kman
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Posts posted by kman
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On 5/30/2025 at 3:50 PM, Iro said:
Alas! Thanks for looking anyway.
At least my tunic definitely won't be too short, given that I'm making it for myself.
I got some fabric samples just now, including some rather lovely wool cavalry twill. I am realizing that I've been assuming wool, is that the most correct thing for the jodhpurs? I'm wondering about whether I'll need to do something interesting to stiffen the flares, I'm not super keen on the adhesive route because I want them to iron well forever.
Meanwhile (last question for now, I'm so sorry), am I supposed to be making my own separate build thread for this costume?
Thank you so much once again.
"Supposed to" is a bit strong; it's hardly a requirement. But it's likely helpful for you, and for the community. I know I periodically refer to my original build threads now and then, when I'm trying to remember how (or why) I did something, so it's great as future documentation.
I prefer wool as a textile, myself, but it's not the only option, of course.
"How to stiffen fabric without interfacing" might be a good question for a more general sewing forum, or at least perhaps a separate thread. Once the pants are done, iron-in interfacing is the easiest non-technical recommendation that nearly anyone can do, which is why you'll see that a lot (especially with pre-bought pants). But I would be surprised if there weren't more options during the sewing phase, when you're making them from scratch anyway. Perhaps something as simple as double layers of fabric? This is a bit beyond my rudimentary sewing skills, at this point.
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18 hours ago, Iro said:
@kman Thanks so much for going into detail! I’m glad that the stirrups + braces/suspenders thought isn’t weird, I so want to stay neat and tidy and that seems like the easiest way.
I would be really interested in seeing the rejected pockets, if it’s not too much trouble.
I used to have a folder of shame, but I can't seem to find it.
Biggest offender is those with the cheap Cossky cosplay officer costumes, after they stopped doing custom sizing. Their off rack sizing had tunics that were several inches too short, and weirdly they stuck a flap to cover a non-existent back pocket, which ended up easily visible under the too-short tunic. Saw a TON of those until we started warning people away from the Cosplay shops. (Which was a shame because they used to be a great low budget option... my first was one of those, albeit custom sized)
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12 hours ago, TI75211 said:
Hats are fixed to a new Level3 roles... yes it was trivial
Fantastic news!!!
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Krennic's collar definitely needs to be on the taller side. Anywhere between 2 and 3" is likely fine, although bear in mind a uniform should be proportional and fit you correctly so that's not fixed in stone... if you have an especially short neck and 1" is already stabbing into your chin, then of course a 2-3" collar would not be appropriate. For most, though, yeah, 2-3" is about right for Krennic.
As to construction details, that response will need to wait for someone with more sewing skills than I possess.
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Correct, the parts hidden by the tunic or tucked into the boots are irrelevant and can be finished however you'd like.
I'd definitely recommend stirrups at the ends of the legs, which help a LOT when you're stuffing them into tall boots. And I'm a huge fan of combining that with suspenders/braces to keep your pants nice and tidy throughout a long troop.
The biggest issue tends to be VISIBLE pockets, especially if the tunic is on the shorter side, which is common with certain vendors. I can show you a collection of visible rear pocket flaps that we've had to deny. Pockets that are completely hidden are no problem at all.
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30 minutes ago, Daeouse said:
Associated question: what should someone expect to pay for a uniform minus the boots, belt, etc?
I've seen costumes for around $130 on Evilbay (Costumeteers), and much more expensive versions on Etsy ($2500!). Some of the more reputable appearing places seem to be in the neighborhood of $200 - $600.
I'm disappointed to hear Magnoli is no longer recommended, as I was likely to choose them.
Are there any vendors left in America? I appreciate the craftsmanship of some of the European suppliers, but tariffs and shipping make them pricey.
Thank you for your time and attention.
The cheap cosplay shops are stupendously cheap, but often unapprovable even with tailoring, even the ones that claim to be 501st compliant. CosplaySky (now TrendsInCosplay or Cossky or goodness knows what name change this week) was the best until they removed their customization options and changed their patterns in some awful ways.
WampaWear is based in the US but manufactures in China, as many do. Same for Denuo Novo. Wampa was a little under $500, I believe, and DN is a bit over $600 unless you catch a sale. Both are selling remaining stock in hand, I believe, but DN will likely have to jack up their prices once they run out, and Wampa has already stated they're not even going to try until things settle down (if then).
KeepTrooping is based in Hong Kong, I believe... I'm not sure if their tariffs are the same as mainland China or not. But they charge far too much, IMO, for what you get, compared to the others.
Clothears and MazCave are UK and Europe, respectively, so hopefully tariffs won't hit them quite as hard, once the dust settles, but as you know things are changing day by day so who knows. Both are a little over $1k, I believe. If you find someone wanting to charge more than that (especially a lot more than that, and I know of one out there who is), they're either ripping you off, or have a greatly inflated sense of their own skills, because Clothears is literally the best you'll find at any price.
There are no other companies in the US selling any kind of volume. Although I'm sure there are plenty of custom tailors and seamstresses with the skills needed, but it would basically be a one-off custom commission, so there's no guessing what any individual person is going to charge.
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5 hours ago, TalSkirata said:
Can confirm they weren't custom dyed, I'm not particularly great with differentiating fabrics but my I believe them to be gabardine.
I have other sources that have confirmed they are not Cavalry Twill, as well. Best guess may be some sort of melton wool? There is a slightly soft texture, almost like a flannel. The diagonal grain found in both Cavalry and Gabardine twills does not seem to be present, but I don't think that would matter for this CRL until / unless better sources become public. Most important thing is we don't have to worry about getting the unobtainable Cavalry Twill LOL
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15 hours ago, shovelmaster88 said:
This is the uniform I am aiming for : https://databank.501st.com/databank/Costuming:Temp-Imperial-Staff-Officer_(Non_Saga)
For the boot, I decided not to buy from KT as the cost is just too much, I would rather go for the hessenantik or from crowprops.
I already sent the mail to crowprops on whether it is approvable. But the hessenantik it seems okay. I am not sure as I don't see the top adjustment straps nor a zipper that is hidden on the back. I will investigate further to know more
KT has boots that are L3 qualified now, but yeah, they seem a LOT more expensive than they're worth.
I really dislike CrowProps' boots, the back seam is not correct, but they do offer the adjustment strap. Also noteworthy, I've heard quite a few unhappy customers recently with Crow still, and the customer service is not great. I know a few people who are very happy with their boots, and almost as many who swear they will never buy from him again.
Personally, I would look at the Hessen's, which do not have the adjustment strap, but it's a pretty simple alteration if you have a moderately decent shoe repair place nearby, to add one, as I did with mine:
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23 hours ago, BoraniKortal said:
Thank you for the imgur info!
Regarding your comment on the color, I agree. And like I said, finding bolts or linear yards of fabric in Feldgrau is proving difficult. I’ve been several pages deep in the IOC and New England Garrison (my garrison) costuming forums and I’ve not been able to find any sources for quality textiles. Any textile sources you know of would be greatly appreciated!
Sadly, the only GOOD sources of feldgrau fabric that I've found are all proprietary and not readily available. Denuo Novo does large custom runs with one of the few remaining factories of the original weave. I can only assume that Clothears does, too, as their fabric is outstanding. I THINK KeepTrooping does the same, although their fabric does not seem to be quite as high quality as the others. And some folks from the German Garrison used to do a large bulk order periodically, but I think they tired of the massive amount of work needed to do those runs.
WampaWear used a different factory, but they also did a huge custom run for theirs. They're the only ones (along with the Germans of course) who actually sell the fabric, although it's quite expensive. Depending on how much they have left over, you might be able to buy enough of theirs to have a proper costume made.
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On 5/25/2025 at 8:30 PM, AaronInNYC said:
Aaron "AaronInNYC" Paulley, requesting an advisor in the New York, New York, USA area for help with an Imperial Security Bureau officer.
I don't live in Manhattan (anymore) but please feel free to shoot me a PM and I'll assist any way I can.
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10 hours ago, BoraniKortal said:
Apparently It will only allow me to upload two images.
Would you be able to provide me with an email?
Thanks!
Chris
You'll want to read this, I suspect:
I'm not a fan of either of those colors, personally. Nowhere near, really. The Army green is the closer of the two, but still not right, but the Ash gets the diagonal weave grain correct... the army green is all wrong in terms of fabric.
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I concur with the above. Hessen carries numerous boots, so I'd want something more specific as to WHICH of their boots is under consideration.
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I'm not sure I'd call any of those L3 boots. They're more tall jackboots, than riding boots. Soviet Boots is known as a bottom level budget source -- they're approvable but they're not quite right. And the quality of the boots you get is all over the map. Many are in pretty rough shape, as they sold off the ones in the best condition early on.
KeepTrooping is based in Asia, if that's what you're limited to. OR Hessen Antik has a presense in Germany as well, I believe, but be careful with the sizing as the boots are quite tall, and quite narrow. https://www.hessenantik.de/epages/hess16.sf/en_GB/?ObjectPath=/Shops/hess16/Products/2116510
Not sure which CRL you're looking at, as there are no "stormtrooper officer" CRLs. OT boots are a little different from recent non-saga boots. Very few places carry the L3 non-saga boots without need for some minor modifications.
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On 5/26/2025 at 1:10 AM, Kandosii said:
If I was choosing between Mazcave or Keep Trooping is there anything that would be more acceptable than the other? Or more comfortable?
Both are perfectly acceptable. Maz is made FAR better, and is going to be more precisely tailored. (Actual custom tailored garment vs tweaking a pattern for "semi custom"). KT's fabric tends to be lighter (Asia is hot), but wrinkles easier.
Between the two I'd choose Maz, but either makes a uniform with the potential to go to L3.
Note when you're doing custom tailoring based on customer-supplied measurements sent over the internet... things can go wrong. With either shop, I'd imagine.
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On 5/23/2025 at 6:36 AM, Ritsu said:
From what I have read, the officer uniforms are ideally made with cavalry twill. However, that can be difficult to source, and the next best thing is gabardine, which is more common. Whatever fabric is used, it should be consistent between the hat, tunic, and pants.
Normally, yes, the uniforms are Cavalry Twill. Although I've heard through the grapevine that this particular costume was a more simple gabardine twill, rather than doing yet another expensive custom dye lot of the Cav Twill for some basically background characters.
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Agreed this does not really seem like a costume that one should troop in. Do a fun photoshoot? Sure! But show up to a troop looking like this? I don't really see that being a good thing.
- Hask and milliehalprin
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Looks like @XiangXiang is first across the finish line with a completed outfit!
As the CRL text is dialed in we'll need to confirm everything aligns, but it looks pretty solid at first glance.
Note two things, to temper y'all's excitement:
1) We have just recently made the official ask to the LMO team, to approve this costume and assign it to IOC for CRL development. They would not accept requests until the series concluded. No ruling as of yet (I'd be surprised if they turn us down, but their process takes time).
2) Because of major issues on the back end of the CRL server infrastructure, NO NEW CRLS are being approved at the moment. None. Asoka Thrawn was approved some time ago, but the CRL is not yet live for this same reason. And before you ask, no, we have no information on an expected timeline for the situation to resolve. (not for lack of asking, both through official channels and unofficial)
So we can tinker, but don't expect fast movement on this. So please... heed Supervisor Partigaz' advice.
- TOUGHWEI, AdmiralJag, Raxus and 5 others
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Wow, that was fast! Your work looks great, too. Please do add to the existing thread so we can keep everything in one place.
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I believe we are going to ask for it, but JRS wants it and I suspect the LMOs will place the CRL with them, as much as I'd like it here, too.
So it's in the LMOs' hands at this point.
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We need to get some shots of the two side by side so we can see if there is any difference in the armor, at least. Just for full due diligence.
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We obviously have a ways to go before a full CRL can be launched (and the LMOs have to allow new CRLs, as well, since the wiki system is messed up now), but this is a good start.
Antonio is correct about a few things he called out. And we have to match the references... an optional component doesn't get added to THIS CRL unless we see it in the references for THIS CRL. Costumer comfort was never part of the CRL process LOL. So the holster and gloves (or lack thereof) needs to match the references we have for this CRL.
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1 hour ago, Kandosii said:
I saw their replies right as I sent my question. Good to know, glad I asked before purchasing. Is there a good recommendation for an ISB uniform that can be tailored?
Thanks for the help,
Re-Tailoring a tunic is always a bit tricky. Many vendors, especially the larger ones that mass-produce things, use a lot of manufacturing shortcuts to keep costs down. They also make them with the bare minimum of seam allowance inside, again, the less fabric they use, the cheaper they are. Many use various glues and interfacing inside, which makes construction easier, but RE-construction fairly difficult.
This is definitely the case with most of the bigger makers. The more custom the garment is made, the less likely they'll use such mass-manufacturing techniques (but the higher the price, but also the less likely you'll actually need to retailor anything).
Unfortunately I can't say with any certainty which are good to re-tailor. Also bear in mind some aspects of these uniforms don't really lend themselves to re-tailoring. Some of the Cosplay shops make tunics with huge necks, for instance, in an effort to make "one size fits more". But unfortunately making the neck smaller means making the hole smaller... which means you need extra fabric available that was not exposed before. And this is rarely there, especially in those cheap mass-produced Cosplay versions. Once upon a time they would custom size them for an extra fee, letting you get close to the right side, even if you didn't get all the way there, it was close enough a little tailoring would get you across the line. Those days seem to be over, sadly.
My recommendation, at this point, is to either go high end (full custom) with an actual tailored uniform, from Clothears or MazCave, OR go lower end with one from Jim Tripon, who knocks out "semi-custom" versions that work reasonably well, from his shop in the Philippines. Neither should need any additional tailoring out of the box. Although with the inexpensive one, if you do need a little adjustment, at least you'll have saved a lot so some extra fees aren't a big deal.
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Not 100% certain if this is the right place, but it might be. I will check later if I think about it.
I'm not sure what ponte is; I'd need to look more into that. But what the CRL is looking for fabric that looks at least visually similar to the Cavalry Twill used on the real costumes. Cav Twill is SUPER hard to come by (and expensive when you can find it), but a key characteristic is the diagonal lines inherent to the weave, which a simple gabardine twill captures reasonably well. And of course gabardine is super easy to come by, and usually fairly reasonably priced.
Stretch gabardine is a thing. It would not be hard to use such fabric to make an officer tunic. And it fully meets the goals of the CRL.
I'm less sure if it has enough stretch for your needs, but I'd be surprised if there wasn't something pretty darned stretchy out there.
Does that help, or did you need something more specific?
Staff officer trousers from reproduction German army t Imperial officer
in Costume Questions - Ask Here!
Posted
What sort of feedback are you looking for, and which CRL are you working against?