Gallifrey One - Matt Smith Frock Coat photo shoot

You might have noticed that on the Thursday meet and greet at Gallifrey One I debuted my new Matt Smith series seven costume.


It was all a bit last minute - I didn’t start work on the frock coat until the 1st of February, less than two weeks before I flew out - and the velvet waistcoat was thrown together on the Tuesday  Tuesday before, the day before I set out!

I’m pretty darn pleased with the frock coat.
Leaving it this late did mean I got a lot of the subtle details nailed which some others might have missed or got wrong.

One thing in particular I did spot was the bizarre configuration of buttons and buttonholes down the front.

Firstly there are NO buttons! 

However, there are a dozen buttonholes - three in each lapel and three on either side around the middle.

The lowest of these is unusually above the waistline seam.

They don’t show up in most photos, but if you look very closely there is a shot in the latest trailer where the lighting picks them out (see left).

This arrangement of holes reminds me very much of the frock coats worn by Tom Baker during his era.

While at Gallifrey, I had the chance of a decent photo shoot courtesy of Scott Sebring, who kindly offers his professional services to the cosplayers free of charge!

Here is my costume in all its glory. Thanks Scott!

Photo © Scott Sebring

Tweeds are out - Frock Coats are IN!

Just to affirm the changes to the Eleventh Doctor’s wardrobe, some new spin-off novels are being published - and the covers relict the changes to Matt’s costume.

The Dalek Generation

This gives a sneak view of the inside of the frock coat, and you can see the silk velvet waistcoat quite nicely.

Shroud of Sorrow

This just give a side view of the coat, but you can get a better idea of the cashmere fabric the cost is made from, which is cool.

Plague of the Cybermen

Finally the Frock Coat is ditched, and we see the waistcoat and maybe a better view of the fabric the new shirt is made from.

As I hope you can see it is similar, but not the same as the Utah shirt from series six.

Matt Smith’s NEW boots!

As you will have just seen, I have debuted my latest Matt Smith Costume at Gallifey One. I pulled it together over the past few weeks, and with barely a day to spare I collected my latest boots from the boot makers to Matt Smith.

The boots are truly beyond stunning.

They are made from two colours, a dark brown and a purple to compliment the new Cashmere Frock Coat.

To top that they are covered in hundreds of hand punched detailing at every twist and turn of the leather.

When I collected my boots, I went to their workshop where all the boots for some amazing film and tv work are done.
Recently they worked on Les Miserables, Lincoln and The Dark Knight as well as the latest Thor movie.

Having just finished the boots they still had the card pattern lying around, so I was able to get an insight into how shoes are designed and cut.

The boots are then made around a foot shape, known as a “last”. I have had several boots made for me now, but when it can to making these they could not lay their hands on my last.

Quick thinking, they realised my feet are pretty much the same size as Matt’s, so they used Matt Smith’s actual last to my my boots!!!!

This also meant the pattern didn’t need to be graded up or down, so what I have are preciely the same as Matt’s in every regard.

How cool is that??!

If you look very closely you’ll see the lasts are labelled WHO rather than Matt’s name as his casting was top secret.

The boots have one very last secret to give up, which I’ll show you properly very soon. It’s such a subtle and clever touch - and so cool when you hear what it is!

Gallifrey One - Lobby Con

So I’ve touched down back in LA to attending this years Gallifrey One convention.
This is the third year I have come, and have been greatly looking forward to catching up with everyone and show off a few costumes I have been working on, so of them in secret . . .

The day before the convention kicks off has a evening gathering in the lobby of the hotel, affectionately called Lobby Con.
It generally carries on throughout the weekend, but most people are downstairs in the ballroom area where the main events are taking place.

I quickly spotted a client of mine, who as been the first to take delivery of a Ultimate Six Frock Coat.
He was proudly wearing it a gaining a lot of attention and questions about what it was. Many had seen my work on it, so this was their first chance to see it for real.

It wasn’t long before the lobby was buzzing with cosplayers and those casually dressed.

The last thing I wanted to do was turn up at the party wearing the same dress! Besides, I didn’t want to take any limelight from my client who was enjoying the attention he was getting (and rightly so).
Time I thought to premiere a NEW costume I made this month which I have been keeping under wraps - my Matt Smith Series Seven Cashmere Frock Coat.

I have been prepping this for a little while now, collecting reference images to make sure I cut it just right, as well as gathering the accessories to make it complete. These include a burgundy velvet waistcoat with a laid-in collar; a bronze fob chain with a hanging penny; the G-Star RAW jeans I have from my series six costume as well as just a place-holder bow tie for now; but to top it off , the day before I left London I collected my brand new hand-made boots.

The costume had a mix of reactions, mainly because not everyone is familiar yet with the latest incarnation of matt’s costume, so they assumed it was either my own improvised future Doctor’s clothes; some wondered if it was The Next Doctor; or seeing the waistcoat, thought it was from the latest Christmas Special.

But the consensus of opinion was it looked GREAT!

Check back real soon and I’ll give you an exclusive glimpse inside the boot makers and give you a great preview of Matt’s new footwear.

The Infinite Quest

Have you ever wondered how I create the patterns I use for my costumes?
Ever been curious as to how I source my fabrics and materials?
How about how I tailor my coats so they look sharp and professional?

Well, if you are attending Gallifrey One in just over a week you can find out!

As part of the cosplay track over the convention, a variety of discussion panels and presentations are taking place covering all aspects and ability levels of costume making are scheduled.
From the basic Cosplay 101 for beginners; through special panels on dressing as The Doctor and his companions; as well as how to build monsters and aliens from the shows 50 year history.

I've sat in on a couple of these panels over the two years I have been going, and last year I unintentionally dominated a panel while talking about The Ultimate Tennant Suit. Luckily my fellow panelists were totally okay with how things went as everyone in the room, them included, were captivated by my talk.

So this year I have been given a dedicated solo panel to discuss taking costume making to the next level.

My plans are to talk extensively about the Ultimate Six Frock Coat, the Tom Baker Frock Coat I made last year, as well as a few surprises along the way.
I will show the earliest cosplay project I ever made (which I still have) and tell of the path that has lead me to where I am now.
I shall explain the ethos of the work I do and the vintage sources I use for the patterns that make the coats I am known for.

I do hope that if you are at Gallifrey One this year you will come along and hear what I have to say and see close up the costumes I shall have with me to illustrate my talk.

Oh, and there will be free Jammie Dodgers......

THE INFINITE QUEST

3pm Saturday 16th Feb 2013

All welcome

A Meeting Of Doctors - on OFFICIAL BBC tumblr page!

Do you remember last year I did a big photoshoot in Cardiff with Kevin Coppa and Matt Elliott, my Tenth and Eleventh Doctor look-a-likes?

We had a great time and took some fun shots around the Cardiff locations.

Our best shoot was in Eddies Diner, the location for The Impossible Astronaut.

We even got mistaken for the REAL Doctor Who crew and caused some online speculation of a return to scenes from previous episodes!

Anyway, Matt dropped me an email this week (that’s Matt Elliott, not Smith) to tell me one of our photos had been picked up by the Official BBC Doctor Who Tumblr page, and it had been liked, shared and reposted almost 19,000 times!

I had to check it out, and it’s true - WOW.

Doctor Who Official on Tumblr:
Best cosplay ever?