Jedi in Training

Jedi Master Costume

2012-01-17T04:23:00.000-08:00

My last post on this blog was almost 2 years ago. This morning I decided I'd better use this blog or lose this blog. SO, this is me, using it.

I finished another Jedi costume just before Halloween. It's been on the market since. Here it is on etsy.
http://www.etsy.com/shop/kelb27

I would also gladly take any custom orders you have for Star Wars costumes, as referenced before, I have the Star Wars costume book, so I have excellent reference material to create a unique work of costume art for you.

Thank you!
Jedi-in-Training

Jedi Costume 1.0

2010-02-06T08:58:00.001-08:00

Here are a few pictures of my current Jedi costume. I still have some bits to make, like the leather belt. And I have yet to entirely figure out how I want to do the homemade under tunic, though this shirt I bought for $3 is working for now.

Every Jedi Needs Friends

2008-11-06T03:29:00.000-08:00

Many thanks to my friend, Tim, for his excellent photo editing skills. Tim, you've made my day.
:)

Vader

2008-10-26T05:32:00.000-07:00

Here's some pictures of Matt's costume. He says it's not too uncomfortable, though quite warm under all of it, especially once we've battled with the lightsabers for awhile.

This is the official "Supreme Edition Darth Vader" costume made by Rubies Costumes (in China). Thanks to amazon.com, we paid about 25% less than suggested retail.

New Pictures!

2008-10-14T18:53:00.000-07:00

Sorry it took so long to get the pictures taken for posting. As you can see, we had some fun with lightsabers too. Coming soon, pictures of Matt's costume! (Which I am not making)

Jedi Costume Prototype

2008-08-01T17:22:00.000-07:00

Here it is, phase one of my Jedi costume is complete. This is the tunic and shoulder armor and belt. Also the pants. The third piece I plan to make, the shirt that goes under the tunic, I'm having to create the pattern for, so it's a bit trickier, especially since I'm still a fairly novice and slow seamstress so it is coming along much slower.

I've already started picking apart the tunic and shoulder armor seen here and making adjustments, mostly to the way it all drapes. Now that I've got Dressing a Galaxy, I can see better how the finished product should look, but I still sure could use a dress form or another body to hang it on while I drape it. I'll figure something out.

Aren't those lightsabers sweet?

Jedi fans and seamstresses, I welcome feedback and comments. The pants need adjustment, as they are a bit too full and blouse a bit too much around the boots. And I also know the belt looks screwy and may need to be rebuilt.

Since the tunic, shoulder armor, and belt are all the same material and color, it may be hard to see the different pieces in these photos. All the same, would love to hear constructive criticism.

Dressing a Galaxy

2008-07-31T05:00:00.000-07:00

Since I have this idea in my head of making and selling Jedi costumes, I wanted a copy of Dressing a Galaxy, a terrific book chock full of detailed photographs of tons of costumes from Episodes 1-3. There are some photos from Episodes 4-6 as well, but the focus of the book is on the work designed by Trisha Biggar.

We found a copy on amazon for only $30, which I thought was great, because when I had seen it in a bookstore it was $50, which seemed excessive to me. So, we placed an order for it. Weeks turned to months and still no sign of Dressing a Galaxy in the mail. I went ahead and started my Jedi costume without it and had almost forgotten all about it. Turns out, meanwhile amazon had contacted Matt, my husband, and said they couldn’t find the $30 copy we had ordered, but they did have in stock a copy of the Limited Deluxe Edition, of which only 2500 were made. When it was released the suggested retail was $295, but they were selling it for $217, which worked out to about $275 after shipping costs. Had Matt consulted me I would have said I don’t need the book that much; but he didn’t so now I have it. And I do have to say I love it!

You can't really see how incredible the book is without spending time pouring through it's hundreds of pages. But here are some photos of what the Deluxe Edition came with including the case with it's silk sash shown in the first photo. I don't know why the next photo is sideways, couldn't seem to figure out how to fix it... anyway on the top (left) is a replica of a Wookie decoration from the films, a DVD with a behind the scenes look at the costume shop, a sample of Vader cape material, and the obligatory certificate of authenticity one always gets for spending too much money on a product. The third picture shows part of the neat booklet that has even more pictures of various costumes, including fabric swatches, which will be terrific if I'm going to make the best Jedi costumes ever, also that smaller book with Grievous on the cover is all about digital costumes in the films. The final picture is a close up of the aforementioned fabric swatch booklet.

I guess I'm spoiled, but I think I can live with that.

cool websites

2008-06-26T06:01:00.000-07:00

No hyperlinks allowed I guess, so you'll have to copy paste, but here are some nifty internet sites for all fellow Star Wars nerds.

www.starwars.com
The official website, very cool stuff always.

www.advanced-light.com
Cool website for Lightsaber Hilts and Replicas. This guys is an amazing artistan.

www.stylinonline.com/starwars.html
Nifty Star Wars t-shirts, keychains, and all that stuff.

Getting to know you... my first blog...

2008-06-26T05:01:00.000-07:00

This is a spur of the moment inspiration, so I'm not actually prepared to post much to this blog yet. Thematically, I'm obviously playing up the Star Wars angle. I've begun work on my Jedi costume, which is the prototype for a series of custom deluxe Jedi costumes I plan to create and sell over the internet. This blog will become one of the places I advertise as I get some product ready to sell.

I'm a big Star Wars fan, as well as an avid reader. So one can expect to find book reviews, tidbits and links of other Star Wars cites, as well as personal updates for my family and friends. Pictures of the costumes, lightsabers, and other fun stuff, will be coming soon.

Aside from being an avid Star Wars nerd, I am interested in: hiking, camping, and the outdoors; live theatre and the arts; reading of many genres and creative writing; cooking, baking, sewing, and other domestic arts.

I'm getting pretty close to 30 years old, very happily married, and hoping for kids in the not too far distant future. I have 3 unique sisters, a father who introduced me to a love of Star Wars and all science fiction, and a mother and step father who each possess a tremendous amount of creativity and spirit. I'm also a proud aunt with 2 nephews, and a total of 3 nieces.

In keeping with always striving to be a Jedi Knight, I'm really into self improvement right now. I'm working this summer to become more healthy in body, spirit, and mind. I used to be very physically toned and I would like to regain some of that shape. I'm always reading something and studying a strange melange of subjects. At the moment, I'm brushing up and dusting off my old high school French, learning the differences between different trees, and thinking about tap dance. That would be fun right?