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[Reeves Pallia]

Hello! I'm super excited to finally be working on a kit. I was advised to start with soft parts and build up to armor, so that's where I started.

(Planning post: http://mandalorianmercs.org/forum/index.php?topic=196205.0)

Flight suit
Bought scrubs for the flight suit. The pants might be fine as-is (weathered and with pockets removed, of course) since I'm planning on leg wraps along with thigh and knee armor, but I'll make that decision after the leg armor's been formed. Snugged up the shirt under the arms a bit, since it was a bit baggy. (I can't get a great full-body pic inside here -- I'll update tomorrow, when it's light out.)

Flak vest
Drafted from scratch, which may or may not have been a good idea. I'm using navy duck cloth, which I really like, but I got cocky last night when I was drafting and thought it would be an excellent idea to have the left sleeve velcro so I can slip it over my head, completely forgetting that I need to put sleeve caps on this thing to attach armor to. Oops. Any advice on digging myself out of that hole would be much appreciated.

This is about 90% done -- I'm keeping it long until I get chest armor measured. Flaps pull around from the back under the front side and velcro in place -- more velcro will give it a smoother, tighter look, but I might go with a different closure method. I don't hate it, but I'm not thrilled with it. Then again, it's going under a post-imperial chest plate and a backplate, so maybe I'm overthinking it.



I'm planning on doing the neck seal separately. Girth belt and leg wraps will come after I'm happy with the flak vest.

Will update with more pictures of the flight suit tomorrow, and hopefully of a fixed flak vest!

[Drace Olen]

I think this is a great start! For me personally having sewn my own flak vest I would go ahead and fix the front first before doing the armor so that everything comes together more cohesively. I also used Velcro for side closures on the vest and then added additional hidden zippers later on to make it more secure.

I don’t think it’s bad that you didn’t put the shoulder caps on just yet. When I made mine I first started getting the general shape much like you’ve done and then added the caps after.



I checked out your planning thread and your color choice is really nice! Especially love the symbol design. I’ll be following this for sure!

[Reeves Pallia]

I think this is a great start! For me personally having sewn my own flak vest I would go ahead and fix the front first before doing the armor so that everything comes together more cohesively. I also used Velcro for side closures on the vest and then added additional hidden zippers later on to make it more secure.

I don’t think it’s bad that you didn’t put the shoulder caps on just yet. When I made mine I first started getting the general shape much like you’ve done and then added the caps after.

I checked out your planning thread and your color choice is really nice! Especially love the symbol design. I’ll be following this for sure!

Thanks, and thanks for the pics! If I may ask a silly question -- if your flak jacket attaches with velcro on both sides, how do you get it over your head? Is it just a large enough hole that it fits over your head?

[Drace Olen]

Thanks, and thanks for the pics! If I may ask a silly question -- if your flak jacket attaches with velcro on both sides, how do you get it over your head? Is it just a large enough hole that it fits over your head?

Sorry if that was a little misleading haha. It seals on the sides with Velcro and a hidden zipper. I just unzip it and put it on like a shirt and then zip up & Velcro the sides.

[Reeves Pallia]

I think I've solved my sleeve problem -- I switched to hooks and eyes, which will make a gap big enough to get my head through while still letting me add the sleeve caps. (i need to add more + redo the ones I added, but I do think it'll work.) After I took these pictures I put a teeny dart in the back to help it lay flat. I'm going to go with velcro on the sides for now, planning on switching to zippers later.

[Drace Olen]

Looking good! Can’t wait to see more!

[Reeves Pallia]

Messed around with sleeves today -- I'm thinking they need to go down further, but I might have to look at some more pics of finished kits (and get the pauldrons figured out) to make that call.
Anyway, the rest of the vest fits much better now! Please excuse the strong Aunt Beru vibes coming off of this photo.

[Drace Olen]

Messed around with sleeves today -- I'm thinking they need to go down further, but I might have to look at some more pics of finished kits (and get the pauldrons figured out) to make that call.
Anyway, the rest of the vest fits much better now! Please excuse the strong Aunt Beru vibes coming off of this photo.

That looks awesome! Nice job! I adjusted my shoulders several times when I was sewing to get the angle that I wanted. Your should armor should keep the fabric down a bit when you suit up, but depending on your choice you may want to adjust to your liking.

[Reeves Pallia]

Hello! It's been eons since I updated, mostly because I've been hustling to get this wearable for summer camp and thus am cutting corners left and right.

HOWEVER!

Here's a picture from the last time I put everything, finished or not, on:



Since then I've weathered the loincloth and cape and my white leather gloves came in the mail. Before camp I'll weather the legwraps and make them a bit smoother, and I intend to make a white waist sash for my brown belt (currently in the mail) to sit on top of. Laced boots (my usual every day pair) are one of the corners I cut for camp -- I'll either get chelsea boots or make boot covers down the line. Switching from post-Imperial to modern was another pivot I made to get this wearable for summer camp.

The flak vest proved a little difficult to get fitted, so a friend's agreed to help me out with that this weekend.