18 years in the life of a dress - a story in images

In 2002 I made this dress for an event in March. Our whole local group were making clothing inspired by images in the early 14th century manuscript Codex manesse, or Grosse Heidelberger Liederhandschrift.
It's made in green thin wool, and it has been used A LOT. You can read more about the dress here.

Here are photos of me and my husband, and lots of our friends. Back then I didn't have a digital camera, so I have very few photos from this time. More photos from this event can be seen here.

The trim at the sleeves is made with brass thread woven into it, but I never really liked how it looked, so I removed it in 2007, five years later

Here are some photos me in it without trim.

2007

2007

2008

When Måns and I became baron and baroness of Gotvik in 2016, I decided to bling it up a little again, and added a much nicer, vintage trim that I got from Passamaneria Valmar in Florence.

Here I am wearing it for a masked ball at Double wars in 2017:

Last week I decided to use it for Gotvik's second summer picnic this year:

And I noticed, that 18 years of dragging the hem on the ground had unsurprisingly caused some damage.

Since it was about a foot longer than to the floor anyway, there was enough fabric to cut off about 2,5 cm/an inch and re-hem it.

But, since the dress had been made when I wasn't as I am now at both this period of dress, and at constructing patterns, I decide to change some other stuff: I took it in 2,5 inches/ca 6-6,5 cm at the bust - yes, it should be loose, but this was enormous, it fit me better when I weighed 98 kilos - and I scooped out the armscyes more in the front to make it look more like preserved garments, and I also took it in a little at the shoulder, so that it fit my shoulder width, I have rather narrow shoulders, especially for someone my size.

So, this is how it looks now - still a loose fit, but better fitting.

I was inspired by this image from the Grosse Heidelberger Liederhandschrift for the photo.

As you see: green cotte, pink cloak, fillet with wavy edge, and a veil with trim along the edge. And a dog. I don't have a dog. But I have two cats, this is Esau, who doesn't want to be there.

And a few photos without the cloak.

It is still very wide.

Close up of the trim:

My new green wool 12th century gown has its own page now

The 12th century used to be one of my go to periods twenty years ago or so, but since than I haven't worn it much. However, having a baron and baroness wearing 12th century styles for hteir investiture inspired my to wear some of my old stuff, and then to make some new stuff. It also helped that I had found this gorgeous thin green wool fabric. The dress was finished a few weeks ago, but I also needed the under layers - and for it to be cool enough for me to want to put it on.

Yesterday was that day, so hubby and I went out to take photos.

Since I am on sick leave for exhaustion/burn-out I have plenty of time to sew, but very little energy to start projects - not to mention reading or writing, which is really, really hard. But given enough time some things actually get created, and even written about, which this is the proof of: A page for my new gown with some info on how I made it and lots of pretty pictures.

Gotvik's summer picnic in Corona times

Saturday was Gotvik's traditional summer picnic. We kept 1,5 metres distance (or more), unless you lived together  and of course no one with symptoms attended. So I deemed it safe enough, even if I am immunocompromised.
BUT I can't go on public transport, That's too risky - so I took my bike, and headwear that I could wear under my helmet, that is: a St. Birgitta cap. It was 6,4 kilometres and, as always in Gothenburg, rather hilly.

We did have a jolly time in the  sunny weather.

 I made a version of Torta d’herbe alla Lombarda with cottage cheese, eggs, wild mustard garlic and oregano and rosemary from my balcony. It's the first time that I made a pie without a pie form. The dough is hot water, a little oil, salt, and wheat flour.

Here are some photos of us that attended. 

I wore my Italian c. 1300 cotton gown  I was rather interested in keeping cool since I was biking a distance in 27 degrees (80 F) in the shade and strong sun

As you can see in the photo below I was bsuy sewing, I started on a supportive linen shift, which I finished on Sunday afternoon.

After the picnic I biked to a lake, which added some extra kilometres (and steep hills), so I ended up with a neat 20 kilometres of biking that day.

Today I'm off for a hike. I am walking through the forest, and sleeping one night there, to go and see some SCA friends who live 45 kilometres away. I don't have a driver's license and I felt mroe like hiking than biking, because I really look forward to sleeoign in the woods.

I have finished my green 12th century gown

It is all hand sewn from wool, with silk thread, and the embrodiery is silk floss and "metal" thread (metal wrapped around a thread), using split stich and couching. There is also applique from silk, and glass fake pearls.
The embroidery is inspired by the borders seen on clothing in illuminations and sculpture, and by period embroidery, but since the visual sources aren't that detailed I also used my own creativity. I included elements from my heraldry, and other motifs that are meaningful to me, like hawthorn leaves. I will of course write much more about my inspiration and sources, and the construction, which is basically rectangular, when I make a page for it.

I am going to make a new undergown first. I have good undergowns, but I really wanted a new. I will also order a tablet woven belt. I can do tablet weaving, but I'm not really that interested, and my weaving isn't good enough as it is.

When I have finished all parts, I might make a new veil too, though I have plenty of veils, I will take proper photos.

More Double Wars at home

So, I've been busy with lots of stuff, but I have done at least one thing that I would have done at Double Wars every day, and here are some photos to prove it :)

Tuesday the 19th
This day I enjoyed one of my favourite pasttimes in the current middle ages, as it is called in the SCA:  hanging out in my underwear :)

There is nothing as nice as hanging out in your hand sewn linen shift; before getting dressed in the morning, as in this case, I hadn't even rebraided my hair, or after a swim or shower, or a hot day in your wool gown.

Wednesday the 20th

I had breakfast on the balcony in my shift this day too, but you've already seen that.

This day there was a zoom event, the online version of the traditional Double wars Sill(y) party. Sill means herring in Swedish, so people had prepared with pickled herring and other food and drink. I don't like herring, so I just hung out with some tea and embroidery. I am wearing my cotton Italian c. 1300 gown.

Afterwards I put on a woollen cloak and sat on my balcony, enjoying the spring evening.

Thursday the 21st
A very typical Double Wars thing, is the lavish, and not particularly medieval brunch that you can order in advance, when you sign up for the event.
On thursday morning I made a smaller version of this fior the family.

Then, since I am participating in Medieval May on instagram adn that day's theme was luxury, we can say that I got dressed for court ;) 13th-early 14th century.

What I really did that day was to walk 10 kilometres and meet my best friend and then get thoroughly sloshed on prosecco in the sun, which is a very Double Wars thing (without the walking), and then I walked the same distance home, late in the night.

Friday the 22nd
Well, I was mostly hung over, but I worked on the embroidery for my 12th century wool gown, and actually got to attach it to the gown. The embroidery is silk thread, metal thread and glass beads om silk.

Saturday the 23rd

Today I am going to make something between a feast and a dinner, from 14th centruy Italian cookbooks.

I have started on a version of torta d'herbe alla Lombarda, wearing my mid 14th century Italian working class clothing, in my very modern kitchen. . Since they are in season I am using mustard garlic and ground elder as well as some oregano and mint from my balcony.

There will also be Insalata di sparagi, lasini, funghi di monte and torta bianca.

At Double wars I swim

And walk in the forest.

Double Wars is the perfect holiday for me: I have been on the brink of exhaustion for at least four years, working much more than my arthritic body can handle - being in ciosntant pain is not only tiring for the body, but for your brain too. And in my case it has led to other severe illnesses, including me nearly dying from a hole in my duodenum. Unfortunately the agency which handles sick benefits in Sweden ("Försäkringskassan) doesn't give a rat's ass if I die, or if I get more and more complication from working more than I can handle. So, as you might now, I got so exhausted in the end of November last year that I am now on 100% sick leave. Something that could have been avoided. But, I digress. Double Wars means that I can't work, I can't do stuff on my computer, and people can't reach me. So it is a wonderful time to just get away from everything.

However, I also have much more need for solitude than most people who attend, so I spend a considerable time walking in the woods, and to the lake, where I usually swim, and then just sit and meditate in the sun.
No matter how cold it is there is usually at least one day with good enough weather for me to swim when we're at Double wars.

And since that is such an important part of my Double Wars experience I didn't want to be without it in this my Double Wars-at-home-experience.

Unlike Double Wars, where there's five minutes walk through a mostly flat forest, at home this means a rise of  95 metres and about an hours walk. But it was lovely, both the walk and the dip in the rather cold lake. Werll,actually I bathed in two different lakes, it was after all a c. 20 kilometres walk all in all.

On my way there

It was lovely in the sun after the cold water.
Of course I have a linen bath towel. I made it (as in hemmed it, I didn't weave it) for Visby medieval week in 1998 and I use it a lot!

I had walked to the lake in modern clothes, but after the dip it felt SO good to get into my linen shift and wool gown. There's nothing quite like that feeling, after a bath.

So: shift on, braids up, and Birgitta cap on.

And then gown, belt and shoes.

And then I walked some four kilometres until I got into the next lake, after which I switched back to mundanes, it works better when you walk through residential and industrial areas. Especially the shoes, at least when you have arthritis.

I also snapped a photo of some beeches, because that is what you find at the Double Wars site.

Technical problems, and Codex Manesse

Well, first the Princess and then quite a few of the rest of us had technical problems with today's mimosa drinking on zoom. I finally gave up, was grateful  that I hadn't actually opened any champagne, and decided to continue with my embroidery on my own instead.

I did, however, arrange a nice outdoors place on my balcony. The pillows are made by Mistresses Lia de Thornegge and Helwig Ulfsdotter.

And with me in it. The cats liked the new decor. I am wearing clothes from c. 1300, inspired by the Codex Manesse. More info here.

After this rather frustrating experience with technology I took a walk.