New Darth Nihilus WIP (V2.0 In Progress)

[ghostred7]

Greetings all. As most of you know by now that I joined up here to fire up a Darth Bandon costume. Still doing that, but since the game changed my outlook (and still confused) on his armor, that's been put on hold to allow me to work on a Nihilus to get my foot in the door.

 

That being said, i'm opening this thread to show my work in progress (WIP) as i have progress to show.

 

Plans:

 

Mask - wonderflex + friendly plastic. about 100% done with the foundation (white part). I will say that the friendly plastic does mold nicely when heated properly. We used a heat gun at ~ 1/2 way (somewhere around 350-500 degrees) with a sweeping motion.

 

Mask Decorations (the silver/grey/gold [dependant on pic]) - We're using Friendly Plastic for this as well. They sell 1.5" x 7" strips (same we used for the white part of the mask) that we'll use. The very top part (where the hood gathers), we're going to "fake the funk" on that and actually have the horizontal part clip into the back part of the top round piece via a bra type hook. Our interpretation is that the hood and that piece are certainly physically connected.

 

Robes/cape/etc - if i can afford it, i'm going to go with black silk noil for this. I used it for Bandon's inner tunic and love it. Dharma Trading has it for ~ $4.65 USD/yd.

 

Saber - will probably make a cheap one myself for now, and then when ready, get one custom machined.

 

Boots - whatever fits in the standard that I can find

 

Frays - I am planning on dragging it behind a car/bicycle or something once I get to that stage. It's the best way IMO to mimic proper wear & tear and not look too phoney. **IF** one of you do this....test with small piece of fabric first....silk, cotten, etc all fray differently. Another option is higher speed and not dragged, but air frayed, although for many reason (safety being one) i don't recommend it.

 

I will post pics soon. I've been taking progress pics of the mask, but decided that it would be best saved for when it's complete so i can show the steps at the same time.

 

If you have any feedback on my methodologies here, please comment and let me know. Thx.

[ghostred7]

Disclaimer: shadows and lighting came out weird in the pix b/c of the area i took the pix in.

 

Please gimme feedback on this. I'm going to paint it w/ Krylon Fusion, but wanted feedback on its current condition first. Thanks in advance.

 

 

Suggestions/feedback??

[Twi'lek Pam]

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I'm impressed! I've never worked with either of those materials before, so I'm pleased to see how well they took on the shape you needed.

 

My main suggestion would be that it needs to be smoother because it's still a bit on the lumpy side. Can the mask be sanded, or will you need to add more material to smooth the surface?

 

Well done so far!

 

Pam

[ghostred7]

I'm thinking about using Bondo or similar to smooth it out. We have the clear Friendly Plastic pellets and we may use that to fill...haven't gotten that far in my brain yet.

 

Thx for the input....keep it comin'!

[Guest Cleverlilminx]

I kinda like it more lumpy, makes it look more skull like IMO.

[ghostred7]

CLM...thx.

 

Actually...some of the "face detail" of the mask were purposely made skeletal. I've seen a few images (dunno canon or not) where the shadows come onto the face and pronounce the jaw/cheek bone.

 

Going off of the CotF pic, there's clearly defined lines that suggest this may have been the skull of something/someone. Based on Nihilus' nature and raw devouring power, him wearing the skull of someone/something else doesn't seem far to me. Granted, i haven't finished the game (yet).

 

Notice the "lines" around the cheek/jaw area suggesting skull of sorts:

 

Also some of the "Unseen, Unheard" images suggest this as well and influenced our decision on being "skully."

 

 

Lastly, the image that started the lumps & accents to me was this:

 

To me the shadow/light falloff wouldn't be as great around the cheekbone/jaw area without some sort of definition there.

 

All of this being said. Given the fact that we will be spraying with flat white (Krylon Fusion for plastics), would (provided the ornamentation done correctly) the mask be OK for acceptance (granted, the rest will have to be completed to spec, just wanna get this done first) or would it have to be totally smoothed out? I personally, like CLM, like the organic/lumpy/natural look based on my thoughts of it being the former skull of something.

 

Thoughts/feedback/etc?

[Twi'lek Pam]

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I agree that it does look like bone.... that has been my personal interpretation as well. But, a bone look is better achieved by giving the illusion of roundness and not making it mirror smooth, rather than by leaving the surface bumpy. To my eye, it still looks a bit unfinished. But then, I've always been a stickler for details that many other people don't notice at all... it drives my family nuts!

 

Pam

[ghostred7]

I'm going to see what I can do. Forming the plastic to fix the lumps is proving a little more challenging than I expected. I may heat and take the bread roller to it *shrug*

 

I also think some of what is being seen is the blue & dirt, etc coming through the plastic, which is why i am going to paint it...some of that stuff may disappear and make it look more "fluid" just by painting it.

[Guest Anonymous]

You might be able to go ahead and do a bit of filling and sanding, but not as much as you would to get a mirror smooth surface...that might allow you to retain some of the organic "skull" feel you're going for without leaving the relief so high that it will be interpreted (or could be interpreted) as "partly done". Best of both worlds.

 

Check out the texture maps, too, that I uploaded to the Nihilus image gallery. There is one that is a closeup of the mask itself (allowing for the funkiness of texture maps, which are strangely laid out). You can see some interesting detailing in the mask that could add to your "skull" interpretation.

 

Here is what I am referring to:

 

 

Note the textures in the white areas of the mask. Interesting.

 

- Carolyn

[ghostred7]

I **do** find those areas curious indeed.

 

I may fill/sand, still TBD. Debating on using the Friendly Plastic or sand/fill.

 

If the texture map you pulled is accurate (you gotta tell me how you do that...i need to pull some out for a separate project), then up close, it looks like there's lots of unevenness as well as possible cracks.

 

Curious indeed.

[ghostred7]

We took the FP pellets and smoothed it out some (aka...as best we could). After we paint it, some of the blemishes and blue will go away. The clear parts (the stuff that looks like there's a bubble in it), is the clear FP that we "filled" in some of the relief with. I took Pam's & Carolyn's advice, went in the middle, and am happy with the final results. I know this thing won't be perfectly smooth. Below are the pics from the "2d run" (post-filling). Also bear in mind that part of this won't be seen b/c it's under the hood.

 

 

Feedback/Thoughts?

[Twi'lek Pam]

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Much, much better! Putting in the time it takes to add finishing touchses and work out the kinks are what makes a costume look great... and you've definitely improved the quality of your mask. Well done!

 

 

Pam

[ghostred7]

Thanks, I appreciate it!

 

I'm glad I was still able to maintain the skullness of it. We're going to paint it and move into phase 2....in order:

 

1. paint

2. add red over eyes

3. add ornamentation

 

I will post pics when we get that far. Actually, i'll post pics after it's painted for pre-post paint difference.

 

Keep the input/advise/suggestions comin'

[ghostred7]

I've put a gallery online of all the costuming stuff we (me & my gf) are doing. Ignore the graphics, i stole them from my main site. They'll be updated later.

 

Core page - http://www.madhorizons.com/costuming

Gallery - http://www.madhorizons.com/costuming/in ... &Itemid=27

 

Thx...and keep the feedback comin'

[Guest Anonymous]

Very nice! I noticed the skull texture on the mask as well and I will be planning on updating mine.

 

Very nice work!!

[Guest Anonymous]

Very nice indeed. Great work ! I've always like the bumpy skull look , thats why I made mine that way. Again great work.

[ghostred7]

Thanks for the replies all, much appreciated. New pics:

 

 

Once again, feedback welcomed.

[ghostred7]

Oh...forgot to mention...i uploaded these to my site as well:

 

http://www.madhorizons.com/costuming (graphics are being re-done as well).

[ghostred7]

Ordered these gloves. I will need to dye them, but i like the way the look otherwise. They're deerskin too, so nothing terribly hot (as far as leather goes).

 

[Guest Anonymous]

Looking very good. It will be great to see the mask worn, in context, to get a better idea of how it will interact witih the rest of the costume.

 

Nice gauntlets. Got a similar pair myself...just need a costume to use them with! Won't work for Revan. LOL!

 

- Carolyn

[ghostred7]

Looking very good. It will be great to see the mask worn, in context, to get a better idea of how it will interact witih the rest of the costume.

 

Nice gauntlets. Got a similar pair myself...just need a costume to use them with! Won't work for Revan. LOL!

 

- Carolyn

 

Thx. I'm getting the rest of the fabric (silk noil) by 8/15 (it's ordered, just gotta get here). I found a decent way to add distress to the material by using a cheese grater. I'm about to put what i have so far in the dryer and then i'll post that later.

 

The gauntlet gloves only cost $40 after shipping (3day select @ UPS), so even if i *do* have to dye them, then no worries.

 

Now all i gotta do is figure out what to do for the ribbed sleeves. I have a really ugly turtleneck shirt that has sleeves like that (only brown) and not sure even if after dyed if it'll look right.

 

Items left:

Mask repaint (to de-whiten it some)

Finish tunics/skrits

Finish hood/cape

aka...pretty much everything is left I have mask & inner skirt done.

[ghostred7]

Here's some pics of the distressing to the inner skirt i did. This was performed with a cheese grater, then washed twice & dried once. Sorry if the images are too big.

 

 

These are up in my gallery along with the mask @ http://www.madhorizons.com/costuming/in ... &Itemid=27

[Guest Sakara]

Love the distressing, it really looks aged, likes its been through the wars! awesome.

i also like the organic nature of the mask you've made and am intrigued by this friendly plastic..i've never heard of it!

Can you give me a suppliers address so i can check it out as it may be called something else in the UK lol

[ghostred7]

Love the distressing, it really looks aged, likes its been through the wars! awesome.

i also like the organic nature of the mask you've made and am intrigued by this friendly plastic..i've never heard of it!

Can you give me a suppliers address so i can check it out as it may be called something else in the UK lol

 

Thanks I appreciate it! For heavier fabrics (heavy cotton, broadcloth, etc), the cheese grater works like a champ. I just wet the material and went nuts on my cooler, grinding away. For the silk, i'll probably use a combination of a 1" wire brush and 60 grit sandpaper.

 

It does have a different name in the UK - Polymorph and ShapeLock. When googling, I saw it being sold in a "local branch of Maplins."

 

http://www.maplin.co.uk/Module.aspx?Mod ... =2&doy=8m1

 

I got mine at http://www.jewelrysupply.com (1.5" x 7" strips) and http://www.cosplaysupplies.com (beads like Polymorph/ShapeLock).

 

There's a Wonderflex + Friendly Plastic tutorial on cosplaysupplies.com, i think it's called "Wonderflex and Friendly Plastic FAQ" or similar.

 

I still have to figure out how to do some smoothing. It does have its drawbacks, but overall good to work with (based on what my gf has said).

 

EDIT: After initial melting in the boiling water, having a heat gun handy works great. The one i have goes from 100F to 1100F.

[Guest Sakara]

AHHHHHHHHHH Maplins the store of random wonders! thanks so much for finding this!!

ill shall check this stuff out!

 

i see new projects looming!