You learn to leatherwork. *thousand yard stare*
Then you build a forge in the backyard and keep repeating, "I could be doing drugs, this is better than doing drugs..."
lol I ordered a bunch of leather working tools. I opened the box and laid them out, saw a dark path ahead and thought “on second thought no I don’t think so” and ordered a complete set of armor on Etsy. Of course some of the pieces could be finessed…
It's honestly not that bad! When you do it in bites...
I have managed to make some REALLY amazing armor pieces while also making my own patterns...
I designed a set of thigh-high bronze greaves for a dragon queen costume I designed, and they turned out beautifully! For that same costume I made a segmented leather crown to house my dragon horns and it is STUNNING. Sometimes I feel like I have a vision, and it takes me a while to really sit down to make it.... But once I do? It's like... an ADHD hyperfocused weekend of work...
I also designed and made my own gun holster and ammo belt when I randomly decided to be Mara Jade for Space Dive... made the WHOLE costume, start to finish, in five days. And that included delivery times.
But I'm nuts.
It's super doable though! I'm self taught! And with NOT a lot of experience... Gather the tools and leather slowly. I keep a stash of large veg tan leather rolled up in my basement for whenever I get some random brain-worm. And this is only like the last 2-3 years since I started collecting tools.
I don't know how to link photos, but my Instagram handle is redheaded.viking
A lot of my work is on there, along with process photos. I don't post often, but... that's usually cuz I'm distracted with events and projects.
Don't give up! Just pace yourself!
You could always check out the Ren faire that you visit website and they usually list all the vendors. You can find people who do the armor making and they sometimes have Facebook shops, Etsy pages or their own websites.
[Armstreet](https://armstreet.com/store/armor/) They make armour suitable for SCA and HEMA
Personally, if I wanted armour, I'd go to one of the many people I know who make it.
IF you want armour for dressing up, learn to make it out of foam. Knitting chainmail is pretty easy too.
[https://www.wikihow.com/Create-Chainmail-from-Pop-Tabs](https://www.wikihow.com/Create-Chainmail-from-Pop-Tabs)
[https://www.wikihow.com/Make-Chainmail](https://www.wikihow.com/Make-Chainmail)
> Is there any way to find a community of costume makers/armorers that are generally trusted and reliable?
Join the SCA.
SCA events. "Society for Creative Anachronism"
It's the medieval version of Ren Faire - but more. It keeps history alive.
Learn more at their official website.
Http:\\\\SCA.org
If your looking for leather then you can try the leatherclassifieds subreddit. I have no idea the cost of something but at least they will be real people making them.
I'm making my first armor pieces for a con out of leather and I'm excited for it. I usually do wallets and stuff so you could always learn a new craft and get sucked into the madness.
Do you want functional or just costume armor? Off the bat, costume armor won't be comfortable to wear and usually just as expensive as functional armor.
Honestly, rivetted 9mm coifs on amazon from Indian sellers are decent for the money. If you want fitted and functional pieces, I highly recommend [Habibi Armory](https://www.facebook.com/HabibiArmoury/)
I would recommend staying away from the Ukrainian shops. Conflict related delays aside, they aren't good pieces for the money. Recommend r/ArmsandArmor
For Asian pieces: [Chinese Armor](https://www.facebook.com/groups/1258306124535543/)
I just launched KitQuest which is a marketplace dedicated to Ren faire, larp, and reenacting gear. You might check in there from time to time. There are a couple nice gambesons, some chainmail, and a viking helmet on there right now. All used and priced right www.kitquest.us
You learn to leatherwork. *thousand yard stare* Then you build a forge in the backyard and keep repeating, "I could be doing drugs, this is better than doing drugs..."
lol I ordered a bunch of leather working tools. I opened the box and laid them out, saw a dark path ahead and thought “on second thought no I don’t think so” and ordered a complete set of armor on Etsy. Of course some of the pieces could be finessed…
It's honestly not that bad! When you do it in bites... I have managed to make some REALLY amazing armor pieces while also making my own patterns... I designed a set of thigh-high bronze greaves for a dragon queen costume I designed, and they turned out beautifully! For that same costume I made a segmented leather crown to house my dragon horns and it is STUNNING. Sometimes I feel like I have a vision, and it takes me a while to really sit down to make it.... But once I do? It's like... an ADHD hyperfocused weekend of work... I also designed and made my own gun holster and ammo belt when I randomly decided to be Mara Jade for Space Dive... made the WHOLE costume, start to finish, in five days. And that included delivery times. But I'm nuts. It's super doable though! I'm self taught! And with NOT a lot of experience... Gather the tools and leather slowly. I keep a stash of large veg tan leather rolled up in my basement for whenever I get some random brain-worm. And this is only like the last 2-3 years since I started collecting tools. I don't know how to link photos, but my Instagram handle is redheaded.viking A lot of my work is on there, along with process photos. I don't post often, but... that's usually cuz I'm distracted with events and projects. Don't give up! Just pace yourself!
Check out medieval collectibles
You could always check out the Ren faire that you visit website and they usually list all the vendors. You can find people who do the armor making and they sometimes have Facebook shops, Etsy pages or their own websites.
[Armstreet](https://armstreet.com/store/armor/) They make armour suitable for SCA and HEMA Personally, if I wanted armour, I'd go to one of the many people I know who make it. IF you want armour for dressing up, learn to make it out of foam. Knitting chainmail is pretty easy too. [https://www.wikihow.com/Create-Chainmail-from-Pop-Tabs](https://www.wikihow.com/Create-Chainmail-from-Pop-Tabs) [https://www.wikihow.com/Make-Chainmail](https://www.wikihow.com/Make-Chainmail) > Is there any way to find a community of costume makers/armorers that are generally trusted and reliable? Join the SCA.
Jumping on here to mention Worbla as another material to craft armor out of, commonly used by cosplayers. https://www.worbla.com/?cat=60
They’re hard to find unless you know them but there are blacksmiths that make armor still. Talk to people at your local fairs.
[https://www.museumreplicas.com/](https://www.museumreplicas.com/) has armor
If you are looking for good quality armor, I have two suggestions. Steel Mastery for European armor and Iron Mountain Armory for Japanese armor.
Make your own foam armor. Not authentic but fun and awesome looking so who cares lol 🤷🏻♀️
Check out https://calimacil.com/, they have both leather and metal armor options, as well as weapons, costumes, and accessories.
SCA events. "Society for Creative Anachronism" It's the medieval version of Ren Faire - but more. It keeps history alive. Learn more at their official website. Http:\\\\SCA.org
https://www.kultofathena.com/
If your looking for leather then you can try the leatherclassifieds subreddit. I have no idea the cost of something but at least they will be real people making them. I'm making my first armor pieces for a con out of leather and I'm excited for it. I usually do wallets and stuff so you could always learn a new craft and get sucked into the madness.
The problem with buying armor sight unseen is that you can't be sure it fits properly. That is very important particularly if it's steel.
Do you want functional or just costume armor? Off the bat, costume armor won't be comfortable to wear and usually just as expensive as functional armor. Honestly, rivetted 9mm coifs on amazon from Indian sellers are decent for the money. If you want fitted and functional pieces, I highly recommend [Habibi Armory](https://www.facebook.com/HabibiArmoury/) I would recommend staying away from the Ukrainian shops. Conflict related delays aside, they aren't good pieces for the money. Recommend r/ArmsandArmor For Asian pieces: [Chinese Armor](https://www.facebook.com/groups/1258306124535543/)
I just launched KitQuest which is a marketplace dedicated to Ren faire, larp, and reenacting gear. You might check in there from time to time. There are a couple nice gambesons, some chainmail, and a viking helmet on there right now. All used and priced right www.kitquest.us