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- Costume making (2)
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 No matter how good a garment is, it can always be improved by adding some lace. Izabela looks at Punto in Aria and bobbin lace.  Monochromatic Embroidery is an umbrella term used to describe a type of embellishment popular during the 16th Century.  There are many Tudor dresses of 1530 and later on the re-enactors' circuit, but few earlier ones. Let's go back to 1510 and do something different!  In this final part of the series, we will complete the skirt to the gown and the hood and see Mistress Etty in her completed gown at Kentwell.  Mistress Etty’s smock, kirtle bodice, forepart and foresleeves are complete. This month: completion of the kirtle, gown bodice and turnback sleeves.  Five simple techniques can make a wide range of jewelry to provide the finishing touch to your Tudor or Renaissance outfit.  Making a new outfit for a young Tudor lady. Part 2: foresleeves, forepart, kirtle layers, and revisiting the smock.  You've just finished sewing your dream outfit—maybe it's Tudor, or 1550s Florentine, or a gorgeous black velvet Spanish gown—and it fits perfectly, but something seems to be missing. Accessories take an outfit from costume to clothing, and jewelry played a huge role in the opulent look of middle-class and noble 16th century clothing for both men and women. While some types of 16th century jewelry require serious metalworking skills or advanced faux techniques in polymer clay and other materials, a huge range of beautiful and authentic jewelry can be made using basic beadwork techniques, supplemented with carefully chosen costume jewelry.
 It is surely a dream of many a young girl to wear a beautiful dress. It is doubly so when the young girl is a re-enactor playing the role of a Tudor Gentry girl. One young lady will be given that very dream at Kentwell Hall's Tudor Events this summer. Eleven-year-old Etty has been portraying a young gentry girl for the past two years, but for the first time she will be wearing a tailor-made gown suitable for her character's status in the year 1538. I have been commissioned to make the entire ensemble for Etty, and readers can follow the process, picking up techniques and tips that I use. All the techniques and patterning can be applied to adult women's gowns of the period as well as a young girl's gown.  The widespread use of French Hoods amongst the middle and upper classes of 16th century England is a surprisingly static phenomenon. Even as clothing styles changed with relative fluidity throughout the century, the constant favor that the French Hood had found allows us to examine its progression of style in a much more comprehensive manner. I offer my theories in addition to positing new ideas as to how French Hoods were likely constructed between the years of 1530 and 1560, as well as how they evolved after their heyday had passed.  ...to Elsabet Rowth one kyrtyll of worsted upper bodyed with blew satyn of bryderies... The British History Online site is a wonderful source of first hand information about the clothing and material objects of daily life in Tudor England. Come explore the riches with us!
 The ten year wait for Janet Arnold's last work is over: Patterns of Fashion 4 is to be published on November 7th, and this month YWU is celebrating its release! This extraordinary treasure trove, the final book in the series, has been completed with additional material by Jenny Tiramani and Santina M. Levey after Janet's passing in 1998. We've been smiling very sweetly at the publisher, and our grovelling has paid off with an advance copy. So Marion's ready to give you her exclusive review!  After a wait of almost ten years, Patterns of Fashion 4 was released in late 2008. Janet Arnold's final work covers all kinds of extant ruffs, collars, smocks, shifts and chemises in astounding detail, with mouth-watering photographs and the clear, complete annotated patterns that she was so famous for. To celebrate, we thought we'd feature details on where to get some of the fine quality materials to re-create the items in the book.  Here at YWU we understand first-hand how difficult it can be to bind corsets, stays and bodies neatly. After all those hours of careful work, fitting, boning and stitching, the £$!*?& binding lets you down! Even if you're otherwise a great costumer, the frustration of binding can inspire the most experienced needleperson to throw things. So in the interests of your inner calm, "Doctor" Cathy offers the cure… find out once and for all how to perfect your stays and corsets with Part One of our indispensible guide!  Ninya Mikhaila, professional historical costumier and co-author of The Tudor Tailor, designs and makes high quality reproduction costumes that help to bring history to life. Working to the individual needs of heritage sites, museums, stately homes and private clients, complete costumes include beautifully made underpinnings, accessories and headgear. All of the costumes are handmade to the highest standards: no visible machine stitching, all natural materials and meticulous research are all fundamental to Ninya’s service. Fastenings and trimmings are all recreated to be as close to the originals as possible. Ninya's clients include The Royal Armouries, Historic Royal Palaces, The National Trust, English Heritage, The Public Records Office and Gainsborough’s House, and this month Your Wardrobe Unlock’d was lucky enough to track her down in Edinburgh… Photograph (c) Tudor Tailor |
