15th century kirtle no. II

I have had a bit of a slump going on with my medieval reenactment. The excitement of making new things and do research slowly faded to almost nothing some two years ago, and over the course of the last couple of years I’ve only made two new pieces of clothing. One hood for 14th century reenactment and my red 15th century kirtle for Glimmingehus. Other than that, my main crafting focus has been on knitting and my folk costume – both are areas that I hae been giving lots of love and attention.

Thus, the year of 2020 was very welcomed by me in terms of not going to any events, or to feel the pressure to produce things for my 14th century personas. To be honest, the whole year of being at home was rather relieving for me in many ways. Of course I would have rather it to be a normal year without a pandemic, without all the hardships that has followed in its footsteps, but to make the most out of the situation I felt like I really needed that break.

So, the result was that I was going into 2021 with a little bit more energy than before. Early in the year I was invited to join the local version of Company of Saint George’s event Pilgrimage 2021. A distanced 15th century pilgrimage taking place at the same time all over Europe (the world?). It felt like the perfect event. Hiking along the pilgrim trail in Kinnekulle, Sweden, together with some friends. I even felt like I had everything I needed, save for a pilgrim’s staff, which I was able to order early on, so – no extra pressure there. There is something very soothing in knowing that you are prepared, and can focus on only having a good time. I felt very good in the whole situation, with no stress at all.

Then, just shy of a month before the event I got that feeling again. That longing to produce something. To craft something new. I felt that I needed a simpler kirtle to go with my pilgrim’s outfit, as well as I kind of needed it for my kitchen worker impression at Glimmingehus. I scowered my fabric boxes for a suitable fabric and found three meters of a thin woolen twill in dark forest green. Maybe not the most suitable colour in terms of my goals of keeping it simpler, as I think the dye truly would have required overdying a yellow with woad/indigo, but it might pass as a grey fabric being dyed with birch leaves and iron to darken the colour to this green. I am no expert in plant dyes, so you tell me. What do you think?

My goal was to have a wearable, but perhaps not finished dress, by the time of the event. That is, a dress with maybe not all seams felled, that needed to be closed with pins rather than lacing. I could use the same pattern as for my red kirtle, which made things super easy. I did some changes to the sleeves in order to make it more of a working garment, which includes changing the sleeve head to have a little less of a difference in the curve to allow for more movement as well as giving the sleeve some more ease. I also made it a full sleeve, with wide ‘cuffs’, to allow it to be able to be rolled up when doing dirtier works.

With as few seams as this the sewing was fast. Really fast. I decided early that I would fell al the seams as I went to make sure that the job was done and not left undone for eternity, as is the case in some of my other dresses. The reason for this is mainly that the thin twill frays quite easily, so I wanted to protect the raw edges. This I did by felling both seam allowences to one side and covering it with filler thread as I was sewing it down with whip stitches. I am not perfectly sure that the technique with filling threads was used in the period, but it was a step I considered necessary as I didn’t want to add the extra bulk that would come with me folding the seam allowences over.

This time I made sure to not stress. I made sure to enjoy every single stitch in sewing the kirtle. Everytime I stuck that needle into the fabric it would be with a sense of calm and happiness. And so it was. In the first time in many, many years, I was sewing a medieval garment and enjoying the whole process. A huge step forward, in my opinion.

The result? I finished the dress in less than two weeks. Not to a wearable extent, but all finished. I’m very proud of myself! Do you think it will look nice at the pilgrimage?

A 15th century kirtle

After two fantastic months on Iceland I’m now back in Sweden. The rest of the summer will be filled with a lot of work before my studies start again and I realised that I wouldn’t be able to go to any reenactment event this year because of me working full time all summer. The only weekend that I had available for reenacting was this last one, and it so happens that I was invited to an event at Glimmingehus here in southern Sweden. Happy Andrea!

The only “problem” was that it was a late 15th century event, and I had no 15th century clothes. On top of that I was on Iceland, with none of my fabrics or sewing things, so I had exactly one week to start on and finish a set of clothes for the event. I ordered my fabric when I was still on Iceland and it arrived the same day as me. Then pattern making, cutting, and sewing! It was done enough to wear at the event together with a new veil. It is completely hand sewn and I’m very happy since it turned out well. There are still some things that needs to be fixed on it, but it’s completely wearable as it is.

The event was amazing! I met both new and old friends, and we were blessed with good weather even though it was a bit too hot at times. I mostly stayed indoors to help in the kitchen, and for once it was cooler in the kitchen than outside! How often does that happen? At times I was also inside the castle, spinning while sitting in the window niches. I felt very much at home at the event and will definitely make more visits into the late 15th century. Until next time I will have to make an overdress as well, and hopefully I won’t have to stress it over just one week…

(click the images to enlarge them… ^_^ )

What’s in my boxes? Part 2

Much later than I thought it would be… here comes part 2!

But first I would like to tell you something. I could start with a lot of excuses, like I’ve done many times before (e.g. too much at school, haven’t had time and so on), but this time I won’t. Just this morning I came to a realisation concerning this blog, and I will come to that in a moment. The last two years I’ve got a really bad conscience when I’ve been thinking of the blog. Not for my own sake, but for yours. I’ve been wanting to do so much better than I’ve done, I have set my standards so high that I’ve even refrained from blogging because I wan’t the product to be perfect.

Today, the first day up after being bedridden for a week with a high fever, I suddenly realised that the reason for me not blogging isn’t because I don’t have time. It is because I haven’t taken the time. And I have realised that it is time to stop lying to myself and pretend like it’s because of the former. I need to be honest with both myself and you readers and say that the reason that I haven’t taken the time to blog is because it’s not fun anymore. Researching is fun. Sewing is fun. Reenactment is fun! Blogging… not so much anymore.

I’m not saying that I will stop blogging. I will problably continue with the few posts a year that I have managed these last years, but I hope that now that I’ve come clean to myself that I will be able to start over and find the fun again. Because this is a big part of my identity – to share knowledge. I am still very passionate about that! So please bear with me until I find my spirit, and THANK YOU everyone who reads my blog everyday. I see you in the statistics, and I am so thankful for all of you (and I am surprised that you are so many that come to my place every day!).

Now to the post! 😀

Last time we took a look at my hair kit. Now the time has come for the rest of my boxes.

The sewing box

My sewing box is a plain bentwood box that I got as a part of a set. Anna Attiliani bought it for me in Italy.

The content of this box – as you could guess by the title – is my sewing stuff. Not all of it is period! I have some “modern” things like a pair of scissors that have an old look which I use for cutting fabric, as my period pair have dissapeared. Normally I try to hide the modern stuff under the lid when I’m at events, but here I thought I wouln’t ‘hide my flaws’ so to say. 😉

1 – A smoothing stone in green glass, bought from Åsa & Martin at http://www.textilverkstad.se/ I have a similar, antique, one as well, and they look a lot like this one from Kalmar, now at Historiska Museet in Stockholm.
2 – Thread reels with thread, both linen and worsted thread. One reel has filament silk from Devere Yarns.
3 – This reel I got as a gift, it is made by Francesco Betti. This one is filled with machine-made, real-silk gimp.
4 – A needle case based on a find from London, made by my friend Martin. In this case I have my modern needles that I don’t want tourists to see.
5 – Rosary that I made many years ago. I have a fancier one now, but this one I use for my lower class persona.
6 – Handmade snips, that I use for cutting threads and small pieces of fabric.
7 – My period needles and pins. Most of them are made from some kind of copper alloy, but a couple of the needles are made of iron.
8 – Thimble and thimble ring.
9 – Beeswax for the linen thread. One piece is the butt from a wax candle, the other one I have molded myself.
10 – A sandstone whetstone for sharpening the needles. I’m not sure if this is period for 14th century, and I have some slate that I’ve picked on a geology excursion that I might use instead… Need to reseach that ^_^
11 – Those modern stuff… The scissors, linen thread, and worsted thread that I’ve bought from Historical Textiles a couple of years ago.

The Cathrin boxes

These are the boxes I got as gifts from Cathrin. They also contain things related to my hair, which isn’t surprising at all considering I have a lot of hair… 😉

Thi big box only contain a few things, and among them also the small box.

IMG_3267_num

1 – A big, rectangular, silk veil.
2 – Flax braid, for using in different hairstyles, like in this post.
3 – A small wooden box containing the hair powder from the Trotula, which I have written about here.

4 – A very small ceramic jug bought at Middelaldercentret in which I keep rose water during events.
5 – The other Cathrin box. It contains my rings (made by Annie Rosén and Historiska Fynd), U-pins based on several finds from both Sweden and London made by Annie Rosén, Lisa Hjelmqvist, and myself. Decorative pins for my veils together with less fancy ones for the Birgitta cap that aren’t seen.

And that was the content of my boxes! I’m still interested to see the content of your boxes, so if you would like to share it with me with the hashtag #whatsinmyboxes I would be more than happy!

This summer I won’t have time or money to go to more than perhaps one reenactment event, as I’m going to Iceland two months for my Master’s thesis in Geology (happy, lucky me!). I still plan to make some garments, and to take photos of what I’ve made, and perhaps I’ll write about them here. I hope you hang around for the future!

Middelaldercentret 2016

I början av juli var Carnis inbjudna att delta i firandet av danska Middelaldercentrets 25-årsjubileum. Centret är en fantastisk plats med hus, grejer, djur och andra häftiga grejer – allt medeltida. Jag har velat åka dit i flera år nu och det här kändes som det perfekta tillfället för ett första besök.

At the beginning of July we in Carnis were invited to join in the celebrations of the 25th year anniversary of the Medieval Center (Middelaldercentret) in Denmark. The center is a fantastic place with houses, animals and other awesome things, all medieval. I’ve been wanting to go there for several years now and this seemed like the perfect first visit.

Jag har redigerat mina foton från eventet och sorterat ut de bästa, men jag kunde inte välja bland dem sen så det här inlägget innehåller alla bra bilder. Det innebär att det här kommer bli ett väldigt långt inlägg. Carnis har lite fler foton av Tom Gagner utlagda på sin hemsida tillsammans med dessa, så kika in på http://carnis.org/pictures/events/middelaldercentret-2016/

I edited my photos and sorted out my best ones, and for this post I couldn’t really decide which ones I’d use. That means that you get all of them, so this will be a very long post. Carnis has some more photos taken by Tom Gagner on our website together with these, so go and take a look at http://carnis.org/pictures/events/middelaldercentret-2016/

Here is Carnis in front of “our” house; The ropemakers house. Photo: Tom Gagner

Vi hade repslagarhuset till vårt förfogande och repslagarfältet till våra tält. Det var ett väldigt trevligt ställe att bo på! Vi hade en småbarnsfamilj som bodde i huset och resten av oss tältade. Det var en fantastisk samling människor på eventet och jag fick ett gäng nya vänner. Precis så det ska vara på ett sånt här event.

We had the ropemakers house and the ropemaking field for our tents. A very nice place to live at! We had a small childrens family who stayed in the house and the rest of us tented on the field. The gathering of people at the place was fantastic and I made some new friends. Just as you should at these events!

Nu är det dags att sluta skriva och visa er mina foton – det här inlägget kommer bli lång nog ändå. Varsågoda!

Now I’ll stop writing and show you my photos – this post will be lenghty as it is. Enjoy!

Tiny socks in the making for tiny feet ❤

Our camp was visited by a nasty pirate

Luckily we had someone to fight him!

Åsa! We owe you so much! Thanks for cooking for us!

Did I say nasty? 😀

Det hände lite grejer som gjorde att jag behövde ha lite fancy kläder på mig. Min nya krappfärgade hätta premiäranvändes!

There were some things going on which accuired me to wear some fancy clothing. The new madder-hood was used for its first time!

We gave the pirate his judgement

And on the other side of the water was the rest of the town

The pirate seem to have escaped us and continued his game

A try to selfie with the geese!

Even though they were very cute we didn’t want them in camp when we were cooking.

A much needed after-dinner-nap in our tent

The sky and the town gave some very nice views

Riku in his awesome kirtle

Lovely Saara and Mervi

*Not aware of the camera at all* – Strikes epic pose

Nettan makes dinner

Our camp from the other side

The pirate was revealed to live in town

Dearest Cathrin with our camp in the background

Hoods are great for many things

Of course we had to take some manuscript photos.

And Herjolfsnes-garment photos – same fabric!

Different fabric – same model (D10584)

Well, you can’t be serious at all time

Proper reenactors there!

I was trying to capture the sky matching Chrissies dress…

But I had to do it in two takes.

This photo ❤ Looking very happy!

Then on the last day we all needed to look sharp for the festivities

Including me!

Trying to show off my shoes….

Carnis populating the town

Here it looks like Jacob knows how to handle his dagger

Now it is our turn to taking over your home 😉 The pirate wasn’t that happy about it

Jacob temporarily looses his way with the dagger? It is not supposed to go into *your* belly!

That’s better!

Mervi in her epic dress.

Woho, we got to sit behind the Queen!

Cathrin and Pamela gets to end this long post.

Ett stort tack till arrangörerna! Vi ser väldigt mycket fram emot att komma tillbaka!

Big thank you to all of the organisers! We can’t wait to get back!

Tre gånger krapp – Three times madder

Jag är inte så bra på växtfärgning. Tvärt om – jag är verkligen en nybörjare. Jag tycker det är roligt att se hur färgen fäster på tyget och det är kul att testa olika växter och färger. Mitt senaste färgningsäventyr var med krapp. Jag hade ett vitt tyg som var tanken att det skulle färgas och bli till hosor, och efter jag klippt ut bitar till hosor insåg jag att jag hade tillräckligt mycket tyg kvar för att kunna göra en liten hätta med. Lyckligt ögonblick!

I’m not a very accomplished plant dyer. On the contrary – I’m quite the beginner. I think it’s fun to see the dye stick to the fabric, and I like to try different dyes. My latest adventure was with madder. I had some white fabric intended for a pair of hoses, and after I cut them before dyeing I realised that I had enough for a small hood, too! Lucky moment.

Hättor är så enkla att göra. Jag tycker verkligen om att göra dem och man känner sig bra efter att man slutfört ett projekt. Och förresten – när vi ändå pratar om att slutföra projekt så kan jag berätta att jag fortfarande inte är färdig med min Herjolfsnesklänning. Det är fortfarande fickslitsar som saknas. Jag har gjort massor av andra saker istället, som att sy yllemuslin slöja och haklin, växtfärgat och sytt grejer av resultatet från färgningen. Tiden börjar dock rinna iväg och jag vill verkligen att klänningen ska vara färdig till nästa vecka då det är 25-årsfirandet för Middelaldercentret i Danmark.

Hoods are so simple to make. I really like it and you feel good after finishing projects. By the way (on the matter of finishing projects) – I’ve still not completed the Herjolfsnes Challenge dress. It still lacks pocket slits. I’ve been doing lots of stuff instead, like sewing a thin wool veil and wimple, madder dyeing and sewing from the resulting fabric from the dye. Time is getting short though, and next week I wan’t it to be finished because then it’s the 25th anniversary of the Medieval Center in Denmark.

Istället för att göra fickslitsar färgade jag alltså tyg. Jag hade 100 gram pulveriserad krapp och totalt ungefär 420 gram material. Jag ville ha den starkaste färgen på plagget som kommer synast mest- hättan alltså – så den fick gå i första badet. Materialet till hättan vägde ungefär 170 gram. Tyget till hosorna åkte i nästa bad. Efter det hade jag inte tänkt färga något mer, men jag ville inte slösa på färgen som fanns kvar i grytan så jag la ner två små bitar tyg som kommer räcka till två små tofsväskor.

So, instead of making pocket slits I dyed some fabric. I had 100g of powdered madder, and in total about 420g material. I wanted the strongest dye on the item that would be seen the most – the hood – so that went into the first bath. The material for the hood weighed about 170g. The fabric for the hoses went in second. Then I didn’t really plan to dye anything more, but I didn’t want to waste the last of the dye so I put in two squares of fabric, enough for two small purses.

Resultatet? Tre nyanser av rött och orange!

The result? Three different shades of red and orange.

Första badet blev riktigt bra, det andra är inte så jämnt i färgen (mest för att jag hade alldeles för mycket tyg mot vad jag borde i den grytan jag hade). Det sista badet resulterade i en fin aprikosfärgad tygbit.

The first bath is really nice, the second isn’t that even (mainly because I used too much material in a too small pot).The last one is a lovely peach shade that I like.

Hosorna är inte så himla intressanta, men jag tog några bilder på dem ändå. Det som jag är mest nöjd med är hättan. Den är baserad på en av hättorna från London; nummer 246.

The hoses are not really interesting, but I took some photos of them anyway. The real deal here is the hood. It is based on one of the hoods from London, number 246.

London hood no 246, Image: Marc Carlson “Some Clothing of the Middle Ages”

Jag gjorde mönstret baserat på informationen om 246 i Textiles and Clothing och ändrade det efter mina egna mått. Jag ville ha en liten, tajt hätta med knappar och strut. Jag känner att jag i princip fått till det på pricken.

I made the pattern using the information in Textiles and Clothing and mixed it with my own measurments. I wanted a small, tight hood with buttons and a liripipe. I think I more or less nailed it.

Jag fick skarva lite för att få det som jag ville, men det syns knappt. Både färg och passform blev riktigt bra!

I had to piece it a bit to get it the way I wanted it, but it’s barely visible. I think that both the colour and fit turned out really nice!

Barely visible, but it’s pieced on this side.

Om jag skulle ändra något så skulle det i så fall vara kilplaceringen. Som ni kan se på bilden ovan så är den placerad ganska långt framåt istället för i mitten. Fast det är nog inte nödvändigt att ändra egentligen. Den passar ju bra ändå.

If there’s one thing I’d possibly change it’s the placement of the gores. As you see here they lie a bit to the front and not centered. But perhaps it’s not neccesary. It fits really well anyway.

Hättan är helt handsydd. De bindande sömmarna är sydda med lintråd och alla detaljer samt kilarna är sydda med sysilke. Alla sömmar är nedsydda med förstygn från utsidan, och nederkanten har en rad pricksöm (förstygnversionen) och ansiktsöppningen har två rader pricksöm. Knapparna är sydda av tyget med lintråd, knapphålen är också sydda med lintråd och backade med ett handvävt linne.

The hood is all hand sewn. The binding seams with linen thread and all details and the gores with silk thread. The seams are sewn down with running stitches from the outside, and the hem has one row of stab stitches (running stitch way). The face opening has two rows of stab stitches to reinforce it. There are ten self fabric buttons, sewn with linen thread. The buttonholes are sewn with linen thread and are faced with a handwoven linen.

Här är några detaljbilder på hättan. Om du trycker på bilderna så förstoras de.

Here are som detail shots of the hood. If you click the images they will be enlarged.

Och som en avslutning – ett foto på de tre baden, två av dem redan färdiga plagg!

And to end this – a photo of the three baths, two of them already made into garments!

Thanks to Maria Neijman and Linda Clarin for help with method and materials! You rock!

Minnen av 2015 – Memories of 2015

Jag vill bara dela med mig av mina bästa (och sämsta) minnen från mitt 2015. Jag åkte inte på så många event, men ett av de jag lyckades åka på var rätt stort. Årets första halvår var mest fokuserat på textilt hantverk. Andra halvan av året hade fokus på studier, men jag hann ändå få några saker gjorda,

I just wanted to share some of my best (and worst) memories from my 2015. I didn’t attend a great number of events, but one of the events I got a chance to attend was really big. The first six months were rather focused on textile crafts. The other six months were focused on studies, but I still managed to get some things done.

Året började med en hel del blogginlägg. I januari publicerades flest inlägg och jag skrev bland annat om kjollängd och jag brickvävde ett hårband. Årets första blogginlägg var dock den färdiga Bärnstensklänningen, vilken blev ordentligt använd under 2015.

The year started with a lot of blog posts. January was the busiest and I wrote about skirt lengths and finished a tablet woven filet. The first blog post of the year was the finished Amber dress, which was much used during 2015.

The Amber dress, finished in January

Resten av våren spenderades främst med att göra accessoarer till mig själv, som radband och en 1700-talshätta. Jag gjorde också lite prylar till andra som en del av en klapplek. Det var dock inte bara accessoarer som blev gjorda – jag sydde mig själv en rosa överklänning och skrev en liten artikel om medeltida frisyrer som fick ganska stor uppmärksamhet. Min tanke är att jag under 2016 ska fortsätta titta på medeltida frisyrer och kanske utveckla all kunskap till något mer.

The rest of the spring was focused on making accessories for myself, like Prayer Beads and an 18th century cap. I also made some things for others as a part of Pay-it-Forward-game. It was not only accessories that were made – I sewed myself a pink surcote and wrote an article on medieval hairstyles which got a lot of attention. I intend to research more about 14th century hairstyle and possibly develop it even further.

One of the 14th century hairstyles from April

Sedan kom sommaren och med det startade eventsäsongen. Jag åkte totalt på fyra event. Ekenäs Riddarspel, Varbergs Medeltidsdagar, The Battle of Azincourt och Anno på Bohus Fästning.

Then summer came and with that the event season started. I went to four events during the summer. Ekenäs Riddarspel, Varberg Medeltidsdagar, The Battle of Azincourt and Anno at Bohus Fortress.

Slaget vid Azincourt var ett stort event. Det var riktigt roligt att åka dit och bilresan dit och tillbaka är det bästa jag gjort hittils. Jag fick träffa massor av underbara människor och hade jättetrevligt, men samtidigt var det ett av de värsta event jag varit på rent vädermässigt. Det var kallt, blött, lerigt och ganska miserabelt i stunder, men ändå ett häftigt event att ha varit på. Jag har försökt att bara välja några av favoritfoton till det här inlägget, men det blev ganska många foton ändå. Jag hoppas att ni tycker de är lika fina som jag tycker!

The Battle of Azincourt was a massive event. It was really fun to go there, and I had the best roadtrip ever. I met lots of lovely people and had a great time, but at the same time it was kind of the worst event I’ve been to weather-wise. It was cold, wet, and muddy, and rather miserable at times, but still a great event. I’ve tried to choose only my favourite photos from these events to share here, but it’s still a lot of photos. I hope you find them as lovely as I do!

Ekenäs Riddarspel

Varberg Medeltidsdagar

The Battle of Azincourt

När sommaren var över återgick jag till att sy accessoarer och mindre plagg. Man kan aldrig ha för många hättor har jag hört, så jag sydde ytterligare en Herjolfsneshätta. Jag gjorde också en väldigt fin tofspåse i silke som jag stormförtjust i. Resten av hösten gick till att sy mer moderna plagg, som en 1700-talskjol och en modern underkjol.

After the summer was over I went back to making smaller items of clothing and accessories. One can never have too many hoods – I sewed another Herjolfsnes hood. I also made a very pretty, tasseled, silk purse, which I am very much in love with. For the rest of the autumn I made more modern items, like an 18th century skirt and a modern wear petticoat.

The tasseled silk purse.

Året avslutades med spånad, något som jag hållit på med hela året. Jag älskar att spinna med mina medeltida sländor och spinnpinne (distaff). Tills nu har jag använt ett kvastskaft som spinnpinne, men min fantastiska mamma gav mig en handtäljd spinnpinne i julklapp som hon täljt själv. Jag är så tacksam för den! De sista härvorna jag spann under 2015 var till Herjolfsnesutmaningen. Nu ser jag verkligen fram emot att börja sy på min Herjolfsnesklänning!

The year ended with spindle spinning, something that has been present during the whole year. I love to spin with my medieval spindles and distaff. Up until now I’ve been using a broomstick handle as a distaff, but this Christmas my dear mother gave me a proper, handcarved distaff which she had made herself. I’m so grateful! The last skeins to be spun during 2015 was for the Herjolfsnes Challenge. Now I look forward to start sewing my Herjolfsnes dress!

Two skeins of yarn for the Herjolfsnes Challenge

Vad kommer 2016 innehålla? Jag vet inte. Jag ska försöka att bara använda tyger jag redan har hemma, istället för att hela tiden köpa nya. Redan nu kan jag säga att det kommer bli en väldigt svår uppgift för jag har redan planerade inköp, men faktum är att mitt förråd svämmar över av tyger som redan har specifika projekt knutna till sig. Även om jag inte skulle köpa några nya tyger har jag projekt för hela året redan…

What does 2016 hold for me? I don’t know. I will try to only use fabrics from stash, rather than buying new fabrics all the time. I guess that will be a hard task, because I already know that I will have to buy some more fabrics, but the fact is that my storage is full of fabrics bought for specified projects. I’ll have project for the whole year even if I won’t buy new fabrics…

En tofspåse – A tasseled purse

Före avresan till Azincourt så påbörjade jag en tofspåse i sidendamast med tanken att den skulle bli färdig där nere. På grund av flera anledningar blev det inte så utan den ofärdiga påsen fick vila på mitt skrivbord i syrummet i ett par veckor. Sedan kom inspirationen tillbaka och jag sydde ihop den, gjorde tofsar, valknopar (turk’s headknots) och en öglefläta. Efter det fick jag pausa eftersom jag fick blåsor på vartenda finger jag använt till att fläda den tunna silkestråden med. Tillslut gick blåsorna ned och idag flätade jag tillsist de två sista flätorna och gjorde färdigt väskan.

Before going to Azincourt I started on a tasseled purse in silk damask, intending for it to be done down there. Because of lots of reasons that didn’t happen and it laid unfinished on my sewing desk for some weeks. Then I got the inspiration to start again and sewed it together, made tassels, turk’s headknots and one fingerloop braid. After that I had to pause because I got blisters on every finger used for braiding. The blisters finally faded and today I got the last two braids done and finished the purse!

“The Sacrament of Marriage”, circa 1380, Paris, Bibliothèque nationale, nouv. acq. lat. 3093, p. 176. Picture from La Cotte Simple

Relic purses, Germany, 14th century. Image source.

Tyget är en återskapad sidendamast uppvävt av Sartor baserad på ett original från 1300-talets Italien. Jag fick en liten restbit av Tove som fick den och några andra små bitar över när hon gjorde sin sidlösa överklänning. Sidendamast i hittat i London med, daterat till 1300-tal. Jag skarvade baksidan lite för att verkligen utnyttja det mesta av tyget, något som man kan se i bevarade påsväskor. Tove och Linda gav mig också välbehövlig hjälp för att tackla valknoparna vilket jag är väldigt tacksam för. De gör så mycket för väskans totala utseende. Vill du läsa mer om valknopar så kan man göra det i detta inlägg av Isis på Medieval Silkwork. Det finns massa fantastiskt att läsa där, om man inte redan har gjort det.

The fabric is a reproduced 14th century Italian silk damask from Sartor – a small piece that was given to me by Tove. It was one of the small scraps that was left from her sideless surcote-project. Silk damask is found in 14th century London as well. I pieced it some on the back of the purse to get the most out of the fabric – something that was done on a couple of extant purses. Tove and Linda also gave me a big bump in the right direction on making the turk’s headknots which I’m very grateful for. They do so much for the apperance of the bag. If you want to read more on turk’s headknots I really recommend this post by Isis at Medieval Silkwork. That, and all of her other posts, gives a great cover on the theme.

Silket i tofsarna är vad jag hade kvar från mitt Bärnstensklänningsprojekt. Jag måste verkligen ha räknat fel och dessutom tagit i överkant när jag beställde det för jag har kunnat använda det till så många projekt utöver det som var tänkt från början, men nu är det tillslut till sin ända. Fast jag hade gärna önskat att det funnits kvar lite till – jag använde upp det sista till tofsarna så jag fick ta en annan tråd till de ögleflätade dragsnörena. Fodret är också kvar sedan bärnstensprojektet så det kom till god användning.

The silk for the tassels are leftovers from my Amber Dress project. I must have calculated way wrong when I bought it because I’ve used it for so many projects now, but finally it’s gone. Though I would have wished for it to last a bit longer – since I used it all up for tassels I had to use another silk for the fingerloop braided drawstrings. The lining is also a leftover from the Amber project – it came to good use!

The reverse side

Brown lining

Here you can see that I’ve just awled the holes – they’re not sewn.

Jag är väldigt nöjd med slutresultatet. Det är en vacker accessoar och jag kommer att bära den med stolthet. Den går fantastiskt bra med resten av mina fancy grejer. Jag har samlat lite mer inspiration om tofspåsar och väskor än de jag visat ovan i mitt Pinterestalbum med namnet Medieval: Purses and pouches.

I’m very happy with the result. It’s a beautiful accessory and I’ll wear it with great pride. It goes fantastically well with the rest of my fancy gear. I have some more inspiration on purses than those shown above in my Pinterest album named Medieval: Purses and pouches.

The piecing

My precious purse!

Efter att ha funderat på vad jag skulle göra till månadens utmaning i HSM (brun) så bestämde jag mig för att göra ett 1700-talsplagg, men sen kom jag på att jag redan hade detta projekt som verkligen passade in på utmaningen. Fodret är brunt, tofsarna är bruna och de ögleflätade snörena är bruna. Jag deltar gärna med den här i månadens utmaning. Jag kanske får gjort 1700-talsplagget ändå, men i så fall får det räknas som bonus.

After thinking about what I was going to make for this months HSM challenge (brown) I decided on an 18th century garment, but then I realised that I already had this project that very much fits into the challenge. The lining is brown, the tassels are brown and the fingerloop-braided drawstrings are brown as well. I’m happily turning this in as my contribution. I might get the 18th century thing done as well, but I’ll count that as a bonus in that case.

What the item is: A silk purse with tassels
The Challenge: #9: Brown
Fabric: A reproduction silk damask from Sartor and silk taffeta for lining. About 15*30 cm of each.
Pattern: None.
Year: Second half of the 14th century.
Notions: Silk thread from Devere Yarns for tassels, sewing silk, bees wax and silk gimp.
How historically accurate is it? Very. It’s based on period illuminations and extant purses.
Hours to complete: I’m so bad at keeping track. Not to many though, perhaps around 4.
First worn: Not yet, but I’m planning to wear it this weekend at an event.
Total cost: The damask was a gift, but would have cost somewhere around 9€ for 15 centimeters (though I didn’t use a full width, so actually a bit less). The amount of silk thread used for tassels and such is probably worth somewhere around 6€. The taffeta lining is probably somwhere around 6€ as well. In total somewhere around 21-22€.

The battle of Azincourt 1415-2015

Carnis after the Saturday battle

Azincourt alltså… Något som varit en dröm så länge ligger plöstsligt bakom oss, genomförd. Det är det event som jag hört mina föreningskompisar prata om ända sedan jag blev prövomedlem i Carnis. Deras dröm om att stå mitt på ett franskt fält och få ett regn av hundratals pilar över sig. Eller för den delen vara på engelska sidan och skjuta pilarna. Det fanns så många förväntningar och några av dem kom verkligen att levas upp till. Vissa orealistiska förväntningar levdes också upp till, som oktoberväder…

Oh, Azincourt… A dream for so long suddenly lies behind us, fulfilled. It’s the event that I’ve heard my fellow company members talk about since I first became a trial member of Carnis. The dream of standing in the middle of a French field when hundreds of arrows come flying down on you. Or for that matter be on the English side shooting the arrows. There were so much expectations and some of them was definately met. Some unrealistic expectations were also met. Like October weather…

Kalle was shot in the battle

I egenskap av icke-stridande så fanns det egentligen inte så mycket för mig att göra där. Den största delen av tiden spenderades i lägret, antingen med matlagning, hantverk eller genom att bara hänga tillsammans med de andra. Jag träffade massor av gamla och nya vänner och hade på det hela taget ganska bra även om vissa timmar var rätt miserabla i hällregnet. En av de saker som sken genom regnet var den fantastiska mat som vi fick under eventet. Vi är riktigt lyckligt lottade som har våra egna kockar som ordnat så fantastiskt med maten!

As a camp follower not interested in fighting there was not much for me to do. Most of the time was spent in the camp, either cooking, crafting or just hanging around. I met lots of old and new friends and had in all quite a good time – even though some hours were rather miserable in the heavy rain. One of the things that was shining through the rain was the fantastic food that we got through out the event. We are SO lucky to have our own chefs that prepared everything beautifully!

Vädret pendlade mellan bra till dåligt till ännu sämre, sedan tillbaka till något okej och sedan (som en liten överraskning) till hällregn igen. Och det var kallt. Inte riktigt vad man väntar sig av Frankrike i sena juli. Jag var en av de lyckligt lottade som tagit med mig vantar – de var definitivt nödvändiga. Vårt tält var på sitt andra event och klarade av väderväxlingarna oväntat bra. Bara lite mindre droppande under det värsta hällregnet och lite spray från duken då och då kom igenom. Jag sov riktigt bra i vår nya säng gjord av Kåre (till och med bättre än i hotellsängen på vägen hem som jag fick nackspärr av).

The weather went from good to bad to even worse and then back to something OK and then (as a surprise) heavy rain again. And it was cold. Not what you expect from France in late July. I was one of the lucky ones that brought mittens – they were very much needed I must say. Our tent was experiencing it’s second event and it turned out to keep the rain out surprisingly well. Only some minor dripping during the worst of the rainfall and some spray got through. I slept really good in our new bed made by Kåre (even better than in the hotel bed on our way home, and that’s something).

Packing up the camp on Wednesday

Azincourt 2015 var definitivt ett bra event, men inte det bästa jag varit på. Jag hade en trevlig vistelse, träffade goda vänner och var glad nästan hela tiden. Mina hjärtligaste tack till arrangörerna, till Carnis och till alla vänner jag träffade där nere! Och framförallt – tack till mina fantastiska reskamrater! Jag hade en ruskigt trevlig bilresa, både ner och upp igen!

Azincourt 2015 was definately a good event, but not the best I’ve been to. I had a nice stay, met good friends and was happy almost the entire time. My warmest thanks to the organisors, to Carnis and to all friends that I met down there! And above all – thanks to my fantastic travel friends! I had a great time in the car – both down and up again!

I’m in Azincourt!

Precis som med mina foton från Varberg så är bara en del av mina foton med här i blogginlägget (annars skulle det bli alldeles för långt). Vill man se alla bilder så kan man gå in på Carnis hemsida och titta, och om ett tag kommer bilderna upp på min bloggs facebooksida! Jag måste varna er – det är rätt mycket bilder i det här inlägget. Jag hade svårt att välja ut vilka som skulle hamna här. Till slut blev det ungefär en femtedel (!) av de som ligger på Carnis hemsida.

Just as with my Varberg photos only some are posted here on the blog. You’ll find all of them at Carnis webpage and in a while on my blogs facebook page! And I have to warn you – this post contains LOTS of photos. I had a really hard time choosing which were going to be posted here. In the end 1/5 (!) of the amount in the Carnis album ended up here.

The fighters

Martins fantastic buttons

Annette and Martin

My beautiful mother

Me doing Tove’s hair

This is a dress that will get it’s own post once it’s finished…

Erik is wearing his new, fancy jacket with fur tippets

Wonderful Sixten. Such a joy to have in camp!

The Big Shoot!

Jalle died 😦

Erik also got some taste of the arrow

Svarte Skåning!

Photobombed by dearest mother

Me doing Linda’s veils

Kalle bled on the fields of Azincourt!

Your tent are maybe not as private as you think! (look here)

Yeah, Sunday was quite miserable and cold… just as it should be!

From Sunday battle

Pilregnet får avsluta allt. Tack igen alla!

The arrow storm ends it all. Thank you all again!

Skicka vidare – Pay it forward

Som några av er vet så är jag med i en facebookgrupp som heter “Vi som syr medeltidskläder”. Ibland hålls en så kallad “Klapplek” som bygger på skicka-vidare-principen. Kort sagt så betyder det att man kommer få en klapp av någon som man inte har någon aning om vem det är och så kommer man få en person som man ska göra något till. Lite som hemlig tomte. Det finns ett par kategorier som reglerar vilken nivå och materialkostnad klappen ska ha (till exempel Historiskt Korrekt 50 kronor eller Inspirerat 200 kronor) och man väljer en eller flera kategorier att delta i.

As some of you know I’m a member of a Swedish facebook group for people who sew medieval clothing. Regurlarly that group host an event that is based on the pay-it-forward-principle. In short that means that you will get a gift from someone, not knowing who it is, and you get one person to make something for. There are a couple of cathegories stating what level and material cost the gift should have (for example Historically Accurate 50 SEK or Fantasy 200 SEK) and you choose one or more cathegories to participate in.

Den här gången hölls eventet för att fira att gruppen nått 3000 medlemmar och tillvägagångssättet var lite annorlunda, men grunderna var de samma. Jag deltog i två kategorier, båda Historisk Korrekt, 50 och 200 kronor. Mina klappar har nu nått sina nya ägare och det verkar som att de blev uppskattade.

This time the event was to celebrate that the facebook-group had reached 3000 members and the procedure was a bit different, but the main rules are the same. I participated in two cathegories, both Historically Accurate, 50 and 200 SEK. My gifts has now reached their new owners and it seems like they were appriciated.

Först – 50-kronorsklappen – ett brickvävt ullbälte.
Det är framförallt baserat på informationen som tillhandahålls i Textiles and Clothing och Dress Accessories. Bältet är vävt med ett tvåtrådigt ullgarn som varp och sysilke som inslag. Jag tycker att det blev stabild och bra, och färgen är väldigt fin.

First up – the 50 SEK gift – a wool tablet-woven girdle.
Based mainly on the information provided in Textiles and Clothing and Dress Accessories I made a girdle. It is woven with a 2-ply wool yarn as warp and silk as weft. I think it turned out sturdy and nice, and the colour is very pretty.

I Textiles and Clothing skriver de att (fritt översatt) “i lagret hos en handlare i London 1378 så ingick ett svart ullbälte” (sidan 133) och det finns ett fynd från sent 1300-tals på ett bälte helt i kamgarnsull som fortfarande sitter fast i söljan. I boken beskrivs också ett brickvävt band som består av både kamgarnsull och silke i varpen med kamgarnsull i inslaget som är randigt längs med bältet.

In Textiles and Clothing they that “the stock of a haberdasher’s shop in London 1378 included a black wool girdle” (page 133) and there is a find of an all worsted tablet-woven girdle still attatched to its buckle from a late 14th century deposit. There is a tablet-woven piece that consists of both silk and worsted warp, and worsted weft, that is striped along the lengt of it as well.

Nummer två – 200-kronorsklappen – en tofspåse i siden med ett radband
En tofspåse i två lager siden med silkestofsar tillsammans med ett radband med kvartspärlor och en blå silkessnodd och tofs. Yttertyget i påsen är sidentaft som jag har färgat med krapp och fodret är enkel, ofärgad, sidentaft. Snoddarna är gjorda av brickvävt silke och tofsarna är också silke.

Second – the 200 SEK gift – a tasseled silk bag with a rosary
A two layered silk bag with silk tassels together with a quartz rosary with a blue silk cord and tassel. The outer layer of the bag is madder dyed silk taffeta and the lining is undyed silk taffeta. The cords are made of tablet-woven silk and the tassels are silk as well.

Radbandet är gjort av kvartspärlor, vilket kanske inte är det vanligaste, men det finns kvartspärlor bland fynden från London. Om ni vill läsa mer om radband under 13-1400-tal så kan ni göra det i det här inlägget. Det är väldigt likt mitt eget radband – det enda som egentligen skiljer är färgen på kvartsen och silket.

The rosary is made of quartz beads, which perhaps isn’t the most common, but there are finds of quartz beads in London. The rosary is made for a woman which is why it is circular. Read more in my post about prayer beads. It’s quite much like my own, the only difference is the colour of the silk and quartz.

Jag tycker om att delta i dessa event. Jag tycker om att göra saker till andra och jag blir uppriktigt glad när mina saker blir uppskattade. Det är därför jag fortsätter delta i dessa lekar. Och såklart för att jag också får en del väldigt fina saker.

I like participating in these things. I like to make things for others and I’m really happy when my things are appriciated. That’s why I continue to participate in these events. And of course because I get some really pretty things in return.

Ekenäs Riddarspel 2015

Förra helgen var det dags för årets första medeltidsevent – Ekenäs Riddarspel. Som vanligt var jag där tillsammans med Carnis och vi hade ett väldigt mysigt event. Lördagen bjöd på fint väder och roliga solbrännor och söndagen förde med sig en del regn, men ändå rätt många trevliga stunder.

Last weekend it was time for the first reenactment-event of the year – Ekenäs Riddarspel. I was there with Carnis as usual and we had a very nice event. Saturday brought good weather and strange tans from the sun and Sunday brought some rain, but held som nice moments as well.

Detaljer – Some details.

Jag passade på att med hjälp av Tove ta lite fina bilder på min nya klänning och på mig och mamma tillsammans, men eftersom det regnade på söndagen så blev det bara några få bilder från den dagen. Det finns inte så mycket mer att säga än att bjuda på bilderna från helgen!

With the help from Tove I managed to take some good photos of my new dress ande some of me and my mother, but since it rained on the Sunday I only got a couple of pictures from that day. There is not much more to say but to invite you to enjoy the photos from the weekend!