Cardboard Armor

Step 7 Wear with pride! But first you have to get into it.

A trusty squire is vital at this point. Tape the front & back together down one side and see if the shoulders fit together. Bend them more if necessary. Now ease your way into the armor. Tape the shoulders gently - you may have to get in & out a couple of times before the armor fits properly. Try to bring your arms together in front. I had to cut away about an inch on each side of the armholes before I could do this comfortably enough to hold a cardboard tube sword.

Once you fit properly into the cuirass, or the cuirass fits properly onto you, duct tape both sides and shoulders closed. If you can, tape a bit to the inside as well.

Next have the squire affix the pauldrons to the shoulders, about in the middle of the shoulder strap. Remember that the dart goes in the back, and nearest to the neck. Use duct tape on the top and bottom, and reinforce with strips of tape over the edges of the hinge tape pieces (er, just slap a lot of tape on there).

I also had to cut shoulder-shaped curves in the edge of the helmet as the cuirass stuck up higher than my regular shoulders. And a bandanna or balaclava or headsock is useful for Hair and also gives that good medieval look.

(Sorry for the blurry pix here, we were late for the tournament and rushing.)