Wow! Thanks so much, you guys! (Just got back from a doc appt for the baby and she gained 5 1/2 ounces this last week! Woo-hoo!)
There’s so much here to look through and dream about. I guess it (as always) depends how much time and effort I want to put into garb in the next couple of weeks! Great ideas from everyone.
Agh. Let me try again.
Loose Gown and Kirtle
Gored (A-Line) Kirtle Pattern
Making a Gathered Kirtle
That slashed overgown I was talking about before. The boy is actually quite a bit older than I had remembered, maybe seven or eight.
Lots of loose gowns. Same site the previous picture is from.
Italian Renaissance Costume Construction
Late 16th Century German Loose Gown
Turkish Coat for Venetian Dress – A bit like a loose gown, but for both deshabille and outerwear. You could be a strumpet!
Children’s Clothing – Should the WhyChildren need garb
What Kids Wore: 1477-1577
Breughel Babies: Clothing for a Well-Off Peasant Child
If want any more pictures, I’m glad to say my Google-fu is back with me.
Another couple of helpful links:
http://www.florentine-persona.com/glossary.html - terminology
http://home1.gte.net/kmvogt/garbtopics.html - beginner’s stuff, in case we have any lurkers looking to get started
and my favorite Trim merchant-
http://www.calontirtrim.com/catalog.htm
:: busily planning her next trip to the fabric store ::
Would black mrtial arts trousers make acceptable ren fair trousers? They are usually rough cotton and tied with draw strings so no buttons or zips. (I know cotton is new world but it is very similar in look to hemp cloth). They can be bought in black or white, I guess white could then be dyed to a more natural colour.
Let me preface this by saying, I am not a Garb Nazi.
Cotton was available in period, but prohibitively expensive. Many times they used a cotton/linen blend called Fustian. Today, linen, silk, and wool can be very expensive, while cotton is a very cheap fabric. If you’re just going for fun, not working at a renfaire, and not trying to win any costuming awards, I don’t see anything wrong with wearing those pants.
Seconded. They’re better than blue jeans or ladies’ tights. They’ll pass the ten foot rule, too. Just don’t wear 'em with fringed mocassins, okay?
Thirded (and a HUGE seconded to the fringed mocs ban! Even plain ballet slippers are better than fringed mocassins!).
They work even better if you brew up a couple of gallons of Lipton tea (or any cheap black tea) and boil the white pants in the tea for a bit. Rinse and wash. Cheap “dirt” dye that makes bleached white cotton look pretty darn close to unbleached linen. Use a really big soup pot and stir constantly to avoid splotches.
If you’re going for a (cheap) peasant look, rip a cheap cloth into long strips and dye it the same way (although the strips don’t have to match the pants, so you might want to buy a $1 remnant in a nice solid color - greens, russets, muddy yellows and browns are good. White is bad.) Put the pants on and then wrap the calf part to your pants’ legs tight to your body with the strips of cloth. Tuck or pin in place. Pair with a pirate shirt and ballet slippers and you’ll look better than 90% of the Turkeys-With-Dressing there.
sigh Peasant men are so easy. Lucky ducks.
Taken out of context, that would be a great sig 