The Armour Archive

earnest carruthers

Gwen knows I wasn't ripping on her article, she knows full well.

earnest carruthers

Sorry Gwen I thought you might be bringing them as a new line. My point (forgive the pun) is that given the vast array of patterned braided cloth, edging etc why are multi coloured points (cords in general - hence mentioning Durer, I know it isn't a point lace but a cord) such a mystery? I was askin...

earnest carruthers

many if not most eating knives were steel cutting edge welded onto iron.

earnest carruthers

Given that the braids on the links provided early, ie how to finger braid, a simple three strand plait should be of no consequence. If the issue is whether points/cord can be coloured, quite a few images show coloured points and the Pastons mention them, if it about multi-colours then one that sprin...

earnest carruthers

Flittie, battle conditions are probably the hardest than any clothing will go through so it is no surprise, in reality he would and should expect that. even so it seems there may well be a problem ether with: his sewing the cloth itself, ie was it too thin, or was it unsound etc? Did he use bleach t...

earnest carruthers

Finger braiding:

can be done on site with a minimum of cash investment, some learning and the potential for earning too as decent braids are worth the money.

See thread re Historic Enterprises' new journal.

earnest carruthers

Hello Alan, sorry spelled your name wrong.

You know who I am, floppy red hat from the other place.

Dave

See there you go with all these types of plaid, I am now even better informed about a subject I had no real interest in, the conspiracy for Scottish education is greater than I though.

earnest carruthers

Yes, we are in regular web-spondence too on another forum.

His pet hate - one of, is kilts, whenever I see any mention of them I immediately think of him.

He reckons 16thC for actual plaid.

Although checked cloth is another thing altogether, best saved for another time.

regards

earnest carruthers

Suggest contacting Alan Frise at Gadgeddlar, UK Scottish group, very well informed man about such things

http://www.gaddgedlar.com/

earnest carruthers

Kilkenny it is all presumptions, my point was the list of presumptions is bigger than at first imagined, ie any given representation could mean some or all of the above as the techniques were there, the question is which and how. 'pricey' paints in some cases is an understatement, for example if an ...

earnest carruthers

Patric "BUT, in reference to discarding the mac bible because of its use of colors in gambesons and cloth garments, BS! no offence man, and i am sorry, but you can take some grass and put it in a pot of boiling water, drain out the solids, and add the gambeson and in about 5 minutes you've got a gre...

earnest carruthers

" Somebody needs to track down some period recipes."

Chicken fat

earnest carruthers

unstrung in a stable atmosphere, ie one with no major fluctuations in temperature or humidity.

Central Heating is not good for a lot of wooden items.

Also Toxophilus reccomends a woolen bow bag rather than linen as it is less likely to absorb and hold water, he has a point.

earnest carruthers

Going to sund really obvious but get someone to send you a sample so you knwo what to compare it to. Once you know what linen feels like it is pretty memorable. It hasn't got the wispyness that cotton can have and is 'harder'. If you pm me a contact address I can send you a small sample of shirt wei...

earnest carruthers

Really Nice Gwen.

excellent write up on Dom.

earnest carruthers

Ambrose: as Kilkenny (back with us I see) says is made from wood ash and water (also from stale boiled down urine for the record) and is basically made more concentrated by boiling down. If too concentrated it can be quite damaging to clothing, it will dissolve animal hair for starters and 'burn' li...

earnest carruthers

http://www.durolitum.co.uk/

the writer of the gladiator book mentioned by Lyndsay is a member of Britannia see link above.

I have ordered mine and look forward to having a jolly good read.

earnest carruthers

Talbot the only one I have is 15th C - from the bologna manuscript, the above is a version thereof, esp the iron water - not the ferrous sulphate - strictly speaking the dye is atramentum - oak gall ink - but iron has to be present. <the 'oak gall' ink seems to give a deeper black still, I presume i...

earnest carruthers

Master Thomas, no more than what was in the listing.

earnest carruthers

There is the velvet barbuta with gilt decoration - mid late 15thC - was the velvet original? Also if one has a look at Venus and Mars - Housebook - there are many pics of soldiers wearing actual cloth covering and some where this is less cloth like. Also London import rolls for 1480 mention sallet c...

earnest carruthers

Thomas, what I mean by 'authentic' (a word I hate using for reasons that have appeared here in fact) were scenarios where getting things right matter (or supposedly do) not addressing say modern problems in the various reenactments. As I said, at home I use fairy liquid to wash up but on camp wood a...

earnest carruthers

"Summarily dismissing useful and digestable sources because they are "not good enough" serves no purpose!" Hold on, summarily? no, questioning the value of it from the perspective of that of someone who is not the originator of the question, Jean. Jean has a viewpoint on it, his views on how the Whi...

earnest carruthers

Well in which case I will retract, the context is obvious enough. But fine.

"I was really enjoying this thread,"

so was I, especially Thomas' Flea cure.

earnest carruthers

Kilkenny "and you are therefor going to dismiss out of hand anything presented that was not done in what you consider an "actual scenario" I shall withdraw myself from further discourse. " Do you call a market or fair where people are making transactions with modern money and credit cards an 'authen...

earnest carruthers

Egfroth - definitely? absolutely? really?

A surmise at best, I am not being awkward for the sake of it but it is very easy to make those surmises.

I would prefer could be.

earnest carruthers

"A hangover is an authentic situation, and a hood is an authentic (for some times/places) remedy for post inebriated photophobia. It is also cheaper than the modern solution*." A hangover is an authentic condition, the place you have that hangover, a fair where real modern money changes hands is not...

earnest carruthers

Yes for later periods certainly - see Wallace Collection Very late 15thc early 16thC painted sallets. Alcyoneus "I think the easiest example to find is to look at the Mac Bible, some of the helmets aren't metal colored. " With respect that is not a reliable source on its own, there are things that m...

earnest carruthers

Destichado "If we are attempting to do neither of these things -if we're simply and solely in it for ourselves and our own personal enjoyment and enrichment- then this is nothing but intelecutal masturbation." Oh so you see reenactment as an altruistic affair? Most reenactors/larpers/SCAers do it fo...

earnest carruthers

"Couple of things/thoughts - steel wool left in vinegar will get you the nice iron dye also. I've been told that the dye isn't the greatest thing for the leather though. My own experience is extremely limited so I can't say one way or the other as to how leather dyed this way wears." Ferrous dye on ...

earnest carruthers

One tries my dear professor, one tries.

I thought that a resource thread might balance comment threads.

Hell someone may even do some of this stuff.

Thanks for confirmation on walnuts, couldn't recal one way or the other.

danke liebling.

earnest carruthers

But you are still at a modern fair I take it and using modern money or is the rowany fair a mock up medieval market with medieval money transactions etc? Ideally i am looking for authentic methods for authentic situations, if I had a hangover I would merely take a few aspirin/paracetamol drink a pin...

earnest carruthers

Karen, whilst Cennini is a good source for laods of stuff, he is the most well known there is a tendency to rely on him too much. He covers a lot of ground and has quite narrow fields of view IMHO - ie he offers few alternatives mainly his way. Yes oil based paints would be the better option but pai...

earnest carruthers

to add to Karen's. You can combine techniques, you can applique one part and paint detail (modelling), or dyeing the cloth one colour (eg silk) then painting/gilding etc. as for gesso or not, that depends on what you want. The Ghent banner appears to be gesso (or other chalky base) as it is the only...

earnest carruthers

Euro walnut give black/brown the rinds stain the hands on unripe ones, but not sure if used as a dye in the middle ages - just to make previous post actually make sense

earnest carruthers

"Historical fiction is likely to be seen as an unproductive use of study time." no reading is a waste of time. But at the day's end it is fantasy, well researched or written or whatever, enjoyable as is. It can only be a subjective feeling and not representative of anything but the reader's emotiona...