This is SPARTA!

           Alright, fun project this month is a custom leather cosplay inspired by Spartacus the TV series. Yes, I know this is 300, but I always loved this scene. There's something about routing for the underdog which is a guilty pleasure. For those of you who didn't take 4 years of Latin in high school, Spartacus is the leader of a major slave revolt in the Roman Empire around 73-71 BC also called the Third Servile War, the Gladiator War, or the War of Sparticus. It was also the only war Rome fought that directly threatened the Roman Empire.
           While Spartacus lost, it is noted that the revolt enacted to push through the first legislation to treat slaves as people and not property. So yeah, let's hear it for human rights.
           History lesson over, now let's get to work on the design part. Since this is all custom work (mostly hand carving), you can expect to spent 40-120 hrs. crafting a bespoke work of art like this. Thankfully for the client and you, most of this work is behind the scenes so you just get to peek in for fun every couple of days. Hopefully this will be a nice break for everyone. I did promise some cool projects for a change of pace.
              So, first...if you've watched any of Nash's How-To-Instructables, you know the first part is pretty dry: collect reference photos, take measurements, and do a first fitting or mock-up. This is also known in the business as the coffee stage since it's mostly math, paper/fabric, and concept oriented. A fast way to iron out the major kinks before you invest in leather. Because leather is expensive and you only get to do it once so mistakes are VERY very costly. Nash also likes to call this the napkin stage.