<p>What you're looking for is EVA Craft Foam sheets; these are the typical choice for costumers who want to create leather or metal-look pieces without using leather or metal. They're widely available from most craft stores, typically in the &quot;kid craft&quot; sections under brand names like &quot;Foamies;&quot; lately, more deluxe versions are also available in some stores in the newly-forming &quot;cosplay&quot; sections, often under the &quot;YaYa Han&quot; brand. The sheets are sufficiently thick to replicate leather, but soft and flexible enough to cut with regular household scissors (as opposed to using knives and leather shears). EVA foam won't be as durable as leather, but with care should hold up well, and there are a lot of tutorials available for crafting costume armor pieces using it.</p>
<p>You definitely don't want to do fiberglass; it's very difficult and hazardous to work with, and gets very heavy very quickly.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-07-31T07:24:19.627Z
Those EVA (sometimes known as PEVA) sheets come in all kind of colours, textures and thickness. A dark 3mm snake surface may be a good start. There's all kinds of leathery-look versions available, [here's some examples with pictures](https://aminoapps.com/c/cosplay/page/blog/craft-foam-leather/bMUo_u8vLbRoqp5w3q07xWaEKDZne7Ig).
Mast
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-07-28T16:08:05.570Z
2020-07-28T16:08:05.570Z
Allison C
<p>Wikipedia suggests (and I remembered it from school) that a lot of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoplite#Body_armour" rel="noreferrer">Hoplite armour</a> was made from &quot;<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linothorax" rel="noreferrer">linothorax</a>&quot;, a composite made from layers of cloth.</p>
<p>So for this you could use actual cloth (old sheets?), or perhaps felt, glued together with a non-toxic wood glue.</p>
<p>On the more &quot;affordable&quot; end, you could also try paper mâché mould of yourself.  Or perhaps for the heavy-weight feel of bronze, make a breast-plate with plaster bandage.  A combination of both might work well - a light substrate of plaster bandage, but then covered with a layer of cloth or paper mâché - to cover all the bandage-ness.</p>
<p>I guess it depends if you're after a &quot;Looking Cool&quot; costume, or a more &quot;Rough and Tumble&quot; version.</p>
<p>IMHO I don't think you want fibreglass, the resin and hardners are not nice to work with.  And when it breaks, it makes for some nasty edges.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-07-30T09:06:52.197Z
My thoughts exactly: "Real" greek armor is linothorax mostly.
Erik
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-07-29T01:07:55.910Z
2020-07-29T01:07:55.910Z
Kingsley
<p>While working with leather can be difficult, it's a skill you can learn.</p>
<p>New, pristine leather is indeed costly, but go try going through local flea markets / second hand shops. It's likely you can find slightly worn out leather jackets or bags that you can reuse.</p>
<p>You might also find synthetic leather (which is made out of fabric coated with plastic). It's usually a bit softer and easier to work with.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-07-30T01:59:31.727Z
Good point about used leather, an old cow-hide mat would make great costume armour.
Kingsley
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-07-30T13:00:36.290Z
Just be careful you don't accidentally score a valuable antique and then shred it with scissors before you realize how much it's worth!
J...
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-08-03T14:32:53.923Z
Note that there's different ways to tan leather (chrome, vegetable, and synthetic), that will affect the way the final product behaves. For shaping, you need vegetable tanned, but most thrifted leather (according to one site, 100% of clothing leather) is likely to be chrome tanned and can't be worked the same way. A project like armor would work better in stiff veg tanned than soft chrome tanned. But thrifting is a great option for other leather projects!
Allison C
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-07-29T08:54:01.830Z
2020-07-29T08:54:01.830Z
jpa
<p>A material made specifically to imitate real leather, with similar properties but for a much more affordable price is '<strong><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Artificial_leather" rel="noreferrer">faux leather</a></strong>' (a.k.a. artificial or synthetic leather).<br />
It is still pretty pricey, but probably the closest you can get to a real leather look without having to use actual leather. It's also a lot easier to clean.</p>
<p>Like the other suggestions here, it's a sturdy material, and might not be easily handled by normal sewing machines, but by hand it's quite easy to manipulate, and it comes in different thicknesses, so you should be able to find the right pliability/realism ratio.<br />
Or you can even use a thinner kind to cover elements made out of cardboard or any of the materials mentioned in the other answers.</p>
<p>A disadvantage is that it's (usually) not porous, so it's not the healthiest material to cover your body with, but Greek armour is naturally quite breathable - which is logical considering the Greek climate - and usually consisted of separate elements.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-10-13T14:26:34.797Z
I can confirm that faux leather is very uncomfortable. I often use it in costumes as a "test" to make sure a design will work before investing in much more expensive real leather, and it's dreadful to wear.
Allison C
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-07-29T10:30:09.613Z
2020-07-29T10:30:09.613Z
Joachim
<p>I recently stumbled across a clever way to make impressive-looking fake leather from craft foam sheets that would be great for costume purposes:</p>
<p><a href="https://i.sstatic.net/5NqFW.jpg" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/5NqFW.jpg" alt="enter image description here" /></a></p>
<p>The process is described in <a href="https://www.instructables.com/Make-Fake-Leather-From-Tinfoil-and-Foam/?utm_source=newsletter&amp;utm_medium=email" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Make Fake Leather From Tinfoil and Foam! - Instructables</a>.  The link is a good tutorial.  The process is basically crumpling and then flattening tinfoil to create a wrinkle pattern.  The tinfoil is placed on the foam sheet and pressed with an iron at the lowest setting.  That textures the surface.  A few colors of acrylic paint are wiped to give it the final appearance.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-02-07T19:32:11.727Z
2021-02-07T19:32:11.727Z
fixer1234
<p>Real leather is expensive, but it isn't particularly difficult to work with.  Thinner cuts of leather can be sewn the same as most cloth and thicker leather just needs heavy-duty hand sewing (and a punch to make the holes).  It has better dimensional stability (it doesn't bunch or stretch) than fabric, which can be good or bad depending on what you are trying to do.  It is, however, very unforgiving.  A sewing needle through cloth won't, generally speaking, damage or otherwise alter the cloth, but a sewing needle through leather will create a permanent hole; it needs to be in the right place the first time.  You can patch a gash or compensate for an imperfect fit much more easily with cloth than with leather.  Leather also has a non-uniform surface; brands, cuts, scars, and other marks.  I consider myself fairly handy with this sort of stuff, and anything I make out of leather I first make with a less expensive material first.</p>
<p>EVA foam is a good approximation for the flexibility of leather for an equivalent thickness.  If you have the opportunity, I recommend looking at real leather before trying to replicate the appearance with something else; it will give you an appreciation for how much it bends, the finish, the texture, etc.  Modern leather clothing is one of the worst examples available; it tends to be a very thin skin of leather over a synthetic material.  There is no substitute for knowing the material you're trying to approximate, but copious amounts of googling and youtube videos are better than nothing.</p>
<p>Even if you were to use real leather, you would still have a problem.  When you scale down a design for a smaller body, you have to reduce the thickness of the material in addition to the length and height.  Even real leather would require something to help with stability to create an &quot;authentic&quot; appearance.</p>
<p>If I were to try this, I would start with EVA foam.  After cutting the pieces from 3-5mm (1/8in to 1/4in) foam and doing a test fit, I would glue a faux-leather fabric to the surface.  The glue and the fabric should add enough rigidity to compensate for the thinner material.  If this is having trouble holding the shape you want, I would use a fiberglass screen (any screen would do, but fiberglass is what I can get at the local hardware store).  Cut the screen to shape, sew together the seams by hand as needed, and glue the screen to the back of the foam.</p>
<p>Another common material for costume armor is thermoplastics.  I don't want to mention any brand names, but I feel this one can't be avoided.  There are several brands, but Worbla is the most popular and often videos will mention it by name rather than by the more generic &quot;thermoplastic&quot;.  The thermoplastics I have used are thin, hold shape well, can take a texture, and paint easily.  Thermoplastic over top of EVA foam is a popular technique as both materials need a little help to hold a rigid shape cleanly.  It is, however, not particularly cheap and you need a heat-resistant workspace.  I would probably turn to real leather before trying this, personally, but it is an option.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-07-31T23:38:23.250Z
2020-07-31T23:38:23.250Z
Steve
<p>Metal and fiberglass are nothing like real leather. They're stiff, and they don't move at all (that's why no one makes clothes out of them). I think that faux leather would be your best bet. It is designed to look, feel, and work like real leather, and it's way cheaper. Faux leather (fake leather) has a very similar structure and feel to that of real leather, so its the most ideal thing as a substitute. Just look up faux leather on google and go to the shopping tab. There are loads of different retailers that have different colors and styles. Good luck with your project!</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-10-13T14:23:47.040Z
EVA Foam ABSOLUTELY moves and is actually more flexible than the heavier leathers that would be used for a project like this. Not to mention that faux leather is very uncomfortable to wear...
Allison C
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-10-15T12:38:54.750Z
oh my bad, i thought people were talking about stiff foam sheets.
DripKracken
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-10-15T13:48:17.010Z
Nope, it's the stuff sold as "craft foam" or brand names like "foamies," soft pliable sheets rather than stiff packing/insulation foam. Very different. :) EVA foam is similar enough to leather that it's frequently used for mocking up pieces before cutting the leather for the final product.
Allison C
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-10-15T22:57:37.877Z
lol yeah i got it. i was like who is using hard foam as an alt leather. that doesn't seem like it would work.
DripKracken
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-10-13T12:51:53.377Z
2021-02-08T15:26:00.953Z
2021-02-08T15:26:00.953Z
DripKracken
<p>There are some good answers here already. However, with a limited budget and novice level skills, your best bet is &quot;paint to resemble ...&quot;</p>
<p>By that I mean take a cloth that is fairly coarse, and also cheap and easy to work with, like sailcloth, canvas or even coarse linen. Use inserts of foam, cork, plastic or even cardboard to stiffen and add mass. Sew or glue the inserts between two layers of cloth (linen, canvas, etc), then use acrylic paint to paint the cloth to resemble leather armour. You can use acrylic spray paint or tubs of student acrylic. The acrylic paint forms a &quot;plastic&quot; layer much like what you see in faux leather, though obviously not as washable or durable.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-10-12T21:57:06.120Z
2020-10-12T21:57:06.120Z
Gwyn
<h1>Metal or fibreglass lamellar.</h1>
<p>This might be a bit above your current skill level, but you might consider making a suit of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lamellar_armour" rel="nofollow noreferrer">lamellar armor</a> if you don't want to make a solid breastplate. This is a form of armor that consists of a large number of small plates made from a rigid material with holes punched or drilled in them, which are then laced together with some form of cloth string. This grants protection that is nearly as good as a solid metal plate, but with more flexibility and range of motion. The Wikipedia page has a pattern for one style of lamellar. A similar armor known as <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brigandine" rel="nofollow noreferrer">brigandine</a> was popular in the medieval period, which consist of overlapping plates of metal that are riveted to the inside of a heavy piece of cloth.</p>
<p>Note that both of these types of armor would likely have been worn over some form of cloth padding for impact resistance, similar to how modern football gear has padding underneath the plates; this would likely take the form of the padded longcoat or jacket known as the gambeson or aketon. Depending on how authentic you want your piece to be, you might buy or make a genuine reproduction, or just substitute it for a modern-day padded parka coat or jacket.</p>
<p>For an example of what these armors might look like in real life, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WzhAhRZzCrA" rel="nofollow noreferrer">here</a> is a Youtube video by a history-focused Youtuber discussing their new suit of brigandine armor, along with its historical use and its functionality.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-07-29T22:08:39.270Z
Even for an adult with the right tools, making lots of metal or fiberglass pieces for lamellar can be difficult and very time consuming. Not to mention the sharp edges and the weight involved can be significant problems. If this was someone going for something they could use for years in LARPing or something, it might be worth it, but the OP says they are 13, so they are going to grow out of it quickly.
computercarguy
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-07-30T19:47:51.607Z
It's also just not an effective substitute for leather in any way. Leather is breathable, relatively lightweight, and pliable; metal and fiberglass aren't.
Allison C
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-07-29T08:14:39.617Z
2020-07-29T08:14:39.617Z
nick012000
<p>This is my first time trying to make a costume out of anything other than cardboard and sheets. I wanted to make Greek armour out of real leather but my mum said that real leather is very expensive and very hard to work with. So I started searching for alternative materials. The problem is I can’t find a material with thickness and sturdiness similar to real leather. I’m only thirteen years old so I have a very limited budget. My dad says I should go with fiberglass but I’m very worried that it’ll be too stiff to bend over in. Any ideas?</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-07-29T06:12:33.277Z
Welcome to Arts & Crafts! Please take the [tour] (you'll get a badge for it) and have a look at the [help]. I hope you'll find the answers helpful and have a lot of fun making your costume.
Elmy
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-07-29T18:06:57.883Z
Fiberglass is actually a really bad idea for multiple reasons. It's rather heavy (bad for costumes except in small parts), tends to produce very sharp edges when broken, and working it properly is seriously dangerous (there are a huge number of major health hazards associated with working with fiberglass).
Austin Hemmelgarn
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-07-30T12:12:31.737Z
Slightly off-topic as you are interested to know what material to use to make your custome. You might already have a clear idea what you want the custome to look like. In which case just ignore this comment. However, if you are looking for inspiration, have a look at https://acoup.blog/2019/05/03/collections-armor-in-order-part-i/ and https://acoup.blog/2019/05/03/collections-armor-in-order-part-ii/ . Really interesting and fun read into historial armor and how they compare to armor in films.
P.R.
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-07-30T20:53:48.277Z
If you ever do need a fiber-glass-like composite material (resin + cloth), don't use glass. You're not making a boat or race car body. You can just use some ordinary cloth, like polyester or even cotton. Casting resins have health risks, but at least the glass it out of the picture.
Kaz
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-10-05T10:44:02.280Z
I used to live near a hat factory, and got lots of scrap pieces of leather.
Polypipe Wrangler
<leather><costume-design>
I need an alternative to leather
Cadence P.
# I need an alternative to leather

(Asked by: username_0 on 2020-07-28)

This is my first time trying to make a costume out of anything other than cardboard and sheets. I wanted to make Greek armour out of real leather but my mum said that real leather is very expensive and very hard to work with. So I started searching for alternative materials. The problem is I can’t find a material with thickness and sturdiness similar to real leather. I’m only thirteen years old so I have a very limited budget. My dad says I should go with fiberglass but I’m very worried that it’ll be too stiff to bend over in. Any ideas?

**Tags:** leather, costume-design

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: Welcome to Arts & Crafts! Please take the [tour] (you'll get a badge for it) and have a look at the [help]. I hope you'll find the answers helpful and have a lot of fun making your costume.  
> **username_2**: Fiberglass is actually a really bad idea for multiple reasons. It's rather heavy (bad for costumes except in small parts), tends to produce very sharp edges when broken, and working it properly is seriously dangerous (there are a huge number of major health hazards associated with working with fiberglass).  
> **username_3**: Slightly off-topic as you are interested to know what material to use to make your custome. You might already have a clear idea what you want the custome to look like. In which case just ignore this comment. However, if you are looking for inspiration, have a look at https://acoup.blog/2019/05/03/collections-armor-in-order-part-i/ and https://acoup.blog/2019/05/03/collections-armor-in-order-part-ii/ . Really interesting and fun read into historial armor and how they compare to armor in films.  
> **username_4**: If you ever do need a fiber-glass-like composite material (resin + cloth), don't use glass. You're not making a boat or race car body. You can just use some ordinary cloth, like polyester or even cotton. Casting resins have health risks, but at least the glass it out of the picture.  
> **username_5**: I used to live near a hat factory, and got lots of scrap pieces of leather.  

---

## 9 answers

### Answer by username_6 on 2020-07-28. Score: 24

What you're looking for is EVA Craft Foam sheets; these are the typical choice for costumers who want to create leather or metal-look pieces without using leather or metal. They're widely available from most craft stores, typically in the "kid craft" sections under brand names like "Foamies;" lately, more deluxe versions are also available in some stores in the newly-forming "cosplay" sections, often under the "YaYa Han" brand. The sheets are sufficiently thick to replicate leather, but soft and flexible enough to cut with regular household scissors (as opposed to using knives and leather shears). EVA foam won't be as durable as leather, but with care should hold up well, and there are a lot of tutorials available for crafting costume armor pieces using it.

You definitely don't want to do fiberglass; it's very difficult and hazardous to work with, and gets very heavy very quickly.

> **Comments:**
> **username_7**: Those EVA (sometimes known as PEVA) sheets come in all kind of colours, textures and thickness. A dark 3mm snake surface may be a good start. There's all kinds of leathery-look versions available, [here's some examples with pictures](https://aminoapps.com/c/cosplay/page/blog/craft-foam-leather/bMUo_u8vLbRoqp5w3q07xWaEKDZne7Ig).  

---

### Answer by username_8 on 2020-07-29. Score: 15

Wikipedia suggests (and I remembered it from school) that a lot of [Hoplite armour](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoplite#Body_armour) was made from "[linothorax](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linothorax)", a composite made from layers of cloth.

So for this you could use actual cloth (old sheets?), or perhaps felt, glued together with a non-toxic wood glue.

On the more "affordable" end, you could also try paper mâché mould of yourself. Or perhaps for the heavy-weight feel of bronze, make a breast-plate with plaster bandage. A combination of both might work well - a light substrate of plaster bandage, but then covered with a layer of cloth or paper mâché - to cover all the bandage-ness.

I guess it depends if you're after a "Looking Cool" costume, or a more "Rough and Tumble" version.

IMHO I don't think you want fibreglass, the resin and hardners are not nice to work with. And when it breaks, it makes for some nasty edges.

> **Comments:**
> **username_9**: My thoughts exactly: "Real" greek armor is linothorax mostly.  

---

### Answer by username_10 on 2020-07-29. Score: 14

While working with leather can be difficult, it's a skill you can learn.

New, pristine leather is indeed costly, but go try going through local flea markets / second hand shops. It's likely you can find slightly worn out leather jackets or bags that you can reuse.

You might also find synthetic leather (which is made out of fabric coated with plastic). It's usually a bit softer and easier to work with.

> **Comments:**
> **username_8**: Good point about used leather, an old cow-hide mat would make great costume armour.  
> **username_11**: Just be careful you don't accidentally score a valuable antique and then shred it with scissors before you realize how much it's worth!  
> **username_6**: Note that there's different ways to tan leather (chrome, vegetable, and synthetic), that will affect the way the final product behaves. For shaping, you need vegetable tanned, but most thrifted leather (according to one site, 100% of clothing leather) is likely to be chrome tanned and can't be worked the same way. A project like armor would work better in stiff veg tanned than soft chrome tanned. But thrifting is a great option for other leather projects!  

---

### Answer by username_12 on 2020-07-29. Score: 8

A material made specifically to imitate real leather, with similar properties but for a much more affordable price is '**[faux leather](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Artificial_leather)**' (a.k.a. artificial or synthetic leather).  
It is still pretty pricey, but probably the closest you can get to a real leather look without having to use actual leather. It's also a lot easier to clean.

Like the other suggestions here, it's a sturdy material, and might not be easily handled by normal sewing machines, but by hand it's quite easy to manipulate, and it comes in different thicknesses, so you should be able to find the right pliability/realism ratio.  
Or you can even use a thinner kind to cover elements made out of cardboard or any of the materials mentioned in the other answers.

A disadvantage is that it's (usually) not porous, so it's not the healthiest material to cover your body with, but Greek armour is naturally quite breathable - which is logical considering the Greek climate - and usually consisted of separate elements.

> **Comments:**
> **username_6**: I can confirm that faux leather is very uncomfortable. I often use it in costumes as a "test" to make sure a design will work before investing in much more expensive real leather, and it's dreadful to wear.  

---

### Answer by username_13 on 2021-02-07. Score: 3

I recently stumbled across a clever way to make impressive-looking fake leather from craft foam sheets that would be great for costume purposes:

[![enter image description here](https://i.sstatic.net/5NqFW.jpg)](https://i.sstatic.net/5NqFW.jpg)

The process is described in [Make Fake Leather From Tinfoil and Foam! - Instructables](https://www.instructables.com/Make-Fake-Leather-From-Tinfoil-and-Foam/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email). The link is a good tutorial. The process is basically crumpling and then flattening tinfoil to create a wrinkle pattern. The tinfoil is placed on the foam sheet and pressed with an iron at the lowest setting. That textures the surface. A few colors of acrylic paint are wiped to give it the final appearance.


---

### Answer by username_14 on 2020-07-31. Score: 2

Real leather is expensive, but it isn't particularly difficult to work with. Thinner cuts of leather can be sewn the same as most cloth and thicker leather just needs heavy-duty hand sewing (and a punch to make the holes). It has better dimensional stability (it doesn't bunch or stretch) than fabric, which can be good or bad depending on what you are trying to do. It is, however, very unforgiving. A sewing needle through cloth won't, generally speaking, damage or otherwise alter the cloth, but a sewing needle through leather will create a permanent hole; it needs to be in the right place the first time. You can patch a gash or compensate for an imperfect fit much more easily with cloth than with leather. Leather also has a non-uniform surface; brands, cuts, scars, and other marks. I consider myself fairly handy with this sort of stuff, and anything I make out of leather I first make with a less expensive material first.

EVA foam is a good approximation for the flexibility of leather for an equivalent thickness. If you have the opportunity, I recommend looking at real leather before trying to replicate the appearance with something else; it will give you an appreciation for how much it bends, the finish, the texture, etc. Modern leather clothing is one of the worst examples available; it tends to be a very thin skin of leather over a synthetic material. There is no substitute for knowing the material you're trying to approximate, but copious amounts of googling and youtube videos are better than nothing.

Even if you were to use real leather, you would still have a problem. When you scale down a design for a smaller body, you have to reduce the thickness of the material in addition to the length and height. Even real leather would require something to help with stability to create an "authentic" appearance.

If I were to try this, I would start with EVA foam. After cutting the pieces from 3-5mm (1/8in to 1/4in) foam and doing a test fit, I would glue a faux-leather fabric to the surface. The glue and the fabric should add enough rigidity to compensate for the thinner material. If this is having trouble holding the shape you want, I would use a fiberglass screen (any screen would do, but fiberglass is what I can get at the local hardware store). Cut the screen to shape, sew together the seams by hand as needed, and glue the screen to the back of the foam.

Another common material for costume armor is thermoplastics. I don't want to mention any brand names, but I feel this one can't be avoided. There are several brands, but Worbla is the most popular and often videos will mention it by name rather than by the more generic "thermoplastic". The thermoplastics I have used are thin, hold shape well, can take a texture, and paint easily. Thermoplastic over top of EVA foam is a popular technique as both materials need a little help to hold a rigid shape cleanly. It is, however, not particularly cheap and you need a heat-resistant workspace. I would probably turn to real leather before trying this, personally, but it is an option.


---

### Answer by username_15 on 2020-10-13. Score: 1

Metal and fiberglass are nothing like real leather. They're stiff, and they don't move at all (that's why no one makes clothes out of them). I think that faux leather would be your best bet. It is designed to look, feel, and work like real leather, and it's way cheaper. Faux leather (fake leather) has a very similar structure and feel to that of real leather, so its the most ideal thing as a substitute. Just look up faux leather on google and go to the shopping tab. There are loads of different retailers that have different colors and styles. Good luck with your project!

> **Comments:**
> **username_6**: EVA Foam ABSOLUTELY moves and is actually more flexible than the heavier leathers that would be used for a project like this. Not to mention that faux leather is very uncomfortable to wear...  
> **username_15**: oh my bad, i thought people were talking about stiff foam sheets.  
> **username_6**: Nope, it's the stuff sold as "craft foam" or brand names like "foamies," soft pliable sheets rather than stiff packing/insulation foam. Very different. :) EVA foam is similar enough to leather that it's frequently used for mocking up pieces before cutting the leather for the final product.  
> **username_15**: lol yeah i got it. i was like who is using hard foam as an alt leather. that doesn't seem like it would work.  

---

### Answer by username_16 on 2020-10-12. Score: 1

There are some good answers here already. However, with a limited budget and novice level skills, your best bet is "paint to resemble ..."

By that I mean take a cloth that is fairly coarse, and also cheap and easy to work with, like sailcloth, canvas or even coarse linen. Use inserts of foam, cork, plastic or even cardboard to stiffen and add mass. Sew or glue the inserts between two layers of cloth (linen, canvas, etc), then use acrylic paint to paint the cloth to resemble leather armour. You can use acrylic spray paint or tubs of student acrylic. The acrylic paint forms a "plastic" layer much like what you see in faux leather, though obviously not as washable or durable.


---

### Answer by username_17 on 2020-07-29. Score: -3

# Metal or fibreglass lamellar.

This might be a bit above your current skill level, but you might consider making a suit of [lamellar armor](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lamellar_armour) if you don't want to make a solid breastplate. This is a form of armor that consists of a large number of small plates made from a rigid material with holes punched or drilled in them, which are then laced together with some form of cloth string. This grants protection that is nearly as good as a solid metal plate, but with more flexibility and range of motion. The Wikipedia page has a pattern for one style of lamellar. A similar armor known as [brigandine](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brigandine) was popular in the medieval period, which consist of overlapping plates of metal that are riveted to the inside of a heavy piece of cloth.

Note that both of these types of armor would likely have been worn over some form of cloth padding for impact resistance, similar to how modern football gear has padding underneath the plates; this would likely take the form of the padded longcoat or jacket known as the gambeson or aketon. Depending on how authentic you want your piece to be, you might buy or make a genuine reproduction, or just substitute it for a modern-day padded parka coat or jacket.

For an example of what these armors might look like in real life, [here](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WzhAhRZzCrA) is a Youtube video by a history-focused Youtuber discussing their new suit of brigandine armor, along with its historical use and its functionality.

> **Comments:**
> **username_18**: Even for an adult with the right tools, making lots of metal or fiberglass pieces for lamellar can be difficult and very time consuming. Not to mention the sharp edges and the weight involved can be significant problems. If this was someone going for something they could use for years in LARPing or something, it might be worth it, but the OP says they are 13, so they are going to grow out of it quickly.  
> **username_6**: It's also just not an effective substitute for leather in any way. Leather is breathable, relatively lightweight, and pliable; metal and fiberglass aren't.  

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