Interest Screen Accurate Luke ANH Tunic Fabric

[Psab keel]

I'm starting an interest list for this material as I've been able to source an accurate version to use for Luke's ANH Tunic. I'll likely do pre-orders but I wanted to gauge interest before I even consider placing a bulk order to the shop and if I proceed you would pay half up front to cover the cost of the order and the second half once the material is in hand and ready to ship. The supplier for this is very reliable/ responsible and ships quickly so the wait won't be long. I'm likely going to be doing pre-orders for certain materials from here on out to keep inventory moving through my shop.

It's a cotton/ wool blend just like the real fabric in an off-white/ eggshell color. Incredibly soft and drapes very nicely. I personally use about 6-7 yards for my Luke ANH Tunics (I wear men's Large/ XL for length) to give you a reference point for how much you may need to make your own shirt.

56" Inches wide. Price will be anywhere from $35 to $40 a yard as a rough estimate (plus PP fees and shipping to your location) , but you literally won't find a better material for this shirt. It's identical in every way to the original with the exception of the weight might be a touch lighter.

This image shows swatches of this fabric with the Poncho material, as well as the Ponch Trim material, both of which are in hand, ready to ship.

Let me know, folks! I would love to see some more Luke costumers with the correct materials!

 

[laszlo]

Great!
I’ve also been searching for a modern Viyella style fabric for ages with not much luck. Most contemporary equivalents don’t usually have the correct weight. What is the weight of the fabric you’ve found? Also, I’m pretty sure the screen used material was a twill. I can’t tell if that’s what you have there from your photo

 

[Psab keel]

This is a fairly lightweight version and has a subtle twill to it. Once washed and dried it "thickens" up a bit because the weave condenses from the heat. It also gets soft and fuzzy very similar to what I noticed on really clear resolution pictures of the screen used shirt. Most people I talk with don't know that Han Solo's shirt in ANH was made from the same fabric, only in a cream color.

This material has an interesting history and was the world's first trademarked/ branded fabric.

Viyella - Vintage Fashion Guild

The modern version is typically woven with 80% Cotton and 20% Wool to help reduce the cost- though if you can find it, it's still very expensive and you're unlikely to find any in solid colors. Most of what's available is plaids and other prints/ patterns. I will say though, there's a reason why the fabric is so treasured. It's luxuriously soft and only gets softer with wear.

If I can get enough interest I'll be stocking it regularly on my site. I looked into getting it dyed professionally to get the correct Cream color for Han Solo shirts, but my dye service informed me that their process would be too harsh on the material and it would cause it to disintegrate. I may have to experiment with some scrap pieces to see if I can dye it by hand, which hopefully wouldn't damage the fibers.

 

[ventuoguy]

Wow that is fascinating information!!! A question- is this fabric prone to developing "pulls?"

 

[Psab keel]

Thankfully no pulls that I've experiencd while testing it. The weave is fairly tight and it's close to a flannel. Once washed and dried (ie. shrunken) the weave tightens further.

 

[laszlo]

I’d love to get a small swatch if possible and compare to the samples I’ve found.
I even bought a large amount of cream coloured vintage viyella, though the weight was too light. I can give you a bit of that too if you’re interested

 

[Cadger]

I'm very interested! I made a Luke costume a few years ago and spent hours to to find a good fabric. I would very much like to get this one.

 

[Psab keel]

I’d love to get a small swatch if possible and compare to the samples I’ve found.
I even bought a large amount of cream coloured vintage viyella, though the weight was too light. I can give you a bit of that too if you’re interested

PM me and let's exchange info.

For reference, here are some better shots of the fabric. The first two are as is. The rest are from a single yard that I washed and dried to shrink it/ test its durability. Granted if you wanted, you could double the fabric up if you wanted it thicker. It would just use twice the amount of fabric/ increase the price. That's an option too. I'm not making enough in sales to able to have materials custom woven for me, but hopefully one day!