ALIEN Ellen Ripley Costume Tutorial (Flight Suit, Shirt & EVA Flamethrower)
wetcelery
Active Member
Re: ALIEN Ellen Ripley Costume Tutorial (Flight Suit & Shirt)
At least I think they poke through anyway! Yeah, someone probably pointed out that it would be a bit odd if you had a pen holder on your shirt and no one used it... lol. Wouldn't fancy having it poking through though!
Thank you! Hope you still feel the same once it's finished!
Hahahahaha, that is the biggest bonus of making this shirt! I don't think I'll be dyeing anything any time soon...
wetcelery
Active Member
Re: ALIEN Ellen Ripley Costume Tutorial (Flight Suit & Shirt)
COLLAR PIPING (9/8/2015)
This is pretty straight forward! Unlike the flap, I couldn't unpick the collar to hide the piping so I just pinned it underneath and sewed it right on.
I did two stitches: one as close to the edge of the collar as possible, and another half an inch away from the initial stitch so that the end of the piping didn't flap about and you also had that extra row for that utilitarian/workwear aesthetic.
You can see I went a bit happy with sewing incredibly fast and didn't pay close attention...
Anyway, you can't notice that it's a bit wonky because look how nice it is all together!!
This feels so easy in comparison to the flight suit... lol
COLLAR PIPING (9/8/2015)
This is pretty straight forward! Unlike the flap, I couldn't unpick the collar to hide the piping so I just pinned it underneath and sewed it right on.
I did two stitches: one as close to the edge of the collar as possible, and another half an inch away from the initial stitch so that the end of the piping didn't flap about and you also had that extra row for that utilitarian/workwear aesthetic.
You can see I went a bit happy with sewing incredibly fast and didn't pay close attention...
Anyway, you can't notice that it's a bit wonky because look how nice it is all together!!
This feels so easy in comparison to the flight suit... lol
wetcelery
Active Member
Re: ALIEN Ellen Ripley Costume Tutorial (Flight Suit & Shirt)
PEN HOLDER (10/8/15)
Here's a photograph of the piece of fabric taken off the shirt sleeve, the pocket ironed out, and that extra bit I cut off from the sleeve. They are each going to be turned into the epaulettes holder; either the badge, pen holder or extra rectangles; and epaulettes themselves.
Firstly, a quick one: the pen holder. I cut off half of a pocket and folded and topstitched it etc. so that the rectangle I got measured about 1"x6" or so. I then pinned one end down, a little above the pocket then improvised.
Having a pen will definitely make it easier and do away any fussy calculations! Once you have it pinned, go back and add two extra pins on either side of that first pin you used to mark out where the fabric should be sewn. This will help keep the fabric in place and when you sew, you know to sew in the middle of the two pins.
And done!
PEN HOLDER (10/8/15)
Here's a photograph of the piece of fabric taken off the shirt sleeve, the pocket ironed out, and that extra bit I cut off from the sleeve. They are each going to be turned into the epaulettes holder; either the badge, pen holder or extra rectangles; and epaulettes themselves.
Firstly, a quick one: the pen holder. I cut off half of a pocket and folded and topstitched it etc. so that the rectangle I got measured about 1"x6" or so. I then pinned one end down, a little above the pocket then improvised.
Having a pen will definitely make it easier and do away any fussy calculations! Once you have it pinned, go back and add two extra pins on either side of that first pin you used to mark out where the fabric should be sewn. This will help keep the fabric in place and when you sew, you know to sew in the middle of the two pins.
And done!
wetcelery
Active Member
Re: ALIEN Ellen Ripley Costume Tutorial (Flight Suit & Shirt)
EPAULETTES (12-13/8/15)
For the epaulettes, as I've mentioned before, I took that bit that came extra with the sleeve and folded it into shape: basically just straightening the rectangle by folding the raw edges in, and making a point.
Then, sewing along the edge and again half an inch away.
Once that's done, I pinned it onto the shirt to see where I wanted it to sit. Wear the shirt whilst you do this so you know exactly what it looks like when sewn. When you're ready, sew that onto the shirt too.
Next, you'll need to make a hole for where the brass snap/clasp/button needs to come through to hold the epaulette in place. I've placed it just before the fabric comes to a point.
Since I'm using buttons, I needed to make a buttonhole.
The main part is done, now onto the holder. I'm using that bit I got off the shirt cuff. I've pinned it about an inch from where the shoulder ends, and I've worn the shirt whilst doing it too to make sure it's exactly where it should be.
I've also threaded the main part of the epaulette through to make sure i've got the spacing right and that it folds over nicely.
And once ready, sew! I did two rows to attach the holder onto the shirt securely.
Lastly, the button! I pinned the epaulette in place again to get an idea of where the button should go, and used pins to indicate where the button needed to be. Then, I hand sewed it onto the main part of the epaulette (not through to the shirt as you'll see in the film and close promotional shots that the epaulettes are sometimes slightly raised).
And done!
EPAULETTES (12-13/8/15)
For the epaulettes, as I've mentioned before, I took that bit that came extra with the sleeve and folded it into shape: basically just straightening the rectangle by folding the raw edges in, and making a point.
Then, sewing along the edge and again half an inch away.
Once that's done, I pinned it onto the shirt to see where I wanted it to sit. Wear the shirt whilst you do this so you know exactly what it looks like when sewn. When you're ready, sew that onto the shirt too.
Next, you'll need to make a hole for where the brass snap/clasp/button needs to come through to hold the epaulette in place. I've placed it just before the fabric comes to a point.
Since I'm using buttons, I needed to make a buttonhole.
The main part is done, now onto the holder. I'm using that bit I got off the shirt cuff. I've pinned it about an inch from where the shoulder ends, and I've worn the shirt whilst doing it too to make sure it's exactly where it should be.
I've also threaded the main part of the epaulette through to make sure i've got the spacing right and that it folds over nicely.
And once ready, sew! I did two rows to attach the holder onto the shirt securely.
Lastly, the button! I pinned the epaulette in place again to get an idea of where the button should go, and used pins to indicate where the button needed to be. Then, I hand sewed it onto the main part of the epaulette (not through to the shirt as you'll see in the film and close promotional shots that the epaulettes are sometimes slightly raised).
And done!
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wetcelery
Active Member
Re: ALIEN Ellen Ripley Costume Tutorial (Flight Suit & Shirt)
EXTRAS
As a general rule, the extra parts are all about the same size (or just under) as the light blue Weylan-Yutani wings, so about 5". Luckily, the preexisting pocket fabric folded out covers this nicely:
So I will now go about making the extra features around this. Firstly, the name badge part. This was quite tricky, as it took me a while to figure out how much fabric I needed to cut, and how I cut it to get the one inch gap in the middle. It took me one failed attempt before I got it right. Luckily I managed that, otherwise I'd run out of material! Unfortunately, I didn't take photos during this part but I will try and draw up a wee diagram on how I did it later. For now, you'll need to take my word on it.
Measure out a 3 1/2" x 6 1/2" piece of fabric. Fold the raw sides in to make neat, straight edges and pin. For the middle, you'll want a one inch gap with about 1/2" border thickness all round. In the middle of the fabric, mark as if you would be inserting a zip like so: |>----------<| Then, cut along the line. and diagonally up to the corners to form the triangles at the end. Iron these out and fold them back into the borders. Now you want to fold everything behind to hide the raw edges. Make sure you securely pin everything so that it makes it easier for you to sew. Then it's ready to be attached onto the shirt.
Since it wasn't ideal to deconstruct the entire shirt, I just decided to cut off those extra flaps at the shoulders and folded the remnants underneath and neatened it... somewhat discreetly.
And turned them into the extra rectangles!
EXTRAS
As a general rule, the extra parts are all about the same size (or just under) as the light blue Weylan-Yutani wings, so about 5". Luckily, the preexisting pocket fabric folded out covers this nicely:
So I will now go about making the extra features around this. Firstly, the name badge part. This was quite tricky, as it took me a while to figure out how much fabric I needed to cut, and how I cut it to get the one inch gap in the middle. It took me one failed attempt before I got it right. Luckily I managed that, otherwise I'd run out of material! Unfortunately, I didn't take photos during this part but I will try and draw up a wee diagram on how I did it later. For now, you'll need to take my word on it.
Measure out a 3 1/2" x 6 1/2" piece of fabric. Fold the raw sides in to make neat, straight edges and pin. For the middle, you'll want a one inch gap with about 1/2" border thickness all round. In the middle of the fabric, mark as if you would be inserting a zip like so: |>----------<| Then, cut along the line. and diagonally up to the corners to form the triangles at the end. Iron these out and fold them back into the borders. Now you want to fold everything behind to hide the raw edges. Make sure you securely pin everything so that it makes it easier for you to sew. Then it's ready to be attached onto the shirt.
Since it wasn't ideal to deconstruct the entire shirt, I just decided to cut off those extra flaps at the shoulders and folded the remnants underneath and neatened it... somewhat discreetly.
And turned them into the extra rectangles!
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Re: ALIEN Ellen Ripley Costume Tutorial (Flight Suit & Shirt)
Great work! One day I'd really like to see one of these together as well.
Great work! One day I'd really like to see one of these together as well.
wetcelery
Active Member
Re: ALIEN Ellen Ripley Costume Tutorial (Flight Suit & Shirt)
COMPARISON
And it's finished!
A few things are different and could have been improved:
1. Obviously that missing sleeve pocket.
2. White buttons instead of brass snaps.
3. I'd have liked to have bought a shirt one size up but that probably still wouldn't be enough material to make that extra sleeve pocket, though it would have been nice.
4. I'd quite like to have the epaulettes a bit more refined.
5. The extra rectangles could have been a lot neater.
So really, only two big differences?
Less complaints this time round! And this was definitely a much easier build in comparison to the flight suit
So again, not 100% screen accurate but close enough - maybe about 90%?
COMPARISON
And it's finished!
A few things are different and could have been improved:
1. Obviously that missing sleeve pocket.
2. White buttons instead of brass snaps.
3. I'd have liked to have bought a shirt one size up but that probably still wouldn't be enough material to make that extra sleeve pocket, though it would have been nice.
4. I'd quite like to have the epaulettes a bit more refined.
5. The extra rectangles could have been a lot neater.
So really, only two big differences?
Less complaints this time round! And this was definitely a much easier build in comparison to the flight suit
So again, not 100% screen accurate but close enough - maybe about 90%?
wetcelery
Active Member
Re: ALIEN Ellen Ripley Costume Tutorial (Flight Suit & Shirt)
SUMMARY
Equipment:
Materials:
Cost:
£19.63 - not even twenty quid!
Time:
~ 6-7 days, probably less than that. Around the 30 hours mark, I think.
A pretty easy and cheap build! And my costume is near enough complete!
SUMMARY
Equipment:
- Sewing Machine and standard sewing equipment: tape, pins, chalk, iron, seam ripper etc
- Sewing/Dressmaking books
Materials:
- GAP White Cotton Shirt: £11.99
- Patches: £7.64
Cost:
£19.63 - not even twenty quid!
Time:
~ 6-7 days, probably less than that. Around the 30 hours mark, I think.
A pretty easy and cheap build! And my costume is near enough complete!
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wetcelery
Active Member
Re: ALIEN Ellen Ripley Costume Tutorial (Flight Suit & Shirt)
A WEE EXTRA...
Flight suit done, shirt done but I'm yet to mention the t-shirt and underwear...
I bought a t-shirt from Primark at £2.30. Unfortunately I couldn't find any in the right 'kiwi green' colour that is the popular choice amongst many Alien costumers/cosplayers. And even if it was near enough a good colour, the ladies cut only offered a long-sleeved lyrca like material (which I despise) or a v-neck (which I hate) t-shirt. So I ended up buying a darker khaki green t-shirt, more often seen with combat wear.
(First on left is the one I bought, middle too pastel-like and far right way too much on the yellow lime side)
I might do a colour removal and redye it; or altogether buy the long-sleeved one and cut it; or even just buy a white t-shirt and dye it with some other things in Rit's Kelly Green which looks quite similar. Either way, I'll get round to fixing this at some point but for the time being, it works for me.
As for underwear...
Trick is to buy plain white pants and a short ribbed vest! Primark's basic pants are, for some bizarre reason, a little smaller than advertised. So if you're a size 8, you'll end up getting that skimpy look seen in the above image - therefore no need to sacrifice comfort for the look hahahaha. They only go for around £3 for a pack of four, so cheap and convenient! As for the vest, you probably just need to keep an eye out. Maybe try the men's section and take it up!
A WEE EXTRA...
Flight suit done, shirt done but I'm yet to mention the t-shirt and underwear...
I bought a t-shirt from Primark at £2.30. Unfortunately I couldn't find any in the right 'kiwi green' colour that is the popular choice amongst many Alien costumers/cosplayers. And even if it was near enough a good colour, the ladies cut only offered a long-sleeved lyrca like material (which I despise) or a v-neck (which I hate) t-shirt. So I ended up buying a darker khaki green t-shirt, more often seen with combat wear.
(First on left is the one I bought, middle too pastel-like and far right way too much on the yellow lime side)
I might do a colour removal and redye it; or altogether buy the long-sleeved one and cut it; or even just buy a white t-shirt and dye it with some other things in Rit's Kelly Green which looks quite similar. Either way, I'll get round to fixing this at some point but for the time being, it works for me.
As for underwear...
Trick is to buy plain white pants and a short ribbed vest! Primark's basic pants are, for some bizarre reason, a little smaller than advertised. So if you're a size 8, you'll end up getting that skimpy look seen in the above image - therefore no need to sacrifice comfort for the look hahahaha. They only go for around £3 for a pack of four, so cheap and convenient! As for the vest, you probably just need to keep an eye out. Maybe try the men's section and take it up!
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kristen jones
Master Member
Re: ALIEN Ellen Ripley Costume Tutorial (Flight Suit & Shirt)
Hmmm... I had thought I didn't want to bother with the crew shirt for mine... but seeing you do this has got me wanting to give it a go. :thumbsup
I'm not EVEr going about in my knickers with this costume... so I don't think I'll fuss too much about the underwear stage
Hmmm... I had thought I didn't want to bother with the crew shirt for mine... but seeing you do this has got me wanting to give it a go. :thumbsup
I'm not EVEr going about in my knickers with this costume... so I don't think I'll fuss too much about the underwear stage
wetcelery
Active Member
Re: ALIEN Ellen Ripley Costume Tutorial (Flight Suit & Shirt)
You should do! It doesn't take long at all, probably 4-5 days at most if you keep at it. There's so many examples and tutorials online (I've even found a detailed set of notes from someone on RPF I think...) that you can follow and it makes it really straightforward Having that extra shirt lets you alter your costume a wee bit when you want a change from just the suit too.
Hahahahaha, well the information's there if you need it! Is the G-4b quite a heavy piece to wear?
Hmmm... I had thought I didn't want to bother with the crew shirt for mine... but seeing you do this has got me wanting to give it a go. :thumbsup
I'm not EVEr going about in my knickers with this costume... so I don't think I'll fuss too much about the underwear stage
You should do! It doesn't take long at all, probably 4-5 days at most if you keep at it. There's so many examples and tutorials online (I've even found a detailed set of notes from someone on RPF I think...) that you can follow and it makes it really straightforward
Having that extra shirt lets you alter your costume a wee bit when you want a change from just the suit too. Hahahahaha, well the information's there if you need it! Is the G-4b quite a heavy piece to wear?
wetcelery
Active Member
Re: ALIEN Ellen Ripley Costume Tutorial (Flight Suit & Shirt)
Thanks for that, I'll be sure to keep that in mind!
Will be dropping by Primark again tomorrow morning to see whether I can work with the long sleeved kiwi green-like shirt they have in there
Shirt looks great!
Be careful with Kelly Green; over here that's a bright medium green, not quite the draber, 'kiwi' green of the shirts.
-MJ
Thanks for that, I'll be sure to keep that in mind!
Will be dropping by Primark again tomorrow morning to see whether I can work with the long sleeved kiwi green-like shirt they have in there
wetcelery
Active Member
Re: ALIEN Ellen Ripley Costume Tutorial (Flight Suit & Shirt)
WHAT'S A COSTUME WITHOUT ITS PROP?!
So, without further ado, I present to you photographs of how I built my certainly-not-screen-accurate-but-I-think-it-looks-the-part flamethrower, built mainly from EVA foam, a colossal amount of hot glue and a preexisting plastic toy gun my brother no longer wanted! Definitely will not be writing a tutorial on this because it's so shoddy but I thought I'd share for fun hahahaha maybe it could act as a guide for the most basic flamethrower out there looool
Aim:
Base:
DAY 1 (14/8/15, 3 hours)
WHAT'S A COSTUME WITHOUT ITS PROP?!
So, without further ado, I present to you photographs of how I built my certainly-not-screen-accurate-but-I-think-it-looks-the-part flamethrower, built mainly from EVA foam, a colossal amount of hot glue and a preexisting plastic toy gun my brother no longer wanted! Definitely will not be writing a tutorial on this because it's so shoddy but I thought I'd share for fun hahahaha maybe it could act as a guide for the most basic flamethrower out there looool
Aim:
Base:
DAY 1 (14/8/15, 3 hours)
wetcelery
Active Member
Re: ALIEN Ellen Ripley Costume Tutorial (Flight Suit & Shirt)
Attended Glasgow Film and Comic Con a.k.a. Collector mania today and I'm too excited to wait until I've finished the flamethrower posts to share my photographs, so here they are! Had a great time and it was super lovely to have had others recognise the outfit (despite the major difference in physical appearance between me and Siggy, especially in height!). Even met and was sort of adopted by the UKCM into their group photos! I'm dead chuffed!
So here's the full assembly of an Asian Ellen Ripley, lol:
"During a break":
HUGE thanks to the generosity of RPF members retrogarde for sharing his Balaji Imperial cigarettes pack online, and todivision 6 who shared their beautiful rendition of the Aspen beer can label, which I incorporated into my costume for a bit of extra detail. Great to mess about with but maybe not great if you're trying to kick a habit...
Attended Glasgow Film and Comic Con a.k.a. Collector mania today and I'm too excited to wait until I've finished the flamethrower posts to share my photographs, so here they are! Had a great time and it was super lovely to have had others recognise the outfit (despite the major difference in physical appearance between me and Siggy, especially in height!). Even met and was sort of adopted by the UKCM into their group photos! I'm dead chuffed!
So here's the full assembly of an Asian Ellen Ripley, lol:
"During a break":
HUGE thanks to the generosity of RPF members retrogarde for sharing his Balaji Imperial cigarettes pack online, and todivision 6 who shared their beautiful rendition of the Aspen beer can label, which I incorporated into my costume for a bit of extra detail. Great to mess about with but maybe not great if you're trying to kick a habit...
Mike J.
Master Member
Re: ALIEN Ellen Ripley Costume Tutorial (Flight Suit & Shirt)
Nice job on the flamethrower, though it looks a tad undersized. And I see you're wearing the green t-shirt.
I recognized that Balaji pack, but the beer can label was new to me. Thanks for sharing the link.
Incidentally, you'll never guess who's birthday it is: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0045993/?ref_=rvi_nm
-MJ
Nice job on the flamethrower, though it looks a tad undersized. And I see you're wearing the green t-shirt.
I recognized that Balaji pack, but the beer can label was new to me. Thanks for sharing the link.
Incidentally, you'll never guess who's birthday it is: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0045993/?ref_=rvi_nm
-MJ
Attachments
wetcelery
Active Member
Re: ALIEN Ellen Ripley Costume Tutorial (Flight Suit & Shirt)
Thanks! Yes, a bit on the small side but I'm chuffed my attempt even worked! Plus, small flamethrower for a small person like me.
I knew division 6 posted one before but at a small scale so I went on the hunt for the higher-res one that I'm pretty sure I had once upon a time glanced at in passing. Thankfully I was right!
Freaky coincidence! And if you think that photo is bad, turns out there are other uses for the flamethrower...
Thanks! Yes, a bit on the small side but I'm chuffed my attempt even worked! Plus, small flamethrower for a small person like me.
I knew division 6 posted one before but at a small scale so I went on the hunt for the higher-res one that I'm pretty sure I had once upon a time glanced at in passing. Thankfully I was right!
Freaky coincidence! And if you think that photo is bad, turns out there are other uses for the flamethrower...
