... Continued from part 1.

The difference between looking like a walking action figure, or looking like a movie prop that just walked off of a Star Wars movie set, is indeed, the weathering. It has always been instrumental in the creation of the Star Wars films. George Lucas wanted that “real-world,” used look in the details.

For me, this was the most fun of the armor build. Once again, I referenced photo stills of the actual movie prop, and film footage, to best replicate the color of the weathering, and decide how much weathering to apply to my armor. I noticed in the costuming world that there is always the danger of applying either too much, or too little filth. I wanted to avoid both of these instances, and nail it somewhere in between. So, what would a battle hardened Snowtrooper look like? Here are my results:

The color I chose for the weathering, was "Raw Umber." It seemed to best match the color they used for the actual prop.

It's important to NOT just slop on paint, but have a plan and a thought process of where weathering would actually be in the real world. It makes a world of difference in the end.

Paint isn't the only thing that brings weathering alive, but also scratches. Getting that dirty, they must have banged into things, or had to dive for cover from time to time. You think?

A little crud around the eyes, and even on the shroud. Gotta get that new "white-look" outta here!

... and the ab plate, complete with weathered nylon webbing.

Completed!

Voilà! The completed suit. The duster coat was assembled by my wife, with help from a relative. The weathering for that was a little different from the armor. I bathed the entire coat in tea, which is how the originals are believed to have been weathered. I also added a few spots of diluted paint to create some “oil spots” on the coat. The boots actually came weathered, since they had already seen action. They did, however, need to be modded by adding straps and removing the laces.

My wife, Judy, deserves a ton of credit for helping with this build. She did ALL of the sewing; wether it was the coat, or the countless pieces of Velcro, or the nylon webbing that needed to be attached. The suit would have never come together if it wasn’t for her.

Judy also made the pouches from scratch. The gloves were basic gardening gloves (as was the film prop,) and the pants were “Dickies” painters pants.

The E-11 blaster, is made of rubber. There were a number of choices for this including, but not limited to plastic, metal, and resin. I chose rubber because I drop a lot of things. I’ve already dropped my blaster four or five times.

All in all, the project was a blast. I look forward to my next build, which will be coming shortly.

Giving my best effort with the action pose.