Kawaii Kon Costume Critique Requested

[davidd]

I recently attended my first-ever "costuming" convention, Kawaii Kon in Honolulu, Hawaii. Wearing the gear on the last day of the show was kind of a last-minute thing; I was undecided when I threw the hat and jacket into the car on Sunday morning if I wanted to wear Indy gear at what was mostly an anime convention, and I remained undecided until the early afternoon when I decided to give it a try.

While it's fairly obvious who the character is supposed to be, I feel my outfit just doesn't look quite right. Even though I was the only Indy at the show, and thus by default the "best" Indy at the show (yay, me!), if I do this again I want to feel like I'm portraying the character as realistically as possible. I'd appreciate any tips you might have on tweaking the look for a little more accuracy… or, more specifically, for a more realistic Indy vibe as opposed to specific scene screen accuracy. Tucking in my shirt around the sides and sucking in the gut (more than I did already) would be a fine start, I suppose! So yeah, whether it's a comment or suggestion about what to wear or how to wear it, I'd appreciate your thoughts. And no, you don't have to be overly careful in how you phrase your suggestions. I'm requesting honest feedback and opinions.

Errr... except, maybe, about one thing: I'm not gonna spend five-hundred or a thousand bucks on a hat. I like the Coyle's, or I might try another Akubra Fed IV at some point, but my hats get kinda beat up over time. For now, the fanceh expensive ones will have to wait.

Thanks!

Gear as pictured:

Hat: Todd's Coyle's Downtowner
Jacket: Wested Novapelle Raider (I think)
Satchel and strap: Magnoli (I'm wearing it on the wrong side and under the jacket, I know. Practical considerations at the time.)
Gun belt: Todd's Costumes
Web belt: cheap ebay brown
Whip: Todd's 10-ft leather (w/ Todd's holder)
Holster: repro German WWI Luger holster
Trousers: Dockers
Shirt: Willis & Geiger bush poplin
Shoes (not visible): plain brown leather, not even close to "close-enoughs."



Oh, the Japanese Imperial Soldier is pretty cool, huh? He's been working on his outfit for over two years, assembling it piece by piece. He said he still has a ways to go, but it looked pretty good to me! The leather accessories were particularly nice.

[Indiana Jeff]

As you say, your look is great and no one is going to mistake you for a lion tamer!

Three suggestions,

Indy wears the MkVII over his right shoulder so the bag is on his left hip. Fine if for personal reasons you wear it on the other side, but you can change the strap so the buckle is on the front.

Darker trousers. Something in more a coffee/mocha would be a better contrast to the shirt. Which I love, I personally would not change the shirt.

The holster is cool that it is from the era, but the color is too light to me. Either go with a bona fide Indy holster (I personally have Todd's and really like it) or use dye or some leather lotion and sun exposure to darken it up some.

Regards,

Indiana Jeff

[davidd]

Thanks, Indy Jeff! Yeah, I've been working on the holster. It was almost pink when it was new. Now it's... yellow... or golden. I need to hit it with the leather dressing again and give it some more sun time.

Darker trousers, yes, I agree.

The bag, yes, usually I wear it correctly. That's a good idea about changing the strap around if it's going to remain on the right.

[McFly]

I agree with Jeff! Really the only thing that stands out to me (besides the holster) is the color of the pants. I think if you can get some darker pants, you'll be able to hang out with the best of them!

Lookin good!

Shane

[davidd]

Thanks a lot, Shane! I know you're detail-oriented and have an "artist's eye," so I very much appreciate the positive feedback!

[InexorableTash]

With your curls and 'stache, you could pull off an awesome alternate universe "Tom Selleck as Indiana Jones" look.

[Michaelson]

To a casual observer (which most con observers are who aren't involved in our hobby ), I'd say the only thing that really jumps out at me is the light colored holster. Darken that up, and everything else is fine.

NICE job!

Regards! Michaelson

[moses]

Try looking a little dirtier?