New Senate Guard in the making (hopefully)!

[Arcadius256 ()]

Hello to all! Just starting out and organising the build and found this dark midnight velveteen for real cheap. As of now, I do want to go a bit towards the darker and greyish end of royal/dusty blue. Just wondering if this is too dark, or if I should be buying it by the truckload before the sale ends.
Thanks!

https://imgur.com/gallery/4sFO47O

[Arcadius256 ()]

Got the fabric for the outer robe and lining. Pretty much the darker colour I was looking for and the contrast with the lining looks similar to the Gentle Giants figures (which I really like the look of). I was happy too with the washed satin dusty blue, something dull that wouldn't vastly outshine/distract from the velveteen.

The fabrics: https://imgur.com/gallery/a52GvWq
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[SongofAmazon (Jenna)]

In the first photo, your velvet looks too dark, but it looks alright in the second photo. Is one of those in natural daylight?

The original is also a full velvet, rather than a velveteen. You may want to look for something with a longer pile.
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In planning and progress:
Riyo Chuchi, Havoc Trooper, Amilyn Holdo, Lilac Handmaiden

Charter Committee | Galactic Senate DCO | RLGS Web Site

[Arcadius256 ()]

Thanks for the advice, I'll have a look around locally for some good velvets (and maybe if this doesn't pass use it for 501st admission). I have pictures here of the fabrics in natural lighting, under sun and outside without direct sunlight. I'm also curious about boots. What's the tolerance towards zippers and elastic? Might have to get jack boots from overseas.

Fabrics: http://imgur.com/gallery/sfRu5sH

Good ol' Aussie "formal" boots: http://imgur.com/a/t8DILH0
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Thanks to everyone in the forums for the plentiful amount of helpful information about builds!

[Lora Skywalker ()]

Your colours does look acceptable though I'll agree with Jenna that it looks too dark in the first photo. Personally I'd also go for something a little more on the dusty side, but it's not a requirement.

It can also be a good idea to hear if others in your area have thought of doing this costume so you can either do it together or at least get the same material for your robes.

Regarding boots they have to be tall enough that they can either be clearly hidden under the edge of the pants (think mid-shin) or to just below the knees if the pants are tucked inside. (Basically the same type as Bail Organa use). As long as all is black we're pretty large on the boots.
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DXO of Royalty & Senatorial detachment

Detachment website: http://www.senate.rebellegion.com/

[Arcadius256 ()]

Thanks for the reply Lora. My local fabric shop was having a clearance sale so that's what I've picked up but I'll be going back every now and then to see what they have stocked for the new year, and for other materials. I think I'll order some good boots online, there are some good-looking and well-priced "captain boots" on amazon and an aussie costume shop. IB is just a bit expensive for me. Gloves are ordered already, will have to dye though.

Gloves: https://www.amazon.com.au/gp/product/B00WTT4XBC/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Boots (just waiting on stock): https://www.costumebox.com.au/black-captain-mens-boots.html
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[Lora Skywalker ()]

Good luck with it.

The boots look like an excellent choice, but I'm not sure how you plan to dye black leather gloves blue. They are already the darkest possible colour. I like the model though.
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DXO of Royalty & Senatorial detachment

Detachment website: http://www.senate.rebellegion.com/

[Arcadius256 ()]

Fortunately the people I got the gloves from (leather mystics) sell for a very reasonable price and I got the next size down in white, so it'll be easy to dye. Just waiting on some boots that I ordered and going browsing for some material for the under robes and undersuit. For the undersuit I'll probably just go for cotton but we'll see what they have. I'm aiming for the look of the Gentle Giant figurine and want the under robe to drape much like the outer robe, so I'm thinking rayon for that.
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[Lora Skywalker ()]

Well, if you got them in white, then ignore my previous comment. I look forward to seeing the result.
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DXO of Royalty & Senatorial detachment

Detachment website: http://www.senate.rebellegion.com/

[Arcadius256 ()]

Long time no see! It's been a while since my last post but things are all coming together. I nabbed the helmet design of Sovereign Protector's own IronRanger and I'm happy with how it came out. A family in town do 3D printing and they go around to star wars events so they were happy to print it and sand it. I ended up sizing it up by 20% (because I've got the biggest head this side of the galaxy) and it left enough room to easily put on that I decided to have it glued rather than having two pieces held together with magnets or other such things. There'll also be room for foam or fans if need be. If I had to go again I would go 10% maybe but the helmet's always greener on the other side. Sits on the shoulders quite well. Got the painting done just yesterday, and I know, it's a little on the dark side but we'll see how it contrasts with the outer robe (which I'm still waiting on). Thinking maybe a little gloss will go a long way. Gotta find something for the visor.
https://imgur.com/6dJ03TJ
https://imgur.com/Q56vepN
https://imgur.com/qc7yU0g
https://imgur.com/bMOjCSb
https://imgur.com/ttCKAad

Boots! Hallelujah I found boots. Two pairs, even. One is a full on costume pair from ebay, really comfy. The others are good ol' classy aussie boots. If I needed to I could cover the elastic, that is, if the outer robe doesn't cover it which it should. Heels are pretty large on both but nothing crazy.
https://imgur.com/wz4PVH7
https://imgur.com/TVwaT2l

Gloves all painted/dyed alongside the helmet so they would match.
https://imgur.com/ODuhnIw
https://imgur.com/G2dd9SI
https://imgur.com/TrEQfsY
https://imgur.com/SSdaid1

Now for the underwear (as my grandmother calls them)! Pants are pants. When tucked into the long boots they look good and they allow a lot of movement for being just cotton. Long enough to cover the elastic on the other boots, too.
https://imgur.com/CaJeRNJ
https://imgur.com/Gkwk1Dk

And the inner robe. We opted for a long-sleeved robe and no undershirt, kinda aiming for the look of the gentle giant figurine. The cotton drapes quite well (compliments to the seamstress) and once again has room enough for any action pose a guard could think of. And yes, I know, hospital patient.
https://imgur.com/OxrG1q2
https://imgur.com/wtwVQJb
https://imgur.com/rEUu6bZ

Pretty simple pictures, not much to show off. If you want more detailed pictures on the sewing I could do that. Happy with what I've got. Waiting on the outer robe to get the final look and see how it all goes together. All hail the Blueberry Guard!
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Thanks to everyone in the forums for the plentiful amount of helpful information about builds!

[Lora Skywalker ()]

Nice progress pictures. I love seeing more senate guards.

I agree that the helmet looks dark in particular with your light inner robes. Might need to be repainted to a lighter color. Otherwise if your robe is dark, then maybe it is instead your inner robes that should be darkened. Being cotton they should not be too difficult to dye.
(Also; I can still see some print lines on the helmet, so would recommend some filler and a repaint no matter what. But maybe wait for your robe to check colors).

Boots looks good. I'd remove the fold-over part for a cleaner look. In windy situations the top will be visible when the pants are tucked in.

Pants looks comfy.
Your shirt also looks comfy, but too long, I'm afraid; it will almost completely hide your pants, even in windy conditions. And in the movies the pants are visible when the guards move/there's wind to blow the robe aside.

Have your robe lining been matched to your inner clothes? Or is that yet to come?
I look forward to seeing more on this!
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DXO of Royalty & Senatorial detachment

Detachment website: http://www.senate.rebellegion.com/

[Arcadius256 ()]

Yeah, the helmet is pretty dark and not as glossy as others. Definitely still has a few large blemishes from the guys who printed and sanded it so some more work will go a long way, that one painting job did a lot to cover some imperfections already. Interesting, I hadn't even thought about dying the cotton. That's an option if need be. Sorry! I didn't specify I'm doing Ep 3 guard. While the EP 1 guards wear just the pants and shirt (and look mighty fine doing it) the CRL states that EP 3 need a robe. I think they're basing it off of the gentle giant figurine since EP 3 guards have so little screen time where they show off the costumes.

http://www.gentlegiantcollectors.com/registry/itemdetail.php?itemid=2222&typeid=2&brandid=3

For the lining I got the same cotton and colour as the inner clothes, so shouldn't be an issue. I went cotton crazy on this one after looking at so many other fabrics. If this pans out well I do want to also do an EP 1 guard, and do it really well after stumbling around a bit doing this one
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Thanks to everyone in the forums for the plentiful amount of helpful information about builds!

[Lora Skywalker ()]

Best of luck with it. I've come to really like the senate guards, but episode I and II is definitely my favorite! (It's the horsehair...)

Yeah, to get good color matches you can dye your fabric. Right now it looks like there's a bit of a color gap between the darkest and lightest parts, but nothing that can't be fixed.

...yeah... those GentleGiant statues are nice, but not necessarily very accurate. XD Just keep that in mind as you go along.

I think it's great you want both versions; easy to have a bit of variation that way with the costume.
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DXO of Royalty & Senatorial detachment

Detachment website: http://www.senate.rebellegion.com/