The Armour Archive

Tailoress

I can't be certain, but I'd date it to between 1400 and 1410, based on the garment shaping, hairstyle, and style of illumination. It recalls other manuscripts from that same time period to my mind. Sorry, nothing on hand to cite specifically at the moment.

-Tasha

Tailoress

Didn't they use that sort of camera back in the 20th century?

Alejandro, I only use the rings on one side.

Must dash!

Tailoress

Hi there David, This client, while wearing a full harness, won't be actually fighting in it. The shoulder and arm points shouldn't need reinforcement beyong the metal rings, as there won't be much pull/strain there. The legs on the other hand, really pull down on the cotte, so the leather seems nece...

Tailoress

If the thread were linen I'd wax it, but in the case of really thick silk, it doesn't tangle much when I whipstitch eyelets/points, etc.

Tailoress

Men seem to be depicted either -- naked, in symbolically loose and flowing robes (for ancient/biblicalmythological themes), in fantasy fluted plate armour, or in earlier Crusader-esque fantasy mail (with sleeveless surcottes). Here and there are some actual contemporary men, or recent-past men, so y...

Tailoress

Oh goodygoodygoodygoody... Thanks for the info about the Bohemian exhibit! That will time perfectly with other bidness I have in NYC around September/October. I know that Penn State also has a working medieval garden , though that's about three hours from me. Might be worth a drive in the late sprin...

Tailoress

I think that you think that I think that you think that I... I..I... I forget what we were thinking about...

Tailoress

Hubert, I knew you were being tongue-in-cheek, but I just felt like using it as a springboard to discuss that other stuff. Sometimes I think I should put such meta-explanations at the beginnings of posts so folks don't assume I've taken them deadly seriously/literally and am lecturing them just as s...

Tailoress

I blame Dan Brown. Uriel beat me to it, but these theories have been circulating for a long time, and the Cathars are imbedded deeply in the whole pseudo-history too, lest we forget. There are other books like The Tomb of God , Bloodline of the Holy Grail , and The Holy Place which are all part of ...

Tailoress

I thought you loved me for my mind!

You know, being shite with armour and all that...

Tailoress

Baron Alejandro wrote:Arriving Wednesday the 10th, camping (for the first time) with the inestimable Clan Yama Kaminari. I should be either there, or on the field, or working at the Zen Warrior Armoury booth. Come say hi.

Alejandro

Cool, you're a half-block from Kaffa, on E01.

Tailoress

The first email had the publication, Dan, if you kept it for future reference. It's from Waffen-und Kostumkunde, 2002/Heft 2, pp. 197-211, and you can order it from here: m I had to get a helpful German-speaking acquaintance (Hi Caithlinn!) to help me with my order at the time. -Tasha PS -- Since th...

Tailoress

Someone needs to follow Alcy around with a drum and cymbal.

Thanks, Mal, for the recommendation.

Char, if you garden three-acres-worth, we're all coming to your place for events in the future.

-Tasha

Tailoress

Milles mercis! (Or something like that!)

Tailoress

I used welded steel rings that had been from scraps of mail cut off of aventails during fitting to helms. I poked holes through the fabric layers using a circular sewing awl to a circumference of approximately 1/4 inch. I placed the ring on top and whip-stitched the rings down all the way around usi...

Tailoress

Are you kidding?? Of course I want it! Thank you so much! This is very kind of you.

Will I be seeing you at Pennsic? That might be a good time to connect. Nothing is happening to my garden until fall at the rate I'm going, anyway...

-Tasha

Tailoress

Alrighty! I joined the group Karen recommended and can see there's *lots* there to soak up. Thanks for the recommendations so far... Sabine -- that book you mention sounds perfect -- right up my alley. I did a quick price check out on addall.com and it looks like I can get rather cheap reprints late...

Tailoress

Uilleag, I will send you a scan of an excellent article written by Helmut Nickel which has good information about this historical armouring item. I'm using the email you have listed here on the AA, so I hope it's current. Please respond when you get it and let me know you did in fact get it. There w...

Tailoress

Hi folks, We recently moved into a property with excellent capacity for garden(s). I was thinking of attempting something medievaloid or renaissancy in one portion of the backyard. I have this fabulous, quaint gardening "dictionary" from the early 40s which mentions that there are a number of still-...

Tailoress

Annette, bless you! Those prices are excellent and finding a decent 100% wool flannel is sometimes not that easy, especially at places like JoMar, which is a popular brick-and-mortar here in the mid-Atlantic area.

I'm adding this site to my list for future reference!

-Tasha

Tailoress

Klaus, the plan is to get in earlier on Friday and leave sometime Sunday. I'm hoping that folks from this general area (mid-Atlantic) can maybe catch the same roundtrip flight together -- more fun that way.

Is your wife coming too?

-Tasha

Tailoress

Thank you; with heavy use, however, they do need occasional reworking.

Tailoress

Have ticket, will be there!

Tailoress

Tim, I do occasional commissions, but I'm pretty booked for the rest of the year and into next year at this point. I also only will fit people in person. My apologies! Here's a closer view of the shoulder and arm points. They are whip-stitched in thick silk around flat, welded rings of steel that we...

Tailoress

In my ongoing experimentation, I incorporated a decorative style seen in the early 15thc grande assiette garments on my latest arming cotte. I never got around to asking (bad me!), but I think my client's armor was circa 1410 or so. I made her an arming cotte to which she's pointing her spaulders, a...

Tailoress

David Teague will be appearing any second now...

He's given Matuls rave reviews both here and on Arador many, many times.

-Tasha

Tailoress

Thank you, Adrielle, that gives me hope of attending. I'm finished my last class at 11, so all should be good!

-Tasha
(Marcele in the SCA)

Tailoress

I humbly beseech these perfect gentil knights and squires to please tell me what approximate time this Battle of 30 shall commence.. (i.e. around when will opening ceremonies begin and about how long will they last)... I am teaching that morning and will be most depressed if my teaching prevents me ...

Tailoress

Please also note that after a year or so of doing this, Asbjorn's arming cotte can pretty much stand up on its own. It doesn't smell at all, but it's extremely stiff when not in use.

-Tasha

PS -- I second the suggestion for fabric he posted. It's strong stuff.

Tailoress

Argh, I had something all typed up and thought I'd submitted it yesterday, but I see that it never got posted here. Drat. Well, let me see if I can recall what I was thinking then... Oh yeah... One point that occurred to me is that since this is the Fountain of Youth, the folks on the left are old a...

Tailoress

Johannes, if you ever decide to go with the all-cotton version too, you can find good quilt-ready cotton batting on the web. It tends to come in sizes for bedding. Here's a good source: m I find that one of these (for queen or king) will probably pad about three large male jupons or maybe two, if yo...

Tailoress

Very cool, Klaus, and well-earned.

-Tasha

Tailoress

Congrats to Adam for the Laurel and to Klaus for the Maunche! Wish I could have been there.

Just remember Ron -- by definition, you are now qualified to eat mice and lap milk too!

-Tasha

Tailoress

I'm starting to think I should just put that stuff back up online.

Morristh, I'll email you a PDF which your wife might like. Might take a day or two.

-Tasha

Tailoress

That is one of the more famous mid-14thc French alms purses "out there". You can see more about it in Michael Camille's _The Medieval Art of Love_ (which is easy to get and cheap) and also in Schuette and Christensen's _Pictorial History of Embroidery_ which is not so easy to get and is expensive to...

Looking for gardening advice

Newest arming cotte