| | | International Customers: Click this button once to add extra shipping to your total order.
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| | | | How to OrderIf You Want to Pay Online: Just use the shopping cart buttons to add things to your cart and when you are finished click "check out". You do not need a Paypal account to send your payment online. If You Want to Pay Another Way: I will accept the following types of payment (USA customers): personal check, money order, Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover, and Paypal. Just call 661-242-2089. International Customers: You may use the shopping cart if you have an international charge card. The only other payments I will accept are Western Union or American Express money orders. No postal or bank money orders. And, sorry, no personal checks. Be sure to add the "international shipping surcharge" by clicking the button at the bottom of each page. This will add $15 to your order (only click once per order) for the increased cost of international shipping. If You Need to Send Measurements: I will e-mail you with details when you place your order. See the FAQ below for more details. | | | Frequently Asked QuestionsIf you are truly from this earth, how do you account for your amazing talent? Do you ship internationally? Do you have a store? How long will it take to get my order? What is your guarantee? How do I submit measurements? Do you have a package price? Why are they so expensive? Do you give discounts? Do you make custom costumes? Can you make minor changes to your standard costume items? What's the cheapest way to make a Xena dress? Do you have costumes for kids? Do you know any stores where I can buy a Xena costume? Do you know where I can buy boots? Where do you get your materials? Will you do personal fittings? Will you marry me? | | I get asked this a lot (kidding!). Perhaps a little bit about me would be in order. I am not a god, I am just an ordinary man. I live in Pine Mountain Club, California, just a short distance from Hollywood. I have a little house, a wife, and two boys ages eleven and twelve. My primary income for the last ten years has been as a puppeteer. I've done a lot of television work with the Muppets and others. I've worked with a lot of famous puppeteers like Jim Henson and Frank Oz. I've done small parts on shows like "Allegra's Window", "Bear in the Big Blue House", "The Book of Pooh", and "The New Captain Kangaroo". I was part of a local television show for seven years called "David D TV" which was produced and aired on WFTS Television, which is the ABC affiliate in Tampa, Florida where I lived at the time. I performed "Smedley" who was "David D's" puppet sidekick. I eventually began to write and direct as well. I've made puppets since I was a teenager, and I've always had an interest in puppets, prop making and make-up. For one particular television episode, I thought it would be funny for David and Smedley to dress like Xena and Gabrielle. Perhaps a Halloween costume mix-up. So, being the low-budget show that it was, I made the costumes. They were intentionally cheesy. People around the station were so impressed with this cheesy costume that they began to ask to borrow it. That got the wheels turning. Around there, there were some big costume contests with some big prize money. Why not make a really nice costume, ask a few attractive female friends to dress up, and then split the prize money? Two friends were interested in the plan, so I set about to research the costumes better. My original plan was to make the armor out of hot glue (which actually works!). After the project got really out of control and I devoted a lot of time making sculptures and molds, a friend from Hollywood was out visiting me and he suggested I sell them. I hadn't even considered that. After all, who'd want to buy a Xena costume? And how would I even advertise that? But then again, it would be nice to even just recover the cost of making the first one. Then I remembered that with my internet service, I got a free web page. So I embarked on my next career as webmaster. I put up a page just to see if anyone would be interested. And the rest is history. Since then, the television show has been cancelled, and I'm doing this almost full time. I work solo, and my wife, Ann, helps with the books and e-mail. I also occasionally do puppeteering and prop making in Hollywood. My last project was samurai weapons for the new Tom Cruise movie "The Last Samurai". Despite what you might think by looking at this wonderful website (snicker) we aren't getting rich. In fact, we haven't actually turned a profit yet. But, hey, it's better than digging ditches. back to top | | Do you ship internationally? | | Yes. We usually use United States International Priority Mail. Be sure to click the "international shipping surcharge" button at the bottom of each page. Click it once to add $15 to your total order to cover the higher shipping cost to international destinations. UPS or FedEx are available at a much higher cost. Also, there may be import duty due when it arrives, which you will be responsible to pay. Check your local regulations. We ship many international packages every week, and so far we have had very, very few problems with customs or lost packages. | | Sorry, but no. Most things are custom made, so they get sent away as soon as they are done. back to top | | That just depends on too many factors to make a blanket statement. As mentioned above, I work alone, so it depends on my current backlog and how long the item takes to make, how many items you want, if I have all of the materials on hand, other commitments, etc. Also, the seasonal nature of the demand for personal costumes means that you'll have a longer wait during certain times of year. It's best to check. back to top | | I guarantee you'll like whatever you order. If you don't, send it back. I'll give you back your money. However, on custom fitted garments, the best I can do is to alter them if they don't fit. With most of the costumes on this website, there's just no way it will fit anyone else. I'll allow one alteration. If it still doesn't fit, then there's something wrong with the measurements you're giving me. back to top | | Not generally. Few people order everything, and I couldn't give a discount anyway. back to top | | I'm sure every person who visits my site leaves with a bit of "sticker shock". Few people are familiar with how much custom tailored clothing is. I know I wasn't. In our age of Wal-Mart huge volume prices, it's hard to comprehend why a top or a belt should cost so much. Let me explain why it costs so much. When you buy a piece of costuming from me, not only are you paying the cost of the actual physical construction of the item (materials + time) you also have to figure in the other expenses that are incurred in making that item: development, research, prototypes, rent, utilities, tools, supplies, clay, fiberglass, silicone, resin, patterns, models, answering e-mail (hours and hours corresponding with people who don't actually buy anything, which is just part of doing business!) sourcing materials and supplies (it might take weeks to track down a piece of fabric or a particular buckle), and not only that, there is the cost of this website. It takes a lot of time. When you think about it, it costs a lot to make you that pair of boots! Here's something to really put things in perspective: I'm making you a costume that is the same quality as the ones made by the studio wardrobe departments for a fraction of what they would charge. Do you have any idea what a studio pays for a costume like the ones you see on television or the movies? Anywhere from $5,000 to $100,000 depending on the complexity. I know puppet makers who get $10,000 for a simple hand puppet like Kermit the Frog. Here's a bit of trivia. Remember Star Wars Episode 1? Jar Jar Binks? Ahmed Best, the actor who voiced Jar Jar, also acted as a "stand in" for the digital character. He wore a suit to look like Jar Jar, with a head he wore like a hat. Did you know that rubber suit cost $100,000? It didn't even show up in the final film. Standard shop labor rates for costume makers in Hollywood (there are a lot of them!) is $100 per hour. Figure out how many hours it takes to make a leather dress with 150 hand cut leather pieces and 130 rivets, (it takes a whole day just to cut the leather) and you can see that I'm charging a fraction of what I should. When you look at it that way, you are getting a studio quality outfit for a fraction of the price. The only way I can do that is to keep my overhead is low (I'm not paying Hollywood rent or paying Hollywood labor rates,) I don't usually accept short deadlines, and I economize by offering "standard" items so I can simplify my supplies. I hope this helps you understand what you are getting for your money. A unique, custom made professional quality costume for a fraction of what it cost to make the original! back to top | | No. See "Why are they so expensive?" back to top | | Yes! Few people realize the intricacy of the costumes they see on their favorite TV characters. These costumers are the best, most talented, and cleverest in the business. And sometimes duplicating their work is even harder than constructing the original. Feel free to ask about custom work, and if you have any sketches or photos please send them along! Just bear in mind that custom work will be higher than the items you see on this website. Sometimes the research, patterning, sourcing materials, sculpting, mold making, and prototyping costs many times more than the actual "sewing" of the item. Please don't ask me how much "Aries" or a "cyborg" costs unless you actually have a couple thousand dollars to spend and you are really serious. It takes a lot of time to answer questions like that and I can't afford to work up estimates because you're just curious. PLEASE DO NOT CONTACT ME IF YOU ARE LOOKING FOR A CHEAP COSTUME. I DON'T MAKE CHEAP COSTUMES.back to top | | Yes! Please ask about color changes or other custom alterations you'd like to make. Many changes can be made for no charge. back to top | | The cheapest way is to simplify the pattern. Use the one from Simplicity (I think Butterick has an officially licensed pattern, too.) Make the dress yourself. Then buy the armor kits from me. There just isn't an easy way to make that armor. As far as boots, my leggings can't be beat. As far as a scabbard, you can use the picture on my site to make your own from cardboard and vinyl. Knee guards are the tough one. They are quite difficult to make. You could make due with some vinyl wrapped around some cardboard and paint on the design. For further ideas, check out the Home-made Gallery. back to top | | No. But you might try http:gabbytwin.freeservers.com. back to top | | No. Check your local costume rental shop. back to top | | No. That's why I make them. back to top | | I don't mind giving out a few sources. If you're qualified to try something like this you probably already know most of them anyway. LeatherTandy Leather 1-800-555-3130 Call for a catalog or visit their web site www.tandyleather.com . The website doesn't contain their garment leathers the last time I checked. Lots of tools and some hardware. The Leather Factory 1-877-LEATHER Call for a catalog or visit their website www.leatherfactory.com . Lots of tools. They don't have more leather than Tandy, but they have different leather. Liquid plastic resinsBurman Industries 1-818-782-9833 Call for a catalog. They have lots of plastics and every mold making material you would ever need. Geared towards sculpture/prop/makeup/special effects professionals. Synair Corporation 1-800-251-7642 Call for a catalog or visit their website www.synair.com . They have lower cost plastics and mold making supplies geared towards the hobbyist and professional. They also offer mold making workshops at their HQ in Chattanooga, Tennessee for $350 per lesson. Smooth-on Corporation. Check them out at www.smooth-on.com. Lots of stuff and good prices. Lots of local stocking distributors. back to top | | Yes! In fact, I love to meet my customers. If you can make it to the Los Angeles, California area, please stop in! back to top | | | No. back to top |
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