This project began with some beautiful patterned brown and white fabric. I had originally thought to make something resembling a bliaut from it, but once I began researching 12th century fashion, it seems that patterned fabrics were not used. Plus, it looks like most bliauts were made of finer fabrics, like silk, while this is a fairly heavy cotton. So, I turned to the 14th century, and began researching cotehardies.
I ran across a site with a number of illuminations from a period book, the Romance of Alexander. The cotehardies depicted here were exactly what I was looking for. And, they use patterned fabrics.
I ended up making the under-cotehardie, of which you can see only the sleeves when it's all put together, out of a lightweight blue cotton I found for about $2/yard. I's not a period fabric, but it's very light and cool. I actually wore this by itself to Highland War, before the buttons were put in, as I was rather short of garb, and as I didn't have the overdress made yet. It's based basically on the pattern I used for my Elizabethan smock. I shortened the gores slightly to get a more fitted look through the torso, and lengthened the whole thing quite a bit.
The overdress is made from the brown and white patterned fabric. The sleeves are about elbow length. It's made from the same pattern as the under-dress, except in this one, I made the front and back gores shorter, as I thought it looked funny on the under-dress. If I make any more in this style, I'll probably make the side and back gores come to my waist, and shorten only the front one. I made the tippets detachable - they attach at the arm just about at my elbow with hooks and eyes. I know hanging sleeves can get annoying, so I wanted to make myself an out. They're lined with white cotton muslin.
Additionally, I made my own buttons! I had originally wanted to buy some cheep plastic buttons and cover them with fabric. However, I ran into another costumer's research regarding period buttons from a dress found in a bog. These buttons consisted of fabric covering either wool stiffened with glue, or wooden plugs. As glue stiffened wool sounded like a lot of trouble, I went to the hardware store and bought a bunch of 3/8 inch, mushroom-shaped wooden plugs. They're very cheep - I got 25 for less than $2. I then cut a circle large enough to cover the button with a bit of a tail left over from the same fabric as the dress, and a smaller circle from some leftover denim big enough to cover only the top of the button.
I then stitched the smaller circle to the back of the larger circle with five or six stitches, then stitched around the outside of the larger circle. The wooden plug goes in the middle, the outside stitches are gathered, then wrap some thread around the tail, secure, and knot. Voila! A homemade button. Before I sewed them to the dress, I put some fray-check around the edges of the tail so I wouldn't be shedding little threads through the life of the garment.
I think they look very nice. I did machine-stitch the buttonholes, as I have not yet taught myself to do them by hand. Plus, after making about 40 buttons, I was getting impatient to finish the dress. The buttons are a little fatter than most buttons I work with, which can make getting them through the buttonholes difficult. But all in all, I'm very pleased with them. Here's a close-up:
And here's how the whole thing goes together. I apologize for the mirror-picture - I didn't have anyone around to take a picture at the time, and I utterly fail at getting good pictures using the camera's self-timer.
All in all, I'm very pleased with this project. When I wear it to an event, I'll braid my hair in two braids, and pin them to the side of my head like in the 14th century illuminations. The style does tend to attract Princess Leia comments, but who do you think she stole the hairstyle from? :-P
