Bloodfin Garrison hopeful Mara Jade addition *wave*

[LadyEnyo]

Greeting and Salutations Flagship Eclipse members,

 

I am Abbie (Enyo) of Indiana, long time stalker of the 501st and thought it was time to start relations

 

I have been enthralled with the 501st since SW Celebrations was in Indianapolis at the same time I was attending GENCON when it first came to Indy, many moons ago.

 

I am old enough to remember seeing New Hope in the movie theaters in 1977, but young enough to have a good time (what is age anyway right?).

 

I have been stand offish for years, not quite sure if I had the amount of time it takes to become a member. However over a year ago I started talking (through a message board (DISboards) about Disney) with members from other garrisons whom were getting ready to go down to march in the motorcade for Star Wars Weekends 2013. Once I arrived at Disney World I meet some of these fine people in person and many more 501st from all over whom had come to the event. It was exciting and very very fun. It is because of these members that have been encouraging me to make contact.

 

I am a 6 foot tall woman, fairly fit, and sport a head of natural looking long locks of red hair, so I am really HOPEFUL to try Mara Jade.

 

At the moment I have only put together a make shift Mara Jade costume that I wore during SWW 2013. I have been looking over the Mara Jade costume requirements for the 501st for some time now. I even used the guide/example to put together that a make shift Mara Jade costume.

 

I am a pretty good at sewing, but I am enlisting the aid of a local seamstress because the jumpsuit for Mara Jade looks like a bear with that material and would love some advice on it. She has sewn costumes for people who attend GENCON and do other sorts of cosplay.

 

I have a few problems to overcome with this costume:

 

1. The holster, I have seen some I could purchase, but they are for the back smaller gun and I am keener on wearing the Han Solo type option that is also acceptable. My goal is to find a leather worker in my area OR learn to make it myself.

 

2. The knee pads and shin guards for the outfit, I have seen a few who do make them online but as a whole I am not really sure I like the quality of the ones I have seen, or the fit, since I am tall this is gonna be tricky. Does anyone someone I could work with to make those? I have a feeling there are a lot of shin guard wearing 501st out there I have bought a pair of shine guards that I believe meet regs and look like the ones from Decipher image of Mara in meantime while I try to get the “Mara Jade” ones going.

 

3. The claps for the cloak, I really would like to try to find a smith that can make that out of metal instead of resin, looks like I got my work cut out for me there too!

 

Thanks in advice for all your help. I am very much look forward to meeting you all in person someday!

 

Take care, everyone and MTFBWY!

LadyEnyo or Enyo (have used that call sign for decades, I am also a mythology nut!)

[LadyEnyo]

Mara Jade WIP

 

I had originally posted a link to some shin guards I bought, but upon further review they were not long enough, and not it scares me how short the ones to buy seem to be.

 

Anyone got some shin guard tips, for LONG legged people?

 

I have been looking at these, if I cut off the things for feet, are they acceptable?

 

http://www.amazon.com/Damascus-DSG100-G ... sbs_auto_8

[LadyEnyo]

This is the harness I ordered, I can't wait for it to get here so I can start on making the holster I want.

 

[LadyEnyo]

Sratch these... Damascus-DSG100-Guards they aren't long enough

 

I am however changing ideas...

 

I am looking at using these and altering them to what they should look like:

 

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00HLRNQAG/ref ... DTL33Y48FT

 

I will take off the extra padding, take off the foot pad atachement, paint it shinny black, and use a black real leather strap to secure it around my boots using the metal rings... these so far are the closest still available that are like the "decipher look" and still will fit me, they go up to an 18.5

 

Any thoughts?

[The Clone Emperor]

Good evening,

 

I recommend sharing images of the exact version of Mara Jade you are looking to replicate. I imagine you will want the Decipher TCG shots of Shannon Baksa:

 

While these are an approximation of the more canon appearance of the character’s armour from the original comics, gear that matches the TCG portrait is acceptable for Legion approval.

 

Be well and welcome aboard.

Thomas

[The Clone Emperor]

Tssk. Spent the last hour + researching. You got me curious.

 

The leg guards featured in the TCG image were released no later than 1999. Matching these may prove problematic.

Consider the example of Darth Maul’s boots;

The exact boot is known (Frank Thomas Titan Touring Boot 101) but no longer made. Scoring a pair in your size is rare and very expensive. So the 501st allows approximations.

 

After looking at the characteristics of the TCG Mara Leg wear, I felt confident that Decipher did little to no modification of a readily available–1999 Internet ordering options–single very padded knee leg guard. I thought for sure that I could find a match under baseball umpire gear. I came close, but nothing I was happy with.

 

I think an approximation might be the best we can hope for now. Here is one option I like from Damascus (DSG100 Hard Shell Shin Guards)

 

The knee padding is not leather, and over all the piece lacks the sheen the TCG leg armour. One would need to clip the toe and metatarsal guards, paint up the shins and possibly find a solution to enhance the luster of the knee pad.

 

For the effort though, one might well look into the techniques of making custom fit leg armour and then match the comic appearance.

 

Good night,

Thomas

[LadyEnyo]

Hello Thomas,

 

I originally looked at the Damascus Shin Guards and shied away from them because of the lack of shine. I don't mind painting at all and I work with leather... (I will be making my own bicep bans, side blaster holster and belt) so I was thinking either a really shinny leather finish or a rubberized plastic spray over that can be shines up might work. The Damascus Shin Guards are close enough to my size that I ordered them and will post progress and I get things going.

 

Thank you so much for your advice!

 

Take care, Abbie (aka Enyo)

 

PS as I learn how to make armor I will try and make the shin guards that match those of the comic books.

[LadyEnyo]

The Damascus Shin Guards came in last night, they are the right length

 

I noticed that they came in with a faux leather material stretched over the knee and not cloth so I should be able to shine them up with no problem!

 

Only problem I see, and I hope I can fix, is that the knee part is huge on me, and needs to curl a bit to bend around my knee to look right. They were cold, sitting on my front step when I arrive home last night, so I remain hopeful that once warmed up I can start curling them and shaping them a bit more. I will post pictures of my progress.

 

Take care, Abbie