Fabric Notes and "Substitute" Material Options

FABRIC NOTES: 

Alternatively - or, perhaps, ideally - one can purchase white or undyed wool gabardine and then dye them matching gray and division-color accordingly to screen-accurate specifications. 

While we admittedly have no proof, we believe the gray wool gabardine of the DS9/NEM cadet jumpsuit body to be the same gray wool gabardine as was used for the DS9/NEM duty uniforms' yoke trim. 

Assuming this to be the case, the correct dye to match the screen-used fabric is "mouse grey" by Pro Chemical and Dye. 

Alternatively, one can purchase (supposedly screen-accurate) gray wool gabardine from International Silks and Woolens.

"SUBSTITUTE" MATERIAL RECOMMENDATIONS/ALTERNATIVES

We're also aware of "vegan" sensibilities and the sometimes prohibitively expensive nature of screen-accurate materials. They may look make for a far more impressive, screen-accurate replica, but superfine wool gabardine isn't cheap! Tack on time and cost of dyeing or buying custom-dyed materials, and expenses can add up quickly.

Fortunately, cotton twill is an inexpensive and easy-to-find substitute for wool gabardine. Although it doesn't drape, press, or ease as well, and it's more prone to wrinkling, it is more commonly available at retail fabric stores and usually costs substantially less than wool gabardine (especially superfine wool gabardine). 

Poly/cotton blend twill is also an option, although we recommend 100% cotton more than a poly/cotton blend, especially since the two fabrics usually hang out in the same price range.

As a substitute for the DS9/NEM cadet jumpsuit body, we recommend using either "charcoal twill" from JoAnn or "GRFFN twill" from Hancock:

If those are unavailable, JoAnn offers a similar product called "charcoal wrinklease," which seems to be a twill fabric with more of a sheen (sort of like sateen). 

However, note that it is a 44" fabric, and if you use that, you'll need more like 6-7 yards (rather than 4)! 

For command, our go-to is "biking red wrinklease" from JoAnn: 

Hancock has two acceptable options; the first is "zinfandel twill": 

The other is "du pont" twill, although it is a poly/cotton blend (and we generally recommend 100% cotton): 

For tactical/security, Hancock Fabrics has a passable gold cotton twill, although it is a little on the "loud" side: 

Unfortunately, we don't currently know of any "off-the-shelf" substitutes for the sciences/medical division - at least, not in the twill/gabardine family. 

We used JoAnn's "charcoal gray wrinklease" in combination with "biking red wrinklease" (also from JoAnn) for the jumpsuit in this tutorial. 

The following uniform constructed for this tutorial was 100% cotton.
No animals were harmed in the making of this tutorial.

Now that you've been briefed on the uniform and have all of your materials gathered:

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