Iron Man Costume

ULTIMATES IRON MAN COSTUME

This costume is dedicated to the memory of Scott Kirk.

I love Halloween. Every year since 1989 I have made a new Halloween costume. This tradition started at college when my professor, Mr. Rob Olson, layout/art/design Professor at P.P.C.C. and his colleagues, put to the students their October project: make an eight foot tall Halloween costume with an eight foot extension. Pretty simple... they didn't elaborate. They did allow 25 extra credit points for being on stilts (at least one foot tall or more), and 25 extra credit points for covering the whole body. We had the entire month of October to complete it, and didn't have to show up to art classes the entire month. On October 31st, we were graded at the school and then had a parade in downtown Colorado Springs.

My first costume was an 8 foot tall mech. I was on one foot platform stilts I designed, one hand gripped and the other hand detached. It was quite the costume and was made out of cardboard. I kept it for quite a while, and it hung proudly in my workshop.

Well, they stopped doing the costumes at the college a few years later... I don't know why... but I still think about it from time to time.

So in 2002 I wondered if I could do it again (an 8 foot costume that covers the whole body)... do it better... and do it in the same time allotment (31 days). So I did, and it was 10 times better.

Last year I attempted an Iron Man suit of armor based upon the comic 'The Ultimates'. I couldn't get it done in time, and to boot, I got sick on Halloween night due to paint fumes a few days earlier.

So now its the next year but I have a lot on my plate and not enough time to work on a brand new costume... unless I want to accept failure again. So I'm determined to finish Iron Man. It's got just enough work left to be done, and just enough time for me to do it.

I hope that those of you who follow my story get ideas of your own, and if you think you see something I am missing or thoughts on how I can do something better, please feel free to email me and tell me. I will give them serious thought as this is a serious (but fun) project of mine. Thanks for spending some time reading this.


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March 23rd 2004	Well, many months have passed, and I am no closer ot finishing the costume than I was in November. So, what do I do now? Well, a very cool website, and its very cool artist Mike Palacio, have given me new hope... but it won't be for under $100... maybe... Fantasy Props does just that. Props for Cosplay. I emailed him with some questions about how he did things, and he emailed me back quickly and was very nice. I have determined that I am going to work on the Iron Man and try to finish this bad-boy up before the end of April. So, many of you are wondering "What happened?". Well, you need to read my post on Halloween Night. It really sent me into a spiral about my abilities. But, I have a renewed vigor and a desire to do other things... so I will be tackling the costume again next week. I still haven't used the whole budget, so we'll see what I can do with what I have left. To change things around, I am going to use a new medium (once again, something I have never used before): Fiberglass Cloth and foamboard ("that pink stuff you can get at Home Depot" to quote Mike). This way it will still be light, will be stronger, and I can actually SAND it to make it smooth. We'll see what we can come up with to fix this bad boy. More as I continue to get this project done. On the side, I also would like to start working on a Keyblade replica as seen in the PS2 game "Kingdom Hearts". I am now a "Kingdom Hearts" junkie, and need a Keyblade replica for my video game museum in the basement of my house. This side project will, I think, help keep me sane.
October 23rd	A familiar face in Colorado Springs has passed on. The comic store will be a bit darker without his familiar presence, and we are a bit sadder at his sudden absence. Scott Kirk who co-owned the comic book store Bargain Comics left us quietly and unexpentantly last week. I remember going there when "Heroes and Dragons" amscrayed to the mall, and seeing him in his customary hat and t-shirt as he quietly recognized my presence as I walked through the front door in their Bijou store. His quiet demeanor filled the store with a certain... presence. As though he were part of the store's very walls and mortar. He had the subtle and comfortable aura as of that of a 'buddy', and in all fact, that was what he was: a 'buddy' of the community and it's/his customers. Quick with some information and a bit of comic or card history, he would peer 'round from the doorway and add something you might not normally know... and might appreciate. I know I did. Comic Book fans are a funny type in that they see disaster and heroism both in real life and in the pages of their favorite graphic novels. You would think that we would be used to drastic things... but when a real passing happens, they take it to heart... just like they would if their favorite artist or writer leaves a cherished title, or when a storyline is discontinued: they ponder why. They debate on whether it was necessary, and what it will do to their lives. Change in a comic reader's life is hard. Very hard. So we do as we always do, us comic book fans, we try to continue, and we constantly and ceremonially read the back issues. In this case, it's remembering what things were like back when, and appreciating them. We will miss you Scott. Thank you for your time here. I asked Mike, a good friend of Scott's and fellow owner of the store, if I may "dedicate my costume" to Scott. He said that he thinks Scott "would have liked that". So I dedicate my Iron Man costume to the memory of Scott Kirk. A truly mild-mannered guy.
October 17th	My good friend Collin Burton made a new header for me. WOW! Very nice. Please visit his homepage (click here). He's an incredible commercial artist. Yeah, I know I haven't done much on the costume this week... been very buisy with other things. BUT, this weekend will bring the torso, and some paper mache work. Also, I sent an email to Bryan Hitch... I asked him about some design ideas and other questions about his design. If he emails me back, i'll post the Q&A; here. Here's hoping.
October 6th BUDGET:$52.42 Purchases: Safeway: $1.05 NEW AMOUNT:$51.37	Bought flour from Safeway.
October 6th BUDGET:$55.60 Purchases: U-Haul: $3.18 NEW AMOUNT:$52.42	Bought an 18x18x24 cardboard box from U-Haul.
October 1st BUDGET:$69.17 Purchases: Hobby Lobby: $9.55 Purchases: Walgreens: $1.05 Purchases: U-Haul: $2.97 NEW AMOUNT:$55.60	Bought Packing tape from U-Haul, masking tape and 3 pieces of poster board from Wallgreens, and a hot knife and 'D' batteries from Hobby Lobby.
September 30th	Tomorrow I start. Today, I am getting the digital camera and posting some pictures of what I have so far. I found a picture of one of my previous costumes from a Vampire The Masquerade Live Action game I was in years ago. I was a gargoyle. The Game Master, Carol O'Bryan, said I could play that character if I made a set of wings with a 16 foot wingspan. So I did . Thanks for keeping the picture up on the Bloodshadows page, Carol. Do you have a larger picture of it? I'm trying to find pictures of the other costumes I have done at my home. Got the camera (a Fuji FinePix 2650 Digital Camera), and I must say that for the low low price of $99 it sure does take fine pictures. I have the stack of styrofoam that I got from Jim (i'll be using that ring for the torso neck), and I will be taking the diary pics tomorrow as I proceed.
September 28th	I am so excited to begin this Wednesday. I created the links everyone will follow to get to the daily diary to follow the progress. I will ATTEMPT to update them daily the night of that day... but we all know how things go sometimes.
September 27th	Ok... the blueprints will have to wait until tomorrow... I am way too tired today to do anything like that. So, I spent the day serching for mass amounts of free styrofoam, and a friend of mine has some. I'll be getting that stash tomorrow via Jim DeGroff. (Thanks Jimbo). Also, I went looking for a digital camera. People want pictures... so, I guess i'll shell out the dough for one (been wanting one anyways). I found a great deal on one at Best Buy for $99, so come payday on Tuesday, I will be the proud owner of a new Fuji Digital camera. As promised, here's the link to the banner for this site . It's not my best work by far, but it'll do. If anyone wants to make a different one for me, if it's better... i'll use it.
September 26th	I went looking for paper mache recipies and I found a wonderful site of another artist. He allowed me to link to his site and so I shall. Cockeyed.com . I asked him about drilling, sanding, and cutting paper mache because I will need to do that with the helm to get the eyes open, the face-plate lifting, and to get the rest of it smooth. He wrote me a pleasant email back within a few hours: Sure, it is easy to drill through paper mache, but if there is chicken wire in there, that will be a problem. It is only as strong as thick paper, not even as strong as cardboard, so I'm not sure it will hold screws. I would appreciate if you linked to cockeyed, that would be great! -Rob Thanks Rob. Cockeyed.com Paper Mache Recipie: I use three cups of flour in four cups of warm water. I don't know if the temperature makes a difference, but the warm water makes it much nicer to work with. The rest is well shown via photos, and it's pretty fun to read. Please follow the link, and visit the rest of his site. I'm going to be making a banner for my site tonight. I will post it tomorrow so that those of you who wish to add me to their sites can, and have a groovy banner to do it too. I have also been getting some requests for my "blueprints". I will post those tomorrow as well. I'll also have a section that 'de-cyphers' my scribbling so you can see where i'm going with them.
September 24th	I put in a bid to join the Halloween Costume Webring. We'll see how it goes. I would like to get lots of viewers for my website... perhaps I can even win a few web-contests as well. If any of you have other ideas, please send them my way. Only 6 more days until I start on the costume. I took next Wednesday off so I can get a head-start. I love having vacation time! Also, that's when I will start getting pictures up for this site. So all of you who have been sayingg "Where are all the pictures?" Well, in October I'll have some. Also posted this picture of a bust made based on the Ultimates Iron Man (the version I am doing). Who knows... maybe my costume will look this good? That logo is really tempting to copy....
September 18th	I think i'm going to work on the helmet first. That way I can perfect it throughout the month. Added the neat little Iron Man in the links area. Image courtesy of Video Game Museum . Also, I am moving the progress down to up. That way people can see if anything has changed on the site quickly.
September 16th	Should I work on the torso first or the helm? I am thinking (for Tony Stark tradition) that I should do the chest first... but in the Ultimates Universe, Tony has brain cancer... not a bad heart. Any suggestions from you viewers?
September 14th BUDGET:$86.18 Purchases: Toys R' Us: $17.01 NEW AMOUNT:$69.17	Found a great item that I can try to use for one of the 'repulsors' on one of the arms. I was initially thinking of using a nerf cannon of some sort, but I came across one of the Spiderman Web Shooters at the toy store and I think that might work even better. I checked prices, and Toys R' Us was $5 cheaper than Kay Bee on the item, and $1 cheaper on the refills. Need to save that cash. I only got the web shooter for now as I need to find other things like paper mache stuff and tissue paper (not the toilet or nose kind, but a slightly thicker kind that is popular for wrapping gifts in). I also got some ideas from friends to use things like magician's flash cartridges or party poppers. Both are good ideas and fairly inexpensive. I will be going to the local magic shoppe later this week to check out the prices for flash carts. Probably not going to do much this week for the costume other than try to get styrofoam and maybe work on the design a bit, but will keep the diary updated for anything I do find or draw/write up.
September 13th BUDGET:$100 Purchases: Hobby Lobby: $13.82 NEW AMOUNT:$86.18	I started to buy my materials. I plan to make this out of cardboard, cardstock, styrofoam, and paper mache. At Hobby Lobby I bought some 'Activ-Wire Mesh'. This will be molded into shape to form some of the mask and other armoured parts. The main idea is to use styrofoam for the big bulky parts like the thigh, calf, fore-arm, and helm. I will be posting scematics as I get them drawn. I won't be starting any building until October 1st. I also got some stuff called 'Hold the Foam' that glues styrofoam together.