Dissecting Rossiu's Costume (post time skip)
As with any costuming challenge, the first challenge is always to learn as much about the costume as possible. Anime is unique in this regard since the costumes don't have a specific material, but selection of resources for production of the costume will instead depend more on the color, weight, and if you're nitpicky as I am, the reflective qualities of the materials chosen. Additionally, due to different artists, the costumes will likely undergo small variations throughout a series.
Rossiu's costume remains fairly consistent from what I've seen, although there have been some minor differences I'll note shortly.
First lets break the costume down so we can talk about each piece separately. The main body of the (post time skip) costume is what appears to be a heavy white material. It is similar to a lab coat or a smock except that there are no visible openings to put it on. Instead, it is likely the costume slips on like a very long shirt.
The side seams have a quilted accordion like expansion between them going from the armpit to right about the height of the wrist. In MOST scenes, they are a very light, blue-gray. In some, they appear to be more white. This is one of the first discrepancies. Each one of the strips appears to be about 3/4 - 1" in diameter (judging by a relative size to an estimated size of the buttons which I'll discuss later) and there are 5 in total on each side.
Another defining feature on the main body is the slits on the neck and sleeve. They are thin lines (~1/2") running along with short branches coming off momentarily, 2 on the each on the neck and 1 on the sleeve. The color of these is difficult to determine. In most scenes, they appear to be gray, but sometimes have a distinctly blue tint, similar to that of the side seam expansion. I suspected they may actually be the same color and tool color samples in photoshop and they both appear to be a very close blue-gray and the appearance of being more gray is likely due to an optical illusion in which our eye blends the black of the outline with the actual color. So I intend to make my under layer at that point from the same material as the side inserts.
Many cosplayers I've seen do these blue-gray parts on top as applique, but in close up reference pictures, it is clear that the material is UNDER the white part as it is clearly shown to fold over. This effect is not difficult to replicate, but begs the question of the importance of them.
If the tunic is indeed meant to slide over the head, the neck, as shown, would be far to small to fit a head through. There are no seams on the side by which the collar might be expanded while putting the costume on which leads me to conclude that the slits in the FRONT allow the middle white piece to fold out and allow the head through and then it is pulled back in. No similar functionality seems to exist for the slits in the wrist and it would seem they only serve a unifying purpose to give the costume an overall feel.
On the sides of the collar and the bottom of the expansion in the side seams are yellow strips with gold circles on the end. Originally, I believed these might be buttons used to hold the collar shut, but they seem rather far from the front flap I just discussed and would then need to go through two layers of material. If the materials on the white collar or the yellow strip were to stretch at all, it would reveal the button hole and not maintain the proper shape for the collar. Thus, I doubt their functionality as good buttons. Additionally, in every screen shot I can find, they appear to be flat against the yellow strip which would imply they're actually part of it. In a few screen shots, it becomes apparent that, although they are gold circles, there is another inner circle with about 1/2 of the diameter. In no scene in the actual anime are these seen to be shiny or metallic although several pieces of fan art have depicted it as such. I tend to like the idea that they are metallic and will probably choose some tight fitting buttons for them.
Another distinct component is the yellow and orange shoulder pieces. These seem to be a challenge for most cosplayers. It is obvious that they are raised above the main costume and have some thickness to them but they are not plastic or reflective in any way. Their reflective qualities tend to be the same as the fabric the main body is made from. Thus, fabric seems to be the natural choice, but how to get the thickness?
Many cosplayers seem to use some sort of padding, but this often causes the material to have unsightly and inappropriate creases. Thus, I plan to use a stronger material, such as plastic, overlayed with fabric for a smooth appearance.
The stars on the left breast are another important part of this costume. They appear to be sewn directly on and would best be done with applique.
Under the main tabbard, Rossiu appears to wear dark tan or gray pants with soft white boots with blue strips and heals matching the color of the side seam inserts.
Rossiu's costume remains fairly consistent from what I've seen, although there have been some minor differences I'll note shortly.
First lets break the costume down so we can talk about each piece separately. The main body of the (post time skip) costume is what appears to be a heavy white material. It is similar to a lab coat or a smock except that there are no visible openings to put it on. Instead, it is likely the costume slips on like a very long shirt.
The side seams have a quilted accordion like expansion between them going from the armpit to right about the height of the wrist. In MOST scenes, they are a very light, blue-gray. In some, they appear to be more white. This is one of the first discrepancies. Each one of the strips appears to be about 3/4 - 1" in diameter (judging by a relative size to an estimated size of the buttons which I'll discuss later) and there are 5 in total on each side.
Another defining feature on the main body is the slits on the neck and sleeve. They are thin lines (~1/2") running along with short branches coming off momentarily, 2 on the each on the neck and 1 on the sleeve. The color of these is difficult to determine. In most scenes, they appear to be gray, but sometimes have a distinctly blue tint, similar to that of the side seam expansion. I suspected they may actually be the same color and tool color samples in photoshop and they both appear to be a very close blue-gray and the appearance of being more gray is likely due to an optical illusion in which our eye blends the black of the outline with the actual color. So I intend to make my under layer at that point from the same material as the side inserts.
Many cosplayers I've seen do these blue-gray parts on top as applique, but in close up reference pictures, it is clear that the material is UNDER the white part as it is clearly shown to fold over. This effect is not difficult to replicate, but begs the question of the importance of them.
If the tunic is indeed meant to slide over the head, the neck, as shown, would be far to small to fit a head through. There are no seams on the side by which the collar might be expanded while putting the costume on which leads me to conclude that the slits in the FRONT allow the middle white piece to fold out and allow the head through and then it is pulled back in. No similar functionality seems to exist for the slits in the wrist and it would seem they only serve a unifying purpose to give the costume an overall feel.
On the sides of the collar and the bottom of the expansion in the side seams are yellow strips with gold circles on the end. Originally, I believed these might be buttons used to hold the collar shut, but they seem rather far from the front flap I just discussed and would then need to go through two layers of material. If the materials on the white collar or the yellow strip were to stretch at all, it would reveal the button hole and not maintain the proper shape for the collar. Thus, I doubt their functionality as good buttons. Additionally, in every screen shot I can find, they appear to be flat against the yellow strip which would imply they're actually part of it. In a few screen shots, it becomes apparent that, although they are gold circles, there is another inner circle with about 1/2 of the diameter. In no scene in the actual anime are these seen to be shiny or metallic although several pieces of fan art have depicted it as such. I tend to like the idea that they are metallic and will probably choose some tight fitting buttons for them.
Another distinct component is the yellow and orange shoulder pieces. These seem to be a challenge for most cosplayers. It is obvious that they are raised above the main costume and have some thickness to them but they are not plastic or reflective in any way. Their reflective qualities tend to be the same as the fabric the main body is made from. Thus, fabric seems to be the natural choice, but how to get the thickness?
Many cosplayers seem to use some sort of padding, but this often causes the material to have unsightly and inappropriate creases. Thus, I plan to use a stronger material, such as plastic, overlayed with fabric for a smooth appearance.
The stars on the left breast are another important part of this costume. They appear to be sewn directly on and would best be done with applique.
Under the main tabbard, Rossiu appears to wear dark tan or gray pants with soft white boots with blue strips and heals matching the color of the side seam inserts.