the GML in your area, and how closely they will look at all the small details. Keep in mind that his mask is the COTF version as well. While it would technically be approvable for a KOTOR Nihilus, there are 2 distinct different masks between the two costumes. Just my two cents. Don't get me wrong in thinking that I don't like his work, his stuff is amazing! But for 501st approval, you will need to do a little bit of work to get the basic kit up to par with Legion standards. There are quiet a few MWA kits that are approved in the Legion, so it is possible. Cheers, Nef

Our garrison just did a troop for our local philharmonic orchestra with the John Williams concert. We've done a few times in the past and it is always a lot of fun. Last weekend I got to be one of the lucky ones picked to escort the conductor on stage and stand up there while they played the Imperial March. It was amazing! One of our troopers took some video of the end of the concert and the encore where we come on stage. As for sabres, here is a picture of the two hilts that I use. The shiny one with the switch showing is the Ultra saber. https://www.dropbox.com/s/g9jzc07jn6pafd8/2015-05-22%2015.14.51.jpg?dl=0 Cheers!

My Nihilus hilt was made by Moonbase Creations, the gentleman who made it is on these forums as Paradoxdj. You could try messaging him as well. Before getting my Nihilus hilt, I just used a basic plan silver hilt from Ultra Sabers. Keep in mind that a sabre is not required for 501st approval, just the costume. So a lot of costumers get the outfit first, get approved, and then look at getting a weapon. Just a suggestion. Some start with the lightsaber right away as it is a pretty cool thing to have. Cheers!

Great news! Congratulations! Welcome to the Flagship Eclipse! Cheers, Nef

I used the Simplictiy pattern 5840 to make my Nihilus tunics. It is a fairly easy pattern to follow and modify as needed. http://http://www.simplicity.com/p-2272-misses-men-teen-costumes.aspx Yes, the fabric on the sleeves is different to everything else, so you only need a small amount of that fabric. One of the best ways to make the crown piece that is easy and fairly cheap is to use Worbla or Wonderflex. Both work great! I normally take Nihilus robe commissions as well, but I am booked for the year at the moment. Making 2 sets in the next couple weeks for clients. Always fun making more Nihilus stuff! It really is an easy costume to learn to sew. The great thing is not needing to hem the skirts, just weathering them, so that makes it much easier too. I can take pictures of my next robe progress and post them if you need any visual reference. Cheers, Nef

Fantastic video!! Let us know when you have some masks available. I know I would love to buy one to go with my new KOTOR robes I'm making. Cheers!

It was great seeing so many there! I was there in my Nihilus too. He seems to be a popular character, despite being somewhat obscure, and from an older game. What Paradoxdj hasn't mentioned yet is that his Nihilus was approved for the 501st Legion a few days ago! Congrats! Cheers, Nef

Fantastic work Paradoxdj! It was great to see the costume in person at Celebration. This is certainly a top notch Nihilus. Also, a BIG thank you for the Nihilus lightsaber! I love it!! Cheers, Nef

Yup, on a Kotor Nihilus they should be the same material. Or at least they need to look as close as possible if you do use two different fabrics. The thing to keep in mind with the Kotor Nihilus is that it is based off of an older game model. They didn't have the technology back then to render in much detail, like fabric textures. So there is a little wiggly room (artistic license) with a Kotor Nihilus to get the right look. If you go with two different fabrics, just make sure they look right together and have the same density of black. Hope that helps! Cheers, Nef

Looks great! The only thing I should point out is the knot under the chin from the hood should not have the "tails" hanging down. They need to be hidden by being sewn into the knot. If you look at the COTF Nihilus pictures, he just has a single round knot, there is no extra fabric hanging out from the knot. This is like a 2 minute thing to fix though. Cheers, Nef

Looking good so far! Do you have any full body pictures of the whole outfit? Just a couple little things, the cloak needs to sweep back over the shoulders, it should not hang down in front of the shoulders. An easy fix, just make sure the cloak is draped backwards. Also, Nihilus is never shown with his lightsaber on his belt, so it is considered inaccurate to have it clipped to the front of the belt. I have a clip for my lightsaber on the back so that it is hidden by the cloak when I don't want to carry it. He is either shown with the lightsaber in his hand, or not at all. So it is assumed his belt clip is at the back. Do you have 1 inch quilted sleeves? It is hard to tell from your pictures. It is important to have the quilted sewing lines on the sleeves, similar to Darth Vader. You may want to make your "cat ears" on the cowl a little bit more predominant. Just a little extra to make the costume really 'pop'. Look forward to seeing more photos! Cheers, Nef

That is fine then. It was just hard to tell from the first picture since the belt was sitting so low on the obi. As a little FYI, I added a snap to the middle of my obi and on the back of the belt so I can snap it in place. That way my belt always sits in the middle of the obi and doesn't slide down. Cheers, Nef

Hang in there, it is a hard piece to get right. Took me a several tries to get mine to hang properly. I ended up stitching my folds and hang lines in place to make it look right. For the pack, my cowl and cape are all one piece that hang down together. Not an ideal way to build it as all that weight pulls on my head. Make sure you have enough fabric at the base to have good drape while still bringing the pieces forward to do the under chin knot. You may need to sew an extra triangle of fabric in to give you the extra cloth to work with. Cheers, Nef

Welcome to the Flagship Eclipse! Glad you made it over here and your Nihilus looks awesome! Cheers, Nef