New year, new gown

Oh what I naughty girl I am for not posting about my new gown. Not only that, but I have no pictures yet and I didn't finish my chemise to go with it, I haven't hemmed it or the surcote that goes with it, it's not in the century I had researched, and it has to be completely finished by February 9th for Val Day.

...Aaaaaand it just occured to me that that is my freaking anniversary and *that* is why Bryan was put off when I told him I was going...jeeeez I'm dumb.

Well, maybe I can come home early.

Onto the dress:

So in the previous post in November, I was planning an extravagant Gothic fitted gown with underpinnings and accessories. Well, I didn't get my shoes for Christmas, so that's out. I also cannot fit a GFG without help and Bryan doesn't fall into that category.

So I settled on underwear-out for a mid-13th century gown based on the extant example of St. Clare of Assisi's gown. It's simple, and with a few modifications (read: extra side front gores), my ample bosoms fit right in.

(Short note, I made this dress, with a lining, and the surcote, from scratch, no patterns, jsut drafting straight to the fabric, in about 48 hours. I forgot about 12th Night and the Baronial Investiture--Hoobah for Odo and Dulcinea!--until about 3 days before the event. So kudos to me.)

The idea for the gown came from this site. It's pretty well known amongst garbers of this era because of it's simplicity, clarity, and accuracy. I have not been able yet to verify this source, so if you have been able to have access to this research or the book it comes from, let me know.

The reason for this change was not only because of the difficulting in fitting a GFG alone on a fat figure, but also because my linen is very heavy coatweight and it really didn't drape right around my curves.

While this gown is actually based on St. Clare's clothes as she would have worn them as a Bride of Christ and head of her Order of Poor Clare's, I was able to support my theory for the look with other sources--specifically the Maciejowski Bible and Manesse Codex. The Bible being of French origin and contemporary time, I can show a wide swath of style from Assisi in Umbria, Italy to other continental kingdoms. Most particularly or note is the picture of the Benjamites winning wives from Shiloh, and the women of Israel meeting David after slaying Goliath. These two illuminations display the solid color, floor length, belted gown with a simple circlet and no veil.

The Codex is a little later, being 1305 C.E. and are of what we would call German origin, but because of the lack of unity of the many pricipalities and kingdoms of the region, I'm going to say that there are Swiss and German people represented, but not in our modern sense. The styles have changed a little, but here I can find documentation of my surcote on a female. In this illumination of
Count Konrad von Kirtchburg is climbing up to his lady love, who is wearing a sleeveless surcote over her gown.

Also supporting are the illuminations of

Herr Gottfried von Neifen
Herr Jakob von Warte
Herr Walther von Klingen
the poet Kuerenberger
and several others. I suggest these sites and a Babel Fish translation to get the gist of what the illuminations mean.
The University of Heidelberg
and
Tempora Nostra


I have not finished the underwear yet, but I'm working on it.

More updates soon, hopefully with pictures, but don't quote me since I haven't produced the promised Pennsic pictures yet.

In Service to The Dream,
Gillian de Chelseye.

News and More Promises for forthcoming pictures

First of all, the black and white Pennsic pictures are still being developed by my sister and scanned and I'm waiting for my next check to get the color photos printed. I PROMISE they'll be up before Christmas (preferably before Thanksgiving). Particularly, the tent photos and battle photos.

News:

Since our little Incipient Canton of Ealdnordwuda (no, don't try to spell it OR say it--we don't either, hehehe) has FINALLY gained full status as real Canton (Cue: Pinocchio voice "I'm a real Canton!"), we'll be elevated at 12th Night this year in the Barony of Cynnabar. This is *ideal* because we won't have to worry about running an event and Cynnabar is a friendly local Barony that will gladly share the limelight with us at their magnificent 12th Night celebration.

This means two things for me.

1.) I must prepare a small gift for Their Majesties in thanks for elevating us. And perhaps something for the Baron and Baroness of Cynnabar for hosting our elevation on their 12th Night.

AND (You knew this was coming.)

2.) I GET TO MAKE A NEW OUTFIT!

I'm still in the planning stages, but presumably, it will be:

--a white muslin slip-type chemise that commercially looks a bit like this one from Revival Clothing


Here is one art example from period. There are plenty more on this site from the Wenceslaus Bible. Excellent examples.


--A GFG (gothic-fitted gown ala Robin Netherton) easy-fit (translation: wide enough to get it over my gigantic boobs with fitted enough not to bunch up under the over-gown) kirtle in white muslin dyed with RIT (unfortunately I don't really have time to gather anything natural and process it properly) in dark chocolate brown. I find this looks better than brown quilting cotton solids. Much better drape and softer, but still rich in hue. Muslin seems to hold the color better than white quilting cotton solid too. I'll use lacing on the sleeves instead of buttons.

--A GFG front-laced, short-sleeve in medium-heavy natural colored linen dyed maroon with RIT with turn-back tippets lined in white lightweight linen (my one splurge--everything else I have in the closet of DOOM!). The skirt and bodice will be lined in white muslin to fool the eyes and the pocketbook into thinking I actually have money for full linen-lined garb. This woman has a great site with tons of pictures of her creations spanning the centuries. She does a great recreation of a short-sleeve GFG/kirtle (no fold-back tippets, but I can easily add them to the sleeve cut) here.

A good period contemporary art perspective on this look with the tippets (that I and others more scholarly predict were most likely fold-back as opposed to separate attachments) is from the Les Tres Riches Heures April illumination
You can see the woman kneeling to the middle right of the couples. She's is wearing a black/dark green/dark brown over-gown with white tippets and a white lining or a white hem at the bottom. Her kirtle is blue without visible sleeve buttons, but I'll be lacing them discreetly from the elbow.

The Tres artwork and the rather good accompanying article is hosted here. This is an excellent presentation with zoomable images for each month.

--A new oval veil and barbette in lightweight linen (from the tippet lining buy since I'm only using enough in the sleeves to do the fold back plus an inch and the tippet lengths). I'd like to use tissue weight linen, but this is just not possible.

--I'm investigating the possibility of making or having someone make for me (Emma?) two matched hair nets to approximate cauls for my temple braids with a crochet technique as explained here. There is thankfully extant examples of these types of nets as seen on the above site, however, I'm keeping it simple and doing a plain weave net.

I'd like to attach them to a dark bronze colored satin ribbon to tie around my head under my veil. I don't have the money for a metal circlet (or a right to wear one yet, not being an official Lady). Some people don't care, but for me it's important to have the AoA first. That's how I play the game. Makes it more special for me.


Here's an art perspective from the statue of Jeanne de Bourbon from Cynthia Virtue's excellent page on simple cauls

And here is an even closer art representation of what I'd like to recreate with these caul nets from the funeral brass of Sir Symon de Felbrigge and Margaret his wife, 1400. Felbrigge, Norfolk. Note the veils over and under her cauls. Mine will be less rigid, but this is closer than Jeanne de Bourbon because Margaret does not wear a crown. This is clip art from the Florida Center for Instructional Technology at the University of South Florida, but the funeral brass picture itself falls under public domain usage rules.


--Also planning on treating myself to a pair of period shoes for Christmas to complete the outfit.

So that's it for now. Updates soon and more frequently as construction of the outfit begins.

Yours in Service,
Gillian de Chelseye