Post by Ani-Chay Pinn on May 9, 2008 23:08:46 GMT -5
I was looking at the Dressing A Galaxy book and thinking "No wonder the obis are cut on the bias. That gives them enough stretch to fit them fine on those male actors with their straight waists and their skinny butts." But I started thinking that there really isn't any reason why the obi can't be fitted.
I've been getting away with just a straight obi without many problems since I have a long waist, but I know it would fit better with some curve on it. So, I took my measurements around my waist (wearing an undershirt and a Jedi tumic) at:
- top edge of obi - 30.5 inches
- middle of obi - 32.0 inches
- bottom edge of obi - 34.5 inches
Yep, no bust and all hips; I'm a pear. But this is actually a simple shape to fit. All I need is a curved obi. It's not too hard to make a duct tape pattern for it.
- Make a straight tube out of cheap fabric twice as wide as your obi and has a diameter that fits comfortably around the widest part of your body where you wear your obi.
- Put the tube on, wearing your Jedi tunic, pants and an undershirt; roll up your sleeves, they will get in the way.
- Wrap duct tape around your middle, fitting the tube to your body as if it were an obi. It's easier if you have help but you can do this alone if you:
---- use a mirror
---- tear off lots of long strips of duct tape ahead of time
---- don't duct tape your tunic
---- make sure that the tube doesn't creep upward; keep it in the place where you wear your obi
---- wrap a couple of layers of duct tape to make sure you have your shape right
---- don't worry about the tube bunching up under you where it's loose; it's just going to do that. The duct tape will define the shape of the pattern.
- When you're done, just cut it off at the back (without cutting your tunic) and see what you have.
When I was done, as expected, I got a nice curved piece that I can use to make a paper pattern from. I'll try experimenting with what the final obi pattern would look like.
But I'm sure there are a lot of different shapes than mine, some that won't be satisfied with a simple curve.
So, in the interests of determining how many different ways the obi might need to be tailored, I have a question:
What are everyone else's obi measurements? Top edge, middle and bottom edge?
If you don't want to give the actual numbers, just scale them to one. Take the largest number and divide all three measurements by it.
I've been getting away with just a straight obi without many problems since I have a long waist, but I know it would fit better with some curve on it. So, I took my measurements around my waist (wearing an undershirt and a Jedi tumic) at:
- top edge of obi - 30.5 inches
- middle of obi - 32.0 inches
- bottom edge of obi - 34.5 inches
Yep, no bust and all hips; I'm a pear. But this is actually a simple shape to fit. All I need is a curved obi. It's not too hard to make a duct tape pattern for it.
- Make a straight tube out of cheap fabric twice as wide as your obi and has a diameter that fits comfortably around the widest part of your body where you wear your obi.
- Put the tube on, wearing your Jedi tunic, pants and an undershirt; roll up your sleeves, they will get in the way.
- Wrap duct tape around your middle, fitting the tube to your body as if it were an obi. It's easier if you have help but you can do this alone if you:
---- use a mirror
---- tear off lots of long strips of duct tape ahead of time
---- don't duct tape your tunic
---- make sure that the tube doesn't creep upward; keep it in the place where you wear your obi
---- wrap a couple of layers of duct tape to make sure you have your shape right
---- don't worry about the tube bunching up under you where it's loose; it's just going to do that. The duct tape will define the shape of the pattern.
- When you're done, just cut it off at the back (without cutting your tunic) and see what you have.
When I was done, as expected, I got a nice curved piece that I can use to make a paper pattern from. I'll try experimenting with what the final obi pattern would look like.
But I'm sure there are a lot of different shapes than mine, some that won't be satisfied with a simple curve.
So, in the interests of determining how many different ways the obi might need to be tailored, I have a question:
What are everyone else's obi measurements? Top edge, middle and bottom edge?
If you don't want to give the actual numbers, just scale them to one. Take the largest number and divide all three measurements by it.
