Clone Wars Maul + CRL Progress (Also in SLD Forum)

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Mauvais
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Clone Wars Maul + CRL Progress (Also in SLD Forum)

Post by Mauvais »

Hello Everyone! This is where I will post progress and mini-tutorials for my Clone Wars Maul build. My goal is to submit the CRL and costume for consideration by June. I already have a thread going in the SLD, so this post will be a little on the longer side since I'm condensing my last two posts into one for this forum. Here is a link to the ongoing CRL google doc. Feel free to check it out, make fun of any typos or add some constructive criticism. https://docs.google.com/document/d/10SG ... sp=sharing I have experience with theatrical and cosmetic makeup as well as foam armor construction, painting and weathering. I want to distribute as much information as I absorb, so let me know if I can help with anything! Let's get started! :D

GARMENTS

At first glance, CW Maul appears to be a simpler build than original Maul however the necessity of armor and LEDs can quickly complicate things. Taking a step back we see a red/rust colored undershirt, a black tabard, belt with fixtures, arm-guards and what looks like cargo pants with large pockets that complement a pair of standard metal legs. Tons of respect and admiration goes to the preexisting CW Maul thread(s), they have the CRL down to a science. In the graphic below I have outlined the various pieces. As for patterns, I will be butchering a Simplicity 5840 pattern as well as making my own which I will digitize and upload. I am including the shoulder pieces in the garment section because they move seamlessly with the undershirt and at some angles look embedded into the shirt itself. I am going to try attaching leather to a base of craft foam or stiff interfacing and sew it by hand to the shirt.
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1o43lq ... C8AfMchasK

'ARMOR' FOR PROSTHETIC LEGS

The legs appear to be in three parts, a knee, calf and foot which are divided by a ball joint at the heel. The knee piece looks hollow which allows the knee to bend. The thickness of the legs themselves don't indicate that the metal shape would exceed the dimensions of organic legs. Keeping this in mind, I will be using materials that won't make my legs look bigger with the costume on, since the prosthetics don't exaggerate his form. I will be making the legs out of 2mm and 5mm craft foam and TerraFlex thermoplastic. This method will allow me to carve the details into the foam and add texture/weathering without sacrificing mobility. TerraFlex is a thermoplastic that can be easily molded with a heat gun onto the foam and is very sturdy. With proper priming, the TerraFlex will be smoothed out and painted. Weathering will be a big part of this build. My goal will be to look almost exact to the animation, similar to the weathering requirements of some Clone Troopers.
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1Y5rMm ... UHcraPjSeu

Makeup and Prosthetics

Below is a comparison image of Maul's horns. I think they are bigger, lighter and more angled in CW so I will be carving them accordingly out of columns of air dry clay and adhering them to a base of latex. I want to emulate the chipped/carved look of the animation as closely as possible. As for the makeup itself I will be following the primary CRL guidelines with attention to the texture shown in the animation. Since his face is more oval shaped in Clone Wars, I will be spacing out the black designs a little differently on the bridge of my nose and across my forehead. I am going to experiment with Ben Nye, Mehron Paradise Paints and Diamond FX water-activated face paints, as well as cosmetic favorites like long-wear makeup primers, liquid eyeliners, matte lipstick and precision brushes. I want to target problem areas such as around the eyes, waterline, corners of the mouth and ears with the cosmetics. While they would not replace the industry-standard theatrical makeup by any stretch, I find that 'luxury' cosmetics are marketing more long-wear matte product lines. They look promising as quick-fixes and sensitive-skin alternatives for this sort of application. I will not be shaving my head for this costume, although I am sorely tempted. I will experiment with different bald caps and application methods as well. My goal is to create a big chart that compares different products and measures their longevity, pigmentation, blending, storage and harshness on the skin. I love makeup, so I am really excited to gather data for this chart!
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1tE8R5 ... XGTzQ6bEZs

PROGRESS + PATTERNS

I always begin patterns with saran wrap and green frog tape. The idea is to wrap the leg in saran wrap first and then cover it with tape. Once the leg is covered with one or two layers of tape, free the pattern by cutting a straight line down the front or back. Where you want to conceal the seam later will determine whether you cut on the side, front or back. I chose the front because the calf has a rectangle cut out of the top to fit the knee. Here is a visual guide to how I go about this process. https://drive.google.com/open?id=1gbZaY ... wOD96VdCtY. Once I had my pattern for the calf, I started drafting the knee. Here is a link to the knee pattern.https://drive.google.com/open?id=1DNXfU ... ssSfAYbkhkIt is a jpeg image on my google drive I use for 501st related costumes. Feel free to private message me if the link doesn't work. (You'll have to resize the jpeg to fit your needs.) It should look like this https://drive.google.com/open?id=1GAujk ... iQzYUHa-kW once it is cut out and taped together at the upper piece. It will form a hollow, inverted trapezoid once all the sides are taped together. This process is entirely dependent on the shape of the crafter's body. Measure twice, cut once. I ended up making several paper patterns because I cut too much off trying to fit it right. All that is left of this stage is to cut these pieces out of foam, glue them together and adhere the thermoplastic!

If these mini-tutorials are helpful additions to this build thread, let me know and I'll make sure to make more. I didn't plan on making any for the clothing or the foam-thermoplastic steps because I know methods vary for armor construction and sewing. I should have time this coming week to cut the pieces out of foam and cover them with thermoplastic due to Easter holiday, so I'll make sure to upload pictures of the finished product after gorging myself on discount chocolate eggs. Thanks for suffering through five paragraphs of babbling! :righton:
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Re: Clone Wars Maul + CRL Progress (Also in SLD Forum)

Post by Skykat »

Looks good to me!! You definitely are looking for all the right details.

Good luck to you!
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Mauvais
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Re: Clone Wars Maul + CRL Progress (Also in SLD Forum)

Post by Mauvais »

Skykat wrote:Looks good to me!! You definitely are looking for all the right details.

Good luck to you!
Thank you!! I am so impatient, I know these in-between stages are important but I just want to try everything on already! :dance:
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Re: Clone Wars Maul + CRL Progress (Also in SLD Forum)

Post by Ripcode »

Mauvais wrote:Thank you!! I am so impatient, I know these in-between stages are important but I just want to try everything on already! :dance:
Hurry up already! :wink:
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Re: Clone Wars Maul + CRL Progress (Also in SLD Forum)

Post by Mauvais »

Yikes! it has been almost two weeks since my last update and I don't have much progress to share. I graduate in less than three weeks and I have to finish CW Obi to wear in May, so I'm scrambling to get my final papers submitted and my armor painted in time. This weather needs to let up, I can't get outside to prime or paint anything so long as these ice storms keep cropping up. As promised, I'll update the minute I get some real progress. Freedom is so close...so close :cry:
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HORNS - MAKING, PAINTING

Post by Mauvais »

Materials Used: Air-drying foam clay, acrylic paint

I thought that sculpting the ridges and dents was going to give me the most authentic shape but I was quite wrong. Carving pieces out of the clay caused it to rip and crumble even after being left to dry for almost two weeks and the silhouette looked chunky. Those horns would have worked well for the version where Maul was dragged out of Lotho Minor, but they just didn't match the look I needed. I started over and sculpted a second set, focusing on the size and curve of each one depending on its location on his head.

The painting process was tediously experimental because I needed to recreate the look of exposed bone without actual texture. The horns themselves are smooth, but the layering of different colors created the look of the jagged bone without sacrificing the silhouette. I used many different paints, mostly FolkArt and DecoArt acrylics with a clear satin varnish on top since they look very matte without a top coat. The specific paints I used were FolkArt 2910 Yellow Ochre, 479 Pure Black, 414 Cardinal Red, 2982 Linen and DecoArt Honey Brown, Burnt Sienna, Raw Umber and Polar White.

First, I painted the entire horn opaque brown. Once dry, I applied various yellow, brown, red and off-white tones to create striations in the direction the ridges. I cut little triangles out of tape and stuck them to where I wanted the deepest looking ridges to be and painted over the horn with a moist sponge dipped lightly in the FolkArt Linen color. Once I took the tape off, I used a very thin paintbrush and added some more lines and highlights with the Polar White shade. Last but not least I used the Cardinal Red on the base of each horn and sealed the whole thing with the satin varnish. I would imagine that other sealers like mod podge gloss or satin finish would work fine, too.

I'd love critique/feedback on these! They were a lot of fun to make but I'm eager to see how they look when applied with the bald cap and full makeup.

https://drive.google.com/open?id=1LNCQO ... winol7aGPZ
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1u3vZK ... 5VFVMl6xp3
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1uN40F ... oHwdkl3td0
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1fLLz9 ... GkqoJPQddg
https://drive.google.com/open?id=18j9GY ... PS1VK8tEXi
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Re: Clone Wars Maul + CRL Progress (Also in SLD Forum)

Post by Ripcode »

I had so much fun with you and your sister at C4, I forgot to get pics!!! DOH! :?
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Re: Clone Wars Maul + CRL Progress (Also in SLD Forum)

Post by Mauvais »

Ripcode wrote:I had so much fun with you and your sister at C4, I forgot to get pics!!! DOH! :?

I’m sorry we headed out after two hours or so! It was really fun seeing everyone and we really appreciate the opportunity!
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Re: Clone Wars Maul + CRL Progress (Also in SLD Forum)

Post by Ripcode »

Mauvais wrote:
Ripcode wrote:I had so much fun with you and your sister at C4, I forgot to get pics!!! DOH! :?

I’m sorry we headed out after two hours or so! It was really fun seeing everyone and we really appreciate the opportunity!
And while you want to complete Maul, continue to develop the animated Obi-wan. We loved that one too! :thumbs:
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Re: Clone Wars Maul + CRL Progress (Also in SLD Forum)

Post by Mauvais »

Ripcode wrote:
Mauvais wrote:
Ripcode wrote:I had so much fun with you and your sister at C4, I forgot to get pics!!! DOH! :?

I’m sorry we headed out after two hours or so! It was really fun seeing everyone and we really appreciate the opportunity!
And while you want to complete Maul, continue to develop the animated Obi-wan. We loved that one too! :thumbs:
Absolutely, I saved all my foam patterns so I can start working on him as soon as I get my hands on more thermoplastic!
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Re: Clone Wars Maul + CRL Progress (Also in SLD Forum)

Post by Mauvais »

Tabard, Belt and Bracers all finished and ready for attachments, weathering and the embellishments!
Since there are no visible stitches in any of these components, I used 2mm craft foam the same way I would have used interfacing if I was sewing. I used hot glue and folded the edges of the upholstery leather neatly to the wrong side of the foam. On the wearable side, it layers nicely and doesn't slip against the other pieces. I heat sealed the foam with my heat gun beforehand but I'll glue some felt or cotton to the underside just to keep the foam from getting beat up.
I need a dremel to even out the edges of the metal embellishments that go on the belt and bracers. Once those are done I'll attach them permanently to the belt and add the LEDs!
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1EdMR4w ... sp=sharing
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1AynQqc ... sp=sharing
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Re: Clone Wars Maul + CRL Progress (Also in SLD Forum)

Post by Ripcode »

More great progress! :)
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