So You Wanna Be A Jedi

Staples for the Qui-Gon, Obi-Wan, or Young Anakin style Jedi

• 1 pair knee high brown riding boots
  
• 1 pair of trousers, khaki or brown, tucked into said boots
  
• 1 hooded robe, usually brown
  
• 3 shirt layers -usually made of the same fabric (but Mace's was different)
  
  • 1 cross front/v-necked shirt with tight sleeves that bunch up at the wrists
    
  • 1 cross front/v-necked shirt with wide sleeves.
    
  • 3 sashes
    
    • 2 over the shoulders that hang below the shirt hem
      
    • 1 around the waist, over the shoulder ones
• 1 brown leather belt (mine was based on Old Obi-Wan's, I haven't figured out the new one yet.)

Fabrics

In the April 1999 American Vogue magazine there was an article about the fashion of Episode I. "raw silk , linen..."

For the outer robe the ultimate would be a light to mid-weight cashmere. But lets face it, not many of us can afford it. Next down in price would be a lightweight wool. Ben Kenobi's robe from SW:ANH looks to be a wool felt - the edges aren't hemmed & it's not fraying. I lucked out & found a linen/rayon blend that works perfectly. Try to stay away from burlap or lightweight cottons, polyesters, etc. They just don't have the correct "flow." Test the fabric in the store. Unroll a couple yards from the bolt & walk with it & see if it billows out.

The tunic fabrics depend on the person. Obi-Wan is in raw silk. Qui-Gon, linen. Shop around. I was able to find raw silk for $3.97 a yard online. And since you'll be wearing at least 3 if not 4 layers of clothing, do not use polyester. Use something natural that breathes. (Rayon is actually a natural plant fiber.)

Patterns

Set pattern? Not really. But whatever you do, don't use the "Space Nomads" pattern from McCalls #2433. It's completely wrong. (I'm not sure about Simplicity #8944.)

My robe is actually the Butterick Leia dress. But unfortunately they aren't making it anymore.

A kinsale cloak pattern will give the right hood. Try the pattern from Folkwear, which is now owned by Lark Books. (www.larkbooks.com)
Take a look at the Christmas pageant patterns for the body. Now when you make the robe, all seams are finished in the flat feld method. You can really see it where the hood meets the robe. And if you look closely you can see where the sleeve hem line is.

On my first foray, my undershirt & pants were just off the rack. My overshirt was a full length waffle weave cotton robe that I took the pockets off & shortened. The second time around I used just a simple robe pattern. (Simplicity #)

My sashes were strips of linen, where I left the selvages raw & hemmed the edges. I now know that was wrong. The need to be full tubes, otherwise the edges curl.

Six months later I made new tunics out of raw silk for Naboo Fights. I used just a basic robe pattern & adapted the sleeves. [Diagrams & details forthcoming.]

The braid. I lucked out big time. My local Tandy leather was closing. And they just happened to have left, horsehair that matched my hair color perfectly. I suggest trying professional beauty supply places for hanks of fake hair. And anchor it to your head as best you can. (If you can weave it in, great. But I had friends attaching with duct tape. )

Links to some of my other sites

Star Wars: The Magic of Myth Volunteers Homepage
KKKW Homepage

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Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace Illustrated Screenplay

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