Kyrtle done...maybe

I decided to make a "practice" kyrtle to get myself ready for the real one.  I kept looking through my bins of fabric and kept coming back to my linen/wool blend I had put aside to make my first bliaut.  It just didn't want to be a dress.  So, when I started putting trim to fabric, it was the perfect choice to match the wool trim I had gotten at Calontir Trims when I was at Gulf Wars.  Thus it was decided...

I also had a very BIG BOON at Hancock's on 33rd St. here in Salt Lake.  I had gone in a couple of weeks ago to buy felt for some projects I want to do for the Kingdom Barony's.  I wander over to the embroidery thread because I can use cotton on the projects and I notice that this store has a DMC Linen Embroidery Thread display, but very few skeins left.  I file it away in the back of my mind. 

I go to start making the kyrtle and realize the one skein of linen thread I have that truly matches the fabric will probably be all used up.  So instead of going with the wool thread (no clue how that will shrink) I remember "Ohhh I think Hancock's had some of this color or at least close to this color left on that display".  So the next morning I head over.  I find they have ONE skein in the same color and quite a few in "almost" the same color so I grab 4.  I head up to the cashier and the skeins ring up for ONE PENNY each!  The girl looks at me and says "Wow, that's a hell of a deal" and I tell her to wait one second.  I run...yes RUN back to the display, scoop up ALL the rest of the thread and run back to the cash register.  I end up with 68 skeins of Linen thread for $.068 cents.  That's HALF the price of one skein! 

Of course I call various people out of my area and tell them to check their Hancock's as I drive to the other one right by my house.  Of course it doesn't have ANY (although it did have 5 rayon skeins that were priced at a penny so I got those).  I even checked online and damn no luck.  I guess Hancock's is going with a different brand of embroidery thread and they were closing out the DMC line.  Shopping Karma at its best.

Anyway, I get back and start sewing my new kyrtle, in hopes of having it ready for Crown.  I end up finishing it at 1:00am Friday nite as I sit in my hotel room in Pocatello waiting to be able to go to sleep.  I hang up my new Kyrtle and feel satisfied, but as I look at it hanging there, I realize it looks sort of plain along the bottom.  So, I do what any exhausted Squire would do, I take it back down, climb back into bed, turn on "Top Gun" and sew trim all across the bottom.  An hour & a half later (2:30am) I finally finish and fall quickly asleep before I decide there's something more to do.

I wore it to feast at Crown with my white linen under shirt and it was plenty comfy.  I do need to adjust my measurement book for my wrist size, I seem to always make them too big.  I did a blanket stitch around the collar & the cuffs and it turned out very nice.  I am so pleased I am still considering making this my ACC submission kyrtle, however, the flat felled seams in the gussets under my arms are still bothering me.  So upon the suggestion of Varia and Aelia Sophia I will leave the kyrtle til last & if I have time to make the herringbone kyrtle I will.  If not, I have a perfectly fine, hand sewn kyrtle that will do nicely.  My holdout on the herringbone is matching the patterns, because...well...I'm OCD like that! 

In other news, while I was digging through my bins for linen to make a new tunic I want to gift someone in a couple of weeks, I found a really nice piece of gray herringbone wool I had forgotten about.  Its not a large enough piece to do much with but I realized it would make a PERFECT wool wrap for when I need a light cloak.  So last night while I was watching Castle, I backed it with black linen and hand sewed the edges with some of the thicker linen thread that I found at the Needlepoint Joint.  I had originally thought I could split the threads but it didn't work out that way, so the wrap turned out to be the perfect use for the thicker weight.  Tonight I will blanket stitch the edges with some great wool yarn I have so it will lay correctly. 

Then I will knock out the tunic before I start on the braies hardcore.  I want to get the gift done because this person has really stepped up to the plate in helping with an event & I can give it to him in person later this month if its done.  Otherwise I'd end up mailing it and that's kinda boring lol.  Lets hope my guesstimating his sizes works...

I will post some photos of the "practice" kyrtle later tonight when I get home.  I did take documentation photos just in case thankfully lol...

Rogue

Surprise birthday present for Magnus...shhhhh!!!

Since I know he has no clue this blog is out here I am fairly safe to post the progress of his birthday cloak.  I decided to take up the 50 before 50 challenge and my goal is 50 hand made gifts by 50th year.  So the first of my gifts is for my Squire Brother Magnus.  He is an 11th cent. Varangian guardsman.  He bought the 8 yards of RED wool almost a year ago and it has sat in my house waiting to be made since then. 

He just turned 26 and I could not figure out what to do for him for his birthday.  Then it hit me...he still needs his cloak & I needed practice handsewing.  So, I decided to make it for him.  I feel guilty because I didn't use linen thread, he had purchased heavy coat thread for it already.  But it is fully hand sewn and all thats left now is rolling the collar, sides and hem. 

I had thought about applicqueing bear paws on the front but I don't know that I will have time to do it since I want to give this to him Saturday morning at Harvest War. 

I had originally thought that I could count this as my ACC cloak peice but alas, as I said, I did not use linen thread, I have one back seam that is turned in the wrong way and the nap of the wool doesn't match on all sections.  A couple of them got turned over to the other side and I didn't realize it until after I had finished the section.  So, I really don't want to have anyone judge me with such blaring mistakes already.

But it was great practice and I enjoyed doing it, and it still counts as 1/50 of the other challenge!!!

R

Trade done! Thank you Morgan...you amazing Vicaress!!!

Many of you know Morgan & I did a little trading.  We finally completed the exchange over Coronation weekend!  I had sent home (via Royal carriage from Baron's War) some chocolate silk for her to use in the ACC.  So this weekend in exchange, she taught me how to do finger braiding and how to make braided trim.  I will be using this technique to make the drawstring for my braies & the ties for my hose.  I may also use it as trim on my tunic and/or shirt. 

Once you get the hang of it, its very simple.  I have done a few test pieces but I think on my way up to Harvest War the weekend of the 15th, I will stop in & get some of the thicker linen thread and see how that braids up.  If it doesn't do well I will use cotton but I think the linen will work nicely.

I haven't gotten a new piece cut out yet but should have the braies cut out tomorrow.  I was just too tired from Coronation & the drive home to do anything but veg.
 Sometimes you just gotta give up and watch vampire TV =)

Knight Time ...

I got to spend some quality time with my Knight (Count Ralf le Bigod) yesterday afternoon going over patterns for braise and how he does his awesome looking hose.  I "think" I will be able to copy his pattern for hose pretty easily.  Unfortunately he has chicken legs so no way can I just use his pattern darn it.  The man has no calves....seriously...they're like peglegs!...no wonder his winnegas ALWAYS stay up! 

Anyway, after we discussed the patterns we got into a really great conversation about period underwear & why I would wear them.  Oddly enough I had never even considered WHY my personae does what she does.  I know WHAT she does, its like she just popped out ready made and thats who she is, but I never really bothered with the Why.  I have done some research and have a lot of my basics figured out but to drill it down to "Why does your personae wear mens underwear?" was never a thought. 

I know many people really don't have their own personae fleshed out and thats perfectly fine.  In my previous SCA life as a 14th Century Scottish woman I made up reasons why I fought but it was all conjecture.  Nothing was truly supportable should I have really wanted to document my history but it suited me and no one ever criticized me about not having something fleshed out.  Even now, I don't think anyone would do that really.  But to those of us that enjoy such things and "Would You Like To Know More" (to quote Starship Troopers hehe) it gives us even more insight into our alternate beings hehe.

It excites me now to know I can fully support why Helchen does what she does, wears what she wears and why she fights.  Everything can be documented - right down to WHY she would wear mens underwear and even to why they are the color they are (or will be once I make them hehe).  I am amazed at the levels of detail knowing my personae's history opens up to me.  It also makes this challenge that much easier.

I was having problems with my documentation.  I have never done documentation before and I thought you had to do things exactly like the period references you find did them.  I was confounded when I was using two different examples for my shirt and one had gussets and one didn't...so how am I supposed to make the shirt?  After much discussion with gloriously knowledgeable friends I realize the references are simply that.  I simply need to show what WAS done in period and why I am doing MY shirt the way I did it.  Which rolls into...my personae would have done it this way because....

So yea I am breathing MUCH easier now with the choices I am going to have to make regarding fabric, design and embellishment because its all based on Helchen and if anyone knows her best...(and knows why she wears men's drawers)...its Me =)

Rogue
(who occasionally wears men's underwear...in her real life too)

Shiny...The 1st item in the ACC done!

My shirt is now done.  100% handsewn and I have the pin pricks to prove it!  I started the shirt on Saturday August 6, 2011 with cutting it out.  It sat, due to my hesitance on flat felled seams until Tuesday August 16, 2011.  I am pretty happy once I got to sewing it only took me a few days to finish it.  And that was only working on it an hour or two each night. 

I have learned pre-pinning works great but for hemming I do much better rolling it as I go.  I also love love LOVE the beeswax that Mistress Bianca gave out at her collegium class.  That has saved me many times.  I just slip the little pouch into my cleavage to keep it warm and anytime the linen thread got rough I slid it out!  Works like a charm.  I will definitely be melting down my big blocks once I find out what type of mold she used.  It looks like a mini Reeses peanut butter cup.

Some of my beginning seams are a bit uneven but by the end of the shirt I pretty much had the spacing figured out and I am very happy with the outcome.  The opening at the neck may need to be altered a little bit but I am waiting until I wash the completed shirt before I change anything.  Fit was good although I could probably take it in a couple places.  I wasn't sure on the seam allowances for flat felling so I left a little extra in the cut. 

I will say gussets & flat felling are a PAIN IN THE ASS!!!  I almost went with the running stitch to forgoe the flat felling but it seemed (seamed...get it lol I crack myself up) to work out just fine.  But agan..P.I.T.A!!!

All in all, I am a proud girl.  I haven't ever made anything like this by hand and it was actually very therapeutic just to sit, watch Firefly & sew.  Although now I will need to find a different series for each part of the challenge lol!

I thought I was getting in over my head with this but right now, I think I will do ok!  Thank you to everyone who gave me input about the gussets & seams.  Here is a photo of the finished shirt.  I will save all the documentation photos I have for the finale =)

Rogue

Flat Felled Seams!

Well it was tough but after Bianca's class, various videos on youtube, talking with friends in the ACC & reading an online article on period sewing techniques http://www.marquise.de/en/themes/howto/technik.shtml, I finally felt ready enough to start sewing.  It's odd because I would normally have had this thing whipped out in under an hour on a machine.  So far...I have one shoulder seam done!  LOL =)

I took some shots of the seam because...well...I am pretty proud of myself!  I know its not perfect but I am excited to have it truly started.  I did get to discuss the process of documentation and what the process is from a find to what you hold in your hand.  That helped a lot.  I realize I was truly trying to overthink the whole process...which to those who know me, should not come as a complete surprise ROFL!

The top picture is the rightside and the bottom picture is the underside of the seam.  I also have managed to gleen a few linen threads long enough to sew with so far.  That was an AMAZING idea to take threads from the actual fabric to sew with! 

All in all I am happy with my progress.  I am still so excited about finally figuring it out I want to stay up longer just to sew, however I know that won't last long. 

One other major discovery was made while sewing tonight...Disturbed & Godsmack make great sewing songs!!! 

Hope you all have a glorious week!

Cheers ~ Rogue

And...its begun =)

Well tonight after having family over for dinner, which forced me to clean my sewing/armoring table (aka the kitchen table) off so we could eat, I decided to get some good use out of it before I cluttered it up again!  I cut out the first piece of my ACC garb.  My white linen undershirt. 

It is a very basic design based on the Thorsbjerg tunic & the Viborg linen smock.  Its a rectangular body & rectangular arms with a taper to the wrist.  A simple round neckline with side seems to the hip, open past the hips.

Now that its cut out I still have to figure out a few things.

1) The Neck: I want to put the neck slit over to the side so its basically on my shoulder.  I think it looks so much better that way.  Or I could just do a simple boat neck & still get the flat lay I want under the opening of my kirtle.  I just can't decide! 

2) Seams:  Should I flat fell all the seams?  I know on the Thorsbjerg tunic the seams are in the middle of the arm instead of at the shoulder seam and underarm seam, so I am unsure where to put them.  And in a flat felled seam should everything be a running stitch?  I may do a blanket stitch in a coordinating color on the neck & cuffs but again...not sure!

3) I'm kind of perplexed at how to set up the flat felled seam to start.  I have seen Bianca do it, looked at her hand outs, even seen some photos on youtube but still am hesitant to start it all.  That initial desire for hand holding is killin' me LOL! 

4) Gussets: I am not sure if I should add gussets under the arms or not.  I have enough linen left from the arms to cut them out if I need them but deciding if I should add them is the dilemma!

Now...for my Kirtle question!

In searching for more linen, I found this wool in the wrong box.  Its a maroonish red with heather accents.  I think it will be fine but I am wondering about the pattern...I don't want something that wouldn't work in period.  Any ideas if the Herringbone will work anyone?

UPDATE!  I found references to "the interlacement of the herringbone or broken chevron twill weave"  so YAY I have my Kirtle Wool =)