Making Hawkeye’s Costume

Making Hawkeye’s Costume

When creating v2 of Hawkeye, I knew that I wanted to make the vest as accurate as possible. The first version I created was quickly made utilizing a combat vest with straps removed and over-laid with a maroon design on the front. It worked fine for a while, but I knew that I could do much better if I put some quality time and research into it.

As with creating any costume, I made sure to do a case study of movie stills and up-close reference photos. To be sure I understood the design, I drew it out.

Pattern Creation

To create the pattern, I tried something new. I grabbed a black jacket from Goodwill and used chalk in order to draw out how the pattern is supposed to accurately layout. From there, I created pattern pieces out of tissue paper matching the drawn-out pieces. After that, I made used the pattern on the fabric.

The Fabrics

Believe it or not, but the purchase of fabric with the Hawkeye vest started very unconventionally. The perfect fabric was magically found at a local Goodwill…in the form of curtains! Best prices fabric ever! But, if you’re looking for something close online to purchase, try this link.

I also had some great black fabric with some small ribbing within it leftover from creating Star Trek Wrath of Khan uniforms for Tracy and I.

Lastly, pleather was used for the side areas with tubing.

The Base of the Vest

I cut all of the pattern pieces out of the appropriate fabrics and was able to use the black jacket as a base to pin everything in order to lay it all out. This allowed me to be able to easily layer things properly. This was especially important for the shoulder areas.

Final Detailing

Final details came together with the pleather piping areas on the side. I was able to send the pleather through the sewing machine by putting masking tape over it. To create the ribbing I put a thick piping cord through the channels I created. Then, the overlaid sections were added to make the piped areas look even better and to make it all a cohesive piece.

The Finished Piece

There you go. A completely custom, yet accurate Hawkeye Vest…version 1 from the original Avengers movie. Plus, a final shot with my Black Widow. Pair it with the Hawkeye quiver that I created out of foam, I had a cosplay that I was incredibly proud of.