kass

Hey Will! Reduce your picture size! The people on dial-up modems are hating you right now...

Oh I see what you mean now, Greg! In the textile industry, what you did is called "bag lining". You basically make two garments -- one outer material and one lining -- and sew them together. In the 17th and 18th centuries, this wasn't the way things were lined. Although I can think of one garment in particular in which an older garment was stuck inside a newer garment as a lining. But this was not the usual way. You see, it has a lot to do with machine sewing versus handsewing. Although you hand sewed your jacket, you think like a machine sewer. You followed construction techniques that you know because your modern clothing is made that way. Even if you've never sewn on a machine, we modern people tend to think in an assembly line kind of format. We invented this construction in the 19th century so things could be made entirely by machine. They lend themselves well to the modern method of assembly line mass production. You may have used the same stitches (some of them are just too simple to muck up), but your whys and wherefores might have been different. It's hard to think as an 18thc tailor when you're not an 18thc tailor. Different things were important to them. The biggest difference between then and now is that labour is expensive nowadays and fabric is cheap. Back then fabric was expensive (and I don't mean $50 a yard expensive; I mean the equivalent of your annual salary expensive) and labour was cheap. So tailors would go out of their way not to waste a centimeter of fabric. It didn't matter to them how long it took to finish the job. To us, time matters alot. The historical notes on this one are going to be some of the most extensive I've ever written. So enjoy!

Greg, it's GORGEOUS!!! I think you'll find my interpretation is very close, most likely since I've been looking at a lot of the same pictures as you have. The pattern still has some info to contribute, however, even to someone as well-read on the subject as yourself. There are a handful of extant jackets from this period that I used to develop the pattern that will add depth to our understanding of what common men wore in this time period. So dont' worry. Your greenbacks (or whatever you use over there) won't be wasted. But your interpretation is spot ON!

Oh Captain, I'm not considering anything Luckner says seriously. It's pretty obvious the guy exaggerates. Plus he's WWI. Not terribly interested in the Great War, me...

Okay. No cats allowed! Happy now? The quote was "do not make the rare common and the common rare". It was not said in reference to proving if something existed. It was said to discourage people from replicating one single instance of an item/garment/weapon and instead encourage the use of things we know to be in common use. In other words, if there is a documentable account of a pirate who had a trained monkey, it is proof that a pirate owned a monkey. Period. One pirate. One monkey. That's all it proves. "Don't make the rare common and the common rare" means don't go out and buy a trained monkey saying, "Well there's this story about a pirate who had one." Because one story does not mean all pirates (or even any other pirates) had them. Mr. Foxe's evidence doesn't prove there was always a ship's cat. Just that there was one on that ship. And that there were cats on an island where they could only get by being on a ship at some point. So some cats were on some ships. To try to prove this idea by saying, "They were so common that they were never mentioned in accounts" is not good proof. It rather suggests that there could have been wildebeasts on board as well (since they too are never mentioned). But to give an account by Defoe as well as other anecdotal evidence at least disproves my idea that they were hated and shunned.

The fact that Selkirk had so many cats that were left on the island by European sailors indicates at least that cats were onboard the vessels. Whether they were put off because the sailors didn't want cats onboard is anyone's guess. And being that 1731 is only six year after the rather arbitrary end of the GAoP, I'd accept the existence of a "ship's cat" during the period. I don't like it, but I accept it.

Cap'n Bob, I think Townsend sells brewer's pitch. If they don't, your local (or online) brewing supply store does. This is what you use to line a food-safe canteen. I believe brewer's pitch contains beeswax, but there's something else in there too...

Ick! I'd hate to clean that litter box!

Wow. Surprising! Because the 1995 Kobe quake caught them entirely off-guard. Tokyo residents are used to quakes. But in the Kansai (Kobe-Osaka-Kyoto), they rarely get more than something that feels like a large truck driving past. But you're the expert!

I absolutely can do that, Maria! Thanks for the order.

Hee hee hee hee hee hee! My numbering system is designed to keep you in the poor house, Greg! Seriously, when I plan a new line, I number all the potential patterns before I start working on anything. So they are in an order that really only becomes clear when you see them all. For example, RH703 is a 1720s Frock Coat, which comes in the lineup behind the 1680s and 1700s models. 707, 708, 709, and 711 are already available. They're women's patterns (the Bodiced Gown, Mantua, Hunting Outfit, and Stays, respectively). I forget what 710 was... Oh yes. It's a Great Coat pattern. The Brandenburg is the early, Oriental-style overcoat. RH710 is the later style with the narrow waist and huge skirts to match the frock coats. And 713 is the last but not least. It's an accessories pattern for men and women, incorporating all the little bits that are too small for their own pattern. How's that?

You're very welcome, Jack. Tell Janelle to brace herself!

More! Look at this thread . All will ship no later than Monday, 19 June.

Have at: Waistcoats, Slops & Breeches

Welcome back, Mr. Foxe!

Gregorian is the new calendar -- instituted by Pope Gregory. Julian is the old calendar, based on the one in use by Julius Cesear I believe...

Is that Old Style? If so, then we'd have to add... 12 days? Not that many people care about these sorts of things. Wow! Good point, John. And what parts of the world were "old style" and what weren't? And when did it stop? It was the Catholic countries that lopped off the extra days. Damn! Another research project!

You have my admiration, PP (as do all parents). I don't have children. So I have a lot more time and brainspace on an average day than you guys. All I have to do is feed my greyhounds, and you have to wake the lazy buggers up to do that. I also do this for a living (research historical clothing), so this is kinda my job. I don't know if I'll make it to the PA Faire this year. But I'll likely be at the MD Ren Fest for Pirate Invasion Weekend if you're likely to be persuaded. I'll post to "Raids" when plans firm up.

If you want them for decorative purposes and not for carrying or preserving beverages, you might try local wineries or distilleries. They usually give away old casks for the cost of carting them away. But they do this because they are no longer safe for food use. Townsend's prices are actually some of the cheapest around. Real well-made casks are far more expensive.

I dunno, Maria. Because they look like ugly little men?

Pyle can be a bit iffy, Mr. Cutlass. Here's a better source of pictures: Mr. Foxe's Pirate Pictures And don't forget to check this out: Mr. Foxe's Pirate Mythory It's a great overview of why we think what we do about what pirates looked like and what's historical accurate and what's fantasy. Me, I'm a HUGE stickler for detail. But that's my fun. I get a real kick out of having the right amount of replica coins in my pockets for someone of my station and knowing what would buy what. But I also like to be very, VERY silly.

Well, I'm eating my feline-hating words. Look what I found while looking at slops and sailor's jackets. Ship's cat under the tableclothSee the ship's cat under the tablecloth? And the dog wearing his master's wig! The first pic is 1731 and the second 1745 -- neither GAoP, but I'd be willing now to accept the idea that cats were welcomed onboard. I just wouldn't welcome them on MY ship... Of course, I'm a lubber, so it hardly matters... "It's not a Cat House! They're seamstresses..."

Really?!! In Kobe?? Kobe is just not exactly what you'd consider an earthquake hot spot. They usually ignore the possibility entirely down there while Tokyo is obsessed with it.

Thanks, Greg. You took on a lot of responsibility and put in alot of effort for a guy who wasn't going to profit from the project at all. It's just too bad the guy actually getting paid wasn't as responsible and diligent as you were in your spare time.

Tiered skirts were extremely popular with mantuas. You almost never see a mantua in a painting without one from 1680 until 1710.