This is the first version of my Venetian courtesan gown, made by Sarah. We decided to do a test-run in tourney-friendly cotton damask fabric to make sure the pattern worked before cutting into the $38/yard silk. Also, who doesn’t love having two dresses? Sarah draped the bodice based on period designs with some specific tweaks
New costumes start from the skin out, so that means new undies. Sure, I have shifts / smocks / chemises (depending on how historically accurate you want to be & which specific century you’re talking about). But for playing a Venetian courtesan at renaissance faires this year, I needed a specific type of undershirt, the
I had an amazing time at the Greater Bay Area Costumer’s Guild’s Last Dinner on the Titanic, which commemorated the 100th anniversary of the ship’s sinking on April 14, 2012. This costumed dinner & dance took place at the Bellevue Club in Oakland, CA. Everyone was seated at tables of 10, & our group decided
A couple months ago, my friend Rhawnie mentioned she would be playing Queen Titania at the new Fantasy Faire in San Jose. She was designing her costume but couldn’t decide if she needed wings & if so, how to make them. Oh, this conversation was happening at a meadery over pints of hard cider, which
Some time ago, my good friend Sarah collected some historical images documenting 16th-century women wearing crowns, because it often seems like a rare thing. We see queens & female nobility of earlier eras decked in towering regalia, but crowns / coronets / tiaras / diadems & the like almost go out of fashion for the
I wore the completed heuke & the Flemish gown at the SCA March Crown, & everything worked wonderfully! The weather was supposed to be rainy, but it ended up overcast yet dry until we were ready to leave that night. However, it was windy all day, giving the heuke a real workout & proving that,
Or why experimental archeology is sometimes better than pure research. I could have wracked my brain & search-fu & the library hunting down references to the heuke & this elusive duck-bill cloak. (Hell, it’d be easier for this anti-gun pacifist to learn to shoot & then track down & kill an actual duck!) But I
I’ll have to sew every night this week, but I *will* be wearing that damn duck-billed cap thingy & the Flemish gown at March Drown Crown this weekend! There’s a 50% chance of rain predicted at the site, plus chilly temps, so I’ll be glad of all the wool & cape-like layers. No time to
Sometimes, you just want to go to an event, even if the historical era is not your bag, baby. Maybe you’re trying something new, maybe the event sounds like fun because it’s at a fabulous venue or it has a great combo of activities, or maybe all your friends are going, or it could be
I haven’t been able to sew for weeks now due to an eye infection that’s limiting the fine, detail vision in my right eye. So I’ve made minimal progress on the actual Flemish gown — I did pleat the skirt & try to sew it to the bodice, but it kind of looks like monkeys
When you’re just starting out in this wonderful world of costuming, you tend to use what’s easy and fast. This is no crime, we’ve all done it, that’s to be expected. If you want to lace up a garment, you need to reinforce the lacing holes so they don’t wear out, and you find some
The heart-shaped cap most famously worn by Mary Queen of Scots goes by many names and its construction has been up for debate. The style was not just worn by this queen — it was common among upper-class women of the late 16th century in England and France. While modern costumers may know it as
The Flemish gown research has become an excuse to make funny hats. YAY!!!! Because there are few things I love more than wearing crazy things on my head. First, I thought, oh sure, I’ll need some nice little linen cap. Then it looked like maybe a new type of wired cap a la Netherlands (because,
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And not just because I’ve had a head cold for the past week (yeah, Flemish, not phlem-ish, har har). I started a little sewing this weekend. Kendra gave me an old project of hers, when I bought a bunch of wool from her last year. It was originally her 1560s nuremburg dress from ages ago,