alas...another jedi robe inquiry (but this one's also a rant!)

i've decided that i am NOT going to use a pattern for my robe. we (my grandma and i) are going to tape some newspaper together, measure me on it and do a T shape. the movie robes are just a much simpler design than any patterns i'm seeing (with only a seam down the back and under the arms/on the sides), so we're doing it that way.

i'm just wondering, has anyone else done it this way? i'm curious if it will fall right or if i'll be better off making the shape bell out at the bottom.

i'm wondering the same exact thing about the sleeves; should they bell out a bit or be perfectly straight?

and if anyone can solve the mystery of how you *really* do a hood, i'd really appreciate your help. no one seems to be insanely happy about any of the instructions i'm coming across. i've been to jedi-academy.com, padawansguide.com and amber's jedi meditation chamber already. i'd be fine with amber's instructions except i've been hearing from people who've made these that it's either too big or too small.

thanks so much for reading all this slop. if i get an answer i hope it helps other people having this same problem.

 

I made my first robe this way. I used brown packaging paper and made a pttern out of it. I made my sleeves straight i guess go to my website (Links in the sig) there are some good How to pictures in there of how to make the robe

 

Hi, Maggie here, from padawansguide.com. Just wanted to add my $0.02. I followed the WiliQueen instructions on Amber's Site, which are the ones I advocate on my page. I had really good luck with them. I used the Simplicity #7438 cloak, added the sleeves and followed WiliQueen's hood instructions. The Jedi robes in the movie are very voluminous, and that's really the feel I was going for as well. Don't ask me how Jedi are able to fight in those things!
<p>
You can see my robe <a href="http://www.padawansguide.com/gifs/maggie1.jpg">here</a> and the robe I made for my friend Scott from the same pattern <a href="http://www.padawansguide.com/gifs/Scott1.jpg">here</a>.

 

Nice to meet you Maggie... I actually used your site to help me make my jedi robe... your thanked in my in my website

 

Last year my friends and I used a McCall's pattern to make Harry Potter robes, which could easily be modified into a Jedi robe. It's a T pattern with the seam down the back (though for short people like me, it's actually possible to remove the back seam completely..).

I can't remember the pattern # for the life of me, but it's the same one as in this eBay auction.

I think the one in the auction is an older version of it, because the # is different. But if you look in the costume section of the McCall's pattern book at fabric stores you'd find it. The only mods you should need to make would be to make the sleeves wider and a bigger hood.

 

Thanks Jedi Samantha! If you have any pictures of your costume, send them to me and I'll post them!

 

Well, I just about finished my husband's robe last night. We used Simplicity #9887 for the robe, and it actually turned out really really well! We are very happy with it! I only had to modify the sleeves. All I did was simply "round off" the ends, so they weren't so pointed. We decided to make the sleeves very wide at the opening.

I only have the hood left to do, and I decided to make my own, rather than use the pattern piece. I will let you know how it turns out.

As soon as it's finished, I plan to post pictures of the final product.

 

Mrs MN, good idea. I used this pattern for my sith robe and did the sleeves pointed since it was a sith. But I wish the hood was a bit bigger now. The pattern hood was actually bigger than the last robe I had made so I thought it would be plenty big. Now I wish I had done a little larger. Oh well!

 

Maggie - Theres pictures of me and my costumes all over my website. Feel free to use them. I'm also in the process of making the Barris Offee costume. Should be done with it this weekend.

 

The patterns can work just fine, you can make changes to them to accomodate for the correct seams. Unforunately, I have no idea where you would find fabric that wide. Your armspan is equal to your height. It's hard enough to find enough fabric to make the cloak in any width, let along 6 feet wide.
I modified Simplicity Pattern #7438. I added my own sleeves and the hood. For the hood, I did this:
1) Cut rectangle of cloth 45" x 25" and fold in the center. The fold is going to be the top of the hood.
2) Cut a curved shape off of the top rear corner, as shown below. Stitch the back closed.
3) Now gather the hood and stitch it to the neck region of the cape piece. Stitch all the way around to the front of the cape piece, not just the back. Remember, the fold goes on top. The hood will be gathered allot, but this will look good.

This is basically the same tutorial found at Amber's Jedi Meditation Chamber and it works quite well.

 

When you're 5'2", 60" width fabric is plenty wide.

 

McCalls' pattern #9496, I believe is the number, is a good starting place. The only modifications I make are to NOT sew up the front, and to make the hood a bit wider. The hoods for the Jedi cloaks in the movie are HUGE, and it's really a matter of taste just how big or little you want them. My advice is to start big, because you can always cut it down if it's too much.

If you're doing your own pattern (done that, too), a few words of advice. First, the bell shaping at the bottom is important to get the right amount of volume to the cloak. Otherwise, it doesn't wrap around you properly. (Voice of bitter personal experience!)

For the sleeve's, it's not as important, though they do seem to have that shape, in TPM at least. They should be pretty roomy, though.

If you've got a few extra bucks lying around, buy a bunch of muslin (it's usually only $1/yd or less) and try out your pattern on that, before you try cutting on expensive cloak fabric. Hope that helps! Good luck!

 

I second Maggie's comment about using WilliQueen's instructions hosted on Amber's site. That's how I made mine and I think it looks good. Even my husband approves, and he has a VERY critical eye!

The robe does need to be voluminous to look right.

I hadn't seen Simplicity 9887. That looks like an excellent option for those who want to use a pattern. I'll now be suggesting it rather than the ones I have been. Patterns are a moving target.

 

Hey, gotta say "hi" to Maggie. REALLY love your site,I visit frequently,and you've helped me to get my robes and accessories together.A REALLY great site.Keep it goin' !

 

Go to http://hometown.aol.com/jedimistressdrgn/myhomepage/index.html and click on the costuming page at the top of the main page. I tell you exactly what patterns I used and how I made my robe and the rest of the Jedi costume (tunic, tabard, pants). You can see the photos of me in the costume on the Dragoncon '99 Photo page. Of course, now that I have and am still loosing weight need to take it in, but hey! Also check my http://fantasticdreams.50megs.com for photos of cons and events-where I am in come costumes at. Sorry no tutorials on that website as that is my main one now.
The T tunic can be made without a pattern and just using the shape of your body-I did it years ago for a medieval gown, but the pattern I used for my robe is the Navity scene patterns and I also used it for my Delenn of Babylon 5 costume. You just have to learn to alter the costume to make it into the costume you want-costumers have been doing it for years!
Pam
PS The Jedi costume is so simple and anyone should have no problems with it.

 

Simplicity, macalls, or Butterick's patterns are the way to go. I used a Simplicity one for mine because they are usually half off, and I varied the materials I used.
For the SIth robe itself I used a PETA-freindly artificial leather (Black naugahide) and for a full liner I used black polyester.
It included the hood. If you go sith you need a hood. It's a pre-requsite unless you have a helmet, then a hood and a helmet look dorky.
You can check out the pics at www.geocities.com/wetspectre/sith
Buzz

 

Joann's has simplicity patterns for $0.99, and McCall's for $1 today(friday) and tomorrow only.

 

Mrs_MayimNaar, when you used Simplicity 9887, what did you do about the Yoke. I went out and got that pattern today but it has this odd yoke. I can't imagine why they designed it that way.

If I use this pattern, I'll probably tape the yokes to the body of the pattern and cut as one piece. That's the way the robes look to be in EP I.

 

I NEVER use patterns... and on the rare occasion when I do, I usually end up changing it some how. Any way, what I did for my clients robe is just get his measurements. Lay out the fabric and I drew right onto the fabric with my trusty fabric pencil. Then I cut it out and sewed it together. The sleeves came to a point at the ends, they look really cool. And I did bell the bottom (It's much easyer to hem that way.)

As for the hood, it is about 24"X50", very big, and I lined it as well. It's wonderfully drapy and looks creepy when up.

 

My robe is made as in WilliQueen's directions. I, too, drew right on the fabric.

My question, though, was to the person who has used the Simplicity pattern.

 

well we've pretty much finished the robe. we didn't use a pattern or even newspaper, we just kind of guessed at it, and it looks perfect except for that we didn't bell it out on the bottom, and i agree we should have. i think we still can though, and apparently it was so easy that my grandma doesn't mind if we buy better fabric and remake it (which will make me very happy because i hate the fabric we used; it's too thin and the wrong color).

anyway, thanks SO much for the replies everyone! i would have checked back sooner but i didn't get any notifications that i had replies here, even though i set it up to email me.

 

ok, hate to be redundant if it's already been asked, but im to lazy to read the whole thread , but what do you use under the robe?

 

D'oh! just saw that you're finished . . . well maybe this will be useful for someone else.

jupitertronic writes:
>>i've decided that i am NOT going to use a pattern for my robe. <snip> i'm just wondering, has anyone else done it this way?

Yep -- I had my sister lie flat on a big sheet of 3 mil clear plastic sheeting and traced around her with a Sharpie. The fabric was a 60" wide wool/synthetic blend bought on clearance. I used something like 5-6 yards of it. (I find that the materials you use actually affect the authenticity of the look more than the pattern. This is a little late to find wool, but if you locate it it *will* be on deep discount).

I flared the bottom of the robe and the ends of the sleeves -- if you look closely at this picture from Halloween '99 you can see I put something like a 6" cuff/facing at the end -- I *think* that was intentional & not a correction of a design flaw, the goal being that you not see the sleeve hem when you lift your hand up.
http://members.aol.com/opheliamac/jedi3.gif

The only quirk of the "T-tunic" pattern is that it's square under the arms and you're not -- so the fabric sometimes pulls in funny directions. I used a "cheat" from medeival re-creation for this -- cutting out an approx. 8" by 14" rectangle of the robe fabric and sewing it diagonally into the seam that runs from the underside of the sleeve to the side of the robe. This is basically just a funky gusset.

As for the hood, I just cut out two large rectangles and used one to line the other. I sewed the "outside" rectangle to the collar of the robe and finished the "inside" one with a strip of bias tape made from the robe fabric. In the picture you can't see this detail on my sister's costume, but it's visible on my nephew's. (Apparently I didn't line his hood though -- probably decided it was too much trouble. )BTW, you can get a little sewing notion that basically enourages a fabric strip to fold into a bias tape shape -- I don't have the name, but I think Dritz makes them. They're probably about $3.

If you look at this picture of Obi-Wan's robe from EPI, you can see the hood was slightly gathered before it was attached to the robe and the raw edge was finished with homemade bias tape:

http://www.starwars.com/databank/organization/thejediorder/index.html


FWIW, I think I used a modified bathrobe pattern for the undertunics.

 

Here's my robe question.

Will it look right on a VERY short and petite Padawan leaner? (me). I'm so short it's NOT funny. I get mistaked for a kid all the time. The sabre'll be almost as tall as I am. My robe will be here any day now. Most of the Jedi's are very tall people. I wonder if it'll "Sit" right on my tiny frame?
Thanks
Mynn

 

It should - so long as the robe is made to your proportions, you shouldn't have any problem with it looking like you're drowning in fabric (even though they're supposed to look big). I really like Amber's Jedi Robe tutorial, because it can be customized to fit anyone.

Hope that helps!
kreleia ^.^