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[polishvendetta]

Not a lot of people will be looking at your feet.  I thought I've seen someone reference most fans at a troop are going to notice your helmet first, then your upper armor, then probably weapons.

I think Its probably best to use them as is and modify them afterwards.

Personally I've scaled back a lot of my own ideas because in general your first kit will not be your best kit.

[Arco'thyel Wyshla]

Great point! I know I eventually want to make each part of the kit as if everyone is analyzing it, but you're right, most people aren't going to be looking at my feet. Someone in my clan said it needs to be more than raw fabric, so I'll pretty them up before application, but for my con deadline I'll fix the fit and leave them as is.




It's about time I tackled the part of the kit that scares me the most: the flightsuit. The things I need to do to make it wearable are to tailor it, add a neck seal, and add undersleeves. I decided to start with the neck seal.

I've gotten better at drafting armor patterns, but boy howdy, fabric patterns are a lot harder!

I started with a paper template. I measured a rectangle with the height/circumference of my neck, taped it into a circle, traced that circle onto paper, and extended the skirt outwards (with extra space for the v-neck). After trying that on, the back of the neck pulled up pretty badly. I realized the back of the neck piece needed to be extended so that the skirt would lay nicely on my shoulders / back.



That fit better, so I decided to move away from the paper template and test it on an old bedsheet.







'Daww, baby's first hem! And boy, can you tell. This was a great practice piece to learn about seam allowance, right/wrong sides to mark on, and feeding curves through a sewing machine.

I figured I should try it on with the balaclava to ensure it covers my neckmeat.



The skirt doesn't sit flawlessly on my shoulders, but under my flightsuit, it looks great and serves its purpose. In the future perhaps I'll play with it until it sits perfectly even without the flightsuit on top. For now, it's time to transfer this to the final fabric!

Fun fact, if you wear a balaclava with a raw 3D print, then it feels like you have a T-visor and then you'll grab your armor templates and stare in the mirror for 20 minutes.



Oya!!

[Two_Bears_HF]

Looking great!

I find it always so amusing how people go about the same idea differently - I started from the opposite direction, working from the base up - flightsuit/soft parts first, and now that that's done in a place I'm happy with (and with upgrades already starting to be planned), now moving on to armour and hard parts.

[Arco'thyel Wyshla]

If I recall, finishing the soft goods first is the best way to do things! Especially before you go to sintra, since your soft goods will change the fit of your plates. I admit, I was procrastimaking the cardboard templates because the soft goods intimidated me so much. Now that my cardboard is all patterned out, I have no choice but to do the scary things!

Star Wars armor party tomorrow! I'm nervous and excited to meet people from all the different clubs, and hey, maybe someone there will know how sleeves work!

[polishvendetta]

Your progress has been great.  Good luck on your armor!

[Arco'thyel Wyshla]

Thanks!

Had a great time at the armor party! I got a few tips and a lot of motivation. Let's get these soft goods knocked out!

At the armor party, it was determined I don't need to take in the pants above the knee. However, considering I'll be strapping my thigh plates, I decided to try taking it in a few inches to see what happens. I think it looks a lot better, but they're right, It's pretty snug when I sit down. Should I go for comfort or style points?



I'll take in the other leg tomorrow. Then it's time for sleeves... not looking forward to that one!

[Tramp Graphics]

Thanks!

Had a great time at the armor party! I got a few tips and a lot of motivation. Let's get these soft goods knocked out!

At the armor party, it was determined I don't need to take in the pants above the knee. However, considering I'll be strapping my thigh plates, I decided to try taking it in a few inches to see what happens. I think it looks a lot better, but they're right, It's pretty snug when I sit down. Should I go for comfort or style points?



I'll take in the other leg tomorrow. Then it's time for sleeves... not looking forward to that one!

Comfort; definitely comfort. That and mobility.

[polishvendetta]

I've heard from my clan members that a lot of members can't even sit down in their armor.  Just in my flight suit I can sit but after attaching the waist items I can not.  I'd say plan for what youre comfortable with.  I intend to not have a lot of mobility in favor of aesthetics, this being my first kit I'm comfortable with that compromise.

[Karson Wren]

I don't know exactly what good is, but it looks pretty good to me 

[Cattriss Wren]

Looks good nice job!

[Arco'thyel Wyshla]

Thanks for the inputs and encouragements!

I can stand and kneel in the pants just fine, and I can sit, but it certainly is a bit snug when sitting. After thinking it over, I decided to let out the inner seam by another centimeter. I'd like to be able to sit, but as polishvendetta mentioned, I'm not sure if I'll still be able to sit in the rest of my getup. Oh well, don't overthink it! Gotta keep moving forward!

I sewed the hip pockets shut, so when I tried it on later and went to casually put my hands in my pockets, I shed a single tear. Gotta get me some holsters so I have somewhere to put my hands.

I tailored the other pant leg and started on the sleeves. As worried as I was by the sleeves, simply tracing the sleeve seam to paper seems to be doing the trick? I'm not a huge fan of the way the scrub shirt fits my body -- the armpit tugs the whole shirt up when I raise my arm -- but my Alor'ad checked the fit at the armor party and said it'll work out fine since we don't raise our arms. For my future flightsuit, I definitely want to figure out that perfect fit...

Now, fit check! Looking for "approvable" rather than "flawless". The gray fabric is my test bedsheet, and if it gets Ruus'alor approval, it will be replaced with the scrubs fabric.





I grabbed some screenshots from episode 5 for fit reference:









So, some notes...

• I will extend the sleeve by another two or three inches. It fits when my arm is straight, but does not cover my skin when I bend my arm.
• I will bring in the spats by an inch or so. It is baggy. I may install a zipper / velcro first to make sure it fits right.
• The neck seal, in bedsheet form, crumples easily. It won't show neckmeat due to the balaclava, but still looks sloppy. I'll add something to stabilize it at some point if the final fabric needs it.

Up next: check fit with Ruus'alors. Adjust as needed. Transfer to final fabric!

[polishvendetta]

This is looking great.  I love all your different pieces.

[Arco'thyel Wyshla]

Thanks, polishvendetta!


Ruus'alor approved -- sleeve time!

I keep intending to take pics that show my steps, but get caught up in the build -- oops! If anyone reading this has questions, feel free to reach out.

To add the sleeves, I laid the shirt flat and traced the outline of the sleeve hole. I started on tissue paper to get the rough shape, then transferred to printer paper to refine that line. I put the scrubs shirt on and measured from the armhole seam to my wrist and extended my pattern by that length. I measured the widest part of my hand and made sure the bottom of the sleeve pattern was that wide. Tah dah!





Then I tested it on a bedsheet, as seen in the previous post. This is key, because I could check how it looks and feels when I bend my arms, etc. I discovered the sleeve needed to be 2" longer to cover my wrist when I bend my arm, and it needed to be 2" less wide at the armhole to fit the scrub seam.

Then comes the scary part: cannibalizing that $30 pair of pants that is your only source of matching fabric. Eek. While cutting into the fabric, we may as wellcut what we need for the neck seal. Look a few posts up in the thread to see how I drafted the pattern.

For the collar piece, I decided to double layer it so it wasn't as flimsy. I also practiced some PI top stitching! Good thing it's black thread, otherwise my inconsistent line spacing would be obvious. Sewing the curved edge of the skirt to the straight edge of the neck piece was much harder this time around. Took a lot of very careful pinning. I cut notches into the seam allowance to help straighten it out.





I was planning on keeping the back side as a raw edge, but I figured I'd try adding an edge to it. I'm glad I did, it's more stable now. I did this by cutting a square of fabric, folding all four of its edges inwards, folding the square piece over the skirt's raw edge, and sewing.



Add velcro patches and here we are! Basic flight suit is done.







Boy, in hindsight, I should have gotten the biggest pair of pants possible to cannibalize for fabric. Here's all that's left. Not much room for pockets or pouches if I wanted any.



Up next is to make a duct tape pattern for my flak vest!

[Arco'thyel Wyshla]

Convention is officially one month away! Gonna do daily mini-updates to keep myself on track. Today's mini-update is, I officially have a duct tape dummy for my flak vest! I also ordered a new hotend for my printer in hopes I can get a bigger helmet printed.

The plan for the next few days: Tomorrow I'll figure out how to turn it into a pattern, Sunday I'll test it on a bedsheet, Monday I'll do a fabric / hobby store run.

[Arco'thyel Wyshla]

Today's mini-update: I have the pattern and am working on the bedsheet test. Tomorrow I'll finish up the test fit and purchase the final fabric. Also, after some more troubleshooting, my 3D printer may be in working order now?? Will test it out in the coming days!