When I heard there was a Pre-Raphaelite ball at Carnevale 2025, I poured through paintings for inspiration. I love this style and have several pre-raph prints hanging in my house, so there were many to chose from. But being me, I also wanted something dark and gothy, which isn’t as typical of this genre. Then
I’ve wanted to make a repro of this gown since seeing the painting of Lady Frances Courtenay by Thomas Hudson at the Huntington in 2011. I love seeing how one era interprets another era, and this style is so romantic and pretty! Apparently, this was a whole genre of painting, a trend for upper-class women
I’ve had this fabric earmarked for Leonard’s 16th-century suit for ages, and I finally bit the bullet and commissioned Jenn to make it for me. After all, she’s the pro, having made countless gorgeous such suits for fellas in the Court of St. George. We had a great time planning the design and during the
I’ve only been wanting to make this gown for a decade. No lie — my first blog post about it was in 2009, and I’ve loved the portrait for longer. So for my birthday this year, I planned a fancy dress party where I would be the queen, wearing this dress, surrounded by my ‘court’
Or as I tend to think of it: Fancy Man Bags! Because the discerning Elizabethan gent needed a sassy little purse to carry his hankie or a few coins in. Women seemed to hide pockets & such in their voluminous skirts, while the men showed off their goods, ehem, with highly decorated purses that were
One of my favorite styles of 16th-century headgear is the tall crowned hat. It was first worn by men starting around the 1570s mostly in England, the Low Countries, & Spain. Women soon adopted the style, particularly when worn with high-necked doublet-style bodices. This fashion was hugely popular, which lead to criticism by the early
You’d think I would have made one of these by now, given that “Elizabethan” is my One True Costuming Love & late 16th-century lowland Scots is my SCA persona. But no, I’ve yet to make the ever-practical English fitted gown. So it’s about time. You’ve seen all the period images before, but I’ve added a
Making lemonade out of lemons — since my hair fell out from chemo, this seems like a good time to go for one of those freaky-cool shaved-forehead styles that has popped up in various points of history. Go big or go home! At first, I though of Burgundian 1470s. It’s a period I don’t know
Kendra mentioned this to me at Costume College & I was all “meh.” And then I realized, hey now, I can Carnevale-ize this baby! It’s a two-fer — make a big crazy 18th-century court gown now, goth it up & do it in OTT me style, then I’ll be all set should I need to
While I have a few wee SCA projects to work on at the start of this year, my main sewing goals between January and May are going to be all 18th century, all the time. Why? Because we’re going to France, baby! We are renting a chateau in the south of France with the same
I didn’t plan on making anything new to wear at 12th Night because I just made a nifty new 1530s dress for Collegium, so of course I wanted to wear that. But I was asked to join the court of Obidiah & Ascelin, and her royal highness requested a festive, wintery 16th-century theme for their
There’s not much to show for it, but really, I’ve started and am, in fact, well on the way with my gown to portray Veronica Gambara at the Collegium class “A Feast in 1530s Correggio.” The gown is a loose interpretation of the portrait shown on the right. Except I’m using burgundy velveteen from The
For the upcoming renfaire Much Ado About Sebastapol, I need a partlet to wear with my Venetian courtesan gown when I perform with Bella Donna. This small addition to my outfit will make it even more historically accurate & a bit less, um, busty, which is better for this very family-friendly faire. So I looked
Well, I’ve scrapped plans to make anything new for Costume College, & I’m forging ahead on future plans: for renfaire & Collegium. Which is far more practical anyway. Ok, Collegium is, since I’m running the event, thus any personal costuming should be done in advance so I can concentrate on event details. For renfaire, new
It’s a known fact that I love wacky hairstyles (also, hats). Big, weird shapes sprouting off one’s head please me inordinately. So naturally, I’ve been drawn to the horn-shaped style worn by Venetian upper-class women in the mid- to late-16th-century. I’ve given one try at making hairpieces to replicate this style, tho’ I’m not quite