From my experiences the past few years in costuming and propping, I have noticed several things that tend to irritate me. This is mostly directed at costumes for Warhammer 40,000, but can expand to fill other realms and genres.
The Warhammer 40,000 universe has a pretty distinct interpretation of scale. Granted, the variation in scale between units and vehicles is difficult to recreate in real-life, but weapons are easy. I often see people trying to do a costume like a Commissar, IG trooper, or Inquisitor, and have simply bought a replica weapon. Swords are a glaring example. If you take a look at a PowerSword in the 40k universe, it’s big. The blade is wide and thick, lacking a keen edge. While I’m sure a lot of that has to do with safety and production of the miniatures, the look remains. Also, the PowerSword looks relatively bulky, lacking the grace of real-life swords. Delving into the 4th topic of discussion slightly, color and texture is lacking with a real-life sword. Metals in 40k have a certain look to them, usually not shiny and reflective as realworld metals are.
Don’t scale off 28mm minis:
As someone who (this is where I need a soapbox) is in the process of developing some of the better looking 40k costumes, armor, and props out there, this is the most important piece of advice I can give anyone. This applies to human-based costumes especially, so please, pay attention. The scale of humans (I will include Space Marines in this discussion) in real-life is totally different than that of the scale of 40k (the game). The miniatures are broader and beefier than a real human physique. Also, some people believe Space Marines to be more than just a large, built human; more that they have massive upper torsos and such. I find this to be overblown, and I think the blame rests a lot with illustrations where the Marine’s head is tiny compared to his body. Most people fail to realize that making the head tiny is an artistic technique that makes their armor seem much huger. In “reality,” the Space Marine is a scaled-up human, although very fit, they aren’t Donkey Kong. In the case of Space Marine armor and props, I use a ForgeWorld 150mm Space Marine statue as a reference. The proportions of the body are much more realistic to a real human. Scaling off 28mm miniatures seems to be the leading cause of people making terrible armor and props; no offense intended.
Take your time:
I know the feeling of almost having a prop or costume done in time for an event, and the desire to have it finished. I also know the feeling of rushing to finish it and having a crappy piece at the event. I can’t stress enough that you have to take your time. Wait until the part pleases your eyes, not just other people. Case in point, my Boltgun. I really wanted to finish it in time for Megacon 2007 and I spent a good deal of time and money trying to get it finished. The night before, I was debating pulling an all-nighter to finish, or to throw in the towel and just not use it. As it turned out, I had plenty of stuff for the convention, and now can get the Boltgun the way I want it. There will always be another convention to show your stuff at. Trust me; it’s better to take a little longer to make something that looks good, than to rush and have me lambaste your work.
Like I mentioned before, the look of 40k is pretty distinct. Metals shouldn’t be incredibly glossy, nor should they seem perfectly smooth. Unless they are an important part or an accent piece, 40k costumes and props should be matte or semi-gloss. I already wrote about the sword/knife issue, and that seems to be a major problem I see. The same goes for things like stormcoats and gloves. While an off-the-shelf overcoat may look okay, oftentimes it hurts the illusion of 40k. There is such a thing as looking too real, as in, "Oh, I saw that coat at the mall," or "I just bought that LotR sword online." The goal is to make store-bought items less recognizable. This pertains to using PVC farther down. Take my Inquisitorial coat, for instance. It is based on readily available patterns, but I made it unique by choosing a certain material and making certain small, yet noticeable, changes. Even repainting things helps a lot, as in the case of the shotgun I have. Trust me, it’s worth the time to either scratch-build or at least modify costume pieces and props.
Your Body Plays a Decisive Role in the Design Process:
I would hope this would be a pretty obvious idea, but from seeing a fair amount of somewhat overweight, hairy, male Sailor Scouts and such running around, I think it needs said. IF YOUR BODY IS WAY OUT OF PROPORTION WITH A CERTAIN COSTUME, THE FINAL COSTUME WILL LOOK LIKE CRAP. That means, if you are tall and skinny, don’t try to dress as a Hobbit, or if you are of a wider build, don’t squeeze into a Catwoman suit. It sounds harsh, but trust me, if you are going to spend the time and money on a costume, you want it to be comfortable, look good, and most importantly, be recognizable (in the case of conventions). Also, if your costume idea involves having defined muscles and such, either make a bodysuit or work out (not a bad idea). There is simply nothing worse than a chubby superhero.
I use PVC pipes and/or fittings in pretty much all my props and costumes. It’s easy to use, strong, smooth, and relatively cheap. It allows you to make certain shapes without much trouble. There is however, one major flaw that my buddy Jack commented on. PVC parts are incredibly well-known, and therefore super-easy to recognize as, well, PVC. However, you can negate this rather easily. If you have a lathe or mill, it’s even easier. Just adding a little extra detail in the form of rivets, panel lines, grooves, etc can make a huge difference. A good visual example would be to compare my PowerMaul and my Inquis banner. The banner pole is just straight-up PVC pipe and a few fittings. Without the banner and topper to distract your eyes, the pole is blasé. The PowerMaul, on the other hand, is 99.9% PVC pipe and fittings, but it doesn’t look like it. The grooves on the head, the little details on the middle, and the handgrip all belie the fact that it’s nothing more than a chunk of PVC. So if you want to make something using PVC, and have the time, I strongly suggest you add texture and detail to the piece.
Material Choice is Important
This is especially true when you are considering large costume pieces, like armor or backpacks. The choice of material is paramount, and can often make or break a costume. Lets look at some examples:
Insulation Foam: What I am talking about here is the rigid blue/pink insulation foamboard people use to insulate their homes. It is fairly easy to work with, though a sharp knife and/or hot wire cutter is needed. This stuff is pretty stiff and resilient to bumps and such. There are drawbacks though. Many adhesives and paints tend to melt the foam, and its corners crush easily. Also, it is an insulator, so expect your costumes to get hot fast.
Flexible Foam: This will include foam latex, as well as other variants, like the type you wrap around water pipes. I have seen people use this material for many things. The pig guards in Star Wars were originally foam suits. This is great material for making organic type things, but not a very good choice for something like armor. From armor costumes I have seen made from this stuff, the finished product looks like a marshmallow, and ruins the look of the costume entirely. Factor in cost, insulation values (HOT), and non-repeatability, and I would avoid making armor from it.
Fiberglass: At first, one would think this would be a great thing to make costumes from. It has a high strength to weight ratio and can be used to make fairly complex shapes. There are several problems with it though. Most costumes don’t require the strength of composites, so the pieces typically wind up being heavier than needed. Now, this is fine for something like a boltgun or chest plate, but when you have an entire costume made from it, it’s going to be incredibly overweight. The time and cost involved in fiberglassing entire costumes is also nothing to sneeze at. Lastly, no matter how well you seal pieces made of fiberglass, it will still make you itch. Imagine being encased head to toe in something like that. Not fun.
Polystyrene: In short, plastic sheet. This is what many of the armor costumes you see are made of. It is light, slightly flexible, and will readily vacuum-form into different shapes, which is great if you want duplicates. Like most plastics, it is resilient to bumps and the like, and can be glued with off the shelf products. Granted, vacuum forming requires some space and know-how, but I think it is something every costumer should know how to do. The down side to this is that plastic can be hard to find and expensive. For what it counts, I am using this on 95% of my Space Marine armor.
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