Yesterday myself, Master Edricus and Viscountess Helwig daytripped to the event May Count in our neighbouring shire of Holmrike.

We got there by 10, and I got right into setting up a couple of tables for myself to work on my Laurel cape. I decided that it was going to be my event project. This may change. Anyway. Here's a photo of the general design:
Go to Flickr --> Cape design

What I started with was cutting out a half circle to my measurements - 140 cm radius - from a white linen. This will work as interlining, stabilizing the wool/silk we dyed green last summer at my Apprentice Christina's place.
This cloth is now in four pieces, two pieces 1.40 cm long by 70 cm wide, and two about 90 cm long and 70 wide. I can make up a  full half circle out of this, with only a couple of piecings.

I proceeded to baste the two longer panels of wool to the centre of this linen, folding in the cut edge seam allowance over the selvedge. This effectively anchored both pieces of wool to the middle of the interlining, lining up the grain lines there.

Then I basted the shorter bits of wool onto either side of the two middle panels, but catching only the wool. After layout of the linen I realized it needed to be ironed before I anchored any more of the outer fabric to it - so I did as much on this as I could. Then I rolled up the line and wool and folded it up so I could continue on the back applique.

I found a silver faux leather at the Arts&Crafts expo the other year, which I will use on the back to applique on a big laurel wreath and my badge. Around the hem I will also add roundels with my badge. 

I worked out how many leaves I would need for the wreath on the back, and I marked out all the pieces on the reverse of the leather in pencil. By that point it was time to head out to watch the tourney, so I set down my project. 

I thought I made good progress in any case. 

This morning I unfolded my sandwich of linen and wool, and ironed it all over again. Next step is to lay it out again and baste the front edge and the two seams joining the smaller bits to the linen. Then cut and piece the small triangles needed to fill in the half circle. Then I can stitch all the seams down properly and I will have the base for all my applique and embroidery.

I have a bunch of silver cord and the plan is to do couching, picking out contours and add details. 

The finished cape will then be lined in green silk. For closure my plan is to do a similar thing to how we set up the Nordmark capes - that is to say one cord sewn on about a third of the way in to it on either side of the front edges so I can tie the short ends in front of my chest and the long ends underneath the arms around the back. It makes for a very secure fastening and remove the need to constantly pull down in front.

I envision it to be entirely SCA regalia blingy in the end.

Yesterday we went over to Viscount Gilliam's place to participate in some beer brewing. Ed had talked to him at the Cudgel Pity Party Picknick about it, so we went over and watched as Gilliam and Rasmus did the work of brewing up a batch of beer and explaining the process along the way.

I'm not personally interested in doing it, but it's always fun to watch people do work, and it's interesting to see it done. But I had brought my latest sewing project and started by laying out and cutting a lining for a pair of breeches. Through the day I also managed to attach the piecings which were needed as the fabric is a little too narrow to fit the entire pattern.

We also played a round of a Beer Trivia game while waiting for the batch to ... do something ... and apparently I have learned some things through watching Acquisitions Intoxicated, because I won! Even though we weren't counting. Best category was stacked chairs.

Unfortunately the weather got really annoying as we drove home, so heavy rain in the dark to get home was less than ideal.

Also in the week came the news that Ed's name and device have been registered with the SCA. He had to drop the -us from his name, but could keep it basically the same as he's been using forever, so Edricus Filius Offae it is. And the heraldry that is on his shield and flag etc passed without issue. I basically filled out his paperwork and he sent them in and communicated about the changes needed. So, hurray for that.

So I went to sewing circle last Saturday and Helwig was working on some lovely tablet weaving from a new book. For some reason I seem to be able to see the patterns, and understand what is happeing and going wrong, so I helped her disentangle and wove a little bit. Which let me remember that I actually kind of like the actual tablet weaving experience.

I have done it before, once. I warped a brown and white cotton yarm which I wove into a "belt", for the bliaut I was making in 2004 (I think it was). The actual weaving was lovely and went fast. The warping was icky. Ever since I have wanted to make a silk girdle using turn-based patterns to weave something lovely that just shows up in the shading.

So I made up three patterns for turn-based letters for the three words of my motto: "facio, disco, gaudeo" using Guntram's Tablet Weaving Thingy. He had a gorgeous alphabet already made up, but it takes 40 tablets and I only have 39 tablets at present. Which meant I couldn't add edges. So, the patterns I made up consists of 20 tablets, plus two on either side as an edge.

The warping I did utilising a doorhandle and an over-the-door hanger which I could run between. I warped the 20 pattern tablets in black wool, and the four (2 + 2) edge tablets I warped in green wool. Today I threaded the tablets in and started the weaving using a black linen as my weft. I think I started my pattern a little too soon, before the tension had worked itself out and I'd gotten the braid a uniform width. However, that won't be too bad, as the shade differentiation between black wool leaning to the left and black wool leaning to the right is not very visible.

I've got one letter left to do on the first word (which is gaudeo, as they weave from right to left), and I am enjoying it as I remembered. However, the working position isn't the best. and I'm not entirely sure what I can make with the length I warped. It might become a belt. We'll see.

Also I measured out all the string for the other project I will be working on this weekend - which is edge-weaving on a red open chaperone, as seen on many ladies in ca 1400 illustrations. Not currently sure I want to do that with tablets or the lovely rigid heddle I got last year. I measured out enough yarn to fill eight tablets in any case, so I can make the call on Saturday.

While in exile in the Frozen (again) I've been working on a couple of things. First, a chemise for which I got my Cudgel War fee paid - excellent trade by the way - and some wool applique for Queen Siobhan II and finally something for myself which will turn into a wool replacement of a linen gown I've had for five years.

The wool is a small length which I had gotten before to make a shawl out of. It's a houndstooth check in black and yellow with green, blue and red highlights. Not anything I'd make a "real" dress out of, but it's a gorgeous light flowing wool, which I will use to throw on when I set-up and tear-down camp at Visby. Or for the first thing to throw on when I arrive at an event and don't want to spend half an hour dressing.

The idea is to replace the linen gown I made to be a kitchen slave at a Coronet tourney with a slightly more accurate and light-weight version in wool, so I am using the Greenland finds again, Herjolfsnes 39 detailed online by Marc I. Carlsson. My previous version I have described as the most boring dress ever, and it is tagged as linen herjolfsnes here on LJ. This version will be herjolfsnes39 wool, and as the fabric is yummy I think I'll like it a little more.

So far, I have cut out body panels (50 cm wide, 140 cm long), and gores, about 110 cm long and will end up adding something like 50 cm in four places to the hem. The sleeves are as yet not cut out, I didn't bring any sleeve patterns with me so I will have to wing it. Luckily since this is a very simple and non-fitted dress this will not be a big problem.

My goal is to have this finished for Visby. We'll see how that goes :)

Hosted scribal night around my kitchen table tonight. Alfhilde, currently the Signet of Nordmark, asked if I could do something soon - this was yesterday - and I said sure.

So tonight she came on over and I did the calligraphy on one backlogged scroll, an AoA. I used a basic textura hand and wrote out a fairly long text with no hand cramping problems at all. I attribute this to the two weeks of continual practice I put in in the beginning of December as a part of Lady Kerttu's initiative "Drachenwald 30 day challenge" which meant doing some one thing every day for thirty days. She wanted to learn a calligraphy hand and I thought I could do the same so I started learning an alphabet of capital letters. I got bored of that after the first few days so for the next ten days I wrote out little poems, rhymes and a letter using the new capital letter alphabet as well as my go-to batarde hand. I only managed 13 consequtive days before it got untenable. The problem I have with any craft in my home is that it's very small, and there are two of us here, so I can't just leave everything out on the kitchen table all the time, because then there is no room for us to eat.

Anyway, thanks to those two weeks of practice I got much better at handling the pen, and at writing the letters (obviously), so now, even thought the text was quite long, I had no problems at all with my hand cramping.

I took a picture of the finished item (#53 on my internal count), but it still needs signatures and giving out. I'll wait until it's been handed out to post it.

I also worked on a couple of my own backlogs, a PCS, which is entirely finished now, and a commission piece which just needs a little bit of penwork to be completely finished.

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In other news, I've been sewing for Edricus lately. After some convincing he has agreed that he could possibly consider wearing some late period clothes. He wants a practical mid-16th century outfit with leg coverings to the knees not too poufy and not too tight, a warm practical doublet and a warm practical coat, plus a pimp coat. He's very into the pimp coat, and when I told him there's cotton velvet at the local fabric shop available he got very excited about the idea of a pimp coat. Basically, what he means is a Learned Man's Gown as we'd call it. He insist on pimp coat, though, and he's soo excited I let him have it.

Anyway, I started in the trouser-department, only because I laughed all through making my Venetians a few years back and I still grin whenever I see a picture of them, or think of me in them. (They are hilarious! I wore them one day at Visby this past summer, and every time a certain Chevalier walked past me he couldn't help himself from bipping the codpiece. I suggested he had one of his own to squeeze if he felt the need - he blushed, I lolled.)

Anyway, (I have to stop these ellipses), I was immediately inspired by the fabulous facebook group Elizabethan Costume, and one person there in particular who posted a picture of one pattern layout from the Anduxar pattern book which was a pair of trousers and a doublet laid out. They seemed to create the sort of look I was after so I measured my man and drafted the pattern according to the layout. I did this at last week's sewing circle, then I cut out the one leg and had him try it on and with a little bit of tweaking I had a pattern.

On Sunday I continued by making a pattern for the lining of the trousers, or "galligaskins". Since the outer fabric is meant to be gathered and pouf a little, the lining has to be a little shorter to allow the outer fabric to flow and fold nicely. I took the base pattern I created on Saturday, adjusted the length and waistband to fit Edricus more closely, tried them on and had to adjust the crotch seam. I made it deeper in front and shallower in back, and I also cut down the height of the front waist by about an inch. Then I cut this out in linen and machine basted them together. After trying them on I could also determine where the fly should start (lower than where I had stitched them).

On Sunday and Monday I took the linen lining apart and handstitched it back together, felling all seams. I have yet to cut out the outer fabric - but it will be in a forest green wool which we pre-washed to felt it a little bit. It shrunk, though, so I will have to piece the trousers. But seeing as the layout in Anduxar shows the trousers pieced there as well I am not too bothered about that. The only problem now is how exactly I should cut them from the fabric. Edricus also wants pockets, which will go in the sides, so I could cut them to include a side seam. I have laid the fabric and pattern out on my floor and started with the puzzle, but it fought me, and if I continue now, after the scribal night, I'm afraid I'd make silly mistakes. The plan will have to be to cut it from the cloth tomorrow.

Edricus is away in Visby the entire week, so I can't fit them on him until Saturday when the next sewing meetings is scheduled. I expect to be laughing all that day too :)