Kamala's Costume Page
This page will have photographs and logs of my uniform creations. This will be updated as time allows.
Halloween 1997
KlingKon
1997 - Imperial Red
The making of this costume
(Halloween 97 - Civilian Uniform)
| Shoulder Piece Construction |
| This piece was most difficult to
construct out of all the pieced of the costume. I spent a
long time agonizing over how to make the correct shape
for this. At last I resorted to the good old fabric store
pattern books. Just a few weeks before Halloween is the
best time to buy unusual patterns and materials. For this
shape I purchased McCall's Costume pattern
#8384. It's kind of a mix of patterns
including, get this, a pilgrim costume. Well I'll be,
look at it, it's the same shape as a klingon should
piece! This pattern comes in children's and adult sizes
up to XL. Perfect for both male and female warriors and
their progeny. The materials I purchased were two contrasting shades of garment vinyl and a stiff plastic mesh material to underline and give shape to the construction. The lighter vinyl shade I cut out according to the pattern then carefully cut 3 inch wide strips. At the shoulder a triangle formed which I kept and sewed onto the base colored vinyl along with the strips. The strips I folded and stitched into 2 inch wide strips before top stitching them onto the darker colored base. Each strip has about 1/2 inch between it. Once every strip was sewn on I turned the top piece upside down over the mesh material which had also been cut out using the pattern shape. I sewed these two pieces together leaving the neck area unstitched. When the stitching was done I turned the piece inside out so the top part was neatly tucked against the mesh material. I top stitched around the edges to get the edges to lay flat. Then hand sew the neckline closed. Trim for the shoulder piece consists of some snake patterned vinyl belting I located in Notions. I removed any backing they had on it and opened it out. Following the curved corners of the pattern I cut the belting to match the edges of the shoulder piece. When making the trim be sure it is wide enough to hang over the edge a bit. Finishing the shoulder piece I used Velcro to close it in front. The firm mesh material at first appeared to be too stiff but once the medals and wig were on the shoulder piece laid down across my back and shoulders quite nicely. |
| Bodice Construction |
| This was an interesting piece of creative engineering. It is a fusion of two patterns, Simplicity #7637 (view C ) and McCall's #8043 (sleeves from view B ). I went for rayon's that have a crinkled leather look for the dark brown part of the bodice and a more glamorous gold/brown fabric for the contrast in front of the bodice. The sleeves are of a dark green stretch velvet velour and the contrast to the sleeves is the same fabric I used for the main sections of the bodice. The bodice laces up in back. If you have a nice long wig piece the lacing in back is covered by both the shoulder piece and hair so any deviance from your facial makeup would not be noticed. However you can purchase a body stocking of similar color to your Klingon skin tone if your really picky about those sorts of details. Be sure that your shoulder straps are tight enough so the don't constantly slip off. If you do have problems keeping the sleeve straps on your shoulders you may have to pin or Velcro the straps to an under garment sleeve/strap. |
| Skirt and Accessories |
| The skirt was easy, it's just a
simple brown wrinkle skirt sold in a local hippie fashion
store. Boots, well I have a comfortable flat heeled,
black leather boots on in these pictures. No sense
limping around as a Klingon. With the resurgence of the
'70's disco stack boots there are several decently large
badassed boots out there you can used for Klingon boots.
I didn't bother with the horns but if you wish to add
those go right ahead. Okay collar and bracers, basically
I winged it. The collar is a triangle piece of black
vinyl. This is snapped in the back but Velcro will do.
Make it nice. I used a shiny black piping from the
notions section to trim the collar and bracers. The
Bracers I just measured my forearm at three places, below
the elbow at the thickest part, mid-forearm, and wrist.
Be sure to add about 3 inches to each measurement to
allow for the seams. I sewed my bracers completely but
I'd suggest that you over lap them with Velcro for easier
removal. I found that my arms swelled after being hot in
costume and getting them off was a big pain. Now I know
better. Accessories were easy to find. The emblem on my bracers, collar pins, belt buckle, and the medals on the shoulder piece came from Next Frontier Warrior Outfitters 1-800-633-4314 (Call for catalog). I also had earrings and a pin that I purchased from Dillards, the point is that if you see something that your inner klingon would like, add it to your costume. The belt was made from belting found in the notions department of the fabric store. Not hard to put together with some Velcro and nice belt buckle. The weapon is the official Paramount plastic dk'tagh with sound effects and flip out side blades. I do have a REAL blade called the 'warbird' but if your going to con's and out on Halloween or other public events forget taking real weapons with you. 13 inch blades are cool and all but you'll get nothing but trouble from event crew and police. Better to have fun than get arrested in your costume. |
| Make-up |
| This was my first attempt at
Klingon make-up. I'm happy with the generic 'warriors
head piece' that I purchased from Easley's
Fun and Costume Shop in Phoenix Arizona. It's easy to
put on with spirit gum and I don't even notice it. The
only problem I have with it is it comes in dark brown
only. Since the forehead piece doesn't come with ridge
nose I added a bajoran nose piece. To smooth out the
edges I applied several layers of flesh toned liquid
latex. I am continuously experimenting with the
foundation shades. When doing makeup you'll need to
purchase several shades lighter and darker than your main
foundation shade. This way you can highlight and shadow
ridges, cheekbones, and chin line. The camera with a
flash can be very unforgiving. Best to have a good
make-up job for all occasions. The brand of theatrical
makeup that I used and like is the Ben Nye Matte
Foundation Film & Tape series. This is oil based but
goes on allot smoother and better yet, it doesn't melt
under sweat or hot lights! It goes on smoothly with
make-up sponges, even goes on over latex (seal latex with
castor oil first) and matches the shade on your skin.
Once it's on put on a bronzer powder over every thing to
seal it. It won't be greasy and basically the powder
seals your make-up. I also put this on my hands as I did
with my face but after a couple of icy mugs of warnog
your palms might need a visit to the 'powder room' for a
touch up. Wig, I'd say buy a good one. The one in the photo is top of the line from the costume shop. There is no seam down the middle which is perfect for the klingon 'massive hair' syndrome. Once the forehead and makeup are on I used a couple of clips on the latex head piece to secure to my hair. Then I slid on the wig, making sure it sits back just a little, and bobby pinned the wig to my hair as well. Walla'! Now your ready to wage war and party! |
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Klingon.
This page last updated on 09/23/98 05:39 PM