Grace Duval, known as OBudah on the Craftster forums, has spent fifty hours using nothing but cardboard, brown paper, bicycle tubes, glue, spray paint, and various metal fastenings to make this truly impressive suit of armor based on the sort of design that Joan of Arc might have worn.
According to Duval:
The entire base is constructed from cardboard that is cut and hot-glued into shape. Each individual piece was then covered in multiple coats of brown paper dipped in wallpaper paste, creating a thin, lightweight but very sturdy form of paper mache.
Every piece was then gesso-ed [primed for paint] to remove any corrugation lines, then spray painted matte black.
After the individual pieces were primed I applied the bicycle tubes in varying combinations to create varying effects, such as weaving, stretching, piping, and other cuttings and manipulations. The tubes were adhered to the frame using rubber cement.
Finally, each piece was connected together using an awl, screws and acorn cap fittings to create a more intense armored feel.
Well, my Renfair costume is now hopelessly upstaged.
You can see more pictures of Duval’s armor at her Craftster post and her Flickr stream.
