Star Lord vest - UPDATE - Oct 31st: Vest completed, plus full costume

Bloop

Sr Member
So, I was considering buying one of the star lord leather jackets that are available, but I'm not entirely happy with what's available in terms of accuracy and quality. So I've been thinking about trying to make my own vest instead. The vest isn't as prominently shown in the movie, but there are a number of promotional photos showing it. I believe the vest was worn under the trench coat in the movie, so not as much screen time, but it's still unique looking, and fairly recognizable to those familiar with the movie. And it seems a bit easier to try to construct than a screen acurate jacket. And, it should be a bit cooler to wear than a full leather jacket, which is also a plus considering where I'm going to be wearing it.
But I've been unable to find any really good, high resolution photos of the vest, and no pics of the back of it either. So I'm hoping someone here could help. I'd like to have a good pic of the front, especially to see the greeblies used in greater detail. I have a decent idea of what they look like, but I haven't seen any good close ups yet.
Any help would be apreciated!
 
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Re: Star Lord vest

I hope one of these help you. Sorry about the lack of hi def, alot are from the sweet mans children's hospital visit. Haven't found back pics yet!
10502203_911323435550896_2217313104852712383_n.png5cff5efb118512874d4318cd713ad6ac.jpegtumblr_narvvu29H41r7cqs5o5_500.jpeg60deb259e574c99e44cbf416607a12aa.jpegtumblr_naqtrc6A8l1ttdk33o4_500.jpegscreen-shot-2014-08-22-at-9-09-46-pm.pngchris-pratt.jpegtumblr_namxa9w6Ga1s123tlo1_500.jpeg
 
Re: Star Lord vest

Thanks for the help! That other thread does have some good pics, especially of the back. There's a lot going on with the vest, but it still seems doable, at least more doable than the jacket. I won't be able to go for full accuracy, but it should be possible to get something pretty close. I plan on trying to find a used red leather jacket to alter, so a lot depends on finding that. I'll probably have to use a women's jacket, just because red leather men's jackets aren't as common. But since it's a vest and I'll be cutting off the sleeves to use for the straps and other details, a woman's jacket will probably be ok, as long as it's big.
 
Re: Star Lord vest

Hey Bloop i just came across this thred this morning and love the idea, im glad somebody else has shown interest in the vest as i love it, would be very happy to see pics when you do this. please please please take lots of pics of your process!

also id love to see what you come up with for the greeblies on the chest
 
Re: Star Lord vest

Kakarrot, thanks for the interest! This will probably be pretty tough, especially since I'm limited in the tools and materials I have to work with. I work on a cruise ship, so I don't have a sewing machine, so everything will have to be done be hand. At least I have a lot of free time here, so I should be able to produce something decent, as long as I don't get frustrated.

I found a burgundy men's leather jacket today, so I've got the biggest piece I needed to start. It's suit jacket styled, so no zipper, but it is men's and it fits me, so I think I can work with it. I won't be going for 100% accuracy anyway, which would be pretty hard under even the best circumstances. I'll post pics of the jacket soon.

I also bought some of the little things I'll need, thread, glue, etc. I'm going to try to make the metal greeblies out of foam, though I'm not sure how well it'll work. If it doesn't look good enough, I'll try something else. I was thinking styrene, or balsa, but foam was easy to get today, so I'll try it first.
 
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Re: Star Lord vest

Here's some pics of the jacket I bought:
20140914_171008.jpg
20140914_171312.jpg
20140914_171347.jpg

I've already removed the pockets since taking the pictures. There's a lot to mod, but I think it will work. I'm working on the plan of what needs to be modded, but I could use some help. I found this picture, below, which I've lightened to show the details better. It shows the bottom and side of the front of the vest. But I'm not entirely sure how it goes into the back. On the right side of the pic, the side of the vest seems to curve upward, like the bottom hem doesn't go straight around the back. It almost seems like it cuts up toward the arm hole, and doesn't connect directly to the back of the vest. Maybe the snap to the right is how it attaches. Any help or other pics that show how the side connects to the back would help.
Vest Detail Lightened.png
 
Re: Star Lord vest

Thanks for the help! That other thread does have some good pics, especially of the back. There's a lot going on with the vest, but it still seems doable, at least more doable than the jacket. I won't be able to go for full accuracy, but it should be possible to get something pretty close. I plan on trying to find a used red leather jacket to alter, so a lot depends on finding that. I'll probably have to use a women's jacket, just because red leather men's jackets aren't as common. But since it's a vest and I'll be cutting off the sleeves to use for the straps and other details, a woman's jacket will probably be ok, as long as it's big.

Hi Bloop, I'm happy to be of service on those images of the back of the vest. Me? I'm trying to make everything. I need medication, :wacko LOL! Good luck and I'll keep watching your progress!
 
Re: Star Lord vest

Thanks, Staar Lord Man! I've been watching your thread with interest, too. Thanks for all the info you've provided, it's definitely helping me out!

Some things I've noticed on the vest: the small leather straps that go over the gray nylon (?) straps seem to go into slits in the vest leather. They don't seem to be stitched into place, you can see the raised outline of the rest of the strap under the leather and I don't see any stitching, so it might be glued in place from the other side. They could be stitched vertically, along side the gray straps, but I can't tell from the pics I've seen.
 
Re: Star Lord vest

Why, thanks for following! Here's a little tip for you...if you have a question about what something is, hit the search feature up top and I guarantee you that someone here has already identified that. I think it's elastic banding, believe it or not. Getting it gray, well, that's another process. I tried to find some but all I keep coming up with is white.
Ah, here it is, @Risu to the rescue...I found this on page 1 of Guardians of the Galaxy Star Lord jacket - standard leather jacket modifications

The straps on the sleeves are grey elastic. They can also be found on the left shoulder and many places on the pants and vest.
 
Re: Star Lord vest

Thanks again, Staar Lord Man! I hadn't searched to see if anyone had identified themail gray strap material yet, so thanks for the info. I had been looking at some of the pics you posted, and I had decided the material was indeed not nylon as I had originally thought. It was definitely thinner material. I was planning on doing some dyeing of material, do maybe the elastic will have to be dyed as well. I have two types of mesh laundry bags that I'm considering using for the back panel of the jacket, which I would dye gray.
 
Re: Star Lord vest

This is going to sound really weird, but you didn't happen to pick up that jacket at Elite Thrift Store in Edmond, Oklahoma did you?
No, I found it at a store in New Orleans. It's a "Fashion Imports" brand, by the way, "Fashions from the world, made in Korea." Swanky.
It's not the best option. I would have preferred something with a zip up front and not styed like a blazer since it makes the modifying harder. I'm trying to "remove" the button holes right now, or at least make them flatter. I'm going to have to cut through them so I can add the zipper.

Another update, sleeves have been removed! I'm tempted to start making cuts in the leather, but I really want to be sure of how I need to proceed before I do it. I haven't decided if I'm going to keep the structure of the jacket intact and sew leather panels on top, or if I should actually cut up the jacket to try to make it look more accurate.
 
Re: Star Lord vest

No, I found it at a store in New Orleans. It's a "Fashion Imports" brand, by the way, "Fashions from the world, made in Korea." Swanky.

I saw the EXACT same jacket at the aforementioned thrift store, same size, so that's why I was curious :lol I came pretty close to picking it up with intentions of using it to modify for the short jacket but ultimately decided to wait.

Looking forward to seeing how this turns out! :thumbsup
 
Re: Star Lord vest

Endless Wonder, that's weird. I suppose they probably made a lot of those jackets, but it's still a big coincidence to see the exact same one in the same size, even if 42 is pretty common.

I "removed" both button holes and flattened out the existing leather, so it should be less noticeable. I've done some eyeballing of how much I need to cut off the bottom of the coat. I've measured it as well, and I'm looking at around 22" for the zipper. I'm still not ready to cut anything yet.
I think I've figured out how the front and back connect. I've been doing some sketches, I'll post something when I've got it close to finalized.
 
Re: Star Lord vest

Update: I haven't started cutting yet, but here's pics of the jacket (now a vest) in its current state. I folded the bottom up on one side, and I folded the front inward to show how the front will be cut.
2014-09-20 18.10.46.jpg
I've also used tape to mark off the shoulder piece I will be adding, and taped off a rough idea of the new collar line. Here's the reverse side where I've roughed out one side of the center panel that will be removed and replaced with mesh.
2014-09-20 18.01.48.jpg
And here's a pic of the laundry bag I'm planning to use for the back mesh. I'll be dying it gray. I think the pattern is at least reminiscent of the back mesh, though I haven't seen any really close-up shots.
2014-09-20 17.59.24.jpg
 
Re: Star Lord vest

This is a 300 dpi image adjusted the levels for brightness and I zoomed into it as much as I could so you could see the texture of the 'mesh'

VEST DETAIL 1 back zoomed in.jpg

...and the rest of the vest shots from Chris Pratt's visit to Children's Hospital Los Angeles;

A GREAT shot of the entire back
VEST DETAIL 0 back CROPPED 300dpi.jpgVEST DETAIL 2 back CROPPED 300dpi.jpg
and details on the front...
VEST DETAIL 2 CROPPED 300dpi.jpgTrench FRONT DETAILS cropped 300dpi.jpg

This last one High Resolution and I included it because, to me, it points out what I suspect Alexandre Byrne was thinking when she did this piece...(and yes, that video link on her name is rife with high resolution imagery....keep your finger on the pause/print screen button when you watch it
wink.png
)
Trench Rivet button detail.JPG

(Now if you all don't mind, this is me cracking the door to where the crazed writer inside in my mind lives)

See how that zipper doesn't quite line up at the top? That, all by itself, speaks volumes about how she perceived a part of Peter Quill's life in his latter years in space. While the Northern California Renaissance Fair was in full swing up here in the San Francisco Bay Area, before they allowed us onto the site in our costumes, we had to take a three weekend 'training course' to get our gate passes. Part of it was 'Why we look the way we do' and what I pulled from that class, (and it's stuck to this day), is that every part of your costume mus tell a story. If someone walks up and points to something, like a panel of fabric that's out of place, you should be able to rattle off a story about how you got it, where you got it, if it was a gift from your mother or if, it was something you won in a bar bet...etc...

With all that said, I look at this vest and think of it's origin, and then beyond that, what all the bits and bobs attached to it mean. Here's my take....Perhaps he made this himself and is just bad at crafting? Probably not...so I like to suspect that picked this up at a fuel outpost on the outer periphery of this quadrant as he, Kraglin, Yondu and the rest were at the bar and there was a street vendor who was still in the process of making a full jacket and he just haggled the guy down from 500 credits to 100 because it wasn't even finished...and that it kind of sucked. Or perhaps made from the pelt of a rare alien animal who's hide is actually red like that, who knows....but that there are imperfections designed into this thing gives me insight into the life of the person who made it or even Peter himself.

All the bits and bobs? Trophies/badges of how many times he's gotten out of bad situations, perhaps?
 
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Staar lord man, I hadn't seen those videos, thanks for the tip! I'm almost done with mocking up the vest with tape, and I've ripped out all the seems that needed to be removed, pulled out the lining, and pulled off the extra pieces of leather that I'll be using to make the straps, pockets and shoulder pieces (I'll post progress pics soon). I'm almost about to start cutting.
The high resolution vest pic (posted above) confirmed something I found interesting. The edges of the vest are not folded over and sewn, as I assumed they would be, but simply have cut edges. If the edges were folded over, it would look nicer (as the leather blazer I'mean working from had), and I would assume it would make those edges more durable. But I guess since this is leather, it's already pretty sturdy, and there's no risk in the edges fraying like with fabric. It makes things easier for me, since, for the most part, I won't have to sew through two layers of leather, and all the curved edges will be simple cuts.
 
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