Tudor MercWench Smith

For the flight back considerations, i have intentionally picked camp items that pack back down to the size they were when I left with no extra tools....i am however investigating space bags that don't require a vacuum to shrink down cause that would create the problem you described....i could get things to fit the way there but not necessarily the way back.As for the guns, you are probably correct. A lot of hassle for naught more then set dressing. I'm still exploringthe process to bringing them but I'm not so single minded about it that I'm not willing to consider leaving them behind Shoes are the one thing that I'm brave enough to wear through the airport (even though Mistress Diamond has me inspired to go through my travels in full kit lol) I have to wear insoles in my shoes anyway so the boots I got for my kit will be no more or less comfy then tennies so better to save the space. https://www.chagrinvalleysoapandsalve.com/products/dont-bug-me-bundle?variant=34055971339 This is what I am bringing, minus the spray. All solids so can go in my carry on without TSA limits and it serves as bug repellent and hygiene Items, so conserving space on brining several items

A valid suggestion, especially considering fitting is my weakest skill point. I guess my logic was that on tailored projects past, i still ended up with fit issues even after doing a mock-up, so it would be an unnecessary time expense. But your point is making me see that might be a bit defeatist lol. Perhaps the fact that my schedule has conspired to prevent me from doing the cut is a sign.

Great topic! This is my first pirate event; I have some experience doing SCA event camping so I'm not a complete newb at the concept (and I 10000% agree the overnight experience is an integral part of the adventure) but this will be my first time flying for an event. I had originally thought I would *have* to drive in in order to transport my own tent (that I didn't even own yet), But through the good graces of this wonderful community I was advised there would be a tent I could claim a corner of. Which works out better cause the time commitment of the drive was making scheduling harder for my work/life situation. I feel like I have a pretty good handle on how to thin down my normal event camping pack to fit into the two checked and two carry on bags that o get. For one checked i am planning one suitecase for my sleeping kit. I actually just scored an amazing cot that folds down into a size that will fit a suitcase with room to spare. I plan to put a camp mat over it, which will also pack down small to fit. Both are modern but the cover I intended to make for the camp pad will have the look of a ticking mattress, so the obvious anachronisms will be well obscured. In with them will be pillows, blankets etc, and any other camp gear I might need. My list for that is minimal....a small cheap lantern, drinking cup etc. Second suitcase will be any overflow gear, and accessories. I have two "prop" pistols I plan to bring and have already been checking with TSA what I would have to do in order to transport them. They are non firing to the point that they don't even technically have a barrel for a projectile to come out of, but at a glance they look the part, so I'm sure security would have concerns and i have been advised to transport them as if they are real. I will be double checking that closer to time as well, and if anyone has any experience on that front I would love any tips or advice. Most of my clothing is going into my carry on, any overflow squeezed into the cracks od the two checked bags. I'm planning on at least two to three changes of clothing, if I can sew that much. That might be Also excessive but sweaty smelly clothing is a level of accuracy I'm not interested in. In my other carry on (purse/backpack personal item) would be hygiene kit.... luckily I already use solid shampoo and soap bars so no worries on transporting liquids. Incidentally, i will also be bringing/using a soap that also acts as a bug deterrent, so two for the price of one. I might also attempt to bring a natural bug spray. It's all a plan in progress and flux though. Any suggestions or tips would be well received and I will be sure to pass along any idea I have

For this I am grateful! My days if thinking that I'd be ok doing a "sleep where ya fall" on a beach somewhere are part of the experience I was planning in my 20s that I DO NOT need to recreate lol. I've been in the market for a tent for a while, but the family sized one I'd need for most of my historical endeavors would be too large and unwieldy for the plane and the event this time around. Along with my jacket, a sleeping mat/cot setup is also on the agenda of next to-dos

Oh absolutely! I typically do it with a pretty old school detergent too (usually what I use for my cloth diapers) just to be sure any sizing is removed. I don't always dry it though, kinda play by ear based on the fabric weight. For colors though I do two to three soaks first, just to rinse most of the dye run off before it even hits the washer. I've spent waaaaay too much time on this damned shirt, last thing I want is color transfer from sleeves lol. I also have a meticulous ironing procedure that I only sometimes follow.... Lol Thank you so much for the kind words and support in following along so far! I'm pretty well pleased with myself. I live in that confusing space of wanting the bragging rights of having made it all myself and the constant terror of it looking shabby and poorly done. So far, I feel like what I've done looks good, not perfect of course, but shouldn't raise any eyebrows lol. Ironic that PIP 09 was your first. Between 05 to 09 were my "regret" years. I had made plans several times to go but got gaslit into not going. Getting ready now for Massacre Island is going a long way to righting that for myself. And honestly, probably better this way....sure I had more free time and expendable income in my early 20s but honestly, I probably would have shown up in a RenFaire Elizabethan corset, some hippie 25 yard skirts and a tricorn and called it good. Any attempts at sewing would have been cheap fabrics and poorly executed. I guess the lack of free time and more budget considerations is making me not take project time for granted and making me more judicious with getting it right the first time. I was going to wait to post any outfit photos here til the jacket was done, but I got a little giddy last night after I finished my button holes and put on the layers I've finished so far... Like I said pretty well pleased with myself. Still can't believe I handstitched the whole dang shirt AND it looks this good.

Project update. In the button/button hole phase of the shirt. Found these natural shell buttons on Amazon. Probably would have preferred bone, but these seemed a good compromise....shell, but actually finished shell and not the "natural look" where they still are rough on the back. For button holes I picked up both embroidery thread and silk thread. For the slops I had done embroidery thread with moderate success, but the shirt is a much lighter weight, so between that and overall finished look, the silk might be the better option. Recommendations on which way to go would be appreciated. I'd considered doing the whole thing in the silk thread buy I couldn't justify it when I already had plenty of white regular thread at home. Otherwise, cut off the three yards of blue for a jacket and have it soaking to rinse out any dye bleed. After a few hours in the tub, a wash and press. Plan is to use RH 705. I'm being bold (read: foolish) and NOT doing a prototype. It looks straightforward enough.....i think lol. If anyone has done this one up, tips and tricks please!

Love the reinforcement stitches! I was not brave enough to try them on mine, and just stuck with the reinforcement patches. Waistcoat looks great too.did you use a particular pattern?

Being the youngest in a family of nerds sometimes pays off lol

Acquired. Couldnt say from where originally. My sister purchased it when she was playing a writer character at her local Renaissance faire. She ended up never using it and is thinning out her stash of stuff.

Still flat-felling interior seams on the shirt before cutting fabric for a jacket so nothing overly photo worthy in the project progress but here, enjoy some photos of a recent, lovely but highly unnecessary addition to my kit.... Portable desk for all my Steward-ing purposes. Depending on how much room left in my luggage it will probably travel with me. A lovely hand me down from my sister.

Oohh....i will have to check that out. I used her pirate shirt video, with some other adaptations as cross reference in the original making so this new video might also provide insight. Ive made the very executive decision that while it's probably sitting an inch or two too long still even from accurate fit (I'd say about an inch or so below armpit level) it's not worth pulling them out to redo them. They will be mostly covered by jacket sleeves etc and I'd rather just move on to my second shirt and know to adjust accordingly on that one.

They were a bit excessive.... almost down to my elbows. Taking in the collar did raise it up about an inch, but could probably raise up another inch and still be appropriately below the shoulder. Trying to decide if that inch is worth the seam ripping and restitching, especially when i could just shrug it off and say that it's a shirt i "borrowed" off a man with broader shoulders then mine so obviously the fit isn't perfect lol Otherwise i tried on the slops, shirts, stays and wool coat together and .....it works. It definitely works!

So the shirt has pretty much all of its major construction done. Sleeves went on yesterday. Gathers came in nicely and gussets sat in the seams perfectly. Only problem is the shoulder is sitting way to low arm. I know its supposed to come past the shoulder point a bit, but I'm sitting about only three inches above the elbow, which in turn makes the gathered arms look like weird elbow puffs, and pulls the gusset too far away from the body. I had intentionally given myself additional width in the body so that it would have plenty of room through the chest and waist, but didn't think it would throw the shoulders that far off kilter. I'm going to get the collar on before i panic and seam rip the sleeves off and the sides open it take it in though. I feel the gathering into the collar will pull the shoulder/sleeves up at least an inch or two - i know when i did a 16th cent smocked German hemd, when i gathered and smocked the collar, it pulled the sleeves up so much they ended up being 3/4 length. These are cut longer to start, and will be less intensely gathered, so should pull that much, but i feel like expecting some rise on it is reasonable.

Good to know! I did the sides up on lunch today just to keep moving along and following directions but i will definitely give it a try that way on the next shirt. I've noticed the same about any stripped or checked linen. Burnley & Trowbridge has some nice patterns right now though if not a terrible price, but their stock often seems hit or miss with what's available

That is a great checked pattern! Just enough visual interest without being too busy. Out of curiosity, once your sleeves are done, do you attach them to the body before or after you seam up the sides of the body. All my instructions are saying do you the sides first then the sleeves, but my brain keeps telling me to leave the sides open, put the sleeves on then close it up.

Honestly, with how long it's been in dev, i wouldn't be surprised if you did beta it years ago...the wait has been interminable! But they've got another closed beta coming up, and pre-orders live on the website so maybe the wait is finally at an end, even though release date is only as specific as "2023" I love the concept and art of AC, but I'm a slightly sophisticated button masher, so stealth games are not ideal for me. I only ever played black flag to completion and that was only just barely so i could level up and unlock more ships.

Shirt update....we have sleeves. Pretty pleased with how they look. Things I've learned in this project so far: 1) gussets are actually less awful to put in by hand. Who knew!?! 2) actually taking the time to put in a decent gather really elevates everything about a project and I'm so glad i took the time to learn how to do it efficiently. These things actually look like some decent sleeves and I'm a big fan. 3)flat felling seams is oddly cathartic, keeps your insides tidy and just adds a level of je ne sais quoi to the overall aesthetic of a project. 10 out of 10 would recommend. Up next is sleeves to body, body to collar and then finishing touches like reinforcement patches at all slits, then a final hem. Not sure exactly what order though. After the shirt is done, I'll move onto a jacket. After which, i will officially have a full set of clothes. For all our sakes though, i will then repeat the process, only hopefully faster.

Pulled the trigger on purchasing stays from Samson yesterday afternoon, around 2:30 pm and they are already here!! (Please excuse the woefully un-period shirt that it was tried on over, and the terrible bathroom selfies) Did end up with the front lacing for ease, and because while I'm not a fan of the buttery yellow, it was better then pristine white and was linen. I ended up not asking to get them without the grommets because i wanted them to be returnable if they didnt fit, and i wouldn't really know of they did or didn't till i could lace them up. Quality is absurdly excellent. Stitching is beautiful, everything is neat. They call them "half-boned", which was doing me a concern, but there are about 25-30 steel boned in them, not counting the stomacher, which i feel is pretty full. Fit is as perfect as you can hope to get with ready made, standardized sizing. Only complaints on fit is, if it were custom, I'd want them nipped in on the sides under the arms, as my ribcage is ridiculously tiny compared to all my other measurements. I've got a few inches till closed, which looks perfect with the stomacher and also means if weight fluctuates at all I've got some room either war. Stylistically i would prefer slightly longer tabs, but oh well, built in bum rolls lol! How they sit and fit is similar enough to the old Elizabethen style stays i used to wear waaaay back in the day that I'm confident i will be fine comfort-wise wearing them all day. All in all....this has given me absolute peace of mind. I will have foundation garments that fit, suit, are accurate-adjacent, and that will not nice, not sloppy, poorly fit or constructed. I was having nightmares about looking like the dweeb in the lopsided, too long, too loose and unsupportive stays. If i get the rest of my sewing done, i might revisit making a second pair, but for now the stress I'd off and i can just enjoy my other projects. Speaking of, shirt pieces are all cut. Tried thread pulling to get those perfectly straight lines but I'd probably rather spend the time plucking out my hair, it would be less painfully tedious. Neck opening has been hemmed down, currently working on hand sewing in the sleeve gussets. Have i mentioned I *hate* sewing gussets...

So I've been giddily excited for this game for years - am possibly the only person in the world who played AC: Black Flag FOR the sailing and nautical combat rather then in spite of so a game built specifically on those mechanics sounds delightful to me. But then just found this gem of a trailer with a "shanty" they had written just for the game, that is hands down an absolute bop. Any other games pirates frothing at the mouth for this to come out already around here?

I'm working off similar "patterns". Do you find the neck gussets to be necessary? I've seen some without buy I'm not convinced one way or another on them. They seem an extra step to me

I feel like adding it helped with the overall structure too.. where the seam was meeting the gap on the waistband just kind of sat funny and looked a bit janky and not overly securely sewn. This definitely makes it sit better, look more finished and tightened everything up.

Omg! That would look fantastic wouldn't it!!?? Might be too ambitious to get done for September which I'm really just focusing on the basics for,but afterwards.....goodness knows there is enough fabric on the roll to do several!! I'm going to cut off a chunk of it, and of a similar black roll that i didn't take, and wash them up to see if the hand softens at all that they could be functional slops. As is, it's very stiff - like full on duck cloth feel. Barring that, definitely thought snap sack and interlining as well. Didn't think cargo bale though. Or made up to look like a stack of sails perhaps? Eventual day shade perhaps?

I went a'plundering today. 🏴‍☠️ Background....my husband works for/runs a company that makes and sells RenFaire costuming. He works primarily in their leather shop, but there is a fabric side too. This of course means i have little to no quality leather accessories for my kit because....well, the cobblers son has no shoes. But it does give me access to materials and occasional long-abandoned prototypes. I scored this satchel today. It looks more western then anything actually period, and I'm hoping to find a way to hide, if not entirely remove the zipper on the front pouch and i rather hate the color...But a Steward needs a bag of some sort to carry around notes, ledgers, maps, etc when on shore and you can't argue with the price of FREE! But the better treasure from the evening was this bounty.... Fabric side of the business was finally after years addressing the overly large fabric stash and all these rolls were either earmarked as trash or "make me an offer". None of them are perfectly ideal....all however are at least majority cotton (rare finds in a pile of poly/nylon/acrylic nightmares) and could function quite well for remaining projects. Close ups.... Lightweight, two layer, cotton (almost handkerchief weight if it wasn't doubled). Maybe some decent/passable shirts that won't be quite as comfy as linen but would give some variety to plain white. Maybe could do a pair of pants out of it. They'd be a little too light but would probably be comfy. Double faced, heavier weight, but with almost silky feel, making me suspect not 100% cotton, but it burned pretty well that it's gotta be majority so. The cream color looks a bit dingey and the mystery content gives me doubts on breathability but a pair of stripped slops would again, be a nice reprieve from plain natural linen in color. Not sure lavender stripes are overly period or piratical but sometimes a girl just wants to look pretty while leading a boarding party. Similar aesthetic to the last but tagged as 100% cotton Essex. Probably to heavy to make comfortable pants. But maybe a jacket or waistcoat. Definitely a bag for my camp mat to make it look more ye old matress-y. This is my fave find for the night though. Heavy cotton but a more homespun, almost dobby-like lose weave, in a lovely nautical blue. Should make a great sailors jacket. Definitely cotton. Definitely canvas. Not sure of treated or coated with anything. Kind of a wonky hand. Might not use it for anything other then patterning, prototypes and interlining, but it was earmarked for the trash otherwise. Save me buying butcher paper and bed sheets for the process. And all of these roles are full, or at least like 3/4 full. So more yardage then i could hope to get through and all basically for free!! Otherwise no real project updates. O did get my linen cut for my shirts after ironing out some process kinks with my prototype. Did also extend the back opening on my finished trousers, just a little bit, and have been flat felling my interior seams to reduce fraying when i only have time/space for hand sewing.... Well, a cup of tea and more sewing awaits me....

Good idea on the eyelets! It couldn't hurt to ask and would certainly take away one of the downsides. The front closing do come standard with stomacher, so that is definitely a pro. It's also linen exterior instead.of cotton. I used to be able to back lace myself but i fear those days might be behind me. So, those all seem like deciding factors. In other news, started a prototype on my first shirt. I have done about a half dozen various periods and styles of tunics which aren't all that different but every time I have to do the measurement thing i trip all over myself. Also gussets are pure evil lol Thanks again for all the encouragement. For sure needed it after a hard prototype

Oh i know! The cross lacing is one of my biggest pet peeves about them! I can get over the tabs being a little shorter, the back being a little lower and the straps further up on the shoulders, i can even forgive the use of cotton....but cross laced??? The horrors! Lol My concerns are entirely the fitting. Construction wise itself i have no concerns. So looking into getting a custom pattern is a pretty good option (i know there are arc drafting tutorials out there but that is soooo far out of my wheel house....math and spacial relations are just not it for me). If i can cut it out, maaaaybe make some minor fit tweaks, and slap it together, I'm there but that is my limit. I have eyes up the AD pattern....also slightly oop too but not too bad and i did here they go together pretty easily. My only reason for not pursuing that path was all the scuttlebutt on the historical sewing and stays groups I've lurked in is that they are incredibly short waisted, which i am not, so once again would be a level of pattern adjustment/tailoring that I'm just not equipped for. The other upside of purchasing ready made for me, is that frees up project time so i don't overwhelm myself and can just focus on what I'm confident on and it that i truly need to get done as well. And as you said, having a set would then help me as a guide when i do revisit making my own. I've spent a large amount of time both wearing and selling mass produced historical "corsets" (mostly victorian but some Elizabethen) so i feel pretty confident in getting correct measurements and checking for correct fit and exchanging it if it's not a good. I don't play when it comes to appropriate fit. Ive seen kids *actually* get injured off poorly made and fitting bodices at RenFaires and it's one of my biggest soap boxes. But the real question really is ....the back or front lacing? Any opinions? I keep waffling. And thank you for the encouragement. It, along with my slops results and the possibility that i will have a decent set of stays has put the wind back in my sails to get this all done!!