CrazyCholeBlack

as someone who wears a neckerchief in all their period clothes I can heartily agree that they are most useful. Silk is best in the hottest temps. Linen good for most year round use (try getting it wet and wearing it that way if you get warm). Light weight wool or my newest find wool/silk blend (not pc but loverly!) is fantastic for keeping comfy when the temps start to dip. And don't feel relegated to just black or white either. The neckerchief is the fastest, cheapest way to add a shot of color to your wardrobe (says the lady with green hands from dying herself a new earlier today)

What are you wondering Rats? Captain & Jay went out bright and early Sunday morning to rescue the Pirata. She was taking on water thanks to waves breaking right behind her (not 10 feet either direction, just right behind her!). He got on board but before getting a good hold Pirata was hit by another wave. Captain was tossed from one side to the other, hit the rail (breaking a rib and cracking an other) but managed to catch the edge and not hit the water. Thankfully they managed to get she safely into the docks while Mssr. William and Lt Garland caught and hauled in Tantrum, which had broken free from where they had secured her to the Pirata after boarding. All this before 8am. No wonder we consume so much coffee! As far as I know Captain is recovering well and should be up to many of his usual tricks come Kohkohmah.

Well I searched in hopes that there was already a thread but all I can find is boots vs. shoe debate. I don't need that. I've got a custom costume that I'm working on for some friends. Very Hollywood pirate look but high quality materials etc. They are looking for boots and want some recommendations. I naturally said I'd ask those that know (since I'm more in the know about shoes). So, those that know about these boot things... Where are the good places to find good quality Men's pirate styled boots? I'd like a range of prices but obviously since the total costume is costing in the high hundreds, some higher line boots aren't completely out of the question. Thanks in advance (now lets never speak of me asking this again. I don't want to loose my Captain Twill access! )

spotted dick is a staple at our camp. Make it during Saturday and enjoy it cold with maple syrup for Sunday breakfast with a cup of hot coffee on the side. cut butter into flour & baking powder. add sugar. add water to make dough. kneed in raisins. roll into a log. wrap in cheesecloth/flour sack towel and tie the ends. Steam in a dutch oven until firm. keep an eye on the pot so that the water doesn't run out and burn the dick to the bottom of the pot.

I might be interested but with 8 events between now December, time is pretty tight. Still it's always nice to meet more people interested in reenacting.

I'd disagree, in that if you don't have the proper clothing, you can't turn out at an event. And... given that people more often are looking at your face, and not your feet, you are probably better served getting a hat before shoes. But I will concede your point about terrain... ouch. I think it's a difference of opinion here Blackjohn I'm a huge proponent of borrowing. Heck, this past weekend half of my women's clothes were loaned out while I borrowed men's clothes from someone else. The one par that didn't change, shoes & stockings. I don't think anyone who's going to their first (couple of) events should have to have all their own clothes. Get started by borrowing and build your wardrobe slowly. Doing it slowly allows you to spread the cost out and get good deals on fabric (or find things 2nd hand). It also allows you to avoid mistakes like using the wrong material or pattern or just plan making the wrong era of garment for your persona.

isn't the GAoP 1690-1725? 1687-1690 = 3 years 1725-1730 = 5 years total extra years outside of the GAoP = 8 sounds like a pretty narrow range to me. Especially when you consider that the same other basic pieces (skirts, shift, stays, and to some extent shoes) could be worn convincingly for the entirety of the 17th & 18th centuries, well over 200 years.

However, if you examine Laroon's Cries of London, the majority of the women have CLOSED fronted mantuas. I can only think of one or two off the top of my head that are open fronted. However, reenactors tend to like the open fronted style because you can wear a stomacher with it and get more "outfits". However, for someone getting started, closed front would be better becuase it hides lack of or imperfect stays. The number one item any reenactor should have is shoes. The chances of someone else having a spare pair and in your size is so slim. They don't have to be perfect, altered desert boots, leather mules, generic buckle shoes, wooden klompen all fit the bill. Don't ever count on being able to go barefoot (some sites have terrible ground!) number 2 for women is stays for the same reason as shoes. However, well fitted stays are expensive (in either time or money). Now, here's my biggest secret, corrugated cardboard. For fitting stays it's advised to make the pattern out of cardboard, with the ribs running the same direction as the bones. Duct tape all the seams and double layer the opening. Use a hole punch to make the lacing holes and lace the cardboard mock up on. In a real pinch, this mock up can be worn for a weekend event (as an under layer of course). It also gives you a good idea where the pattern needs modifications for comfort. For a free pattern try here. Add tabs and straps and you've got yourself a workable set of stays. http://www.elizabethancostume.net/custompat/ cap, skirts & shift would be next but in a group with other women there are almost always enough extras to go around. stockings, there is no excuse not to have. At just about every event there is someone with stockings for sale. Grab a $5 pair and you're good to go. mantua is nice but not mandatory for getting started. Also it only works for the narrow range of GAOP. In a rush you could probably get away with a longer mantua de lit or any of the later period bed gowns/undress wear jackets. Again an easy item to borrow or make on short notice (Beth Gilgun's book Tidings from the 18th century has free patterns) A generic straw hat & basket for your stuff you can live without but are easy and cheap enough to find and really do come in handy. the only other non-clothing piece that I recommend is a big old wool blanket (an army blanket without the US works great). If it's cold or wet, you'll have a cloak. If it's hot, a place to lay in the shade. Highly useful, completely underrated. Hope that helps!

In my experience the latchest aren't always enough to keep the tongue in place on modified desert boots. I made my friend a pair several months ago (he's worn them at 4 events) and the tongue had to be secured to stay in the center and not fold out the inside opening. I believe the leather is just too soft to stay in place with the boot missing half it's lacing. IMO it's better to secure the tongue than to have it come out of place in the middle of an event and have to do emergency repairs. Better safe than sorry after all. Jill- try e-bay for desert boots. Clark's makes them. You might also have good luck at resale shops, but that depends on your shoe size.

it's actually something I posted. The previously posted link Regiment of Foote link is where to find the information & instructions on modifying a desert boot to a latchet shoe. Latchet shoes are very common in the ECW era and for poorer impressions up until about 1700. If you're doing later era, make the side openings smaller, as they tended to shrink as the years went on until we had closed shoes. Also, depending you might have trouble with the tongue folding under/into the side openings. In that case, try making a little loop of thread in the center of the tongue and running the laces through the loop before going through the lacing holes (clear as mud?) In regards to lacing, it depends on the impression and the gender. Women can have their shoes laced in just about every era. Silk ribbon is especially nice. Leather thong is good for men or poorer impressions, but a bit of lucet made cord works just as well and is a good use for scrap thread. To lace you can either fold each strap under, stitch in place & run your lacing through the loops on either side (this is how Fugawee tells you to lace to "break them in) or you can lay the straps as you would for buckles and punch two holes through each layer then lace through the holes in a U shape. Hope that helps!

Many thanks to Both Nathan & Jen for such a great event. The killer drive was well worth it. I learned two positions on the cannon, participated in both battles, got to fire the Lt.'s gun, sang some songs at the tavern and even managed to play a few rounds of the Pastime of Memory. The Saturday Invasion The Pirata de Lago changes her colors! Defending our position from the invading pirates The Otter sinks and the "town" falls to the pirates Pirate Bowling Darn, gutterball! Captain McCrary, Master Gunner Phil & myself doing a cannon demo (the camera settings were a little off ) The River Pirates make themselves at home at Widow Black's Coffeehouse. I'm sure there will be more to share once everyone else has their film developed. I had a great time & can't wait until next year!

Ahh yes, quite the event as always. The Great Lakes River Pirates were there in force, along with 3 of our ship. Between an attempted canoe theft, the storm, the near flooding of the pirate city and Captain Brian's injuries there was never a dull moment. It even made the front page of the local news today with an inside article in the Sunday edition. http://www.kenoshanews.com/ The news also has a gallery including great shots of our cannon crew, manning the Tanturm to row out to the Pirata de Lago and the ship's under sail. http://www.kenoshanews.com/web_extra/index...alleryId=788209 My personal favorite is the series with the ships in the background as they make their valiant escape. I also found these shots of the crew hauling in II on Sunday & the girls playing in "quick sand" http://www.flickr.com/photos/8500952@N05/page4/ After hours Saturday night Widow Black's coffeehouse in pirate city hosted a music fest with Three Pints Gone & Brigands Foley . Where else could two mandolins, two guitars, a violin, a cello, bodhran and spoons play together with countless singers. Sadly I was so busy most of the weekend, cooking (spotted dick was a hit) and talking to visitors about everything from sewing to coffee history to children's toys to women's issues in the 18th century that I hardly got out of camp. Of course I wouldn't have it any other way! Here's to next year!

I like the way you deal with the pocket on those Mr. Hand. Simple, but has a nice bit of flair on a very utilitarian garment. Plus if you scroll through the thread really quickly, it's like watching a time lapse of them coming together.

In a word, yes Fiction wise I'm reading The Princess Bride by William Goldman & The Unicorn Secret Trilogy by Kathleen Dury, out loud to the little swab. Non-fiction wise I'm reading The Coffeehouse, a cultural history by Markham Ellis, The Social Life of Cofee by Brian Cowan & Food of the Gods: A Cultural History of the Medicinal and Ritual Use of Chocolate from The American Society for Nutritional Sciences. Not to mention a friend of mine at the college just got me access to the JSTOR archives. I don't even know where to begin there! I might have to stop sleeping all together if I want to even make a dent in this "to read" list. It's no wonder I have to take notes to remember anything, I'm usually reading so much at once.

just finished an entire bag of Flat Earth Baked Fruit Crisps, apple cinnamon flavor. Evilly good little things!

OK then, I'll start. #1 100% Blue silk dupioni with light gold warp 2 yards x 60" medium weight upholstery fabric with a consistent texture. This is NOT an iridescent silk, but definitely has an under tone of the gold. Because of technological differences, the color in this photo may not be an accurate depiction of the fabric color. ASKING: $20 plus shipping ~PENDING~#2 100% forest green silk dupioni~PENDING~ 3 yards x 60" medium to heavy weight silk in a gorgeous deep green. Has some "stubs" in the texture but still maintains a fairly even texture. Because of technological differences, the color in this photo may not be an accurate depiction of the fabric color. ASKING: $30 plus shipping I accept all forms of Paypal. Please PM or e-mail me for shipping estimate and Paypal address. Priority Flat Rate boxes start at $8.95, although I might be able to cram these into envelopes for as little as $4.60 Willing to trade for: 2 yards 100% black wool flannel, medium weight 4 yards 100% white linen, 3.5oz or lighter, handkerchief weight 1 yard 100% wool, 3.5 oz weight in any color

so here are my random thoughts... *IF* someone had a tattoo during the GAoP, how likely would it have been to be visible? Clothing during the time was very covered. A man was considered naked in his shirt, a garment that would still cover enough of the body that even most modern tattoos would be unseen. In the non-English cultures of the time that we know to have tattooing, what is the common placement on the body? Were those only seen because their clothing was less covered than English styles of the time?

I had an 18th century dinner with friends tonight that consisted of chicken and sausage gumbo over rice, 'sallet', beets, beer and the best part (besides the company) syllabub for desert!

Kass, that's sort of along the lines of what I've been thinking recently. Every group has standards, every individual has standards. So long as the individuals standards match or exceed the groups there won't be a problem. After all, it's always better to be over dressed than under dressed. I also think there is a certain amount of responsibility in a historic group for the "old timers" to help the "new comers" get up to speed, sharing with them the ways to be historically correct and the ways to cheat that no one will notice. For example, the #1 suggestion with kids clothes are plain black, lace up shoes and black stockings, since they grow so fast & period children's shoes are expensive. Yet the black & black set up is invisible to the general public. At the same time, for adults; buy the shoes (& for women the stays) first since those are the two pieces that must fit well to be comfortable and are the least likely for someone in a group to have in your exact size for you to borrow. For some reason though, no one ever tells others that!

hey look, I made "Scourge of the 7 seas." Kind of too bad though, I found a lot of irony in being a dread pirate with actual dreads.

taking a break from moving the 16 yards of wood chips I got yesterday to research the history of butter molds while I wait for my friend to get off of work so we can go out.

soba noodles with sauteed zucchini and lemon with a side of green salad and poppy seed dressing. My friends brought beer and chocolates for dessert.

yeah but some of us like to procrastinate & don't get to sewing the button holes within 48 hours of marking them!

here's an article on buttonhole size & placement. I think knowing where to put them and how big to make them was as intimidating as sewing them. This is geared for machine sewing, but the math is still valid. Scroll down a bit to "buttonhole placement" and be sure to check out the other pages for info on buttonhole length and button measuring. http://sewing.about.com/library/sewnews/li...aatech0703a.htm I always use water soluble marking pen for marking button holes. I've had trouble with chalk rubbing off in the handling when working, but never the pen. Just a mist of water (or a little spit on the finger ) and it's like it was never there.

sitting with my feet up, in a clean house, with a tall glass of iced tea waiting for my friend to arrive. Ahh, it's so quiet I can hear the birds singing outside and the cats scratching at the door trying to get out and get them