Small updates

 I have done some small updates to the page for my folk costume - added soem new garments and photos. It's here.

Packing my stuff

 This is not a csotume realted post, but a post about something else that I really like within my historical recreation in the SCA: Feastgear - and boxes.

Unlike my friend Gele who has specific sets for various time periods, with only replicas, I am more for having something that looks right enough, and that I can find in charity shops, with the occasional replica too.

I presented some of my finds in this post  in September last year, but I have even more stuff now.

And I have added a new thing to collect from charity shops: bentwood boxes.

The tea cup is there for size comparison.

All these are from various flea markets/charity shops - the really large one is a find from this Monday.

Unfortunately the large one was decorated with pyrography on the lid, with the name "Kerstin" and the year 1983.

With the help of a knife and sandpaper I managed to get most of it off, and then I painted my SCA badge on it to hide the remnants.

But what to I use them for?

Well, the one to the left is the right size for my feastgear, except a pitcher. This is how I packed it for Autumn crown, the pitcher was in my suitcase.

Now I keep that box packed all the time - always ready for an event ;)

Ideally, of course, my husband is with me at events, and then I need space for his stuff too. Enter, the new, large box. 

Here I am trying to figure out how  to fit the most stuff in it in a safe way. You can see the size difference between the boxes clearly here.

I soon found out that while I could fit the large wooden plates in it, it meant that I couldn't fit two pitchers in it. And I really want that: one for beer and one for water.

So, swapping large wood plates for smaller ceramic plates this is what I could fit into the box: Two pitchers, two plates, two bowls, two large painted glasses, two small glasses for when people offer you stuff to taste, two ceramic jugs for hot drinks, two two-pronged forks, two spoons and one knife. My husband usually carries his knife in his belt so it's only mine that needs to get into the box.

To wrap things I used two hand woven linen towels and a hand woven linen tablecloth, the latter also found this Monday at the charity shop Östhjälpen Second hand in Jonsered outside Gothenburg.

So this is how it worked out. I could probably fit in some more, but this is quite enough for our needs.

Photos from Drachenwald's Autumn Crown Tourney

 I was too busy to take many photos at Drachenwald's Autumn Crown in the Netherlands: the first in person event since March 2020, the first since I got better from my exhaustion, me entering the tourney with my dear frend Sir Måns, the long delayed elevations of the lovely Baroness Anna von Syveken and Baroness Magdalena Grace Vane to the Order of the Pelican and the Laurel respectively... well the list is long. 

And their was such an elevated sense of joy throughout the whole event - when we finally got to see each other in person again.

So, here we go. For the tournament I chose not to mach Sir Måns 16th century waffenrock, that I just had made, but to go for as romantic as you can get: 12th century, in my green wool bliaut. I also wore my husband's wool cloak, lined in silk. I had braided my hair with red wool yarn, to make longer braids, and sewed brass points to them I made thos braid ends in 1998, but haven't actually used them at an event. They're very basic, just sheet brass with a simple pattern made by a needle and cut and folded to a cone. I really should make new and prettier ones. 

The coronet is made by Johanna Lawrence (link to her Etsy shop).

Sir Måns and I actually got to the finals, and I nearly fainted while we watched the fight then.

The finals was against Count Morales, and this photo is from when they met earlier in the tourney.

Here sir Måns met his squire, Honourable Lord Erich Olovsson Haane. Also one of my travel companions to and from the event, co-founder of the informal household Haus Rotkäppchen (from the cheap German bubbly of that name) which we created on the way down to the Netherlands.

Sir Måns and Lady Agnès Boncuer in the list.

After the tourney I changed to my very comfy silk brocade gown, as did sir Måns. These were our investiture outfits when we became baron and baroness of Gotvik in 2016, and we thought it wise to be prepared with matching outfits, just in case ;)

Sir Måns and ghis son, wearign the matching waffenrock to his dad's. He's going to have it for fighting, but since it hadn't been used for that yet, it was clean enough to wear at court and feast.

At this event I also received a beatiful scroll for an award that I got in May, in an online court. It is for the Orden des Lindquistringes, a Dracehnwald award for service.

It was made by Lord Maredudd ap Gwylim, and is based on a late 12th-early 13th century manuscript.

A white dress is very useful

A plain white muslin dress is very useful for c. 1800 costuming - you can wear it is as it is, and you can use many different accessories.

I already had a 1790s white muslin dress, but it has coral pink ribbon trim, and a train, which isn't always practical (well, it's never practical, but even less practical). I was much thinner then, but it still fits, thanks to the construction which is adaptable with drawstrings.

But I still wanted one that was just plain white, so I made a new one. I like hand sewing muslin too, it just feels nice.

With a new lace cap, from some broderie anglaise pieces of unclear intended use that I picked up at a thrift store, and a canezou, a kind of over blouse, that I made from striped linen curtains that I got from one of our neighbours.

With the little reversible bodice that I made for my ball gown.

And with a teal velvet bodice that I made two years ago, but never could decide on the closure. Which was just as well, as it is now so tight that a brooch is the best way to close it.

My folk costume

 I have made a new apron for my folk costume, and I have updated the page for it so much that it is virtually a whole new page. Now it also has lots of preserved garments which I could/will add to my costume eventually.

All you wanted to know about my 13th century Spanish costumes

After a serious scare when Blogger decided to take down my blog because of alleged PHISHING activites- I kid you not - it is up again.

I mean, in the name of the Gods: This is an educational blog about costume history!

Anyway, the page about my 13th century Spanish costumes that I spent six hours working on still exists, and you can now find it here.

My striped saya encordata is finished

 As you might remember from my January post, this year I took up a project that I really should have both started or finished circa 20 years ago: A 13th century noble Castilian outfit based on both the preserved garments in Museo de Burgos, and on period illuminations, statues and other artwork.

I made the pellote, and I made the embroidered shift, but then I got sidetracked and instead of making the blue silk saya encordata I dediced to try the pattern that I had made on a slightly cheaper fabric. The fact that both the 13th century Spanish people and I were/are crazy about stripes probably contributed to this. And that I have been looking for an excuse to make something from this striped wool from Göteborgs Textil forever.

I have also been experimenting with the weird 13th century Spanish headwear. I have some theories, which also gives answers about how other types of pleated fillets were made in the rest of Europe in this period.  But that will have to wait until I have the energy to write down my documentation properly.

For now you will have to do with some photos of the finished outfit, and some of the inspiration. And yes, I couldn't be bothered to put on proper shoes - but apparently  winding 4 metres of linern with a pleated frill on it around my head wasn't too much work. Yes, I am weird.