Flynn Rider final photos!!

I finally received some photos from my son, here he is as Flynn Rider!

I might get some closer up photos later.

A little bit of fun with a beach towel.

The Boots!

The boots were bought on-line, as I said in an earlier post, and then enhanced. The top flap of faux leather was sewn to the upper inside edge of the boot and then folded over to the outside . Because there is a zipper in the boots there needs to be two flaps with openings on both the inside of the  boot and the outside. The outside flaps needed to be cut away in a curve but it seemed logical to do the same to the inside. To help keep the fake leather from curling store the boots with a rubber band around the flaps.
     The boot cover was made of 2 layers of a darker shade of faux leather but I'd prefer a piece of real leather, which would be stiffer, less creasing. The top of the piece is wider than the bottom. Measure how much you need to go around the bottom of the boot and the back, secure with studs. The straps should angle but it's difficult to keep them in place. You can actually make the cover off the boot, slip the bottom strap over the toe and then bend the top of the boot into the ankle strap. To keep at least the bottom strap angled I stapled it to the sole with a staple gun.

Flynn Rider costume is done, but no photos yet!

As I posted yesterday, the costume is done! Hopefully, I'll have photos before the weekend is over. Additionally I made a Sweeney Todd vest and scarf today and recovered a corset in black for Mrs. Lovett. Also no photos there yet. Lol. There's more to do for Eurydice  and a little shopping for The Children's Hour but I estimate by Tuesday my hands and shoulders can take a rest.

In doing so much sewing I think sewing machine cabinets and maybe sewing machines should be designed differently. There is too much turning of the right shoulder or arm, stressing the muscles in the back.  There should be more room on the platform for material and hand space. Just my observations.

My wonderful husband did all of the Halloween decorations while I've been madly sewing. The house looks great. Thank you!

Flynn Rider- fastners, clasps, latches, hooks or loops

What ever you want to call them the metal loops and hooks on the front of the doublet were an interesting detail. It wasn't enough for the designers to simply make closures they had to add rivets, patches and seaming. After having completed this part if I do the costume again I'd do the patches differently. There was a lot of fabric to sew through, in some places 7 layers.

Right tab with studs placed

Hook through the fabric but not the tab

Loop tab on square patch

Back of hook on inside of doublet

Assembly completed (weird color)

The small rivets in the patches are actually studs like those in a bedazzler. For the loop patch three sides were sewn, the flat piece was sewn to the patch, the loop was placed on the patch and using a zipper foot the strip was brought over the flat portion of the loop and sewn.  Next the open end of the patch and the strip were tucked inside the patch and sewn to the doublet. The studs were put on next. Because of the thickness a bit of glue would be a good idea, something that bonds metal to fabric like E6000 (use sparingly). If I did this again I'd probably not double the patch, just turn under the edges and top stitch, no need for glue in that case. For the hook side the hook needed to be put through a small hole in the fabric and then secured to the doublet. The stitching should be under the patch if you made the hook and it's extension correctly (mine turned out to be backwards! sorry hubby) The patch also needs a hole in it for the hook to go through. Then just like the other side sew top stitching with a zipper foot and add the studs. Because my hooks were backwards under the patch I could not top stitch on the end of the patch.

By a stroke of luck I found washable Irish linen pants I redid for the pants. It ended up with an elastic waistband but I still have the other fabric if I want to make a new pair of pants. Time was running out and it seemed like a wise thing to go with the thrift store find.

Next post will be the boots enhancements.

As a teaser, the outfit is actually done, but my son took it for a pre-Halloween party so I don't have photos yet! 

Flynn Rider starting to take shape

It's beginning to actually look like something! (No it's not uneven, the dress form is too small!) For the shirt I took off the regular collar, made one using the old collar for the neck curve and the top edge with squared corners. It is interfaced.  I've decided to buy boots, just getting too close to the deadline with too much to do. Here's a link Boots . They are reasonably cheap, they do not look exactly like Flynn's but I think I can adapt the tops and will make the ankle covers.

Flynn Rider costumes on-line, just in case you want to pay for a costume

The other 2 projects, costuming for Eurydice  and The Children's Hour have started to take time away from the Flynn Rider costume. I am working on bits and pieces and will post photos once there is something to really see.

To make the front meet correctly I had to fold in some of the overlay and the first try resulted in an uneven fold where the lapel makes an angle up to the collar. This wouldn't have taken long to correct except my son is only here once or twice a week. It now looks better and I'm working on the tabs. I also did a sample rivet and the posts might be too long. A bit of research shows the rivets are really for leather and it would be better to use round head spots for the shoulders. The front tabs might be thick enough for a rivet.

Thrift store shopping turned up a great plain leather belt, however it looks like it's too wide for the waist belt (why does he wear this anyway? It doesn't hold anything up and nothing is attached to it) and will more likely be the pouch belt.  We're not sure we'll do the satchel.

Hang in there! More photos soon!

Late edit: Just looked on-line at the Flynn Rider costumes and almost choked at either the price or the way they looked. Can't imagine what I'd charge for mine.
etsy $600.00 costume     etsy $325.00 costume      cosplay $166.00 costume
 

Flynn Rider "forged" clasps

The clasps on the front of the doublet were a worry from the start. They are very unique. I've looked at oval hoops and thought maybe I could flatten one end, but the fasteners really aren't ovals.

clasps

 

There's a tutorial on making the fasteners at Flynn Rider closures tutorial . They use # 8 wire and lots of muscle!
I didn't have 8 gauge wire and their wire more round than I wanted. I did use their technique for shaping the hooks though. I had copper wire I was going to use for an open bustle (another project I bought the materials for but haven't begun!). Bending the wire was too much for me so I turned to my husband. He was able to make a much better replica.
What you see to the right is the wire and the loops, they were flattened by pounding with a hammer after they were formed. We tried to flatten the wire and then shape but that didn't work.

In the photo the small blue square of fabric is the size of the completed patch the loop is sewn on, it measures 1 1/4" by 1 3/8" (sort of). The patch with the strip pinned to it is the unsewn size, folded (basically I added about 1/4 inch for the seams) and the strip is what keeps the metal loops attached. The strips are so narrow I didn't want to make tubes. Instead I cut the actual size of the strips (3/4" wide by 2 1/2") and used Fray Check on the edges.

For the other side, the hook side, the patches are longer, they actually overlap the center. This piece is 1 5/8" by 1 1/2". To make either patch cut on them on the fold sew the two side edges, turn, tuck in the raw edges. On the loop side the thin strip will be tucked in as well.

To sew the loop side, after turning and tucking, place 1/2" of the strip on to the small rectangle , sew through all layers 3/8" in. Sew a couple of times to secure.
Ideally the patch should be more squared all the way around than the photo to the left.
Pin the patch to the vest so it just to the left of the vest edge.
Next sew the patch to the vest on three sides, top, left and bottom. Lay the flat end of the loop on to the strip, fold the strip over the end of the loop. Using a zipper foot sew the strip close to the metal loop. Sew twice to secure. Tuck the strip into the open but inward folded edge and finish sewing down the right hand side of the patch.

Flynn Rider Doublet construction Done!

The construction of the doublet is done! Next comes the embellishments and front closures. (This mannequin is way too small for the costume.)

Flynn's doublet awaiting adornment

Flynn Rider Studs

Detail of collar

Rivets/Studs

Our local craft store, Michael's, had a package of brass "rapid rivets" by Tandy Leather Factory. You can also get them at leather stores if there's one in your area. They're in assorted sized and there are just enough for the around the armholes. My doublet will use 8 on each side, but it could use 9 or 10 if you went all the way under the arm.

The photo on the right is a detail of the back of the collar, you can see the extra long piece that will be tucked under for a clean edge. If you do a long collar facing take into account the top stitching. You don't want to sew the top stitching all the way down to the edge on the back facing, stop 5/8 before the edge (the seam depth).
The top stitching sort of matches the lines on the doublet overlay. Two different views of the Flynn Rider drawing show two different match ups. I chose to go with the one that is not an exact continuation of the lines to make it easier to assemble.

The lines are farther apart in the view on the left, but in other views they seem on line with the doublet's.
Imagineers don't have to always get perfect every time. ;-)

Flynn Rider Costume continues

The front lapel/collar is top stitched both along the edges and vertically. The vertical lines and top edge can be done before attaching the piece but obviously the lower part is done after it's sewn to the main body.

close up of lapel/collar top stitching

I chose to leave the inside back facing free from the seam and turn it under for a more finished look, possibly less irritating on the neck too.

In my quest for a leather bag I found a leather rectangular pouch that I think will work. It needs the belt loop, I'll post before and after photos soon.

My biggest concern now is finding the studs for the armhole seams and finding boots. I doubt we'll spend the money for real boots, so I'll have to make suitable covers, plus the spat-like additions.

Top stitching Flynn Rider costume

Top stitching seems to be everywhere on Flynn Rider's vest!
Top stitching simulates the strips of leather used to make the vest/doublet. It is the top stitching that gives the costume it's authentic look...unless of course you're making it out of leather. 

 Having shown the caplet top stitching in the last post, let's turn to the piece below the main body of the vest aka peplum.  Two, long, slightly curved pieces are sewn at the center back and lined with the same fabric to make the peplum. I used the original pattern but shortened the vertical length. Note: Do not cut out this piece until after you've lengthen the top of the vest. (See previous post on Sept 19th showing the pattern pieces.) Turn it inside out, pin to keep the seam flat. Close examination of the Tangled pictures shows the top front edge goes from narrow to wide and then again narrows and widens as the stitching goes to the center back. This is repeated on the other side so the widest margin of top stitching is at the center back. See close-up of photo to the left for the front edge of the peplum.
Next there are rows running vertically down the peplum. To add a bit of a flared look I made the top of the rows about 1.5 inches apart and the bottoms are 1.75 apart. Start at the center back and mark the lines working forward, adjust the angles if they seem to be too slanted. Most of the peplum will be covered by belts and bags.


Caplet Issues: (Sew shoulder seams prior to this.)
The photo to the right shows the caplet set in the sleeve hole. There was nothing special about this other than making sure you like the depth at the top of the sleeve cap. Personally, I think this is one of the times you need to make sure you like the look of the vest on the wearer. Use the Flynn Rider pictures to judge for yourself how far out the caplet edge should be.

If I had more fabric I'd re cut the caplet and make it longer. As it is, it does not go all the way around the armhole. The photo to the left shows the area where the ends do not meet.  I'll make a facing to finish off the armhole but with out a complete circle you'll need to make sure you like the look of the caplet's arrangement. My main concern was for the front to look like the Tangled picture and have the top stitching meet low in the armscye in the front, this gives the illusion it goes all the way around.

Once the caplet was in I could figure out how far apart the studs will be, about 3", but with some minor adjustments to match placement on the original costume.

Caplet top stitching

The shoulder extensions, caplets, how ever you'd like to describe them, have five details. Two are on the edge of the piece. I sewed less than a 1/4 inch seam on the edge, then one 1/2 inch in and another about 1/8 of an inch from the second row. I used the inside edge of the presser foot as a gauge for the 1/8 inch . Depending on your pressure foot and the markings on the sole plate of your sewing machine you can determine what you'll use as a guide. I will baste the sleeve in before dong the top stitching on the armhole. My current idea is to get the seam allowance, place the metal studs and then sew in the seam with a zipper foot. The concern is whether the studs will be secure through all the layers. As soon as I do a trial run I'll let you know.

The top of the photo above shows the interfacing in the collar section. It's a mid-weight sew in interfacing. It's possible a light weight would have be sufficient since the doubled fabric is fairly stiff. Not show is the clipping of the outside curving edge, clip out little "v"s so when it's turned inside out there will be a smoother curve.

Flynn Rider goes on the road

Taking the Flynn Rider blog on the road is harder than I thought. I'm actually using my Blackberry to post this. No internet for the laptop.

The shirt for Flynn is probably easier to purchase than make, especially if it's a second hand shop find. The sleeves are rolled so there's no worry over the length. The shoulders are under the doublet so no worries there either. $the only distinguishing feature is the collar. A short stand up collar is shown. If you like sewing you can always take an existing white shirt, take off the old collar and add the correct kind.

If you're real lucky a tux shop will have donated shirts to a Thrift store!

Flynn Rider moves along....

I'm traveling and have sporadic WiFi, hopefully we'll keep things updated.

The shoulder caps on the vest are double fabric, so it looks the same on both sides and the top stitching will show but I've also decided to add a middle weight interfacing. Hopefully this will not make putting rivits in to difficult. 

Similarly, the front collar will have interfacing so it stands up on it's own.

Here's a photo of the pants fabric

Flynn Rider vest details

Adding the details for the front of the vest has hit a snag. My plan was for the vertical lines to be simply stitches sewn down the vest, but as you can see it's practically invisible. You can see it somewhat in different light.

Here's a photo of the sample I did with different color thread and types of thread. The spool on the left is the color I'm using for general sewing. The spool on the right is the third color from the right on the swatch, next to it is a navy blue.

The thread on the 2 far right are with quilting thread. If I can find a thread color like the darker one I'll use that for the vertical top stitching.

You may ask why I don't double the fabric like the overlay. A double/triple layer would make the vest even hotter to wear, it's hard to say how hot it will be in Southern California for Halloween, it's been known to be in the 90's!

Flynn Rider's vest/doublet

A quick note, teal leather maybe available but I wasn't going to work with it, especially since not even the Flynn's at Disneyland Resorts have leather vests.

The vest is probably the most iconic part of Flynn's costume.  To the right you'll see the top overlay for the vest and the muslin piece that has top stitching pattern lines on it. You'll need to click on photo to see the details better. The pattern for the stitching was transferred using tracing paper and a rolling tracing tool but I didn't want to use a high contrast color so I went over the lines with a seamstress' disappearing ink pen. The lines are across the vest and along the edge, additionally, the sewing line was also draw on the flannel.

The process is 1) draw top stitching lines on the right side of the overlay, 2) draw stitching line on the "wrong" side of the flannel, 3) baste flannel to overlay at two edges, your choice, 4) draw stitching line on the front of the vest.

Shows how the stitching line matches up

 Next, place the overlay on the vest front matching the stitching lines. The overlay will lay down the front and be flipped up toward the shoulder.

Pinned overlay

Pin and sew. Pull overlay up and pin at shoulder seams. I did not press the front because I wanted the rounded look at the lower edge but this would be the point at which you could. 
After you match the shoulder pin. Top stitch the diagonal edge at the bottom of the overlay then work you way up. Start at the armhole edge and work to the center front. At the beginning leave a long thread to pull through and tie off or stitch a couple of stitches at "0". This will secure the stitching. 

The sample to the left shows the look of the different the stitch lengths. (Note 4 is a gathering stitch on my machine, 2 is the normal setting.)   I chose 3.      

The finished look is to the right. You'll notice the overlay does not extend to the front edge, this is okay, it will be part of a turned under edge where I did not want the extra fabric. Look closely and you'll see the bottom line narrows as it goes toward the center.

Need more information? A better explanation? Just let me know with a comment and I'll do my best to clarify.

How to make a Flynn Rider costume or an "un" Tangled tutorial!

Even though I've started costuming for a couple of school productions the Flynn Rider costume needs to be the priority. Here's where it's at.
After looking at a few fabrics we changed our mind on the suede-like fabric because it was too dark. We also passed on the greener teals and settled on a canvas-like fabric that is a combination of sky blue and teal. Washing the fabric gave it a much softer feel and nice texture.

This photo shows the muslin pattern that was basted for fit and then separated. The front-side/front, in the center of the image, shows the extra blue fabric that was added to the front for a little extra room as well as the sleeve caps which I want wider. If you look closely you'll see the body pieces were lengthened. Not pictured here are the tabs for the front closures.

The next picture shows the pattern pieces with the original paper pattern pieces for comparison. The front overlay, front lapels and back collar were hand made. The front lapel, especially, needs to be a trial and error piece.

You'll start with a rectangular piece and trim away until it sits the way you'd like it to. It has to be done on the person you're sewing this for or a mannequin. The collar/lapel seems to sit differently depending on the view but here's a view from Bria-Silivern's site.


Since we have this picture here it's a good time to take a closer look at the pattern piece.

To give the front a 3 dimensional look I decided to make an extra chest overlay. I'll also put a layer of flannel between the top piece and the front piece underneath so the decorative stitching will have more to define. Looking closely at the pattern you'll see the first lines were straight but in the real jacket they are actually curved. The ruler is on the first straight line, the black lines are curved. It's more work so it's up to you if you want to curve the decorative stitching. There are about 8 lines, equally spaced.
On the left side, but not the armhole, are two additional lines. One is the sewing line and the other is another top stitching line. This too curves, wider at near the armhole and thinner towards the mid-body edge. I'll be sewing the overlay to the front/side-front right sides together along the sewing line and then flip it up to sew the top stitching. The flannel will be sewn to the overlay before that step...but I'm getting ahead of myself!

Click on the posts to the far right to see previous posts about which patterns I'm using and a few preliminary items.

Flynn Rider Update

This is the muslin pattern with markings for the top stitching detailing marked. It doesn't look to good on a female mannequin but fits well on my son. I've decided there will be a second layer for the yoke which will add depth at the front edge, hopefully making it look more leather.

However, I'll have to put Flynn on hold.  The 1886 dress will be worn this weekend in an area which has dirt so it needs to have a duster, petticoat edging for the train.

Always more than one project at at time! Well, actually it's usually more than two, three, etc.....

Fynn Rider 2

While waiting to re-fit my son's muslin pattern, I put together a page for each part of the costume to note details and questions. This is the page for the vest, since it is the most detailed it seemed like the best one to illustrate what I mean. (There's a second page that has the vest hardware on it.) One of the things I noticed in reviewing the photos is how much top stitching there is. There are a few quirky things like a wide belt loop on his right side that seems to be for both the vest belt and the larger belt that holds his side pouch.

My original idea was to make the pants from a fake suede already in my fabric stock pile, but a closer picture shows it's more linen-like. I picked up something I think will work well but have decided to use a different pants pattern than the one that comes with the vest, Simplicity 4059. It has a yoke with more fullness in the legs than is needed. 

Hopefully, the shirt will be a thrift store find, maybe the boots as well.

Getting tangled in Flynn Rider

(If you're looking for the latest update, scroll down and click on October on the right side column.)
Over the years I've made far more costumes for my daughter than my son (age 25), so when he said he thought he'd like a Flynn Rider Halloween costume I was pleased to oblige. For those of you who are not Disney fans or do not have young children, Flynn Rider is the principle male figure in the movie "Tangled".

 Here he is, Flynn in all his youthful Disney glory. (A big thank you to  Bria-Silivren  and her detailed analysis with photos!)As usual he's a bandit who turns good, but that's not my project! I just need to replicate the outfit. Of course no man has such a tiny waist and broad shoulders.

The first thing was to look and see if there were any commercial patterns that would work. The closest one was Simplicity 4059. After a quick muslin mock up it's apparent there will need to be a number of alterations. The vest back is way to high in comparison to the front (C). The back will need to be in line with the "natural waist" of my son, aka where he wears his belt. Alterations of the shoulder flanges is simple enough, just a tapering towards the center of the armpit (no side seams on this pattern) (B). A stand up collar will also need to be added and the front slanted appropriately (A).  There's an addition over the hips too.

Here's a photo of where I'll be making pattern changes. At D I'll cut the fabric and fold it over for more of a separate piece look. Most people who have made a Flynn Rider vest have used a microsuede but I found a backed upholstery fabric that will have more body to it. The original looks like leather.

The biggest challenge will likely be the front closures but I have an idea for those!

NEW PAGE....Fashion magazine and book downloads Free! :-)

This new page, Free Downloads of Fashion Magazines and Books, has turned out to be a time consuming project. There are far more out there than I realized. Other sites list links to repositories but I wanted to have the reader go to a year and then directly to the periodical.

Yesterday, I spent the entire day listing and posting and there are many more to do! I really do need to finish at least one sewing project so I'll take a break. Looks like this will be an under construction project, more items will continue to be posted as I am able.

I hope this helps your research!