Vincenzo330 make a decent patch, but it has the embroidered ghost you said you were not a fan of. There’s a thread somewhere that shows 4 of the different sellers patches taken in the same picture for a comparison. If I can find the thread I’ll post it the link.
If I can throw in my two cents…the stains and such on your old patch honestly tell the tale of long and tough “busts”, gives it characters and some history too it. While getting a new patch is definitely a good thing, having one that’s a bit beat up helps sell the image of a guy who does this job for real, and you could come up with all sorts of amusing stories as to how it got it’s “marks of honor”. The kids you tell it to would certainly eat it up.
And I most wholeheartedly say go with Katarra. I ordered my Tag and patch set from her, and the little box showed up in less than a week after I ordered it.
Yeah, the weathering definitely helps sell the “real” look of it. If it’s always clean and “shiny”, you lose the authentic look. It also always looks best when it’s natural weathering that just happens instead of pre-done, so the accidental stains and scuffs sell the real look because they are real, instead of something you intentionally put in. I’m probably gonn’a get a second patch set myself when I get my suit and rig in velcro so I can have a worn out “bust heavy” patch to show all the damage, stains, slime residue, and such for the look of a long an tough Bustin’ Career, and the nice clean one for when you wann’a look really good. Like the parades.
