Officer Style Epaulette's ( the Quick, Cheap and Easy Way!)

In this fine Instructable i will be showing how to make  a simple officer epaulette pair.

i made these for fun to put on my Halloween costume for 2012.

the total cost of this project was $15

what you'll need:
hot glue gun (high Temp)
.25 yard of fabric
center board. you can use tons of stuff for this but not cardboard, itll bend out of shape and have ugly fold lines. Your best bet is to go to the dollar store and cut out the shape from a plastic lid or storage tub. (i used HDPE scarps i had laying around)
Fringe trim (got mine at joanns in the curtain section.)
trim (optional)

Step 1: Center Board

this is pretty basic step.

deciding what you choose to use for the board, cut it out based on your measurements but ill include my measurements below in the picture.

i used scrap HDPE plastic i had laying around. how ever you can just go to the dollar store and get a plastic storage tub and it will work just fine. be sure to cut it out with a knife, the scissors will make the plastic shatter.

Step 2: Frabric, Fringe and Trim.

Fabric, fringe and trim.

its a personal choice on the fabric you use, personally i tryed to match the fabric to my hat i wore with it, I just raided the clearance line for a matching color. it does help to get a stretch fabric cause its easy to pull over the board, so spandex or fashion denim. the fringe you will want is in either the curtain isle or the trim isle. i liked the curtain fringe better because it matched closer in color and was a better quality. the trim is optional but looks good if you want to add more color or signify rank.

.25 of yard of fabric and a .5 yard of fringe should do the trick for both pieces.

after you get the fabric place under your piece and draw an outline of it . then measure 1" out from the board and cut it out. measure the fringe the entire length of the circle and add .25" on each end. after you cut the fringe hot glue the ends so the don't split.

Step 3: Assembly

putting it together.

hot glue the top of the circle with the fabric stretched over it. then slowly repeat down the circle towards the bottom. its important to do this equally on each side to it doesn't crease on the top. before gluing the last bit check the top and see of its creasing. stretch the bottom as far as it'll go. if you still have a crease on top and glue the piece down. for the fringe start gluing at one end and finish gluing at the other creating a kind of curve in the braid. i also added some stripes with the trim i got for more color, i simply glued it the same way as the fringe.

be sure to use plenty of glue to keep the fringe from splitting as this is what holds it all together.

Step 4: Attaching It to the Coat

attaching it to the coat or costume.

for this part i made an elastic loops for my shoulder straps that where already on the coat and a snap on the very end to keep it tucked into the collar.

you can use hook and eyes, elastic, snaps, button what ever you'd like to do or simple glue it straight to the coat with the hot glue.

Step 5: Finished Product!

and voila! simple and easy and cheap!

here's the entire costume put together.

this is great for adding a little style to your peacoat or making a cool costume.