Renaissance Fairs & Medieval Reinactment (esp. costuming)

[Taedareth]

Wanna geek out about sewing costuming/garb for historical reinactments? Share pictures of clothing you have made, chat about your favorite period in history, links to patterns etc. :rockon

I'm just starting to participate with our local chapter of the SCA (Society for Creative Anachronism). I'm researching about Celtic (Irish & coastal Scottish) clothing from around the year 600AD. It's tough! Hardly any fabric swatches have survived from that time period, and most carvings/illustrations of people from that time are of men, like warriors and kings and monks. Not really any women. Stories containing descriptions of clothing are usually about men, or about queens (who obviously wore different clothing than other women). So... it's a challenge but I've found a few good resources. Will be happy to share them if anyone else is fascinated with that time/culture.

What are your favorite online fabric/notions suppliers?

[Kiara.I]

Errrr...are we talking historical recreation type Living History subset of the SCA, or RenFaire type subset of the SCA? :shifty They're a leeeeeeetle bit different.

Actually queens in that era wouldn't have worn much different. Tighter weave, finer spun thread. But there weren't that many options, really. There wasn't the same availability that there would have been later in period. I would guess that if you research what the queens wore and make it a bit less bleached, dyed, and fine, with less jewelery, you've got pretty much what the rest of the folks wore.

But I was more 1350 England, so take it all with a grain of salt.

[Damselfly]

Oooh, interesting topic! We went to a couple of SCA events in a nearby town but we haven't done anything in a while, partly because of my husband's schedule but also because I got SO frustrated trying to find sources to learn about authentic female clothing from the time periods and places in which I was interested.

Anyway, mostly just...:popcorn

[Bonnie]

Subbing!

[Taedareth]

Kiara, I just meant this thread to be about historical costuming in general. :shrug3

For Ireland specifically - at one point in time there were laws about how many colors you could wear, and it was rank-dependent. Like a king could wear 7 colors and the lowest peasant could only wear 1 color. Also there are a few ancient tales which mentioned that the main character of the story was easily identified as royalty because he/she wore purple. And then there's the aspect Kiara mentioned about certain fabrics (silk being one) or colors or depth of color were cost-prohibitive, and thus would only be worn by nobility or very rich merchants. Totally true about the jewelry - laborers wearing your basic bronze cloak pins while royalty would have copious, heavy, ornate gold :giggle

Jadeswan, what's your favorite time period?

[Abibigail]

I'm just going to stalk this thread, even though this is not anything I've ever gotten into, because it sounds sooooo neat!

[Damselfly]

Sarah, I'm especially drawn to the 13th, 14th, 15th and 16th centuries. What made it trickier for me was I was trying to choose a culture where it would be natural for me to use my high whorl drop spindle and be familiar with nalbinding. I was looking at eastern European countries and Scandinavian countries and I just couldn't find a lot of information. The few things I did find seemed very complicated to reproduce and of course getting the right materials began to sound very expensive as well.

I would really love to do this some day because I have several hobbies that could fit in quite nicely---herbalism, spinning, nalbinding and calligraphy. I'd love to learn weaving and knitting as well. It would just be so fun to "play" with others who enjoy history and beautiful crafts.

[Taedareth]

Drop spindle and naalbinding. I'm thinking you would have fun with the earlier Viking period, either in a Scandinavian country or in a Viking settlement in Ireland (such as Dublin). I know you like the mid-to-later medieval time frame, but those crafts go perfectly with the 800-1000 AD era, I think. I don't know if Vikings did calligraphy (probably not?) but definitely the Irish were doing it around 400-800 AD, and later too.

Have you read the book Celtic Christianity by Timothy Joyce? He's an Irish-American Catholic priest, and the book is absolutely fascinating and well-researched. He talks about how Christianity caught flame among the Celtic peoples in the very early medieval period (Patrick was preaching around 450 AD and he was by no means the first successful missionary among the Celts). They received Christ with great joy and passion, and spread the Gospel throughout their corner of the world and far beyond, through a beautiful expression of relational evangelism. Their expression of Christianity was very different from what came about in the Romanized world in lots of fascinating ways. They enthusiastically served the Lord with their gifts and talents as artists and story-tellers, in music and song, with all of their life and being! Redeeming and transforming their culture rather than rejecting or downplaying it.

I :heart the early Celts.

[JoyGal]

:popcorn

I love pretty much anything Celtic. I've thought of joining the SCA here. I've attended a couple of events before just as a guest so I didn't have a whole persona made up.

I have heard about the purple before. 600 ad sounds like an interesting time period to work with!

[Calliope]

I have a Ren Faire costume that I made - not terribly accurate - It's from
a simplicity pattern - but I hope to improve on it someday.

[DragonfliiMama]

We are in the SCA here, it's actually where Jimi and I met. We aren't able to get to many events anymore, sadly, but we are trying to stay active. We sing with the local choir, he fights, and I do illuminations. Or used to. I've kind of fallen out of things lately. Even after almost 8 years, I don't feel like I've found what I really want to focus on. My persona is French from around 1500, but it's just a name and garb, I haven't really developed it like I'd like to. I am starting to learn spinning and would like to learn dyeing and maybe nalbinding or knitting, since crochet isn't period. I'm thinking that maybe string / fiber will be where I really find my focus, which might lead to changing my persona, but I don't know yet. I chose my time period for the garb, which I really love and have even been able to adapt to nurse in it. I've thought about moving towards something more Celtic, but I don't know. I also don't know how I feel about getting into the fiber crowd here. The people I am close to are not part of it. There are people who I know and am friendly with, but not good friends and I suspect never will be... I think the craft might be my thing, I'm just not sure if the people are my crowd.... :shrug

Taedareth, we have someone local here who Laureled in Pictish studies. I could ask her for reference suggestions if you like.

[Damselfly]

Drop spindle and naalbinding. I'm thinking you would have fun with the earlier Viking period, either in a Scandinavian country or in a Viking settlement in Ireland (such as Dublin). I know you like the mid-to-later medieval time frame, but those crafts go perfectly with the 800-1000 AD era, I think. I don't know if Vikings did calligraphy (probably not?) but definitely the Irish were doing it around 400-800 AD, and later too.

Have you read the book Celtic Christianity by Timothy Joyce? Their expression of Christianity was very different from what came about in the Romanized world in lots of fascinating ways. They enthusiastically served the Lord with their gifts and talents as artists and story-tellers, in music and song, with all of their life and being! Redeeming and transforming their culture rather than rejecting or downplaying it.

I :heart the early Celts.

What a beautiful way of serving the Lord! That makes so much sense to me. I haven't read that book but I'm going to go add it to my Amazon wish list.

Oooooh, you know, you just might have convinced me to choose a persona from this period. It does sound as if it would be a good fit for me.

So, would you mind sharing some resources? I'm thinking a persona in a Viking settlement in Ireland around 900 AD as a starting point. I'd love resources for names if you have them, as well as garb resources and anything about everyday life.

Thank you so much. :heart I'm so inspired!

---------- Post added at 11:02 AM ---------- Previous post was at 10:55 AM ----------

I also don't know how I feel about getting into the fiber crowd here. The people I am close to are not part of it. There are people who I know and am friendly with, but not good friends and I suspect never will be... I think the craft might be my thing, I'm just not sure if the people are my crowd.... :shrug

I had a similar problem in my local SCA. I was really excited about exchanging fiber arts ideas but when I was talking to a group of ladies doing tablet weaving I asked if any of them spun. Most ignored me but one snorted and said, "No, I don't get that fancy." Obviously I couldn't mention that I did after that. :doh

[Taedareth]

Amii, yes! I'd love to learn more about the Picts. They're rather a frustrating mystery because by the year 900 AD they had completely intermarried and blended in with other groups, and their distinctive culture was lost. Their written language (such as it was) remains undecipherable to this day. The symbolism used in their stone-carvings still a mystery. Reports from eye-witnesses differ somewhat in their perceptions of the language (whether it was related to Gaelic or totally separate) and same problem with descriptions of Pictish garb and customs. I've read that we don't even know what the Picts called themselves. "Pict" is from a Latin word referring to their practice of painting or tattooing themselves with woad. They sound like such an interesting culture, I only wish we knew more about them. I'd love to hear what your expert friend has gathered in her studies :yes

Jadeswan - ok! Let me go through my bookmarks and share some helpful links :)


Two recent GCM threads about the book Celtic Christianity:
http://www.gentlechristianmothers.com/community/showthread.php?t=361382&highlight=celtic
http://www.gentlechristianmothers.com/community/showthread.php?t=322069&highlight=celtic

[Maggirayne]

I love pretty much anything Celtic. I've thought of joining the SCA here. I've attended a couple of events before just as a guest so I didn't have a whole persona made up.

I have heard about the purple before. 600 ad sounds like an interesting time period to work with!
Oooh, my friend who is from nearby you is very involved in the SCA. She sews a specific kind of jacket and sells it to SCAers.

She made me a dress. :heart

[Taedareth]

Links, links... Here's a link to info about the Viking apron dress, complete with pictures and pattern. Plus some fun info about Irish Celtic stuff, just to give you an idea about the culture that the Vikings integrated themselves into (eventually the Viking settlers all intermarried and became part of the Irish world).

Viking apron dress with decorative brooches, circa 900 AD
http://genvieve.net/sca/vikingapron.html (http://genvieve.net/sca/vikingapron.html)

Basic info about Celtic life and clothes http://www.kevinwafer.com/celts/clothing_intro.html

How-to info on sewing Irish garb
http://www.kelthaven.org/leine/index.html

People in this time period wore mostly linen and wool cloth, so here's a link to Denver Fabrics online store
http://www.denverfabrics.com/catalog_items.aspx?TypId=5&Page=15&Seed=179

Decorative woven trim, various historical styles, perfect for garb
http://www.calontirtrim.com/catalog.htm

[Ethereal]

So is anyone going to post pics of themselves in their garb? :popcorn

[JoyGal]

Oooh, my friend who is from nearby you is very involved in the SCA. She sews a specific kind of jacket and sells it to SCAers.

She made me a dress. :heart

Ooh, I should get her name! It would be a lot more fun to go to at least the first event knowing someone (even if it's just by name ;) )


Going by total memory here...haven't checked any links to back this up right now...weren't some Pictish clothing dyed into blue by woad? Didn't some also have blue tattoos with a lot of symbolism? As for fabric, I'm thinking heavy course wool. Now let me see what I can find out from books and links :)

[Taedareth]

Yes, the Pictish warriors did tattoo themselves with woad. And woad was a very popular (and readily available) dye for the peoples of the British Isles, Ireland included. The SCA even published a booklet on how to grow your own woad plants and process them into dye! But the USA frowns on that, because woad is a weed and might escape if you plant it here :giggle

[ArmsOfLove]

I just found this pattern for a snood and I'm making it as soon as I finish the gift I'm doing for a party Thursday night (should finish this evening :rockon ) http://twistedstitches.typepad.com/my_weblog/2007/09/snood-deux-and-.html

And I have the notes from the Tailor who was at the Estrella Wars last year :heart I'm in the process of making my own gored dress. I have the pattern and fabric cut out and am going to hand stitch it. Need it done before Feb 18th (but sooner because I want to do pants and shirts for the boys and a dress for dd also :heart)

---------- Post added at 03:01 PM ---------- Previous post was at 02:59 PM ----------

also, according to the tailor there were always all the colors available everywhere if there was trade to that area--and the more exotic the more it was a sign of wealth. So something to consider depending on your character. I tend to always go somewhat gypsy so there's an element of traveling around and having all sorts of variety to choose from ;)

---------- Post added at 03:03 PM ---------- Previous post was at 03:01 PM ----------

Oh--(I'm answering things as I read through the thread :O) we tend to be thinking along the lines of Jewish diaspora to Ireland so there is a lot of fun variety that can play into that with everywhere our family might have gone in the process :grin

[Taedareth]

Cute snood pattern!

Yes, the Hollywood concept of everyone in the middle ages wearing coarse brown cloth is just silly :no In reality, sophisticated textiles have been around for thousands of years. Natural dyes came from shellfish, insects, mosses, seaweeds, plants and minerals. Shades could be lighter or darker depending on mordant used (examples include vinegar, fermented urine, etc.) Some were more expensive and thus would have been limited to upper classes, but endless variety was available to those with a bit of cash :yes

Also, remember that linen cloth does not absorb dye very well, so typically linen came out in pastel shades. But wool (and silk) are protein fibers that absorb dye readily, and thus could take rich, deep colors.

Certain weaves were common in the middle ages, such as herringbone, hound's tooth and twill. And certainly others too - I just remember my SCA friend mentioning those ones :)

[Damselfly]

Thank you, Sarah, for all the helpful information and links!

[ArmsOfLove]

this fun fact http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radhanites

medieval (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medieval) Jewish (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Judaism) merchants (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merchant). Whether the term, which is used by only a limited number of primary sources, refers to a specific guild (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guild), or a clan (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clan), or is a generic term for Jewish merchants in the trans-Eurasian (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eurasia) trade network is unclear. Jewish merchants dominated trade (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trade) between the Christian (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christendom) and Islamic worlds (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islamic_world) during the early Middle Ages (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Early_Middle_Ages) (approx. 500–1000). Many trade routes previously established under the Roman Empire (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_Empire) continued to function during that period largely through their efforts. Their trade network covered much of Europe (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Europe), North Africa (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Africa), the Middle East (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle_East), Central Asia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_Asia) and parts of India (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/India) and China (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/China).

combined with these forced expulsions: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jewish_refugees
1095 - mid-13th centuryThe waves of Crusades (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crusade) destroyed hundreds of Jewish communities in Europe and in the Middle East, including Jerusalem (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jerusalem). Mid-12th centuryThe invasion of Almohades (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Almohades) brought to end the Golden age of Jewish culture in Spain (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_age_of_Jewish_culture_in_Spain). Among other refugees was Maimonides (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maimonides), who fled to Morocco (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morocco), then Egypt (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Egypt), then Eretz Israel (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eretz_Israel). 12th-14th centuriesFrance (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/France). The practice of expelling the Jews accompanied by confiscation of their property, followed by temporary readmissions for ransom, was used to enrich the crown: expulsions from Paris (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paris) by Philip Augustus (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philip_Augustus_of_France) in 1182, from France by Louis IX (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_IX_of_France) in 1254, by Charles IV (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_IV_of_France) in 1322, by Charles V (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_V_of_France) in 1359, by Charles VI (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_VI_of_France) in 1394.

are putting together an interesting history for our characters :)

[DragonfliiMama]

Crystal - one of my household sisters is Jewish and her persona is a Crypto-Jew. She's got her persona quite thoroughly developed. Outwardly she's a musician in King Henry's court, and Christian, but secretly she's Jewish, complete with secret name and pieces of jewelry that appear Christian but she has secret meanings attached to them. It's really fascinating to hear her talk about it.

[ArmsOfLove]

Crystal - one of my household sisters is Jewish and her persona is a Crypto-Jew. She's got her persona quite thoroughly developed. Outwardly she's a musician in King Henry's court, and Christian, but secretly she's Jewish, complete with secret name and pieces of jewelry that appear Christian but she has secret meanings attached to them. It's really fascinating to hear her talk about it.

would she be willing to share her story with us as we put ours together? And does she have a Spanish butterfly necklace?

dh was just telling me that he found (in some book he was reading) a writ from Henry VIII to the Sheriff of Nottingham kicking his family off of the land--from there they went to Ireland. So I'm considering taking that direction if we can find that again :)

[DragonfliiMama]

I'll ask her. :yes

[Kiara.I]

So is anyone going to post pics of themselves in their garb? :popcorn

Okay. :)

This is fairly typical for me, except that I normally wear a veil or headwrap of some kind (of course.) I think it must have been the end of a long day or something. I'm the one with my back to the camera--not the Queen!

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5251/5389234842_0f1c5ba0ed.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/25366716@N07/5389234842/)
merielaward1a (http://www.flickr.com/photos/25366716@N07/5389234842/) by meriel_kennet (http://www.flickr.com/people/25366716@N07/), on Flickr

[Quiteria]

I haven't had time to make garb in so long, but I desperately want to.

I tried out two personas...one was medieval Irish. I wanted to be related to the Kerr family who had so many left-handers that they build their castle stairs spiralling in the opposite direction and other quirks. :) Somewhere, I have a green dress with the long hanging sleeves, which I started to embroider. But that was several sizes ago. :o I also found a cool pattern for a gored dress that I still want to try...I think I may have even started to cut that out, or at least draw it on fabric, but stalled out. I'd love links if anyone is making one now...I suspect that the original page I was following has probably long since expired on geopages or some such site that no longer exists.

The other persona was a bit later, Spanish. About 1600. Named Quiteria. :) I really, really wanted to make some footwear, because they had platform shoes, and at the time I was creating that garb, that was actually in style in stores, although the modern shoes tend to have raised heels, whereas the period shoes tend to have a flat platform. So, I had fun searching for something close enough to embelish/modify, and researching a style I could nurse in, and planning a snood, and jewlery. Somewhere I have an early attempt at garb from that period, that I made all the way back in high school, but again, it's long-lost after so many moves, and no longer a reasonable size for me. The overskirt came out a bit too short compared to the underskirt, and headgear was a total guess...but other than that, it was actually a pretty good beginner's attempt.

[Taedareth]

How to wear a medieval head covering/veil

http://www.virtue.to/articles/veils.html

[CelticJourney]

Oh, I desperately want to play!!! Early Christian Celts - yap, I definitely want to play!!! That and I'm also interested in my family history right now at the point where my Scots ancestors left Scotland for Ireland and then Ireland for America (1600-1700).

Excitedly going back to look at links!

[Calliope]

Oh PS, folks, I live like 10 minutes from Pennsic. You should totally stop by if you ever attend.

[CelticJourney]

Oh PS, folks, I live like 10 minutes from Pennsic. You should totally stop by if you ever attend.Pennsic?

[DragonfliiMama]

Oh that could totally change our August plans. some year. when we get around to actually going to Pennsic. :jump

Pennsic War is one of (maybe the?) biggest events of the year. Two weeks of war games. And for those of us who don't fight, of course there's classes and shopping and socializing. ;) The war is between the Eastern and Middle Kingdoms, and their allies, so it ends up being almost the eastern half of the country. It's so big that for those 2 weeks of the year, the campground where it is held is legally a town and therefore has to have a post office and emergency services!

[ThreeKids]

The book Mabinogian was excessively descriptive. When a traveler would approach, the story went into such detail about their appearance, it seemed like the bards were playing a memory game. I can't remember the stations of the travelers from the stories, probably still men, but there were plenty of women characters in the stories.

Though penned later, some of the stories should date from that time.

[Quiteria]

Oh I have wanted to attend Pensic (or Estrella Wars) for about 20yrs now...seriously...from the time they changed the rules about minors attending without their legal guardians...I was *this* close to going to Pensic with friends...and then those friends moved to AZ...

[Quiteria]

:poke Did I say something wromg??? Don't leave!!!! :poke

[Taedareth]

I'm here! I'm just sitting around, doing research on ancient Irish women's garb. It is monumentally difficult because 1) there aren't many drawings/carvings of Celtic women in the early centuries after Christ 2) the verbal descriptions are too general, like "She wore a cloak with a clasp" 3) the only detailed descriptions were written by foreigners such as the Romans, who mostly just saw Celtic men, not women.

However, the Celtic leine (tunic) sounds pretty similar to the clothing worn in the Mediterranean cultures that the Celts used to live near before they migrated toward Ireland. Fortunately the Greeks and Romans left us a wealth of carvings and statues of people in period garb ;) So that's what I'm looking at now. I think a fairly authentic facsimilie of early British Celtic garb could be done with a sort of Roman-style women's tunic, brightly colored, with a wide border of embroidery around the hem. Add a 2" wide belt of leather or woven with colorful thread. Plus a brightly colored and beautifully embroidered brat ("brawt") cloak (large and rectangular, with fringes). And a pennanular Celtic cloak pin plus a torc. BOOYAH!!!

According to archaeological finds, the Celts were weaving tartan/plaid cloth 3,000 years ago. Wow! Those people love their checkered patterns! :)


Edit:
Interesting site about the history of the Scottish "great kilt" - it's just the typical Celtic tunic and rectangular cloak, worn with a belt around the cloak and the cloth arranged in pleats/folds called "kilting." http://www.caffrey.no/pages/l4_history_of_the_kilt.htm

Another edit:
Good pictures of early Anglo-Saxon clothing http://mahan.wonkwang.ac.kr/link/med/england/anglo-saxon/culture/dress.html

[DragonfliiMama]

Taedareth, I emailed my question for you.

Crystal, PMing you with the info for you.

:)

[Auroras mom]

I can post pics of us after this weekend after we attend the fair (unless I cna dig up an old one). We don't really go for exact period accuracy though, as we enjoy the fantasy/adventure aspect of dressing up also. I would like to do more with SCA and other period-accurate re-enactment projects one day though as dd gets bigger, as I believe it is a bounty of educational opportunity!

[crunchymum]

:popcorn

[ArmsOfLove]

I'm busy sewing my dress today :grin

[Taedareth]

http://www.fabrics-store.com/first.php?goto=fabric_type&menu=f&fabric_type=1

I went to an SCA medieval fair yesterday and talked to a woman who had a dress made of lovely soft linen in a beautiful shade of blue. The link above is where she bought it from. Looking at their prices, I was really impressed! Cheaper than the local fabric store (much nicer quality cloth, too). They even offer free samples! And the gal at the fair told me you can get a 10% discount with coupon code "ILOVELINEN"

[Maggirayne]

My friend that's in AK went to the Estrella Wars last year, I believe. ;)

Hey, Amii, you got married in garb, wasn't your wedding party, or just DH?

[Taedareth]

Beautiful style and perfect color on you! BTW I totally love the hand-dyed darker blue item (underskirt? chemise?) Did BlueSavannah dye it for you?

[DragonfliiMama]

Yes, I'm surprised you remembered our wedding was in garb! All our photos are in limbo right now as I'm trying to revamp my organization and move from Flickr to Picasa. I'll have to see if I can find some wedding photos to post. The men's garb ended up being much more reusable than the women's I'm afraid. The fabrics really weren't period at all - crepe-backed satin for the men's shirts and vests and the women's dresses, and the pants were a kind of synthetic moleskin type stuff. We had organza sleeves on the dresses though (which I still feel kinda bad about, they didn't turn out nearly as pretty as I thought they would, and they were super hot). And my dress was totally not period, but I figured it was my day to be a princess and I was going to live it up. :giggle

[CelticJourney]

I took the girls on a field trip yesterday and got to see someone spinning flax into linen. Just thought I'd share.:giggle

[Auroras mom]

Okay - pics of us at the faire this weekend. I may mve these to a mvre private section of the board later, but wanted to put them here at first for the purposes of continuity of our conversation.

I can't recall the actual time-frame for my attire (LoL), but it is Renaissance. It's been to many years. The current faire we attend is set in the medieval period, rather than th renaissance, so I need a new outfit for that one. Dh is purely fantasy, I think, and dd wanted to be a cute princess this week.

DH is an artisan and makes all his opwn stuff. He made my belt and one of my bags, but I bought the rest of my garb. He did buy his boots (which were handmade by an artisan who is now deceased).

[Maggirayne]

:melting You are gorgeous! And I love your dress! You both look like could be in a movie! Your DH's gauntlets are cool, and so is your corset piece.

---------- Post added at 09:24 AM ---------- Previous post was at 09:16 AM ----------

Beautiful style and perfect color on you! BTW I totally love the hand-dyed darker blue item (underskirt? chemise?) Did BlueSavannah dye it for you?
Lol, it's a broom skirt the friend in white gave me. This was in college, um, in '03; I didn't know GCM existed yet. :giggle
Yes, I'm surprised you remembered our wedding was in garb! All our photos are in limbo right now as I'm trying to revamp my organization and move from Flickr to Picasa. I'll have to see if I can find some wedding photos to post. The men's garb ended up being much more reusable than the women's I'm afraid. The fabrics really weren't period at all - crepe-backed satin for the men's shirts and vests and the women's dresses, and the pants were a kind of synthetic moleskin type stuff. We had organza sleeves on the dresses though (which I still feel kinda bad about, they didn't turn out nearly as pretty as I thought they would, and they were super hot). And my dress was totally not period, but I figured it was my day to be a princess and I was going to live it up. :giggle
Oh, those were gorgeous! How could I forget them?!

I wore my mom's wedding dress, but had her make a crepe train that fastened at the shoulders and full crepe sleeves from an Ren pattern I picked up at Hobby Lobby.

[DragonfliiMama]

Those are gorgeous!

I forgot to mention before. One of our local women here (the same one who Laureled in Pictish studies, actually) is really big on accuracy, and happens to also be very big on just about anything string/fiber/textiles. She also used to be our Baronness and made it her campaign to have the best dressed barony in the Kingdom. Which she facilitates by ordering linen in bulk and dealing it out of the back of her car like drugs. :giggle

[CelticJourney]

Those are gorgeous!

I forgot to mention before. One of our local women here (the same one who Laureled in Pictish studies, actually) is really big on accuracy, and happens to also be very big on just about anything string/fiber/textiles. She also used to be our Baronness and made it her campaign to have the best dressed barony in the Kingdom. Which she facilitates by ordering linen in bulk and dealing it out of the back of her car like drugs. :giggle:giggle

Auroras mom - Wow! Just looking at the fabric and the detailed work.... wow.

[LisaMarie]

I used to love the SCA. I was actively involved through college and my early 20s. I was the chronicler in my local chapter at the time.

My character was a Scot. Mary Buchanan, because I loved the old Buchanan tartan and had picked up a sarape from Scotland on my trip abroad.

I'd actually be planning to major in Medieval history at university, but life didn't quite end up with that plan lol.

I stopped when my hubby showed up in my life. For some reason, he referred to it as the Secret Cult Association and wouldn't have anything to do with it. But I've stockpiled my gear and stuff from that time in a bin in the garage in case I can start again.

I'd love to take my boys - they would have a great time.

I'm fascinated by the celtic history. Although pagan, I've enjoyed so many of Marion Zimmer-Bradley's books set in that time frame - stories of Avalon and the Celtic Priestesses. I really want to and would like to read that book on Celtic Christianity.

If I go back, I will probably look into the time period as well.

Thanks for the flashbacks! :D

[jenny_islander]

Pennsic is too overwhelming for first-timers IMO; it's basically an entire town, more than 10,000 people, that springs up overnight. I would start with something a lot smaller for my first camping event.

My persona is a Welshwoman living in Falmagusta on the island of Cyprus during the centuries when Cyprus was the most important Mediterranean trade route between the East and West, chiefly because all of the other ports had been wrecked one way or another. She is pious, retiring, and modest, so my garb is relatively plain: a white linen torque (basically a round hat with the veil and chin band arranged over it) and a round-necked dress in a cut that rather resembles a modern jumper (U.S. version) worn over a long-sleeved dress. However, her husband, a wine merchant, is rapidly becoming very very rich. Gwenhwyfar is therefore able to indulge her twin passions for books and cooking. The books are the sorts of adventure stories and poetry that are read aloud by the fire or in the ladies' solar, except for one very beautiful book of hours (an illustrated prayer book). Gwenhwyfar is an adventurous cook and her husband indulges this, so she buys manuscript cookbooks whenever she finds them, has them translated from Arabic or what have you, and experiments with glee. Her eyes are going bad on her, however. Her husband is on the lookout for something a well-known preacher has hailed as the greatest invention of their century, a contraption called eyeglasses, supposedly quite affordable even for ordinary craftspeople if one happens to live closer to Italy.

[Taedareth]

Absolute best Celtic fiction in the universe (deeply researched, historically realistic) is written by a Christian named Stephen Lawhead :rockon Have a look at his Pendragon Cycle (Arthur, 500 AD), King Raven series (Robin Hood, set in Wales 1080 AD), and Patrick (Ireland, 400 AD). :woohoo :heart


Tonya - wow!!!! Love your pictures!! You're going to start selling those leather belts and bags on GCM, right? ;)

[Auroras mom]

Absolute best Celtic fiction in the universe (deeply researched, historically realistic) is written by a Christian named Stephen Lawhead :rockon Have a look at his Pendragon Cycle (Arthur, 500 AD), King Raven series (Robin Hood, set in Wales 1080 AD), and Patrick (Ireland, 400 AD). :woohoo :heart


Tonya - wow!!!! Love your pictures!! You're going to start selling those leather belts and bags on GCM, right? ;)


DH does custom pieces sometimes when folks request them. It is hard to get buyers willing to pay for the expesnive supplies and long labor though, you know? He might be persuaded to do some stuff for folks here if they are interested.

Love Stephen Lawhead! Mary Stewart also writes phenomenal celtic/Arthurian legend fiction. (The Crystal Cave, Hollow Hills, etc)

[Taedareth]

Oh I understand totally; crafters can't compete price-wise with mass production. So you gotta find the right niche market, people who want to pay more for higher quality work. Or offer something special, something people can't get elsewhere. Like fancy tooling or whatnot :shrug3

[Taedareth]

Create Your Own Simple Medieval Costumes (great info and good pictures!)http://www.eg.bucknell.edu/~lwittie/sca/garb/simple.html




The photos of garb in this store sure are beautiful. I wish they had more info on whether these costumes are historically correct, and if so, when/where.
http://www.mistythicket.com/womens/bodices/guiniviere.html

Edit: Ah! That style of dress seems to be inspired by the late 1400's
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1400%E2%80%931500_in_fashion



Another edit: More beautiful pictures!! Poke around the site to see their Tudor, Italian, German, peasant, noble etc. historical reproductions (plus some historically-inspired fantasy garb). You can just email the gal, she is super helpful with questions of historical accuracy :tu Basically if it's not in the "SCA historically accurate garb" section then it's only "inspired by" historical styles, not true to period.

http://www.verymerryseamstress.com/scottish.htm#faelin


Hey why not add another edit:
LOVE THIS lace-up bodice dress. No idea whether it's period accurate for Ireland, or what century the designer had in mind :shrug3 Super cute sleeves on the chemise/leine, although I'm 99% certain that no Irish woman ever wore sleeves in that style.

http://cgi.ebay.com/Q-I-RENAISSANCE-Costume-Bodice-Irish-OVER-DRESS-M-/170594075677?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item27b833041d

[DragonfliiMama]

Oh I really like that lace up dress, I love the sleeves, too, except id probably hate wearing them cu they're so impractical. :giggle. My normal garb is a sideless, and I've switched the under dress for a close fitting tshirt and long skirt to make nursing easier.

[Taedareth]

Anyone make kids' costumes? :popcorn

It would seem that I need to make a simple medieval dress for my 2yo. See, we were getting ready to leave for the medieval faire a couple weeks ago, and I showed her the brown woolen "princess dress" I had borrowed for her to wear. She looked it over and said delicately, "Well... do you have a pretty one? I would like a pink dress, please." :heart

[DragonfliiMama]

:giggle T-tunic with pretty trim and I'll see if I can find the skirt pattern that is really all math and not a pattern to layer under it. Or ask Eithni for it, it's her pattern. :)

[Taedareth]

I LOVE everything about the costuming for Queen Susan as seen here. I think her gown looks based on the 1300's cotehardie. Your thoughts? (clickable thumbnails) The cloak looks slightly Celtic-inspired, but the style is probably suitable for a wide spectrum of medieval timeframes.

http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg184/taedareth/Narnia/th_susanpevensie.jpg (http://s248.photobucket.com/albums/gg184/taedareth/Narnia/?action=view&current=susanpevensie.jpg) http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg184/taedareth/Narnia/th_Susancloak.jpg (http://s248.photobucket.com/albums/gg184/taedareth/Narnia/?action=view&current=Susancloak.jpg)

Pics and info on 1300-1400 clothing here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1300%E2%80%931400_in_fashion#Gowns_and_outerwear
Great pics of cotehardie gowns here: http://www.verymerryseamstress.com/cotehardies.htm

:)

[Calliope]

Absolute best Celtic fiction in the universe (deeply researched, historically realistic) is written by a Christian named Stephen Lawhead :rockon Have a look at his Pendragon Cycle (Arthur, 500 AD), King Raven series (Robin Hood, set in Wales 1080 AD), and Patrick (Ireland, 400 AD). :woohoo

Have you read Bernard Cornwell's Winter King Trilogy? I liked it SO much better than Lawhead. :shifty

[Taedareth]

Is it historically and culturally accurate? Because that's one thing I appreciate about Lawhead (besides his masterfully spellbinding plots and fascinatingly deep characters). What's not to like about Lawhead?! :rockon

I find that most other historical fiction corresponds to reality in much the same way that ren faire garb does to actual period clothing :giggle

[Calliope]

Afaik - He generally writes military novels so I know all the fighting techniques / armor / political climate stuff is agonizingly accurate. I learned a lot about sheild wall fighting from this series. :giggle He's actually English too.

Very enjoyable reads with engaging characters. I'm still half in love with the narrator. :shifty

[Taedareth]

Good to know, thanks :giggle