In case you weren’t sure how sketchy my attention span can be…

!! SQUIRREL !!

Brian wearing the doublet at Defender of the Queen’s Heart in February

Actually, BRIAN. But whatever

If you recall, back in January, I was telling you all about the process of making a doublet for Brian to wear on the field at Defender of the Queen’s Heart on the day of his elevation to the Order of Defense. Sure enough, I did get done (buttons added in the wee hours of the night before, as is SCA tradition). I’m proud to say that it a) successfully fits, b) held up to being worn during rapier combat, and c) was all handsewn except for the buttonholes. Sadly, after working a few buttonholes on some scrap for practice, I determined that my proficiency and speed were not nearly up for getting that many buttonholes done (and done well) before the event. So practical compromise it was, with the magic buttonhole machine to the rescue =)

My brain squirrels being what they are, however, the last few weeks of the process did not get documented or blogged in any way, and neither has any of the other bits and pieces I’ve worked on over the last several months.

Eleanor of Toledo’s funeral gown, shown in the Galleria del Costume of the Pitti Palace.
September 2016 by Kaho Mitsuki on Wikimedia Commons

I can say, however, that much of the artistic bits I’ve done during that time has been things that move my Eleonora di Toledo-inspired dress forward in some way. Including continued research on her burial dress and the similarly constructed Red Dress of Pisa.

PETTICOAT WITH SLEEVES, SILK VELVET WITH APPLIED ORNAMENTATION, C. 1560, Museo Nazionale di Palazzo Reale di Pisa

And then there were the side quests into related topics that feed into the construction of my dress inspired by them… like gold work embroidery, medieval embroidery frames, and the appropriate foundation garments. Which leads me to learning a shiny new skill…

Next up on Jen’s roller coaster of crafting mayhem:

Closeup of the goldwork embroidery embellishing the burial dress. From Janet Arnold’s archive images taken during conservation