This is my first attempt at making duct tape clothing. I ordered a vest pattern from Heritan Leather & Craft Supplies. I believe you can get the same pattern from Tandy Leather if that is more convenient. The pattern can make two basic vests which they call view A and view B. Both patterns come in small, medium, or large. I chose a medium view B since it seemed to be the simplest :-)
For the project I chose Duck Products all-purpose grade. This is a step up from utility grade and I thought it would make a slightly lighter vest than the professional grade. I also chose it because it is easily available at Canadian Tire.
View B has only 4 pieces. I first created sheets of all the pieces. With a careful use of duct tape, I made the four sheets with a 45 yard roll of duct tape. I will need another roll of duct tape to put the pieces togeather.
After making the sheets, I cut out the pieces. I used a normal cutter for the straight edges, but I used a rotary cutter for the curves. I feel the rotary cutter gives a smoother cut when going freehand. However, I still find it easier using the straight cutter when following a ruler.
I taped the seams togeather with about 3 yards of duct tape. The results? It looks like a vest. It is also very stiff. I do not think that duct tape vests are going to take off. But it is a fun and easy project.
I decided to try a shorter vest this time. The first vest is hard to wear when sitting in a chair. The vest wants to ride up and rub the neck. I also made this vest in black to make it more formal :-)
I removed 3 ¼" of material from the back at the bottom. I then lined up the front pieces with the back and extended the cut line over the front pieces. This vest required less than 30 yards of tape.
I am much happier with the results of this vest. It is much more comfortable to wear all day. The shorter vest also seems to be less stiff.
Make the sheets with the patterns upside down. This gives you a vest with all the overlaps going down.
The vest is stiff. You want to be generous with the openings for the neck and arms.
If you make the vest in silver, people are going to make Star Trek references.