"And then, quite separately, we place another order to a Chinese company for these."
"Put it together ourselves."
"Precisely." – Alfred Pennyworth and Bruce Wayne
Recently I have lamented quite a little bit about my attention being split from side projects, and some of them having caused significant delays in creating the batsuit, but these things are not altogether without their own merits.
Things being what they are, and crazy being crazy, they are still moments in my impossible schedule where I manage to derive great pleasure from my somewhat less-than-philanthropic efforts. Besides working on my very first commissioned costume piece, which was already featured in the previous posts, I've also found some time to help build a Halloween party location in Campbellville, as well as a haunted Halloween maze at the PhatBoys Halloween Bootique in Mississauga (pictures forthwith).
Secret Wishes Thigh-High Boot Tops
The flipside of course, is that the clock is still ticking, and I have only 15 days left to finish all the work necessary. That is an extremely uncomfortable timeline, and I am immensely grateful for anything that would help speed up for simplify the work at this point.
So naturally when I saw that PhatBoys carries boot tops, I couldn't resist picking a pair up for myself. Afterall as great as my boots are, they are only 10 inches tall, and by no means do they cover my calf to the knee (as would be accurate to the Nolan costume). So, these Secret Wishes "Thigh-High Boot Tops" seemed like a great idea at the time.
Comparision - Stock boot top vs. bare 10" boot
Little did I remember in my excitement at the time, that Secret Wishes is in fact a Rubie's Costumes brand, and well, I've already had to repair one item of theirs (namely the cowl) stemming from faulty manufacturing.
First of all, credit where credit is due: PhatBoys carries a lot of amazing products, and, had I purchased these boot tops to be used for their original purpose (which is to turn a pair of ladies shoes into thigh-high boots for a day), I'm sure they would look great. Not so much, when I'm trying to hack a single-purpose product for unintended use.
Modified boot tops - side view
Put side-by-side with the original boot, the general sentiment was, that "it looked like an old man's booties from the hospital". I'm sure even Bruce in his old age would find this wholly unacceptable, not to mention the hordes of Batman fantatics out there that would run screaming like little girls.
So the wheels of deliberation, enginuity, and reverse engineering spins. I present modification plans to my mother, and we spend a couple of hours hacking the piece to specifications, chopping off the top and bottom, and seaming the trunk back together, all the while complaining about the bad workmanship of "Made in China".
And voila. No more old man's booties, the full glory of the 10 inch combat boots (or at least the shoe part of it), and the now- knee-high boot tops blend in exactly the way they should, looking like they could even pass for part of the shoe itself. All I have to do is replace those scrapped inner gauntlet pieces for a stock sheet of 6mm EVA.
"Where does he get those wonderful toys?" – The Joker
Stock Utility Belt
A couple months ago, I received a couple of items that were purchased as affordable, ready-made costume parts for the batsuit. Amongst those was a plastic adult batman utility belt. After a few more aquisitions, some fit testing, and modfications, the utility belt is finally at a stage where it is ready for practical use.
Being the single most versatile and multi-faceted tool in Batman's arsenal, the functionality of the utility belt cannot be understated. This one item carries practically all of the Caped Crusader's tools, weaponry, as well as most of his computerized and pseudorealistic technology.
Utility Belt, Fully Loaded
The World's Greatest Detective is often seen carrying way more than a regular emergency services officer's share of tools and gadgets on his belt. Always pulling out just the right gizmos for his crime fighting needs. The key? Modularization and good planning.
A well planned utility belt not only increases carrying capacity, it also improves ergonomics for the weight carried, and reaction times for retrieving the right tools in a hurry, so that Batman's opponents will never catch him unprepared, fidgetting at his belt for that flashlight or batarang.
Parachute Clips
Over the decades, Batman's utility belt has carried many things from weapons, to stealth tools, to forensics gadgets, to well... You name it, he's pretty much done it.
The belt, as you might've guessed, needed to be sturdy and reliable. Since a rather large proportion of Batman's crime fighting gadgets, his theatricality and the control of his surroundings are reliant on the utility belt and its contents, it just wouldn't do to hold the belt together with a flimsy strip of velcro at the back.
Having found a parachute clip from an old luggage strap, I used that to replace the original velcro strip for better strength and durability.
Batarang Holster
Practically everything placed onto this utility belt has been retooled or repurposed. So far, just the most logical and practical things, but lots more is in the works.
First of all, the Batarang Holster. This was originally an airsoft gun holster, which used a velcro closure. What is it with velcro closures? Don't people understand that velcro is mighty loud and attracts way too much attention?
Needless to say, the velcro was removed in favor for a snap button. Unfortunately, I don't have a picture with a batarang, as currently all of mine have been sold out, and I'm waiting to make the next set.
Baton Holster
Also in the lines of weaponry, I've elected to add a baton to the belt. Some of you might be thinking, "Hey Batman doesn't use any batons!", and you are right... At least, partially.
In the DC comics storyline, the Earth 2 version of Batman does carry two tonfas, which are similar enough to law enforcement batons. The reasoning is simple. How many large animals, or supersized villians does Batman encounter every day? Add that up, an suddenly batarangs and smokebombs seem pretty puny, and Batman's martial arts training can only go the distance so far without breaking his back.
Key Silencer
Even in Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight, Batman is seen to have mechanized kubotans loaded into his gauntlets to give him combat superiority over his opponents. So the use of a law enforcement or military baton is not entirely out of the question. Just don't break any laws by beating people up with it.
A key silencer, absconded from my other holster belt since my days as an emergency medical responder. Seeing as even Batman occasionally requires the use of keys, especially to his own vehicles and property, a key silencer is an essential tool to keep from making that annoying jingle every step he takes.
Bat-Cache-O-Cash and Misc Items Pouch
This neat little item is another addition from my old holster belt. Originally this was just a glove pouch, for storing nitrile gloves and barriers for first aid use, but now it's been repurposed to carry the Bat-Cache-O-Cash, and other miscellaneous things, like... a credit card, and driver's license maybe?
You never know when Poison Ivy suddenly wants all your money for a venomous kiss, or when even the Dark Knight might get pulled over on the highway, and might then be required to produce his credentials from an outfit practically devoid of pockets.
Flashlight Holster
Flashlight. Actually, this holster is repurposed also from a previous portion of the EMR belt. This holster used to carry my multitool, but since my LED flashlight seems to fit so snugly in this holster, I decided to use it for now, and go through the trouble of adding a top flap at a later point in time.
Also, I've elected to purchase this LED flashlight, as opposed to using my old Mini Maglite, simply because it's so much brighter. That, and it costs so much less than getting a new LED Maglite, or a replacement kit for the old one.
For now at the very least, Batman will be able to read documents and search crime scenes for clues without any trouble.
Handcuff Holster
So what happens after Batman beats up the criminals? Well... He can't exactly just leave'em there, and GCPD is a little far away. Waiting for the police officers to show would take a bit of patience and gambling on luck.
There's a couple of solutions to that. Tie the evildoers up with rope, or... If they're strong enough to escape even a hogtie, cuff them up with a sleek, black pair of nickel steel handcuffs. Just pray they don't have a key like you do, Batman.
Smartphone and Tools Holster
And last but not least, the tool pouch. This cell phone / tool holder, like the batarang and baton holsters, has been retooled, replacing the stock velcro with a snap button. Two of the compartments have also been amalgamated so that the tools fit properly.
Currently, this holds a smartphone, a multitool, and a rather uniquely shaped racheting screwdriver with various popular bits. The racheting screwdriver as actually hacked together from two separate screwdrivers, taking advantage of compactness and the pistol-like handle. All of that is stuffed into the tool pouch.
Other ideas that have been deferred until later, are smoke pellets, lockpicks, a batline (rope), and a forensic evidence kit. If need be, it's good to know that the belt still has room for possibly one more holster to be added.
"Too expensive for the Army?"
"I don't think they tried to market it to the billionaire, spelunking, BASE-jumping crowd." – Bruce Wayne and Lucius Fox
Progress! Yes, I promised progress, and I hereby deliver an installment. Remember those short, 30 second scenes in Batman Begins where Bruce Wayne spends a seemingly miniscule amount of time creating his batsuit? I think costume makers far and wide will agree, this stuff is exhausting!
Months have gone by since this work began, and now we're closing on crunch time, with still a heck of a lot left to do. I will never look at costumes the same way again.
So, currently the armor pieces are currently still being worked on, and will probably be the focus of most of my time up to the project deadline. A big milestone has been achieved though, and that is the tailoring and seaming for the cape, and the completion of the cowl repairs.
A rip in the cowl
I've done quite a few things to the mask, mostly geared towards extending the life of the product, and improving fit and usage.
Remember this big ol' rip above the velcro closure? I relayed my disappointment in the lack of quality in this officially licensed cowl a couple of months ago.
Rip repaired
After long deliberations and a few trial and error attempts, I've managed to come up with a solution.
The latex material on the cowl apparantly has been treated in such a way that regular liquid latex will no longer bond to the cowl's surface, and so I ended up using rubber cement and tinting it with base colorant to patch the rip. It's still visible somewhat up close, but it'c close enough that it isn't blaringly obvious, and at the very least, this supposedly good cowl I paid good money for is fixed and will hopefully give me a good few years of use.
Invisible zipper closure
You may have already noticed that the closure looks a little different than it did a couple months before. After seeing how dangerously close the velcro closure was to that rip, I didn't want to risk reopening the tear, and so it was replaced with a 7 inch invisible zipper, sewn directly into the latex. The combination of a zipper, and the fact there's a staple keeping the two sides from separating at the top, helps immensely to keep the mask in good shape.
The mask and the halo
And last but not least, is the most invisible modification of all. This cowl was purchased with the understanding that it was a "one-size-fits-most" product, meaning that in truth, it did not really fit my head perfectly.
I was lucky enough that it was larger than my head, and there was some void space to fill in the inside. My friends Adonis and Debbie, who had previously operated a halloween costume store, suggested that I craft a foam halo of sorts to fill the empty space.
Following their advice, I crafted a halo of sorts, that in truth looks like a dwarven miner's work hat, and fitted it inside the cowl. It not only improves the fit, but it also cushions enough space between my head and the latex, which allows my skin to breathe better underneath the mask. Awesome.
Mother, sewing
After all of that was done, a long wait ensued following the original patterning and cutting of the cape fabric. Since my wonderful maternal-unit (read: mother) had agreed to help me tailor and sew the cape, this part of work was left to the mercy of her schedule, and that of her friend's (from whom we borrowed the sewing machine).
But, fortune was with us this week, and amidst an absolutely crazy schedule, I got to take some time out and behold this spectacle, and to direct and supervise the work.
The cape (rear view)
I will say no more other than that she is an absolute monster. The woman sews at super-ultra-turbo-speed. In less than an hour and a half, the work that would've taken me an entire day, was finished with flying colors, summa cum laude. All I had to do was trim some stray seams and threads, and iron it.
And what's more, the result speaks for itself! As I mentioned in the original planning posts, this cape is made with a panne velour material, which is a crushed velvet made from polyester. The material makes for a heavier cape, but it affords a lot of comfort from the velvet pile and gives some amount of tolerance to stretching.
The panels were cut originally from 6' of material, but unfortunately that doesn't leave too much for seaming and whatnot, and when all was done the cape does not drag the floors like its Hollywood counterpart. But I'm okay with that. Having it hemmed at boot height makes for a lot less maintenance in the long run. There's also a little tiny bit of overlap on the seams between each panel to give the illusion of having a glider skeleton built in.
And here we are... The cape and the cowl, patiently awaiting the rest of the batsuit to join them in the fight for justice.
