Duchess

Hello! Hello! and thank you for the handsome welcome home! The tale is long though the shortened version be: I gained some skills, lost a friend, got a truck, and moved half way across the country.

How have things been with you these past many days?

The Duchess

So, in my travels of the last eight months, I have become stranded in eastern Washington, a place that is completely foreign to me. Any news about gatherings or activites there would be much welcome.

The Duchess

So, it's been more than eight months, but finally I return! What a journey I've been on.

There do be a bit o' polarity among the ladies. Those who favor the looks of Jack or those who favor the vaguely effeminate confused looks of Mr. Bloom.

Can you tell on which side I stand? :)

The Duchess

Especially since we're all broke after the Christmas holidays...collecting the really nice antique weapons like cutlasses and flintlocks is an extremely expensive hobby. I like old weapons, but I like to be able to pay me bills, too. I was searching for some less expensive sort of old weapon that I might be able to build a collection, and was thinking about primitive knives; by which I mean the rough sort of knives that might have been made by frontier blacksmiths.

Is anyone familiar with this area of collecting? Are the prices here equally outrageous?

I've heard about a book on the topic, but haven't read it yet; title is something like "Primitive Knives, 1700 - 1870". Is any mate familiar with it?

Would really appreciate any and all info on the topic.

Capt. William

Aye, I be thinking these would be equally expensive. As now they would fall under the antiquing catagory of Americana. Highly Collectible=Highly Expensive.

The Duchess

For durability you're going to want a heavier weight linen. I would suggest checking in the "suiting" section of the fabric store. Alternatively, all my long coats and jackets are made out of brocades or tapestry fabrics, commonly found in the upholstery departments (which will also have nice linens) These fabrics are heavier, hold their shape well and yet wear in to be quite soft and very comfortable. Another bonus to shopping the upholstery department is the size of the bolts. Fabrics in this department will nearly all be sixty inches wide (conversely fashion fabrics are usually 42"). This wide width makes it possible to cut whole panels for coats out of the width and not the length. ie you can buy less yards.

Also wash whatever you buy, just like you intend to wash the finished garment, BEFORE you ever cut anything. Do the same with trims. I found out the hard way trims can shrink as well. I made some pants, preshrunk the fabric, but not the trim which was down the sides of the legs. After the first wash the trim shrank buy about a third, the pants ended up far to short, and delicately gathered up the side. :)

The Duchess

we'd just buy the tree a foot taller than the room and nail it to the ceiling. When it didn't fall and cause a rucus the cats quit climbing it.

The Duchess

Is we talkin reptilian or metaphoric snake here?

Not so much metaphoric as trouser from what I read....

The Duchess

Aye Thank you. It speaks to my way of living...

Excalibur has a booth at the local Ren faire. I've been a purveyor of their goods for nearly ten years. Though the quality is such I've only bought one of each thing. Unless those things be gloves an then I've a pair o' thingys. woops.... :)

The Duchess

I think, an Broadside can correct me otherwise, that the hat is an Excalibur Leather hat.

Flying is fun but I always prefered helo's flying a terrain map.

No way. There is nothing in the world like rolling oily side up at four thousand feet AGL.

The Duchess

:) Hey no worries it might just be a slow day....

I flew an airplane built at the end of the war yesterday. Not in honor of anything but the love of being airborn....

The Duchess

Depends on how small the hat is. Several inches? No way in hell. Does it fit on your head but pinches or hurts. Stretching will solve all that. The best thing to do would be head (ha!) to the hat store, explain how it currently fits, and how you would like it to fit. The hat store hat experts will tell you if it is possible.

The Duchess

Nah, I don't be needin' it several inches increased -- it fits on my head rightly enough, it just pinches and leaves me with a vague headache-y feeling after awhile. So I really do just need it _stretched_ more than anythin'.

So I think I will be headin' over to a hatter place sometime next week -- thanks muchly for the advice!

Aye ye be welcome.

Depends on how small the hat is. Several inches? No way in hell. Does it fit on your head but pinches or hurts. Stretching will solve all that. The best thing to do would be head (ha!) to the hat store, explain how it currently fits, and how you would like it to fit. The hat store hat experts will tell you if it is possible.

The Duchess

CheeChee, I love yer Cthulhian avatar!

thank you! i am a big fan of glass art, and he is a supurb glass artist. my avatar is a photo from the Atlantis Hotel & Casino at Paradise Island in the Bahamas. a wonderful place

Dale Cthulhian rocks.

i don't think he is a pirate.

I don't know if you can call Chihuly an artist. More a designer. He hasn't actually made any (or any part) of his sculptures in many years. He just designs them and his team of assistants blows, shapes and constructs. But we never hear about them....

The Duchess

I'm the Mad Mangler!

The Duchess

The grey material you see looks like interfacing of some sort, or maybe the reverse side of the material they used to make the hat. If I were you, I'd go eBaying for a more accurate hat, but I'm warning that now tha' it's Halloween, they'll be amazing in price.

Captain Wolfy Wench

I tried on one of these hats, that infamous "grey material" is leather. It is the fuzzier reverse side of the smooth leather used to make the outside of the hat. When the brim is turned up you reveal that side. It isn't inaccurate or unattractive.

The Duchess

Pirates? Civilzed?

hmm me thinks this is not so much "interactive" as it is a bunch of people saying the movie lines along with the movie. (With a few exceptions) not quite as good as Rocky.

Just for the record when buying from Excalibur Leather the price is definately worth what you get. I bought a leather hat from them seven years ago, wear it alot. The leather aged well and all the stitching and sealing is still great. They even were willing to switch the hat for me a year after I bought it because my hair grew enough not to fit under the original.

The Duchess

I think I said this before on another thread about hats... But on the practical aspect of a cavalier hat. If you're not going to do any musket shooting,but you are going to be wearing this hat for many long hours out in the sun... You might want to go with a cavalier that isn't pinned up at all.

The Duchess

We just had the last weekend of the Minnesota Renaissance Festival (I've worked out there for eight years or so) and this year there where at least four new characters (people who work there) as pirate captains. One dressed as Legolas. And all the leather workers were selling tricorns, that used to be special order only. How's that for movie influence.

Also peoples of the middle east, or more generally from areas comprising the Ottoman Empire of old, very commonly wore their money. This offered up a convient way to carry it with you as well as display it.

Thanks for the destination advice, unfortunately I didn't make it there.

I'm back from my trip now, and the whole thing was amazing. Unfortunately the weather was so poor east and south, I spent most of the time flying just below the clouds and just above the ground. I finally ended up in Wyoming where it was much more dry.

The Duchess

6'2"? Wow! What a pirate!

So, I suppose you have the same arm and leg length problems that I have....

Arrgh! And findin britches long enough is like scraping off barnacles with a feather!

FOR NORMAL CLOTHES...other than pirate gear--

And, I know that every now and then, you have to wash yer pirate gear and live in what others like to call "the real world," so here's a tip for tall gals...

Levi's has a new line of jeans out called Nouveau. They come in long lengths! Low rise (but not plumber pants) and boot cut (not bellbottom).

Yay! I love this new style! All the "average" sized folks wear their jeans too long! This means all of us taller gals can have a good chance at finding pants that actually fit long enough to cover our socks! Woo hoo!

IMPORTANT PIRATE NOTE: An average-sized pirate can kick your butt. A tall pirate can kick you in the head.

Capt. WE Roberts

Aye, being a bit tall me self, I finally went to the Chicago Levi's store and tried out the Original Spin program. They measure you up, then you pick exactly the way you want your pants to fit, inseam, leg opening, material, fly, pockets etc. And mysteriously two weeks later the perfect pants show up on the doorstep. A truly inspired program.