Carbon Costume cowboy
Cooper Howard from Fallout
A new TV series has been going viral online for its spot-on live action adaptation of the video game franchise Fallout that takes place in a post-apocalyptic world. This series depicts the aftermath of The Great War of 2077, where survivors take refuge in fallout shelters or Vaults, which are actually all created as different experiments on the people who live in them. It follows a woman named Lucy who leaves Vault 33 to find her father in the dangerous wasteland of what is left of Los Angeles. She runs into a Ghoul bounty hunter, originally named Cooper Howard. He was a film actor before the war. In this guide I’ll be covering Cooper Howard’s cowboy costume in Episode 1.
Although this costume looks complicated to make, this guide is doable for an artist of any level. Starting with the iconic blue and gold western shirt, use a blue western dress shirt or just western-style shirt as the base to build off of. For the gold/ cream section on the top portion of the shirt and the sleeve cuffs, cut either a jacquard patterned or brushed twill fabric to the shape of the top of the shirt and either glue it down (the edges will be covered by the fringe trim but iron and fold edges for a cleaner look) or sew the fabric on top. If you’re skilled in sewing and want to take it even further, seam rip the top section from the collar and sleeves and use the removed blue piece as a pattern for the gold fabric, adding seam allowance to sew back in place. You can also add cream piping/ bias tape along the collar and front button panels.
Next, along the edge of the gold fabric you added, either sew or glue on gold fringe trim, following the edge across the front, over the shoulder, and to the back.
Now for the details on the gold fabric: if you choose a printed jacquard fabric, you can keep as is. It gives the same effect of having variety to the surface. However if you have more time to add detail, choose the solid brushed twill fabric and paint and/or embroider a similar pattern of line drawings of scorpions similar to the photos. Doing a combination of both flat painted and 3-D embroidered icons gives it the same variety as the one from the series. You can also paint or embroider (or both) the icons on the collar.
For the rest of the costume, wear brown pants like these western-style Wrangler pants. Bootcut works better to cover cowboy boots like the ones linked below. On top of those, wear a brown cowboy holster belt. More accessories to complete the look include a cream cattleman’s crease style cowboy hat, a sheriff’s badge and a gold neck scarf. To be even more screen-accurate for the scarf, take a solid cream or white bandana, and tie-dye it yellow.
If you have a kiddo that can match with you, you can also follow my guide for Janey Howard’s costume. Even further, I’ve also created one for Janey’s mother, and Cooper’s wife Barb Howard.
Montana from Asteroid City
Montana (played by Rupert Friend) is a singing cowboy in Wes Anderson’s film Asteroid City. Montana finds himself interested in June Douglas, a teacher at the Junior Stargazer Convention. Montana dresses in pretty standard cowboy attire, including blue jeans rolled at the cuff to show off his brown boots, a denim coat, and a white shirt with black details. He also wears a black handkerchief tied at his throat and a beige cowboy hat.
Flint from Mother 3
Flint is the lead protagonist in Mother 3. The father of Lucas and Claus, Flint sets off on a mission to seek revenge for his wife’s death. Flint’s costume is inspired by stereotypical cowboy attire, including a brown cowboy hat and red bandana. To really take it to the next level, you can either grow an impressive mustache and mutton chops or purchase prosthetic ones.
Wayne from X
Wayne (played by Martin Henderson) is the producer behind The Farmer’s Daughters, the porn flick at the heart of Ti West’s Texas-based horror movie X. Wayne is a standard southern cowboy, with long curly hair, a twang, and a white cowboy hat. He is the older boyfriend of Maxine, who he left his previous wife for. Wayne wears a pretty generic outfit with dark jeans and a white hat, but his costume also includes a gold watch, which speaks to his larger aspirations. During the film, he also shows that he wears a pair of extremely revealing skivvies under his jeans, so if you’re going for authenticity, you may want to invest in a set of men’s white bikini underwear.
Doc Holliday
Doc Holliday is a character in the American Western film Tombstone (1993). Although portrayed by Val Kilmer in the movie, he was actually a real person in history. In the mid 1800s, Doc was an actual cowboy, gunman, and gambler, as well as close friend and associate of lawman Wyatt Earp. He played a significant role in the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral, developing a reputation of killing more than a dozen men in his altercations.
Kirk from The Forever Purge
Kirk (portrayed by Will Brittain) is a minor antagonist in the horror film The Forever Purge. Kirk is a cowboy who works on Caleb Tucker’s ranch. Kirk’s costume is primarily black. He wears a black cowboy hat, shirt, and pants, with some small pops of color from the makeup around his eyes, his holster, and the plethora of blood spattered over his person.
The Stranger from The Big Lebowski
In the Coen Brother’s film The Big Lebowski, The Stranger (played by Sam Elliott) is the narrator of the film. He appears at the beginning, middle, and end, and even speaks with The Dude at the bowling alley bar while sipping on a sarsaparilla. The Stranger is dressed like a relatively run-of-the-mill cowboy, but Sam Elliott’s trademark mustache really helps solidify the character as something special.
Doug Dimmadome from The Fairly OddParents
Doug Dimmadome is a minor recurring character in The Fairly OddParents. He’s the owner of the Dimmsdale Dimmadome as well as other businesses and properties in Dimmsdale. His ten gallon cowboy hat comically gets larger with appearance. Sometimes he’s portrayed as an antagonist. His catchphrase, spoken with a Southern drawl, is: “I’m Doug Dimmadome, owner of the Dimmsdale Dimmadome!”
Ennis Del Mar from Brokeback Mountain
In the film Brokeback Mountain, Ennis Del Mar (played by Heath Ledger) is a soft-spoken cowboy who embarks on a passionate love affair with fellow cowboy Jack Twist. Despite marrying his long-time fiance Alma and having two daughters with her, Ennis cannot deny his attraction to and love for Jack, though he is afraid of the potential consequences of their relationship. Ennis wears a light beige cowboy hat and soft colored denim throughout much of the film.
Jack Twist from Brokeback Mountain
Jack Twist (played by Jake Gyllenhaal) is an outspoken cowboy from the film Brokeback Mountain. Jack eventually marries Lureen while continuing to maintain a passionate, if infrequent, relationship with Ennis Del Mar. Jack expresses an interest in living with Ennis, but the latter is too afraid of the potential repercussions of living openly with Jack. Jack’s style is fairly typical of his cowboy persona, including lots of denim and a black cowboy hat.
