Almost done my Red Tornado costume

[Bizarro Lois]

I'm really happy with how this is coming along. I still need to make the eyeholes in the pot. I also need to find red longjohns or stretch pants, suitable shoes, and I have to make a cape and emblem. The red shirt is just one I had around the house and it looks ok, but I wish it was tighter. If I find one that fits better, I'll swap it out. By the time the Pittsburgh Comicon rolls around, I should lose a few more pounds, but she's supposed to be on the thick side. Since she kind of led folks to believe that she was a man, I'll probably look for a way to hide my, um, curves, probably with an ace bandage. The baggy clothes should hide my hips pretty well. The pics aren't great, but I'd thought I'd show my progress so far.(Also, please ignore that my hair sticks out.)

 

[troopermatthew]

Re: Ma Hunkel, the Golden Age Red Tornado(WiP)

This also looks great!

I wouldnt worry about the baggyness of the shirt i think it looks quite thrown together like she orginally did The colours are spot on though!

Cant wait to see the pot finished epecially. Well done!

Pinky

 

[Bizarro Lois]

Re: Ma Hunkel, the Golden Age Red Tornado(WiP)

Thanks! I love the gloves I picked out. They were actually a random stop at Harbour Freight, where they just happened to have welding gloves in light gray. I figured that as a factory worker, she probably would have had a similar pair of gloves for her line of work. In the reference pics I used, her gloves range from gray to purple. I thought about using purple, but the ones I got work so well otherwise, that I don't want to paint them for fear of them flaking or rubbing off onto my clothing, or other people at the con.
I still haven't decided what to do for shoes. I thought about wearing yellow Chucks, because they're the only hightops I can readily find in the right color. They were made in the 40s, but only in black. I don't know what other changes might have been made since then. If I could find inexpensive yellow workboots, that would probably be best, but I've mostly seen them in black or tan. I'm kind of afraid of painting them and getting bad results. The other options I was thinking of are some kind of high-top slippers or socks over a pair of shoes I already own. But those probably wouldn't work well for lifts, as I'd need ankle support.
If I do lifts, I'd like to have them to try with the shoes before I buy them. I'm still thinking about just layering foam wedges, possibly with an insole on the top. What kind of foam should I use and where can I get it?

 

[Bizarro Lois]

Re: Ma Hunkel, the Golden Age Red Tornado(WiP)

Can anyone help me with the foam questions?

 

[troopermatthew]

Re: Ma Hunkel, the Golden Age Red Tornado(WiP)

Well i use medical foam for costume padding and whatnot, would be perfect for adding lifts to shoes as it is prescribed for his feet by doctors. Not sure if its avaiable generally though!

 

[loganallenwolf]

Re: Ma Hunkel, the Golden Age Red Tornado(WiP)

I recommend Meltonian Spray for changing the color of shoes or boots. Its what professional shoe cobblers use. I think painting some existing shoes would really look the best.

As far as foam route goes, I'm assuming your wanting some hard foam to stand on? If that's correct, you'll need some minicell foam, which you can buy at www.foambymail.com

 

[Bizarro Lois]

Re: Ma Hunkel, the Golden Age Red Tornado(WiP)

Progress update:
I ended up kind of compromising for the shoes. I found a pair of slip-ons that worked really well, but they were low-tops. So I bought them a little big and cut a pair of dollar store flip flops to fit inside. It gives me a little extra height, but not a lot and makes my feet look a tad bigger and more heroic.
I'm working on my Tornado emblem right now, so I should have pics of that later.
My cape just needs to be hemmed. Over the weekend, I hope to get to my parents' house and make use of Dad's tools to do the helmet.

 

[Bizarro Lois]

Re: Ma Hunkel, the Golden Age Red Tornado(WiP)

I actually managed to get holes drilled in the pot. It's just a matter of smoothing them out. I'm still not sure about the gloves. Sometimes they look purple. Other times they look gray, but that might be from fading.

 

[Bizarro Lois]

Re: Ma Hunkel, the Golden Age Red Tornado(WiP)

Well, here's the pot. It's pretty much done, just needs a little smoothing here and there, plus the foam in the top and possibly a chin strap. I was planning to use a bucket handle and remove the current ones, but after all the fun cutting out the eyeholes, I'm going to leave it be. Whoever posted that you can't really tell from the artwork what kind of handle the pot actually has made a good point.

And here's the emblem, which is now sewn onto my yellow tank top.

 

[Bizarro Lois]

Re: Ma Hunkel, the Golden Age Red Tornado(WiP)

All I have to do is dye the gloves purple(unless I decide to leave them gray) and finishing touches to the helmet(a little filing, foam, and maybe a chinstrap).

 

[troopermatthew]

That looks fantastic!