The Fabric of My Life

Tired doesn't cover it.

2011-12-11T16:06:00.001-08:00

Well that was an amazing 12 days. So here is the results of the Pelican Garb Project:

Linen Undertunic
White Silk Vigil Tunic
Green Wool Elevation Tunic
Vigil Book
Pelican Necklace

Not bad. When I find someone who is willing to share pictures of the elevation I will post pictures. I am too tired to do an extensive debrief at this time.

My Muse is a Demented Creature

2011-12-02T21:37:00.001-08:00

So last night as I finished constructing Tadhg's under tunic I came to the realization that the linen is just too thin for him to wear by itself. So being the rational sane woman that I am decided that now he needed a Vigil tunic.

I have lovely white raw silk.

I have lovely brocade.

I have issues.

Tadhg has a Vigil tunic.

Here is the finished under tunic all pressed and pretty. That lasted about ten seconds, this linen wrinkles like a big wrinkly thing.


And here is Himself modeling the Vigil tunic. It is inspired by the Holy Roman Empire Alb. Sorry there just wasn't enough time to add the pearls.

The Vigil tunic actually needs a hem before I can call it officially finished. I am going to let it hang for a few days at least so that the bias can settle.

Tomorrow the St. George. . . at least I get to start on the lining.

The Calm Before the Storm.

2011-12-01T13:14:00.001-08:00

So the measurements have been taken. The palette of colors and fabrics has been finalized, as well as the design.

Lucky for me we have had a lot of company and meetings at the house, so the sewing area was finally completed. Let me take you on the tour. . .

Here is the entire space. Note the striped bar that was left by the previous owner. It nicely cuts the space off from the rest of the dining room, and as it is actually two dressers it provides awesome storage. The bar also features a removable ironing surface.

Here is the desk, and drawer side of the striped bar.

Here you can see the doors open to all of my stuff nicely organized. Mostly. Also more storage from the vanity.

Left side of the wall 'o closets.

Here are the fabrics we decided on. The main fabric is a lovely mossy green wool. The complementing fabric is silver and blue silk.

Here is the concept sketch of the St. George Bliaut.

Well here we go!

You're getting your Pelican when!?!

2011-11-29T13:26:00.001-08:00

So last night I attended Baronial Council. Tadhg stayed at home with the children, but we were texting back and forth regarding business. So when I got this message "King/Queen just called. Offered me my Pelican @ 11th Night." needless to say I just about lost it. So after the squeeing was over I realized that leaves me with less than 2 weeks to make his Elevation garb. Crap. So here I go . . . wish me luck!

Lucky for me Tadhg loves the Norman style, and has the perfect body for it as well. Also lucky I have a pretty good fabric stash. In the stash is a piece of fabric I bought knowing that one day he would eventually be a Pelican.

The fabric is a linen cotton, the color doesn't really show very clearly on the picture, but it is a green and black cross woven. There is enough of the fabric to do the lower trim on a Roger II style tunic.

So now the decision is what to do for the main portion of the tunic. So the three linen choices from the stash is a two toned silver, a green that almost matches, and black. So far I am leaning towards the black even though I had been saving it for myself.

So stay tuned to the progress as I lose my ever-loving mind.

EDIT: Decided to change course, and go for a St. George style Bliaut. I have been wanting to do this for quite a few years, and since we already did the Roger II I get to try something new. I have a lovely light wool that has been telling me it wants to be a Bliaut, and Tadhg really liked it when I pulled it out. Since it is his ceremony I figure that I should make him what he wants, and luckily I married a man that likes the clothes I make him, so we both win.

Morrghan's Medieval Men's Hose

2011-10-24T13:18:00.000-07:00

This is a rough outline of how I make my Medieval Men's Hose. I plan on updating it when I can take pictures again (camera batteries refuse to charge). This hose pattern is made from three pieces. Each piece is generated by fitting against the wearer's leg and foot respectively.

Take a basic leg measurement

Hip to Heel _____
Thigh _____
Ankle _____

Cut a rough pattern on the bias to match the leg measurement, add in extra room around the pattern. This will become your seam allowance and ease.

Trace around the foot of the wearer adding S/A, and a point on the back of the heel. The point will come up the heel, and connect to the back seam about 2". Remember it is easier to trim off excess than it is to cut out a new piece so don't worry if it seems too big.

Cut a square large enough to cover the foot from the toes up the ankle.
Cut a slit up the center of the piece at the ankle. About 3"-4" enough for the leg to touch the floor without bunching at the ankle.
Have your wearer, preferably in his braies, stand very still. Begin pinning the leg piece around the ankle fitting tightly up the leg. I use curved quilters safety pins, they are made of awesome and I recommend them to everyone.
Mark the seam on both sides before unpinning. Trim off the excess fabric leaving your S/A.
Take the square and insert the point as you would a gore (see Gore tutorial).

Sew the back seam, leaving the bottom 2" open.

Have the wearer put the leg piece back on and stand on the foot piece. Pin the two pieces together around the wearer's foot.

Carefully take the hose piece off without unpinning, this is why I prefer the curved safety pins, no stabbity. If you cannot get the wearer's foot out of the hose you need to adjust the amount of ease in the heel.
Once you have made sure that the wearer can remove the hose, trim the excess off of the foot pieces. Sew the foot seam.

Finish all of your seams, and add a cord or eyelets to the top point, and viola you made hose.

Time Flies

2011-07-11T11:24:00.000-07:00

I am sorry for the lack of content. It has been difficult to post without having a computer at home. In positive news, the journey of the past two years to becoming home owners is finally over. We are the proud owners of a 1969 Ranch style home. It is in desperate need of paint and flooring, and we are doing what we can there. The square footage of living space is double what we had, and even though I don't get my very own sewing room, I will have a dedicated space that can be safe guarded from the grabby hands of toddlers.

Now onto the tour:

Here is our pink wallpapered Bathroom. It is currently stripped halfway, because o_O who wants pink wallpaper!?!

This is the Front living room, this has a passthorugh to the Family room. We chose a Gold paint for this room, and the hallway.

Here is the Dining Room looking into the Kitchen. The teeny tiny Kitchen. Luckily the closet on the other side of the wall is expendable, and we will be expanding. The Table and Hutch came with the house! We also found the extension leafs for the table we will be able to have lots of people over for dinner!

This is the Family Room. The wierd Black and white thing is a bookcase that will be moved out. We chose a dark green for this room, and Husband wants to put the TV on the wall. We will need to have the Pellet stove inspected before we can use it, but woo hoo a pellet stove!

Here you can sort of see one of the closets that line the far wall of the dining room. There are four of them and with a little cleaning, and modification, they will turn into the sewing space. I'll have to get better pics.

Another view of the living room and the front door. Notice the crystal Chandelier. This picture does not do justice to the amount of dust and grime covering it. I think I will take it down and clean it up, but so many other things to do first.

Both the front yard and the back yard are good sized, and the neighbors have all dropped by to say hello. We haven't even been there a week, and I know more neighbors here than I ever met at any of the other places I've lived.

So that's my new house! We are still in heavy cleaning mode before we can move in, but the rewards are priceless. Now if only I could figure out how to raise money to replace the flooring. . . :)

Looped edge in a binding

2010-08-05T12:04:00.000-07:00

Here is my pic tutorial for creating a looped edge for buttons on a bound edge.

How time flies

2010-07-21T22:42:00.000-07:00

A year!?! has it really been a year since my last post?They say that kids take up a lot of your time and they don't fool around. So lemme 'splain. No, there is too much. Let me sum up. Last time I posted I was pregnant, and now I have two awesome boys. I am still a Baroness to the most fabulous Barony in the Known World! My Husband still wants a gambeson, I still have issues with cutting it out. I finally got fitted for the Gothic Fitted Gown I have wanted for the last five years. Now I just have to work on losing enough weight that I can finish my 12th night gown.I have not been able to do much in the way of sewing due to children, and time. I do however need to get moving on the dress for my best friend's wedding. I threw my back out right in the middle of fitting and we only have a little over a week left. Eeek! We will be finding out soon about the pre-qualification for a home loan, so soon I will have my own space to sew, and keep the three year old out of my stuff :P Once I have a decent space for sewing I will be able to devote more time to tutorials. Baby is awake gotta go.

Quick update

2009-07-31T11:36:00.000-07:00

Well I would love to be posting pictures of me in my lovely new linen gown, but due to the extreme heat at Coronation I was unable to get a decent picture taken. Also we are getting ready to move so future projects are going to be on hold while we get everything set up at the new house. Hopefully this will be a temporary stop before we buy a home, but it is definitely a upgrade from where we are now. I'll have a real garage, a dining "room", more than 2 cupboards in the kitchen, a bathtub, a hallway, and a laundry room. Honestly I don't know how we have survived in our cottage this long, let alone the year my mother was there with us.

Later this month I will be attending Sport of Kings, and hopefully I will be taking some pretty cool classes The Textile Equipment of the 12th Century Warrior, and Rectangular Construction Gambeson Workshop. I hope to have my husband looking like a 12th century nobleman both on and off the field. As it is now his armor really needs spiffing up. His gambison is 20 years old, and has some rather interesting rust stains. I just hope my confirmation comes soon so I don't have to harass the registar.

Purple Linen Cote

2009-07-14T12:14:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the lack of updates lately I have been rather preoccupied with my life at the moment. Traveling throughout the Principality and being all Baronessy has taken a lot of time that I would have for sewing, but in addition to that I also have to contend with finding a house to move into in the next month, a toddler that just turned two, and the ever fun first-trimester-exhaustion of pregnancy.

On the sewing front I have been working on a 14th century dress made from this lovely purple/black shot linen. At first I was going to have it as a loose rectangular construction tunic with short sleeves, since my current summer wardrobe is woefully inadequate. After I got the dress assembled I realized I was unhappy with the bagging at the armscye. I decided to take the sleeves out, fit the gown closer, and. . . draft sleeves. Drafting my own sleeves has been the bane of my costuming career. For the longest time I just plum didn't get it. People have tried to explain over and over how to do it, but my brain couldn't translate their instructions. Finally it all just clicked, and these instructions didn't hurt either. I am proud to report that my very first drafted sleeve fit into the armcye perfectly the first try. I of course had to rip it back out because I was using a red linen mockup to test the fit before I cut into the last yard of my linen. I hope to have it done this weekend for An Tir Coronation.

Sorry there are no pictures, the battery eating camera strikes again.

Alysaundre's Perfectly Pointed Gore Tutorial

2009-02-23T11:28:00.001-08:00

Awhile back I posted my tutorial on how I insert gores into a slashed opening. I usually do this by hand since I could never get the point to align correctly, and it didn't look very good. So for years I have been telling anyone that would listen that the best way to insert gores is to sew it by hand, well now I am going to tell you different. Last month while attending the local sewing night I was taught a new method of inserting gores, and it is all done by machine, and it results in a perfect pointed gore

So without further ado here is Alysaundre's Perfectly Pointed Gore Technique:

On the left is the gore, and on the right we have our main fabric with the slash. Flip your gore upside down over slash Right Sides Together (RST).

Find the place where your seam allowances converge, and place your pin through the mark.Place the pin above your slash by 2-3 threads.

Pin through both layers.

Position your needle directly over your pin, where you marked the converging line of your seam allowance. Take Two stitches across the top of the gore.

You can hardly see those two tiny stitches, but they are there to be an anchor, and mark your starting/stopping point for your seam.

Pivot the gore to align the seam allowances.

Notice that the seam allowance doesn't match exactly at the top of the slash. This is OK! If you pull the gore over to make it match you will distort the grain of the gore and your point will get wonky.

Sew seam with your needle inserted into the two stitches you took earlier. Use the gore to align your seam allowance, not the slash.

See, nice and even from this side, just don't look at the back.

This part always feels weird to me. Match the other side of the gore and the slash RST.

Align the seam allowance from the bottom remembering thet the seam allowances won't align at the top

Again use the gore to align your seam allowance. I found it easier to sew bottom up on this pass. End your seam at the two stitches.

Now press your seam allowances from the gore out.

Now you have a perfect pointed gore!

Boring projects, and Burning fabric

2009-02-18T14:41:00.000-08:00

I've been making gift bags for Largess. They are not worth digging out the camera to show you. But this is a good opportunity to remind everyone to use safe handling practices when conducting a fiber burn test. Can you see where this is leading? Yes while I was determining whether or not the linen look fabric I had been given was indeed linen, I discovered it was more NOT than Linen. I made this observation as the strand I was testing shot a molten ball right into the center of my palm. This is why I recommend natural fiber fabrics. Anyhow since it was an obvious synthetic I decided to cut it up into Largess bags, and spare anyone the potential pain of setting themselves alight in this melty fabric. See I'm not a fiber snob, I'm a humanitarian.

Our service will be temporarily suspended. . .

2009-02-13T13:21:00.001-08:00

Well I have a post, and a few projects in the wings, but alas I have severely ganked my wrist. So until I can hold a needle, I will be unable to work on those projects. I did however buy another sewing machine, so you may be seeing other projects take place.

Post 12th night update.

2009-01-15T11:43:00.000-08:00

Do not be deceived by the lack of posting, I really have been busy. You see My Barony hosted our Kingdom 12th Night this year, and I was crazy busy getting ready. I was planning on finishing up the beaded yoke and making a dress with that as the feature. After calculating how much time it would take me to complete the beaded yoke I realized that I wouldn't have enough time to finish it by 12th Night. So alternate plans were made. I have a beautiful red and green shot Sari that has been taunting me from the bottom of my stash. It was a gift from my father about 10 years ago, and I've been terrified to cut into it. I finally found the perfect fabric match for it, and I needed something to wear to 12th Night, so after anguishing over days I finally . . . gasp. . . cut up the Sari. I of course hemmed, and hawed about how best to layout the pattern to get the most use possible out of each of the shiny trim bits. After I drafted a pattern, and was all set to start, I discovered that I had neglected something, my husband's Retainer. He had no clothes! I promised him clothes! 12th Night was 2 weeks away! But I needed to have shiny new dress for 12th Night, didn't I? Well even though I wanted to be selfish I did the right thing, and cut out a tunic, caftan, and leg wraps for Lord Retainer. Why is it I am always making the guys look good? During this time I had a burst of understanding regarding my husbands Hose. I finished the Tunic the Caftan the Hose, and the legwraps with 5 days to spare. 5 days to finish cutting, and start sewing. It was a valiant effort, but I sadly didn't finish. I tried really hard to get it done, but in my haste I flipped the length and with on my sleeves, and they turned out too small, I even took Friday off of work, but I didn't have enough time.
I really wanted something shiny and new to wear, but alas It was not to be. Hopefully I will have it finished for March Coronet or Egil's (whether I can wear it would depend on the weather). But I am satisfied in knowing that my husband's Retainer was well dressed, and he paid me on of the sweetest complements, he said that this is the nicest garb he has ever owned.

2008-10-29T10:56:00.000-07:00

The Keyhole is progressing quite nicely. As you can see in this photo the top roundel on the left is slightly misshapen I am going to have to go back and redraw the roundel so that it matches the one on the right.
Here is a closer look. You can see the picture quality is not so great, but it gets the message across.

Best laid plans

2008-10-14T16:30:00.000-07:00

I should know better than to make big plans for a tunic tutorial. I have a problem, I have been called by my muse, and when my muse calls I needs must answer, because if I don't listen, she can be a real bitch.

You see a few months back I found a Russian pearl embroidery tutorial, and my muse poked me. Really hard. I set about teaching myself, and I was having fun and completed a set of cuffs. Never mind that I had no idea what I would use them for, she was having fun, and that was all that mattered. I then found out I would be stepping up as the new Baroness of Adiantum. I had a month to plan, and sew the step up clothing for my husband and I. Other projects were set aside.

Muse was not happy. She understood, but she was not happy. I had enough steam to get two sets of clothing complete, and then she took off for a while. I found no joy in new fabric, my stash held no flashes of inspiration. I turned to another craft to fulfill the need to make. Knitting muse would talk to me, she thought I had some fun ideas, and we worked well together, until she came back.

I had been trying to work on my 12th Night garb, but with no muse I wasn't getting very far. I have this lovely brocade that I have been saving for a decade, and I was thinking about doing an Elizabethan loose gown, and coat. But no, she said she had other ideas. So I pulled out a piece of black linen and my stencils, and plotted out a keyhole neck. She was talking to me again, and I needed to start working.

You can see how far I got as of last night. On the left is the marked out design, in the center is the design outlined in a running stitch, and on the right is the beginning of the bead work.

Rectanular Construction Tunics-Introduction the Birth of a Tacky Tunic

2008-08-29T10:31:00.000-07:00

Many years ago when I was still in high school I received a copy of Tournaments Illuminated. In that issue there was this amazing article by Lady Muireann ingen Eoghain ua Maoil Mheaghna, about how to make a tunic with rectangular construction. I had never heard of such a thing before. I was amazed that this woman had taken measurements from a actual surviving garment from the middle ages, and made a pattern from it. A garment that wasted virtually no fabric. Since these were the days before I worked at a fabric store, I had no stash to speak of. Making the most of my fabric was a necessity. I devoured the article, copying down her cutting layout in my sketch pad. My little mind was spinning from this new idea, and I had to try making my own. So I pulled out some atrocious plaid knit that I had found at a second hand shop (taste in fabric was still a few years away), and I set about making my first "real" T-tunic. It was a functional disaster. I didn't have enough fabric to make the center gores out of the plaid, so I fudged it, and I used a lightweight lavender cotton for the center gores. It matched. . . in a way. I read the bit in the article of inserting points by hand, so I left the top inch of the gores un-sewn intending to come back later and close up the gap by hand. Well I never did, I never hemmed it either. You would think that it would have been falling apart after the first wash, but I wore that unfinished tunic for years. Eventually I stopped wearing it, and it lurked in the bottom of my garb box taunting me. I would proudly wear my newer creations all the while knowing it was there just out of site. Finally I gave it away, I couldn't stand taking it apart, and I had friends who could use the garb. Finally I was free if the curse of the Tacky tunic, that is untill I was sitting by the campfire, and across from me was my friend proudly wearing my old tunic.

I've gone on to make many more tunics using Rectangular Construction. Once I had mastered the formula for measuring they went together very quickly. I found that when I tried to take a shortcut, and use the quarter & cut method it never worked right. I would end up spending more time fixing the shortcut than I would have taken to just do it right the first time. Thus I was converted. When I sing the praises of Rectangular Construction I often watch peoples eyes gloss over. The number of pieces, inserting gores, math!?! Quite a few people looked at me like I was crazy, and went back to their preferred way of cutting. I was not discouraged. I wanted more people to use this method because it's the right way! OK so there is no right way to do anything, but I really loved the way that this worked, and just wanted to share. So what was I going to do? I started making them for friends. Then I guided a few friends through making their own. Next thing I knew I was teaching my first A&S Class. I find myself popping into costuming forums and giving advice, I even started a photo tutorial On my Livejournal. Sadly that never got finished because I moved, and the half finished project has yet to resurface. Well I still want to spread the love of Rectangular construction. So over the next few weeks I will be posting a Rectangular Construction Tunic Tutorial.

Center front Gore placement

2008-08-27T11:52:00.000-07:00

Inserting a center front gore into a rectangular construction tunic can be pretty intimidating at first glance. Not to mention taking a pair of scissors and cutting a slash up the front of a perfectly good tunic seems like an unnecessary cruelty. That is until the first time you get it right, and you realize how nice and full your skirt can be. Getting it right took me a awhile to discover. For years I kept hearing people say hand sewing is the way to achieve a perfect gore. I knew that would work, but I am a visual learner, if I cannot watch someone or see pictures it is harder for me to understand what I am being told. So after many years of trial and error I finally developed a technique that gives me a beautifully finished gore that I can be proud of.

I would like to share with you my technique for inserting center front gores, and hopeful this will take away some of the mystery, and get you to making your own. I should inform you that this technique does not give you a perfect point, rather it gives you a rounded peak that will lay flat without puckers traditionally associated with machine inserted gores.

Start with a flat topped gore. The top of this gore is approximately 1" across.

This is the top of my Center Front (from now on Center Front will be abbreviated to CF) slash before I have clipped it.

This illustration shows the clipping placement, and how to align the Tunic and gore for your first pin placement. The first pin is tricky because you are pinning it on upside down. The pieces will align the right direction when you begin spreading out the slashes.

Spread the slash apart, pinning every 1/2" inch or so. This allows you to align the edges of the gore and the CF slash. If it helps imagine your tunic front is an accordion fold fan, the handle is your CF slash, and you are closing it.

Now that you have your Gore and tunic pinned it's time to sew your seam by hand. Trust me about the hand sewing, a machine cannot match the control hand sewing gives you. Begin your seam at least two inches from the peak of the gore. For my projects I usually use a 1/2" seam allowance, but use your personal preference.

Here you can see the sewn seam from the gore side.

Here is the gore as viewed from the wrong side. Don't worry about the excess at the top that's about to get trimmed off as it has fulfilled it's purpose.

Now we need to finish the seam. To do this I usually fold the seam allowance over as if I were making a flat felled seam.

Now I whip stitch the seam allowance to the body of the Tunic.

Finished seam from the back. After you have the gore inserted you can sew the rest of the seam with your machine.

Finished seam from the front. Pay no attention to the wrinkles I didn't lay the fabric flat when I took the picture. When I wear the gown there isn't a wrinkle there.

Well I hope this helps you in your costuming endeavors.

2007-11-26T15:24:00.000-08:00

first post!!!