My Mal Reynolds (Firefly) costume

[Risu]

It's going pretty smoothly. Tomorrow most of the shell will get sewn together and I might cut the liner. The liner hide was smaller than I expected, but after about an hour of moving the pieces around on it I think I finally found a configuration that lets me cut out all 6 pieces.

 

[E-Wan]

That small increase in size has really made a difference - I think those look really good now.

 

[Risu]

Awesome! I sewed the three bottom sections together and just tried on the outer shell and freaked out a little bit. The whole thing appears to fit perfectly and the ribs look exactly like the real thing. Sewing it has proven more challenging than expected, I have to glue the edges of the two pieces together before sewing or else they slide out of alignment. But leather weld is a miracle glue, it holds perfectly until the seam is sewn, then it's really easy to tear back apart and actually leaves no residue. Pictures will come after I add the top band.

 

[Risu]

The shell is done. Two of the next three steps are the ones I'm most worried about. Cutting the liner (because if I mess up even a little I won't be able to get all the pieces out of the hide) and sewing in the zipper (exposed seam so it has to be perfectly straight with no mistakes the first time and I'll have to do some tests with the zipper foot on the leather to make sure it doesn't pull or anything. Also not sure if my sewing machine can make it through the outer and liner leather AND the zipper ribbon at the same time.) I'll most likely rubber cement the zipper in place between the two leathers and then sew it. Just have to be really careful about runoff. At this rate, I'm positive the right boot will be done by the weekend, so I'm not freaking out about finishing on time any more.

 

[Risu]

Cutting the liner worked out really well and the right spat is now just about done. All that's left is to glue and sew in the zipper and then glue it down to the shoe. That part might not go so smoothly because as of my last test fitting, it doesn't look like I left quite enough leather to get down to the sole of the shoe in the front. I'll give it my best shot though. Once leather weld soaks into the leather it becomes stretchier, but with the liner layer it might not soak through to the outer shell and that part might not stretch. Fingers crossed. In the meantime, here are some pictures of the spat inside and out. All of the edges have been glued together, with about an inch of space free on the zipper seams. I'll probably put some rubber cement in those areas and sink the zipper tape in when it gets tacky.

 

[Risu]

By the way, can anybody tell me what SDCC's rules are regarding prop pistols? Am I going to have to paint the tip of this thing orange or anything like that? Leave it in the holster at all times?

 

[Star Wars Chick]

Generally they will somehow peacebond it and often they will put some kind of sticker on it which is really annoying.

 

[Risu]

Almost done. Have to go get more rubber cement.

 

[Risu]

Done!

I'll be wearing the costume to comic con on Friday!

 

[imnotahero]

Shiny! Nice work, my man!

 

[Goodwolf]

Agreed. Those boots look really good.

 

[Goodwolf]

For all who do a Mal, how much over and above your normal waist measurement do you allow on the belt? Seems like you'd need some for it to "hang" properly.

 

[Darth Mule]

Those spats look Kick-butt Risu. Good work!

 

[Risu]

My normal waist size is 34, the pants are size 36, and my belt measures 40" to the hole the buckle goes through, with 4 sets of holes on either side spaced 1.25" apart and an extra 4" on the end after the last hole. Those measurements all matched up to the high res photo from the companion book so that the buckle and end of the belt are in exactly the same place on me as they are on him. The exact length depends on your hips size, though.

Thanks for the compliments, guys. I had loads of fun walking around at comic con. I got to chat briefly with Shawna Trpcic, she complimented my boots and signed my suspenders! Somewhere around 300 people took my picture, so I'm sure better photos will pop up, but here's one I got with a fellow RPF member in his awesome General Grievous costume.

 

[Lawrie]

Those boots came up a treat and really add the finishing touches to the costume. Really well done.

 

[pennausamike]

SNIP

Thanks for the compliments, guys. I had loads of fun walking around at comic con. I got to chat briefly with Shawna Trpcic, she complimented my boots and signed my suspenders! Somewhere around 300 people took my picture, so I'm sure better photos will pop up, but here's one I got with a fellow RPF member in his awesome General Grievous costume.

Great looking costume and I'm impressed at all the work on the boots;
even to capturing details like the ribs.

I'm envious of anyone when they mention getting to talk with costume designer Shawna Trpcic.
I just found so many aspects of her work on Firefly to be inspired,
(I always mention the lapel-less suits Niska wore),
and she contributed so much to making Firefly's "look" stand out from the sci-fi jumpsuit pack.

Good Luck with any further updates/ projects,
Mike

 

[Risu]

Thanks. I intend to make the coat still, but not for a while. Going to take a break to finish other projects and source some decent deer skin.

 

[halowarmor]

Dude Your final Project looks sweet! I need to get a few things to make mine more accurate, but what I have works for now. I say yours as a whole looks better than mine.

This is mine for now, minus the beard that is.

 

[Risu]

Thanks. I have some modifications to make to the belt and holster now that I've worn it around. The belt needs to be coated a few times with some more sealing/waterproofing stuff and the holster needs to be permanently fixed to one spot on the belt so it doesn't keep sliding around.

 

[TheValeyard]

Amazing work on those boots, man! Love the white soles. All you need now is a coat in a brownish color, haha.