Hem & H.A*
(Historically Adequate)

I decided I needed a quick, last minute project for this year's Renaissance Faire (I like to try for at least one new piece every season, even if it's just an accessory) and settled on the short waistcoat from The Typical Tudor.

PART 2: COST EFFECTIVE (Previous post: Part 1 Elevative ) Welcome to a Part 2 of a recent talk I gave at the Westcoast Elizabethan Clothing Symposium entitled: " Wearing vs Styling: Accessorizing to Create a Period Look ". ~ Cost Effective By their very nature accessories are an extra expense; either in money, labour, or resources. And some pieces (like weapons, hats and shoes) can end up representing a significant percentage of the final cost of an outfit. 

In  preparation for a presentation for the "Westcoast Elizabethan Clothing Symposium", I decided to attempt to recreate several of the outfits worn by women in the crowd of "The Field of the Cloth of Gold" (1545). The idea was to use my red kirtle as a base and then accessorize it as needed to create four different looks (as highlighted above).

This is another project that has been on my to do list for a while. It started almost exactly a year ago: I made my first mock up during the July long weekend last year and took these photos over the same holiday weekend this year.  It was meant to be a quick summer project, but it was almost immediately derailed...because I have the attention span of a gerbil.

Welcome to the photo dump for my new blue kirtle (the construction of which was recently documented in my latest  Dress Diary ). Based on early 16th century illustrations, the kirtle laces up the front and features short sleeves, a 'V' back, and a shaped skirt (constructed with piecing).

  My first foray into early period!  While my heart still belongs to the insanity of the 1590s and beyond, I have to say that I have a soft spot for the simpler, elegant lines of the early 16th c. silhouette. It's just so darn pretty! Having said that, it should come as no surprise that this outfit (as usual) began life as something else.