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Dance Commander (Andrew) Active Legion Member

Joined: 19 Aug 2009 Posts: 471 Location: Niagara Falls Medals: None
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Posted: Sat Mar 17, 2018 10:14 pm Post subject: Fabric Weathering
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I've weathered plenty of hard parts for various props, but now I need to weather some fabric and I haven't the first clue where to begin. Are there any tried and true techniques that anyone has used before? I am working on an X Wing flight suit, so I am aiming for a well-worn, slightly grease stained look. |
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AntillesJanson () Active Legion Member

Joined: 01 Jun 2016 Posts: 32
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Posted: Sun Mar 18, 2018 6:43 pm Post subject:
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I'm nowhere near being an expert, but I definitely recommend testing out the techniques before using them directly on the finished piece.
If you want tear, I know several people use cheese graters and low-grit sandpaper on the area they want. It'll pull on the fibers so you can range from looking fading to frayed edges. If it's an actual tear-open, you might have to cut a small hole with a pair of scissors prior, just to help loosen the fibers of the fabric.
As for stains, coffee and tea are good natural stain makers. However, depending on which flight suit you're working with, they might not stand out as much - though I think it should come out decently on orange. Still, if it doesn't, you could try the same technique of washing down paint as one uses on props. Only instead of oil-based paint, go for the acrylics.
If you just want to create a fading-worn-out look, you could dab a bit of bleach on the area and leave it laying in the sun for a bit. I strongly recommend testing this out first though, or you might find yourself with an unexpected surprise. A pair of black trousers turned brown in some areas when I used this technique.
And if all fails, you're welcome to lie it down on your driveway and have fun driving over it a few times. You can also tie it to the back of your car and take it for a road trip in a trail. Though, this might cause too much weathering. I think I read somewhere on the X-Wing Pilots forum that weathering was fine, so long as it was kept to a minimum?
Oh! If you want to weather something only for a day, you can always buy real cheap eye-shadow in earth tones and with a paint brush lay it in layers on the fabric. Mixing up a bit of green in the mix and it'll looked like you just had fun rolling across the ground. There's also using ashes from your chimney or campfire, but you need to be careful with where and how much you apply, as there's no guarantee you won't leave your mark on chairs or other people you come in contact with. |
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Jaki () Active Legion Member

Joined: 26 Dec 2015 Posts: 163 Location: Ontario, Canada Medals: None
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Posted: Mon Mar 19, 2018 12:43 pm Post subject:
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I have created a dirty look by using black spray paint. Spray the air near the fabric not the actual fabric. The paint mist will settle on to the fabric creating a nice gun powder residue look. Hold fabric closer or further away from mist depending on how dark/dirty you want it to look.
And I guess you can use cooking spray for grease stains for similar effect. |
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Dance Commander (Andrew) Active Legion Member

Joined: 19 Aug 2009 Posts: 471 Location: Niagara Falls Medals: None
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Posted: Fri Mar 23, 2018 1:41 pm Post subject:
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Thank you both, that's quite helpful. I have heard of some people using very diluted acrylic paint on fabric as well. Has anyone tried this method? |
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Delaana Terallo (Nathalie Elliott) Canadian Base CO

Joined: 07 Mar 2014 Posts: 605 Location: Ridgetown, On Medals: 3 (View more...)
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Posted: Wed Mar 28, 2018 5:31 pm Post subject:
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hey Andrew yes I've used watered down acrylic paint in a spray bottle for Rey. I went to Michaels and got some cheap paint, different colours and it seemed to work well. the only problem is washing anything. it does come off if you wash it so the spray paint method is also a good way to do it.
Its a nice way to do it as you can control how dark you want the weathering with how much water you add. |
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Sul-st Boyork (Stephen Sultana) Active Legion Member

Joined: 07 Nov 2012 Posts: 148 Location: Ottawa Medals: 2 (View more...)
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Posted: Sat Apr 07, 2018 1:55 am Post subject:
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When I was weathering my duster for my Snowtrooper costume I used a spray bottle with a mixture of tea and powdered tempura paint. I also used some black shoe polish. _________________
For over a thousand generations, the Jedi Knights were the guardians of peace and justice in the Old Republic. Before the dark times... before the Empire. |
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sylverbard () Active Legion Member

Joined: 25 Mar 2012 Posts: 78 Location: ottawa, on, canada Medals: None
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Posted: Wed Feb 06, 2019 10:42 pm Post subject:
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use browns instead of black. it makes deeper light wells and resembles dirt more. sandpaper takes the shine off parts you want to look a bit.worn. a cheese grater makes fabric very distressed so apply a little force at a time, in one direction, so it looks like repetitive motion caused it. |
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birdie31 () Active Legion Member
Joined: 12 Jul 2016 Posts: 29
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Posted: Sun Feb 24, 2019 6:28 pm Post subject:
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I used diluted acrylic paint on my husband's Tusken as well as coffee, tea and stone textured spray paint. For good measure I also used some graphite and ground that into the fabric for really dark patches. _________________ One thing you may be absolutely sure of - if an item does not appear in our records, it does not exist! |
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kman () Active Legion Member
Joined: 25 May 2016 Posts: 1209 Location: Tarzana, CA Medals: 1 (View more...)
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Posted: Wed Feb 27, 2019 6:05 am Post subject:
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DesignMaster ColorTool spray paints are designed for painting silk floral bouquets, as I understand it. Walmart carries it, and Google can turn up other sources. (Amazon has some, but tends to be considerably more expensive)
Works just like spray paint in terms of application, but as soon as it dries (quickly) you can toss it in the dryer and "set" the dye so it lasts a good long time, even through subsequent wash cycles. _________________
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