After making my brother's first costume in 2008...

He asked if I could make Cless Alvein for Comic Con. Sure, but the catch - this one has armor.

I made the outfit quickly and has been sitting around for a couple years now. I wasn't too crazy with the idea of making armor as it takes a lot of time. After procrastinating for years, I've finally buckled down and finished it. I also enlisted my brother's help, as it is for him after all.

We used craft foam for the armor, but some pieces were too big and I wasn't too crazy with the idea of gluing smaller pieces together as the seam would show. I couldn't find large sheets at the store. Luckily eBay to the rescue with a local company selling one yard sheets.

For the "buttons" we used clay shaping it into the size we needed, baking it in the oven, and using spraypaint to get the shine.

Some parts I didn't want fixed, like the ankles. So we used fasteners covered in the clay to match the other buttons.

The brown under armor (as I called it) was brown vinyl that I found in the clearance section.

And I absolutely love the cape; that thing has lining! :D

After working on it every Sunday for about two months, it is finally complete.

Only two problems - the belt ended up too big and the calve covers ripped in the corners. It fit all fine before Vegas. I think what happened is with all the walking we've been doing the past couple weeks, he lost a bit at the waist and his calves got bigger.

Despite those things, it survived the Con. As my brother said, it needs some tweaks if he decides to wear it again next year.

Not too bad considering I didn't have the patience to be perfect. And a shout out to my awesome mama who helped at the very end to thrwart my frustrations on the shoulder armor. :)