V for Vedetta: First time mistakes

Hello! I recently went to San Diego Comic-Con 2014 as V.

I wanted to make this thread detailing the process I took to becoming V with a focus on the mistakes I made and what you can do to avoid them if you also want to become a bad-ass freedom fighter.
First I want to thank RPF members "J EM" and "ewigestuden" for their invaluable help. Without J EM answering all of my questions (from the perspective someone with 0 experience or prior knowledge) this could not possibly have happened. So THANK YOU!
Apologies for crappy cell phone pics!

Lets start at the top and work our way down. First the hat:

This is a size 7 1/2 custom black Puritan hat made by Hat Cap Exchange / Hatcrafters. $92 + shipping. I specifically talked to John Scott who said he could make it for me.
It is made with 4" brim and 6" tall crown. Bound brim with piano wire inside to help keep its shape. The ribbon is 2" also custom which I ordered off ebay. Here is where you may have to make your first decision. A lot of the info I can find online says the ribbon used in the film is grosgrain. I couldn't find any grosgrain ribbon online that did not look textured. If you compare the 3rd picture to any black grosgrain ribbon you can find online it doesn't match IMHO. I personally think satin ribbon matches much better so that's what I used. Specifically a roll of black satin wedding banquet ribbon 25 yards from ebay.
Mistakes: My hat was actually too small. Unfortunately due to a scheduling snafu I had to get hat before my mask. Do not do this! Using the very first top photo for reference you can see that the hat had to sit on the rim of the mask which pushed it backwards causing to be at a tilt. Using pretty much any reference screen-cap from the movie will show you that V's hat actually covers the rim of his mask and sits with the brim completely parallel to the ground. (Note: Getting a hat brim that wide not to droop too much is only made possible by the wire in the brim and personal upkeep). You can also see in this first photo that the square on the side of the hat is not right. It is actually supposed to wrap around the hatband vertically and be completely flat. Other than that I am pretty happy with the hat.
My Fix: Get someone else to measure your head once you have both your wig and mask! You want it to be snug. If stuck between two sizes get the bigger one and simply request a hatband on the inside. You can make a larger hat fit but a small one will end up having my problems. As far as the ribbon goes I would simply ask for no hatband and wrap the satin ribbon yourself as you will probably do a better job on the square than John did on mine. Other an that I pretty happy with both hat/ribbon and am probably going to order another hat soon. I may put this one up for sale for people with smaller heads.

The wig:

This is a # 4 dark drown Cleo 601 wig from amphigory. $30 + shipping.
I had some trouble deciding on a wig to get and ultimately went with this one. As you can see it appears to go from almost black to definitely dark drown depending on the light which is very similar to V's. The pictures don't quite do it justice as I can say it looks pretty close to screen-accurate color in person. I also had mine professionally cut by a cosplay-friendly hair salon because I am not confident in my hair-cutting abilities. I brought the third image for the stylist to use as reference and that worked out pretty good.
Mistakes: This wig is synthetic while the movie version almost surely authentic human hair. I knew this as the time but had to go with the cheaper option. The bangs are almost impossible to get to stay on top of the mask but this is fine if you are wearing a hat like I was. Even if you get them on top of the mask it is then almost impossible to get them to be an even line. Another problem I didn't think of was that stray strands of hair would get in the mouth part of the mask while I was breathing and cause constant "hair in mouth syndrome" which sucks to deal with while wearing gloves.
My Fix: Possibly find an authentic wig. This one is up to you and will probably be one of the last things I fix about this costume. I don't know of a good solution for the bangs but I plan to wear the hat most of the time anyway. The random hairs in my mouth could probably be fixed with cheap hairspray. Things you learn! Anyways I'm pretty happy with the wig.

The mask:

This is a Hard Resin Guy Fawkes Mask Version 2 with added Metal Eye Inserts and Padding from blackblok. $37.98 + shipping.
This ended up being the mask I got. It is really not close enough to screen accurate for my taste at all. I needed something that wasn't those cheap anonymous masks you see everywhere. At least it's hard resin? It is worth noting that the color can be hard to decide on due to different lighting in the film. Sight was great though. 90% light due to decent sized holes and only peripheral vision was constrained. The strap was good and durable.
Mistakes: My main mistake was trusting a guy from Brazil on ebay. Ordered a much better mask on ebay 6 months before I needed it. The ship time was 3 months + allow 1 month for delivery but I thought "fine whatever maybe he needs to make one or whatever". 3 months roll around and no shipping info or anything. Won't answer any messages. Have to open a case with ebay and get my money refunded. Now I have a month and a half to get a different mask. Awesome. This one is too big and the color is off and some of the shapes could be better. But at least it is immediately recognizable as V.
My Fix: Get a better mask. This will probably be the first thing I fix about my costume. The "DC Direct" ones look really nice but they were close to $1000 on ebay and I couldn't both go to Comic-con and get one. If anyone has good suggestions for masks. ("Possibly some made from the hero mold" I said while dreaming) please get your ass down to the reply section.

The cloak:
(Pricing update in the comments)

This is a custom cloak I had made by a very talented local (Minneapolis, MN) seamstress. I provided about 3-5 yards of black 100% cashmere with good matching texture for the outside and about the same amount for the lining in black smooth polyester. She also measured me to make sure it would hang off my shoulders and fit correctly. I made sure to specify I needed the clasp to be invisible and i'm pretty happy with the result as you can see the 2nd pic. If you are comparing for screen accuracy this is probably the most accurate piece of my costume. It looks really good in person. I know the original cloak is a 50/50 wool/cashmere blend but good luck finding any. (seriously good luck and just PM me if you do find any ) That blend was chosen for the way it moved on screen and I feel pretty good about how mine moves.
Mistakes: Almost none IMO. Unless you have a 50/50 wool/cashmere source you feel like sharing (please do!) I don't really feel this could have come out better. I really love the way it hangs off of me and comes completely around to meet evenly in the middle.
My Fix: Continue bothering internet people for a better fabric source (hint).

The doublet:

This is a custom fitted Suede Jacket for V for Vendetta Cosplay from fanplusfriend. $105 + shipping.
Giving them your measurements can by tricky as it wasn't working when I tried but I eventually got them sent over and doublet came and fits well. It's constraining in the neck and shoulders area as a doublet should be. I feel if I tried to do a "strongman" pose I would definitely split the back. The sleeves were the correct length and the collar is tall enough to hide my neck while also wearing the mask. Zipper is well hidden.
Mistakes: This doublet is simply not the right fabric. The screen-used fabric is incredibly rare. I think it must be custom made for the movie. If you have any ideas about anything that would match the screen-used texture please leave a reply because I know of at least a couple of people who would be very thankful.
My Fix: Find this elusive fabric/texture combo and get a seamstress to recreate the fanplusfriend doublet. Then it would be perfect.

The gloves:

These are Men's Ultra Enforcer Leather Gauntlets by Tough Gloves. $70 + shipping
I had these custom tailored by the same seamstress who did my cloak. When you get these stock they come with a really wide flared out cuff. I simply had my seamstress take this in so the cuff was more of a tube shape rather than a cone shape. Other than the cuff I wanted something that had the same stitching around the fingers and on the back of the hand. I feel these come pretty close.
Mistakes: I didn't know my glove size and had to send the first pair back because they were too large. This caused the gloves to wrinkle and be loose at the ends of the fingers when my hand was relaxed. Getting the right size fixed this. One thing I noticed too late is that V's gloves actually have a notch on the outside edge cut into the cuff. Probably best seen in the bottom screen-caps of the third photo.
My Fix: I don't know of any better options for gloves out there. The stitching isn't exactly right but it's pretty close. I just have to add a notch to the sides of the cuffs and they would be pretty good.

The belt:

Original buckle fire here. My cleaned up SketchUp file here. Great RPF thread here.
This is a custom leather belt made by Paul and Tisha at Mountain Leather Design, in Chester, Vermont $65 + shipping. I found them on Etsy. The belt Buckle is 3D printed stainless steel from shapeways. $175 + shipping
The overall quality belt is good. I commissioned a custom belt with a slot on one end for the buckle and holes on the other for the tongue. The screws were sent along with the belt and are a pretty simple 2 part design of flathead-male on one side smooth-female on the other. The buckle itself is 3D printed stainless steel from shapeways. RPF user J EM was kind enough to share the 3d model file of this piece. I took this into SketchUp, cleaned it up, and converted the file to one compatible with shapeways. Both are linked above. The tongue for the belt was made by simply pounding some 12g alu wire (home depot) flat, cutting it to length, and wrapping it around the middle of the buckle.
Mistakes: First, and most obvious, the belt isn't really the right shape. This isn't the fault of MLD but mine because I failed to send them a cardboard pattern. Rushing causes mistakes and this is one of them. Second I paid too much for the buckle. I admit to being on a "3d printing" phase and just thought it was really cool. I even knew it wouldn't be the right texture. Probably don't have your buckle printed.
My Fix: Send MLD a pattern made from thin cardboard in the exact shape I want the belt to be. Check out the awesome thread linked above for great info on the belt. Get another buckle made. This time probably just get one waterjet cut from 1/16th inch stainless steel. I haven't really looked into it too much but if you have a good online resource please share!

The pants:

These are actually just a pair of comfy black dress pants I already had. I deemed this one of the least important parts of the costume opting for comfortable and cheap over expensive and screen-accurate. Over heating was also something to think about.
Mistakes: Not trying hard enough? I didn't even try to look up what kind they would be. I assume some kind of wool blend. Choose your own adventure here.
My Fix: Care more. Do more research. Buy pants.

The boots:

These are Officer Chrome Box-calf Riding Leather Boots from sovietboots. $100 + shipping.
This was another "as close as I could find" situation. I think they are passable. When I first got them they were shipped folded over and were droopy so I stuffed them with newspaper for a few months.
Mistakes: These aren't the "perfect boots" they are just "very close". V's boots appear to be made brand new and are fitted. You can tell by the way the shape comes back in above the heal and turns into a nice snug fit around the calf. Mine were not fitted and my calves were slightly too big which caused the shaft to get pushed down resulting in wrinkling around the ankle. Walking in these was not awesome. Manageable but not awesome.
My Fix: Find the perfect boots. Or, as a compromise, take these to a cobbler and get them fitted to my leg to prevent wrinkling. Also possibly add insoles. That sounds like a good idea.

Please note: I did mess with the levels on some of the reference screen-caps for clarity. They are not necessarily color accurate.
Please feel free to PM me with any questions, suggestions, constructive criticism.
Thanks for reading!

Your V costume looks good! Its interesting to know that you still want to increase the accuracy on your costume. Just how accurate do you want to get? lol
Every single thing about V's costume was all custom made so you did a good job replicating it given the time you had to gather some of the pieces.

Anyway, sorry things didn't work out with that Brazilian seller but on the bright side a crowd used mask casting isn't the most accurate mask you can get anymore. There is always sattler on ebay and etsy. You'll have to do with the paint job unless you find someone to redo it.

Thanks man! When I started building this costume I knew I would always be updating and adding to it. It probably won't ever be exactly right but I know how much better it could be with the actual options that are available. I didn't even do daggers! I do feel that as long as I can get a better mask and a hat that fits the costume will be at around 90%. It really is the details that turn a good costume into a great one. Call it perfectionism if you want but I don't think I could deal with having a costume with fixable flaws from one of my favorite movies.
Thanks again for all the help.

Those are some heavy dollars to drop on almost every costume component, I'm impressed you're still striving for more accuracy! great effort so far, I've never thought of tackling a V build mainly due to the unfortunate co-opting of the V mask by that anonymous crowd, I feel like it's cheapened what is an iconic character. Still, a build of this quality sets itself apart

You're right that its the details that turn a good costume into a great one. I think the ones that make a V costume look real good are the proper mask, hat, belt and buckle. Because its something very few V cosplayers have bothered to get right.

I also have to replace a few things on mine and I'm not even done with mine yet. lol. Another belt. Because I've gained some weight haha and because I didn't include additional length at the tapered ends making the weight problem significant. Also because I cut through the belt to attach the dagger holders, something I didn't want to do as it wouldn't entirely be accurate to what's seen in the movie. I also need another hat. Mine has sucked as a V replica hat since the day I got it so I've a few questions about yours.

Is that actually a 6" and 4" brim when you measure it on the outside? Would you say the crown has a nicely tapered, conical look all around, not too cylinder-ish as shown in their website? From a few people who have messaged me about the Hatcrafters hat and from my own concern about whether it'll look tapered, that's been the deciding factor in using the modded pilgrim hat as a replica V hat.

I just double checked to make sure and the crown is 6" on the dot and the brim is 4" on the dot when measured from the outside, The hat does have a taper to it but it is more narrow than V's. I would say its only a few degrees off of V's hat, When you look at it side by side you can tell it's not perfect but hey nothing about my costume is perfect. If you do go with hatcrafters I would say to do the hatband part yourself with ribbon you pick out. The matte side of the ribbon I used turned out to be just barely too shiny. Not enough to worry about unless actually confronted with a better option.

Here are a couple of photos to help. I can take more upon request.

Taken while looking straight on from the front.

Oh yeah I almost forgot! I went to Incognito! Which was a party hosted by Adam Savage and the guys from tested.com. Adam had his V costume set up and while I was reading the description for it I turned around and he was standing right there! I told him I was cosplaying V this year and he was kind enough to chat with me about his costume. The mask, hat, and cloak are all screen used from the movie scene with all the extras near the end. I was pretty impressed so I snapped a few crappy cell phone pics.

So its not tapered all around, huh? And you went to Adam Savage's Incognito party? That must've been real fun! I knew he owned a screen used hat, mask & wig set. The doublet looks like something done by someone here on rpf. Not sure if this is Adam Savage, but it is the same costume, down to the screen used items.

It is tapered all around it's just a few degrees off. The 2nd pic is not from directly on top. The party was fun! Open bar and everything! He told me he found a good doublet replica and then found a good fabric that matched and took it to his tailor who reproduced the doublet. I can tell that is indeed Adam by the distinctive belt buckle and wig. The mask sure looks weird without fabric behind the eyes.

I see. The photo I posted is very old probably before Adam Savage decided to add the black fabric to the eyes. As for the hat, maybe a larger hat will make it look more tapered. I've contemplated making my own from a large wool felt hat blank or buying one off Hatcrafters. I already spent more than I should have on one hat, I figure if I'm going to spend on another I should look more into it to see if it can be done right.

That sounds pretty cool. I hope to see a WIP thread from you if that ever happens. Maybe I could send you my current hat for reference when I get one that fits.

A WIP thread from me on a V costume? lol I doubt it simply because the only thing left that can be a wip is the doublet. Maybe the cloak too. If I had my own sewing machine or access to one I would probably get to sewing that and the cloak already. The patterns I did for them have been done. And thanks but the current hat I have is good enough for reference. Its a good hat on its own. The crown is the best thing about it. Its just not a good V replica hat because of the shorter brim it has. You'll be surprised how much of a difference .5" makes on the overall look. Maybe its just me that is anal about such discrepancies. :rolleyes

Dude I'm right there with you. For me the most distinctive thing about the V costume was the hat. I knew there would be tons of mask replicas online but the hat is something special and distinctive. The shape is just so specific. Someday when I have more disposable income I will commission a professional hatter to make me the perfect V hat. I will pay too much but it will be worth it if that makes any sense.

What's your perfect V hat then?

I guess I'm not sure yet. Commissioning a perfect hat will be pretty far down the road. Definitely after I get a correctly sized one from Hatcrafters. So far I just know it will involve advice from an actual hatter. And if the guy I am talking to can't give me good advice I'll know I should go somewhere else.
It would be really nice to compare the Hero hat to a Crowd used hat. IRL as long as I'm dreaming. I know I'm definitely going for Hero hat dimensions though. Makes me wonder if the Hero hat required the use of a hat press. The brim is so flat in every shot it wouldn't surprise me.

Hi there!

I'm just dropping by to say that it's great to see other people putting so much effort into screen accuracy! Your costume looks great! I'm not sure I want to know how much you spent for that cashmere for the cloak! (must have been some heavy $$)

Any riding boots shop can help you with the calves of your boots. Making them fit is really a standard procedure for riding boots. Maybe they'll have a good advice about the size too.

I'm gobsmacked you actually 3D printed your buckle! How cool is that! Also, sorry for not replying to your post on my belt thread... I haven't been notified and it was way too late when I saw your post.

The screen used hat's brim seems to droop on the photos. My brim is stiff and straight because I soaked it with diluted glue for wood... didn't even need a wire at all...

Good luck with making your costume even more screen accurate! Altho I have to say it looks pretty amazing already!

(Cloak pricing update)
So I was curious about my cloak pricing and looked it up in a bank statement. $90 at a SR Harris Fabric for 3 yards. So yeah. I mean this was probably because it's a "bulk" fabric store. Pretty much a warehouse with big shelves and fabric wound around cardboard spools stacked on top of each other. This is a pic from inside one. Had to drive like a half hour and the fabric took forever to find. I think I spent like 3 hours looking and only came away with close-but-no-cigar 100% cashmere. Good weave though. Matches movie pretty well imo. I also was then was advised by my seamstress to get polyester for the inside so I spent $20 at a Jo-Annes fabric too.

shadedurza said:

Hello! I recently went to San Diego Comic-Con 2014 as V.
View attachment 368162
I wanted to make this thread detailing the process I took to becoming V with a focus on the mistakes I made and what you can do to avoid them if you also want to become a bad-ass freedom fighter.
First I want to thank RPF members "J EM" and "ewigestuden" for their invaluable help. Without J EM answering all of my questions (from the perspective someone with 0 experience or prior knowledge) this could not possibly have happened. So THANK YOU!
Apologies for crappy cell phone pics!

.

The doublet:
View attachment 368175View attachment 368176
This is a custom fitted Suede Jacket for V for Vendetta Cosplay from fanplusfriend. $105 + shipping.
Giving them your measurements can by tricky as it wasn't working when I tried but I eventually got them sent over and doublet came and fits well. It's constraining in the neck and shoulders area as a doublet should be. I feel if I tried to do a "strongman" pose I would definitely split the back. The sleeves were the correct length and the collar is tall enough to hide my neck while also wearing the mask. Zipper is well hidden.
Mistakes: This doublet is simply not the right fabric. The screen-used fabric is incredibly rare. I think it must be custom made for the movie. If you have any ideas about anything that would match the screen-used texture please leave a reply because I know of at least a couple of people who would be very thankful.
My Fix: Find this elusive fabric/texture combo and get a seamstress to recreate the fanplusfriend doublet. Then it would be perfect.

The gloves:
View attachment 368178View attachment 368177View attachment 368179
These are Men's Ultra Enforcer Leather Gauntlets by Tough Gloves. $70 + shipping
I had these custom tailored by the same seamstress who did my cloak. When you get these stock they come with a really wide flared out cuff. I simply had my seamstress take this in so the cuff was more of a tube shape rather than a cone shape. Other than the cuff I wanted something that had the same stitching around the fingers and on the back of the hand. I feel these come pretty close.
Mistakes: I didn't know my glove size and had to send the first pair back because they were too large. This caused the gloves to wrinkle and be loose at the ends of the fingers when my hand was relaxed. Getting the right size fixed this. One thing I noticed too late is that V's gloves actually have a notch on the outside edge cut into the cuff. Probably best seen in the bottom screen-caps of the third photo.
My Fix: I don't know of any better options for gloves out there. The stitching isn't exactly right but it's pretty close. I just have to add a notch to the sides of the cuffs and they would be pretty good.

The belt:
View attachment 368181View attachment 368180
Original buckle fire here. My cleaned up SketchUp file here. Great RPF thread here.
This is a custom leather belt made by Paul and Tisha at Mountain Leather Design, in Chester, Vermont $65 + shipping. I found them on Etsy. The belt Buckle is 3D printed stainless steel from shapeways. $175 + shipping
The overall quality belt is good. I commissioned a custom belt with a slot on one end for the buckle and holes on the other for the tongue. The screws were sent along with the belt and are a pretty simple 2 part design of flathead-male on one side smooth-female on the other. The buckle itself is 3D printed stainless steel from shapeways. RPF user J EM was kind enough to share the 3d model file of this piece. I took this into SketchUp, cleaned it up, and converted the file to one compatible with shapeways. Both are linked above. The tongue for the belt was made by simply pounding some 12g alu wire (home depot) flat, cutting it to length, and wrapping it around the middle of the buckle.
Mistakes: First, and most obvious, the belt isn't really the right shape. This isn't the fault of MLD but mine because I failed to send them a cardboard pattern. Rushing causes mistakes and this is one of them. Second I paid too much for the buckle. I admit to being on a "3d printing" phase and just thought it was really cool. I even knew it wouldn't be the right texture. Probably don't have your buckle printed.
My Fix: Send MLD a pattern made from thin cardboard in the exact shape I want the belt to be. Check out the awesome thread linked above for great info on the belt. Get another buckle made. This time probably just get one waterjet cut from 1/16th inch stainless steel. I haven't really looked into it too much but if you have a good online resource please share!
The boots:
View attachment 368183View attachment 368184View attachment 368185
These are Officer Chrome Box-calf Riding Leather Boots from sovietboots. $100 + shipping.
This was another "as close as I could find" situation. I think they are passable. When I first got them they were shipped folded over and were droopy so I stuffed them with newspaper for a few months.
Mistakes: These aren't the "perfect boots" they are just "very close". V's boots appear to be made brand new and are fitted. You can tell by the way the shape comes back in above the heal and turns into a nice snug fit around the calf. Mine were not fitted and my calves were slightly too big which caused the shaft to get pushed down resulting in wrinkling around the ankle. Walking in these was not awesome. Manageable but not awesome.
My Fix: Find the perfect boots. Or, as a compromise, take these to a cobbler and get them fitted to my leg to prevent wrinkling. Also possibly add insoles. That sounds like a good idea.

Please note: I did mess with the levels on some of the reference screen-caps for clarity. They are not necessarily color accurate.
Please feel free to PM me with any questions, suggestions, constructive criticism.
Thanks for reading!

Click to expand...

For me, just now getting this costume together...this Post is Fantastic!

shadedurza said:

Thanks man! When I started building this costume I knew I would always be updating and adding to it. It probably won't ever be exactly right but I know how much better it could be with the actual options that are available. I didn't even do daggers! I do feel that as long as I can get a better mask and a hat that fits the costume will be at around 90%. It really is the details that turn a good costume into a great one. Call it perfectionism if you want but I don't think I could deal with having a costume with fixable flaws from one of my favorite movies.
Thanks again for all the help.

Click to expand...

Can you give an update on how you attached the dagger holders on that belt? And do you have a name of the Shapeways person who did the buckle that I could contact PLEASE =)