Series 3 Martha Breakdown
Martha's signature look appears in many promotional pictures and the following Series 3 episodes: The Shakespeare Code, Gridlock, Daleks In Manhattan, Evolution Of The Daleks, and The Lazarus Experiment. This post is designed to give you ideas on what to look for when shopping for items.
Here's two screenshots of the outfit as it was seen in Series 3 (images courtesy of The Medusa Cascade Image Gallery):
The Lazarus Experiment:
Daleks In Manhattan
Most of the information we have on the original pieces come from a series of Bonhams Doctor Who prop/costume auctions. I relied on information found on Making My Tennant Coat. and Bonhams' official site for the ID's. This tiny picture shows the auctioned pieces of Martha's signature outfit:
aimeekitty posted a great pic of Martha's outfit from the 2009 Doctor Who Earl's Court Exhibition, which is much better for reference purposes.
The Jacket
It's a red (either bright red or closer to maroon depending on lighting) motorcycle jacket custom made for the show. Only a few copies exist, and they were either sold at auction or remain property of the BBC. The key features of the jacket are: a) a straight zipper b) no visible pockets c)no patchwork/quilts/ruching/ d) a collar without fur, buttons, a hood, or fleece lining e) no cinching in the waistband/sleeves f) waist length
Abbyshot's site has released a replica jacket for $99/£61. Alien Entertainment is selling the same replica for $249. (thanks ellipticcurve for the link!)
These 3 pleather jackets look good as well:
- Express- Minus The Leather Moto Jacket $98 Express offers coupons constantly, so you can get it for a lot cheaper.
- Forever 21- Faux Leather Jacket $32.80. The cinching and pocket zippers aren't that accurate, but the price can'y be beat.
- Amazon- Ladies Burgundy Synthetic Leather Jacket- $49 The collar is iffy, but it's removable.
For additional options, start with searching Ebay. From time to time, sellers that specialize in motorcycle gear or specialty leather goods will have jackets that are close in style. Pleather jackets in the right style also show up. Also, look at the major "designer goods for less" stores. Places like Burlington Coat Factory, TJ Maxx, Marshall's, Bealls, Nordstrom Rack, Saks Off Fifth, and Neiman Marcus Off Fifth will have either high quality pleather or leather jackets for a steep discount. Don't forget your local Salvation Army/vintage consignment store/leather goods store. These places are much more likely to have motorcycle jackets in the correct color and zipper style. I found my Martha jacket from a vintage leather shop, so it's possible.
If you're having trouble finding a jacket you like, pick based on color and length instead of looking for jackets that match every single detail. In general, avoid extremely cropped jackets, jackets without removable hoods, or jackets that are more like coats (they will be too long).
The Jeans
They are Levi's medium wash 551 flares. Unfortunately this style is completely discontinued. If you want to be 100% accurate, you can find them on Ebay. Levi's Five Pocket Flare Jeans: $45 or any of their other bootcut/flare jeans in a medium wash will work instead of the 551's for complete screen accuracy. To be honest, the jeans are the easiest part of this entire costume, so there's thousands of options for alts. You can even repurpose jeans you already have.
The Vest
It's a Ted Baker dark pink vest with black velvet floral motif. I don't know the exact style name, so any help would be much appreciated. It's been out of stock for ages now in stores, on the official site, and outlets. It shows up very rarely on Ebay. Here's two ways to mimic the look:
- Make your own using Spoonflower Custom Fabric: I haven't tried this myself due to a lack of sewing skills, but it has worked for other cosplayers who wanted to replicate hard to find items.
- Find a random long dark pink/maroon/magenta/deep red cotton vest or tank top at your favorite women's clothing store. Here's two examples of tank tops/vests that are cheap and work in terms of color matching:
Forever 21- Coverstitched Cotton Blend Tank $4.50
American Apparel- Rib Boy Beater Tank in Cranberry, Sangria, or Burgundy $18
Be sure to avoid tank tops/vests that have spaghetti straps, bulit in bra shelves (the costume department sewed a bra on the inside to avoid the obvious shelf line), close fitting tanks, and those with additional embroidery/buttons/sequins/glitter (the motif is velvet). You can always buy your vest a size larger so that you have room to layer underneath.
The Boots
The boots as far as I know have not been identified. I searched Google, other Doctor Who cosplay boards/sites with no luck. They are dark red Victorian style lace up boots with a heel. If you have the ID for the shoes, it would be very helpful. These two pairs have a similar enough style:
DSW- Dr. Marten's Darcie Bootie $99
Amazon- Samanta Women's Aimee Lace Up Boot $122
ETA 1/4/12: I found 4 more boots that have the right color, but a bit off in style. Woman Within Madison Scrunch bootie. $49-$54 depending on size/width. Roaman's Claret Lace Up Bootie With Cuff. $39-$42 depending on size/width. Roaman's Burgundy Daria Leather Lace Up Bootie $49. Woman Within Darcy Lace Up Wide With Bootie in Claret $39.
When looking for your own alternates, keep in mind the Victorian style and red/maroon color when you're shopping for boots. Laces and pointed toes are your ideal shoe design. The heel height depends entirely on your comfort level. When searching online, use the terms "red lace up boots", "maroon lace up boots", "red boots" "maroon victorian boots" or any combination of the above.
Don't worry too much if you can't find the right boots. I use riding boots for comfort. You can get away with repurposing red/maroon/brown boots, flats, and kitten heels for Martha as well.
An Alternate Version Of The Outfit?
This promotional image from The Medusa Cascade shows Martha wearing a teal tanktop, black boots and black bootcut trousers. I am not sure this version exists in any Season 3 episodes. If anyone knows what the deal with this is, please let me know:
Martha In Action
I'm posting/reposting pics of my own costumes so you can see how alll of the above advice comes together. I admit these examples are not 100% screen accurate , but Doctor Who fans knew immediately that I was dressed as Martha (which is all that matters in the end):
This was my New York Comic Con 2010 Martha outfit:
This pic of me with two Ten cosplayers is from this year's New York Comic Con:
The main differences between the photos are the two hairstyles and the vests. I spent $40 total on the outfit. I brought the jacket from a vintage leather shop in NYC. The rest are items I already had in my closet. The jeans are bootcut medium wash from American Eagle. I can't remember where I brought either of the vests. The boots are several year old brown riding boots from Timberland. As far as makeup is concerned, I didn't use a lot. I used face powder, eyeliner, and cream colored eyeshadow. In the 2010 photo, I used an old scrunchie with sewed on fake hair to create the spiked hair look. In this year's photo, I styled my hair using a flat iron on the ends.
I hope this breakdown was helpful for those looking to cosplay Martha. If you have additional links for alternate finds/additional ID's/suggestions, don't hesitate to share! I promise to give you credit. Feel free to ask questions as well.