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Wearing out or "dirty up" garb....

Started by RoboRob, April 05, 2014, 10:52:46 AM

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RoboRob

Hello everyone,
I'm putting together a new garb for my hunter/archer.  Two of the pieces is a new hunter green surcoat with hood and a green shirt to wear under it.  I'm looking for some tips and pointers on how to get it to look a bit more worn out, dirtied up or dinged out without obviously running it through actual dirt.  I would figure just several washes will do but worried about the material shrinking.  Any advice will be appreciated.

isabelladangelo

A)  You are going to have to wash your garb at some point.  Ergo, washing it now will see how bad the shrinkage is.  On most cotton fibers, there should be little to no shrinking.  It's wool and linen that tend to go crazy - which is why you wash the fibers before you make the garb.

B) Tying it to the back of the truck and taking the garb down a dirt road (or one with lots of potholes) works very well.   Again, you'll have to wash it afterwards. 

gem

Manhattan Wardrobe Supply sells a full line of costume distressing supplies--kind of stage makeup for your clothes. I haven't had a chance to try them yet. We have used varying sorts of craft paints & sundry.

How hard are you on your clothes? Milord can "distress" his in about one wearing. ;) You can also rough them up in the wash, by washing/drying them with more abrasive items like heavy jeans, sneakers, towels, etc. Just use reasonable caution with your equipment (frex, I've heard people recommend putting chains in the dryer! There are probably better ways.)

Google costume distressing and you'll find some good links. I read one very interesting blog on the subject, written by an opera costumer.

Butch

I've tied some shirts on the back of my car and just went around the block in order to make zombie shirts.  They REALLY got torn up in that short trip!  So, be careful if you use the car method.

LadyStitch

It also depends on what kind of distressing you are wanting.  Do you want them to look like they have been worn out in the woods alot?  Just worn for year?  Do they need to look like you have walked across a desert in August?  I ask because each type of "stain" is a different technique. 
Sand paper on hems and cuffs give a nice worn look.  Baby oil with a very fine potters dirt in it  can make great sweat stains.   Using an air brush with weak yellow, brown, and grey pains can tint  things to show stains. 

It also depends on the type of fabric that you are using. If you are using cotton twill run it through 3-4  washing machine cycles. Typically, if i can put the item into my wash safely I will run it with my laundry. No sense wasting water.   Another trick one person used to distress a canvas vest, and many use it to soften canvas when making kilts is to put it in a cement mixer with rocks.  They tell me 15-20 minutes and it was beat to heck. 

The long and short is, what type of distressing do you need?
It is kind of strange watching your personal history become costume.

RoboRob

Lady Stitch
I am going to be getting a hunter green hooded sleeveless surcoat for my hunter garb, so the idea would probably be running around in woods and such.  I'm leaning towards a medium weight cotton blend.


stonebiscuit

Pre-wash everything, as Isabella said, and then when you finish the garment(s), take them outside into a path of yard that gets a lot of sun. Lay them there and forget about them for a couple of weeks except to occasionally turn them over.

isabelladangelo

Quote from: RoboRob on April 07, 2014, 03:40:31 PM
Lady Stitch
I am going to be getting a hunter green hooded sleeveless surcoat for my hunter garb, so the idea would probably be running around in woods and such.  I'm leaning towards a medium weight cotton blend.


I'd stay far away from blends (unless it's a natural blend like cotton/linen) - particularly if you want to distress something.  Since it sounds like it hasn't been made yet, there are a lot of fabric options you might want to go with.   Leather is the obvious choice - and you can get some "seconds" leather on ebay or etsy for fairly cheap.    They might have a tear in the skin or a blemish - but that is probably what you want for hunting garb.   Wool is another good choice - wash it before you cut it.  Dry it.  Wash it again.  Wool does shrink but, depending on the type, it might fuzz up nicely after a couple of washes giving it the distressed look.   A lightweight wool won't distress as easily - you might want to consider taking it outside after the first washing, stomping it into the mud.  Letting it dry, and then attempting to wash it.