Gentleman of Fortune

Well I am in and am fascinated already! Got my needle and thread and am following along. Here is a question.... In your new line of GAoP clothing that is coming out soon, does the instructions/pattern tell you what kind of stictch goes where? I know some of it is common sense (as in back stitch for strength areas) but I was wondering if certain stitches might be used in certain places that might not "make sense" and would that information be included in any pattern instructions.... What say you? Thanks again for the class by the way! GoF

M-J Basically, Loyalist Arms, --Middlesex Village Trading Companie, and the Discriminating General all get their base guns from India and them make minor or sometimes major changes to them.... sometimes calling the results differnt things. Loyalist seems to be the most active at mixing and matching and customizing to make "different" guns. LIke they might put the english pistol lock on the prussian stock and call it a buccanneer pistol or something. But here is what is on offer.... Loyalist Dog Lock Musket $625 (.76 Cal 46 inch barrel) Middlesex Village Trading Companie "New England Fowler" $595 (.69 Cal 51" barrel) and Discriminating Generals "Military Doglock Musket" $579 (.69 cal 42" barrel) I guess it comes down to taste and price for which one you like. But if I had to buy one tomorrow.... I would probably go with the MVTC Fowler as I really like the stock and the LONG length. There is a discussion thread at the Muzzleloading Forum about the MSVT fowler that is pretty insightful.... the forum itself is a wealth of information too.... http://www.muzzleloadingforum.com/fusionbb...php?tid/182146/ Good luck! GoF

Wow.. Pat, how bizzare. I say this because I have been working on a similar coat (for the last 5 months and I have used the SAME picture for my refrence. I also am making/made it out of a blanket... though it was "tan", now that it is in the shape of the jacket (I just have to finnish hand sewing 6 more button holes!) it looks.... "pinkish". The shrunk kersey. Devil of a time finding real kersey. Most of the ACW suttlers that have it (and most don't) don't sell the material and those that do seem to want upwards of $30 a yard. But I think that Shrunk kersey is much like you are describing. I am betting that it is sort of "fulled" to make the weave even closer/water resistant. You can "full" it yourself by throwing it in the washing machine on warm setting with a little detergent. My suspect about the red cotton though is that it ain't cotton like we know it. They used the term cotton in the 17th/18th century to mean a nappy kind of wool as well.... nappy as in fibers fuzzy on the surface. Anyone else have any thoughts on that without starting the infamous cotton wars? GoF

Hmmm..... I am loth to reccommend a wrong shoe. Granted, I am NOT the patron saint of re-enacting shoes or anything. I am just a big proponent of correct shoes for whatever period you are doing. I feel that if i say, "this shoe will do, than 90 percent of the people that need to get shoes will deem that whatever is reccomended is ok to use.... and as I have said in other shoe rants, most people who buy 1 pair of shoes are disinclined to buy another if they are percieved to be "passable" or were "passable" at one time. I am not saying that you are like that, I just don't want to be the guy that someone will later say "well GOF said that the right/left rev war hessian shoes were ok for GAoP" when they are NOT. I can discuss this more with you in a PM. AND For eveyone that buys a "different" shoe, that is one less person helping to pull off the PERIOD Whydah shoe buy. GoF

For those of you who never check the sticky threads... the hand stitching class has started. Also, if you are trying this at home, here is where you can post your Successes and failures and get extra help. GoF

Hey, if you can find 30 other folks... make that 28 cause I will get "another" pair of shoes too, then we can move forward on a late 17th C pair of gentlemen's shoe group buy. Don't get me wrong, I am not trying to piss in your cheerio bowl or nothing, but most folks could care less what their shoes look like (that is are correct or not). Spending $500 on a pistol is no problem. $300 on a pair of shoes is insanity to them. That is why I am hoping that $135 will hit the sweet spot. GoF

Hector You would need to look for Grosgrain of Faille silk. I SEARCHED the freakin' globe for mine (my purple justaucorps is 100% silk grosgrain. When you can find it, its bloody expensive. Try Here http://www.henrybertrand.co.uk/fashion/pro...prodcode=GRO105 They carry it, but only sell to the "trade". Liberty in London had some really nice tomato colored grosgrain, at about $300 a yard. I found mine at a small silk shop in London that was going out of business.... it was still expensive though. AND You need a whole lot of it to make a Justaucorps! GoF

By the "last pair down" are you reffering to the Whydah shoe that i posted a thumbnail of? If you need an Early 18th late 17th style court shoe, I suggest Sarah Juniper, or Bjarne's boots (you can find a link to their websites at gentlemenoffortune.com under sailors kit... If you need an early shoe like that, you are going to have to have it hand made for you. I don't think I could get 15 people interested in that shoe, let alone 30. As for "regular" sailor/pirate, I don't think we could ask for a better shoe to copy, since its from Sam Bellamy's wreck. But maybe with Reconstructing History's new line of Gentlemen's coats, there will be more of an interest in a Gentlemen's shoe. GoF PS Good luck.

Adam I just noticed this picture (or i just noticed this IN the picture) The figure on the left looks to have a buttoned coat under his short jacket. Am i seeing it wrong? To me it looks like his short jacket is opended to the waist, but that there is another "buttoned" garmet under it. Also, dig the little watch fob pockets on the two guys on the left's thighs... what is that all about? Lastly, what size would you say is a good size for short jacket buttons? I am thinking about 1/2 inch... what say you??? GoF

Ed, Kass, and anyone else who cares... Isn't the 1720s "trouser" just a long version of the standard slops? How would they be cut and sewn differently I wonder?.... Here is another wonder Look at the figure on the far left... he is wearing trousers with some sort of pocket on the thigh... GoF

Where is the closest AirPort to the show? GoF

Well, then our skills for sewing should be ready after the period sewing class and the shirt class! That is, if I have not worn my fingers down to the bone! GoF

why Ed.... *blush* i never knew you cared! gof

Yeeeee haaaaaW Where is the pre oder form???? And, is it cheaper if you buy the whole golden age set???? GoF (first in line... I GOT DIBBS!)

I guess there is not too much difference between the 1706 and the 1717 ASC... but the 1717 ASC seems to be a little more reliant on "shagg". Flowered and Striped. My research has found that "shagg" and duffel wool are similar. The hard part is getting the pattern put in it. There are lots of weavers in India and China that could do it.... I just don't have a need for 1000 yards of it Even if I could convince the masses that the ASC is a great starting point, I can't imagine your average ren-faire pirate would want to wear wool breeches. Can you share your source for Ticking? I run accross vintage linen ticking from time to time, but it would be a nice to find a ready available source for linen checks and linen ticking (Have you tried B & Towbridge?) GoF

This is a re-post from another thread.... but the only one I have easy access to so here it is again. The wife and me doing French Resitance... and GoF

All this talk about latex costumes and body suits... and NOBODY posted pictures! GoF

I have about 14 folks that are interested. We will be working on the sample shoe in January, and when done, I hope we can drum up another 20 quickly. Will keep you posted! GoF

Well I guess I can get my knickers untangled now.... I thought Adam was holding out on us with some vital information. JUST SO WE ARE ON THE SAME SHEET OF MUSIC..... Are we going to discuss 1706, 1717 ASC or post GAOP 1730s ASC? Assuming that we are talking about 1706 ASC, I think that the garments are going to be similar anyway. Adam, Do you have many/any good sailor images that are not already on Foxes site? Foxe, have you maxed out your storage space and need more for pictures? I have been working on a ASC wool coat for some time. I have "slowed" down production some because there are some things that I could not really nail down but went ahead anyway, and now I am not sure that I took the right path. I know that you are busy with school Adam, but do you have a sketch or your 1706 jacket pattern? I would love to see it. Also, I am kind of waiting to see what Kass is doing with her pattern (she is coming out with a GAOP line this year). This is a hard one to nail down (the Jacket) but I am enjoying this thread and would like to come up with a consensus of what we (the brothers twill) come up with! GoF

Another interesting short jacket... that appears to not have buttoned cuffs is this one Its 'Gamekeeper to Sir Nicholas Williams of Edwinsford' by an unknown artist, 1725 you can get a bigger jpg here http://www.gtj.org.uk/item.php?lang=en&id=26643&t=1 hmmmm.....

I hear you mate, but... I see it as the back of Hurcules's wrist as resting against his hip for support and not in a slit pocket. If the pictures from your site aren't sailors in working gear.... then they at least seem to be in clothing similar to working gear... right? Picture 1 in my post... the artist did not include much detail, but he did include enough to put 2 buttons on cuff but none on pockets. That plus the original example of a slightly later waistcoat at least give credence to that possibility that some waistcoats might not have had buttoned pockets. Picture 2) Not the clearest picture of Reade and Bonny, but there doesn't seem to be cuffs (or pockets) on their coats. The Rodger's Guyacil picture also has sailors with short jackets and without pockets (cuffs are hard to discern). Picture 3) The two seated figures (captain and navigator) are wearing some sort of short waistcaoat/jacket. The "navigator" doesn't seem to have a slit cuff, and the captain's coat though somewhat inconclusive, could be one without buttons. 4) Here is an orginal waistcoat of some sort... I am not saying that its a sailors coat by any means.... but it is one button short of 15. If it was made of Grey Kersey, had 15 brass buttons and linen pockets.... well???? And if frogs had wings they wouldn't bump their ass's when they tried to fly..... Button-less pockets at Least gets you to 6 for cuffs and 9 for the front. (which don't have to go all the way down to the bottom). And if you leave the buttons off the cuffs, than you can have 15 down the front without any problem. And if you were wearing such a garment, and claimed it was your interpretation of the ASC, I don't think I would have a problem with it. GoF PS pardon any spelling errors... its late and I'm lazy

Another enigma... But You are making some assumptions that are not addressed in the contracts. 1) That the pocket has button closure (also, cuff only has 2 buttons) (From Ed Foxe's Pirate Pics Gallery) 2) That the coat in the ASC has mariners cuffs (From Ed Foxe's Pirate Pics Gallery) 3) If it does have mariners cuffs, that they are "button-closed" (both seated figures right) (From Ed Foxe's Pirate Pics Gallery) 4) and if it does have mariners cuff and pockets, that they are both "button-closed" (from http://www.chs.org/textiles/menswear.htm 1730's cotton waistcoat) A lot of the pictures from your Gallery site, make it unclear whether they have button closure at all. I have been noticing that I have seen a lot of slit cuffs, but not neccesarily "button closed mariner's cuffs". GoF

bump

What she said.... Some times its really hard to get over our modern interpretation/ideas about what we should look like. I am a pretty big dude myself, and when I first started wearing my shirt for pyracy, I kept thinking, "whoaaa this is way too big". But historically its right on the money. I think (I'll have to check with "Textiles in America" but I think that one of the common widths for textiles (linen) was 22"? Also, In an earlier post/thread Kass mention that she has seen originals that are made from "pieced" together fabric. I would like a little more info on this as I have several pieces of blue checkered linen (that are over 100 years old) that i would like to piece together for my shirt! GoF

Where are they on the Armor Class website? Or is it a bespoke item? They only seem to have that bloody ECW stuff on there! GoF