The Armour Archive

Klaus the Red

You might want to consider returning on Sunday and enjoying the entire evening in impromptu discussions with like-minded inividuals!

I would consider it if the Hilton would consider letting me stay a second night for free.

Otherwise, I probably can't afford it.

Klaus

Klaus the Red

Well, my idea of pricey was recently redefined at a friend's bachelor party at a Boston steakhouse- a $1300-some-odd tab for 10 of us, not counting the $180 bottle of port that one guy sprung for as an impromptu wedding present. These are the hazards of hanging out with gourmands. Fortunately, the f...

Klaus the Red

her eyes became small, and in a low, threatening voice she said "I do not intend to fall below this level again". Amen to that. My lady has not quite reached that point, but she insisted on flat-felling the seam allowance for three Pennsic chemises entirely by hand, even though no one was ever goin...

Klaus the Red

I used to fight with an SCA fella in San Francisco who was well into his Polish 14th century persona, up to the point of vacationing in Poland and hunting down all the museums and churches with interesting effigies to study. He had at least two weapons chained to his coat-of-plates, which he wouldn'...

Klaus the Red

I took some photos of an Italian (I think) marble effigy in the V&A with this type of helmet- it shows nice detail of the padding on the inside of the nasal. I think it's late-century, though- I can check my album. I know the von Orlamunde effigy is in the Battle of Wisby book, and von Schwarzburg m...

Klaus the Red

Klaus, depending on when Archies flight comes in , we may be up for a trip to the art institute before the reception. ...Otto My flight gets in at 1:15, and my plan is to be downtown by 2:30, check into the Hilton and drop my bag off, and walk over to the museum to get in what viewing I can before ...

Klaus the Red

I think this helmet was attributed to Joan and kept in a cathedral in France (in Orleans, maybe?) as a semi-holy relic. I might have a side or 3/4 shot of it at home- I'll check tonight.

Klaus

Klaus the Red

In re: the necessity of garters or not... I just made 2 pairs of chausses out of a fairly stretchy worsted wool, using a pattern that conforms to the curves of the leg fairly closely, as opposed to the Herjolfsnes-style tube with no curves in it. These haven't been properly field-tested yet, but my ...

Klaus the Red

Nope, I worked out the pattern myself- and it took 3 attempts before I got it the way I liked it. I traced the outside area of the helmet onto paper, which translated into the right circumference for the inside once it was stuffed.

Klaus the Red

When making feet for my hose, I use seams that lie as flat as possible so I don't feel like I'm standing on a piece of string all the time; I think the same principle applies here. A butted join has no overlap, whereas two overlapped pieces of leather would create a shoulder that one could feel much...

Klaus the Red

Using a pair of pattens will considerably lengthen the lifetime of your shoe soles.

I know, and I do; but sometimes it's like walking in ice skates, and the impact of coming down on a half inch of wood with every step doesn't help my knees.

Klaus the Red

I would not be at all surprised to find that period sole leather was sturdier than the cheap mass-produced brittle stuff coming out of Asia these days. On the other hand, labor was very cheap in period, and the cost of resoling shoes might have been much lower proportionally than the $75-100 it cost...

Klaus the Red

My problem with period shoes has always been twofold- not enough support, and excessive sole wear. Since I have only recently been informed by a podiatrist that my right leg is shorter than my left (my body suddenly decided to make an issue of this at age 37), I now wear arch supports and a right he...

Klaus the Red

OK, after casing Shoes and Pattens and Marc Carlson's site, I determined built-up heels are very much un-period, except as part of a 2-part repair sole. Then I figured since my Revival/Alastair boots are made using an un-period technique anyway, the hell with it. I went ahead and added heels to both...

Klaus the Red

Yeah! Yeah! Fire! Heh heh. Heh heh.

Klaus the Red

She's taken.

Klaus the Red

See my baby here: http://nickfriend.fatcow.com/klappvisier/index.html I think it rides fairly straight on the back of my head, per the action photo towards the end of the sequence. I believe this is the correct posture. Some styles of bascinet have a fairly vertical back wall, like a barbuta; others...

Klaus the Red

As my knight is fond of saying- I'm just hangin' with my britches and my hoes. (And what better singular for a pair of hose than one ho, I ask you?) "Something that caught my eye is that the undershirt in the illumination hangs in vertical creases almost like pleats, suggesting more of an A shape th...

Klaus the Red

Has anyone run across any evidence for the use of either built-up heels or something resembling a tread (ie, cross-cutting the leather or adding hobnails) in 14th and 15th century ankle boots? I glanced through Shoes and Pattens this morning but came up with nothing much, aside from the fact that "c...

Klaus the Red

Bravo. I picked that same image on my new web site in progress (http://www.gildedboar.com) to advertise underwear.

Klaus

Klaus the Red

How are ticket sales going?

Klaus the Red

And thanks for the nice detail shots- I only had a very small version of the cross-bearing panel before. Check out the two fantastic "SCA bar grille" helmets in the background.

Klaus

Klaus the Red

I don't, though von Schwarzburg on the right looks like a reasonably accurate rendering done from his effigy, so the fellow on the left might be a copy of an actual person as well.

Klaus

Klaus the Red

Reply sent.

Klaus

Klaus the Red

I expect to spend plenty of time under Revival's canvas myself. Come on down.

Klaus

Klaus the Red

Cheerfully assuming my big box o'garb makes it there in one piece, I will have a bunch of stuff for sale at Pennsic, courtesy of my friends at North Star Armoury. It will be on display at their booth, which should be in the same block as Ironmonger and Mandrake with their backs to Curry Road. It's a...

Klaus the Red

Also, the only way to rivet a plate series inside a fabric foundation is to underlap them. Each lame must hang from rivets at its top edge lest it flop over, which means that each subsequent plate must not cover the upper edge of the plate beneath it. Notice how, in the uncovered fauld held together...

Klaus the Red

Dammit. That's not a virgin, that's a hunk of metal. False advertising!

Klaus the Red

There you go again, raising the bar. Drat you and your talent. Mutter mutter mutter snarl mutter.

Klaus the Competition

Klaus the Red

Alexander, am I right in seeing that the fabric cover on your BP is riveted just shy of the edge rolls?

Klaus

Klaus the Red

Baaaa.

Klaus the Red

They RULE.

Klaus the Red

I hadn't yet seen an official announcement confirming the reception was on, so that's good to know. I'm hip to joining forces with anyone for a museum visit during the afternoon (it closes at 4) and then doing whatever-the-hell between 4 and the reception. awww, i want cheese I know, Gromit, we'll g...

Klaus the Red

Nope, Zil is passing on this one- too much on her plate. She's flying to San Jose to present a paper at a Materials Science conference at the beginning of the month, so she'll have her little junket and I'll have mine. I'll be flying back Saturday night right after the dinner hour, to avoid paying f...

Klaus the Red

Tasha, will you be getting in to Chicago on Friday? I'm flying in early that afternoon so I can spend some time at the museum before it closes. We should hook up for that beer that time constraints may cheat us of at Pennsic.

Heels/treads in 14th-15th c. boots

The Gilded Boar at Pennsic