Is yer pirate garb ever really complete???

[Bloody Charity Kidd]

I dont think so - I have been working on my garb for over a year now. And it just keeps evolving - what do you think?

[Bloody_Mary_Bonney]

It be damned accesories that i be after now but even that never ends and then last night i was going to scrap me old dress and get a new one but me ma stoped me and said that i cant be throwin out a good dress till may when i bought the last one. In many ways she be wise for a land lover.

[Redd Oktober]

Monetary issues seems ter be one o' me great quibbles....I'm happy with wot I got as far as summer gear goes...need ter sew me up a winter coat, though.

[Bloody_Mary_Bonney]

I know how that is may ye get that coat and then some

[Bloody Charity Kidd]

AYE!

I'll be needin' me winter coat next.

I have the wench dress(s) - more than I need.

But now I'll be after a proper set o' breeches , shirt and coat!

Oh- and boots as soon as I can find a pair thats suitable...

[Rumba Rue]

One can never have enough garb!

Half of my closet is costume stuff and I'm always making more! That is especially true as I get older and find that tight bodices don't feel so good anymore and I don't feel like I have to show off my boobs as much (Hey, I got 'em trust me) to the opposite sex.

Rumba Rue

**When Boo, isn't enough!**

[Bloody Charity Kidd]

I also find that I abhor regular clothes!

I'd rather buy garb and bellydance clothes.

I hate "business hours"

heh heh heh

[Bloody_Mary_Bonney]

My ma just caught me lookin at another dress lol she started causing a fuss i mean 3 dresses are not enough especially when this one's a steal!

[Bloody Charity Kidd]

I mean - we are allowed to have more than one set o' duds aren't we?

["Broadside" Long]

A true pyrate can never have enough plunder (rum, weapons, garb, etc.) and I'm no exception.

I look fer garb that'll work in a number of different scenarios and time periods that way I don't hafta buy new stuff if I wanna be a cavalier, Scot, or whatever.

Also, taught meself how to sew and that cuts down on costs considerably, that way I can save me money fer the expensive stuff that I haven't figured out how to make yet like weapons and boots.

Cheers,

Broadside, his mark

[Bloody_Mary_Bonney]

try to explain to me mum that 3 dresses are not enough and shes not buyin it *sniff* i want a new dress!

[Bloody_Mary_Bonney]

i won i won i got the new dress

[HarborMaster]

Is yer pirate garb ever really complete???, Will it ever end?

No it is not . No it will not.

The online purchases.,the shopping for just the right buttons and sending them to your online seamstress.,the saving for those additional pieces to pick up at the faires Will Continue. The Facination with piracy will grow. the Swashbuckler boots.,hats and weapons frocks., sashes.,rapier bels and baldrics.,will come from more and more vendors..,until the general public gets the idea of what exactly fashion is..., And it will go on.,an on..,an on.........., Lest it be time for a flogging in front of all the townspeople.........,And the Beatings will Continue Until Fashion Changes!!!

Amen ta that !

HarborMaster

[Pynch]

Oh lord...no. Never. Ever.

I'm a scavenger of sorts...I can sew a proper seam, but I'm lacking in the time to do so, so I haunt second hand stores, auctions, antiques markets and yard sales to satifsy my inner garb whore. Not every piece is always historically accurate, but it's close enough to create a pretty convincing illusion and save a few coins as well.

My latest acquisition was a second hand sale of an a lambskin "Underworld" style black corset with lots of nice, shiney buckles paired with two silk gypsyesque skirts, acquired at an incredible markdown from Urban Outfitters and a nice, old gauzy blousy shift bought on ebay for less than $10. Fix it up with stockings, my trusty bucket boots and a few odds and ends collected through the years and Voila!, new garb!

True, I'd love to invest in a tailored coat, bodice and nice frilly chemise, but in the meantime, I'll have to satisfy my hunger for more by rag pickin'.

[Katerine_La_Rose_Noire]

I've only just begun and the answer seems to be no. I thought it would be just the skirt/blouse/cincher this year.....last night I ordered a hat and boots **whistles innocently** Most recently I decided I would be freezin me pirate lass buxomness off if I didn't obtain a cloak by the end of the month........I need to do more of what Pynch does and hit the second hand.

[Toe Cutter]

I been workin on mine for, gosh atleast 15 years. Don't think it'll ever be done. But it don't help that I want ta be able to go Middle ages, Renaissance, or Pirate just as quick. So allotin money towards each is hard. But I do make me own chain-mail so that helps.

Who know ,by tha time I'm old an die I may have my gear complete.

[Bloody_Mary_Bonney]

Well i got a shoping list for me next fair

1. a tail (lost mine *snif*)

2. a bottle and holder to go on me belt (not sure if i be needing this)

3. A new hat! (tricorn or bust)

4. A man!

Then i think a break is in order.

[hurricane]

It's a never ending battle - I have a whole closet dedicated to pirate clothing, weapons, boots and hats. There's always something that will catch my fancy that I just have to have. Different outfits for different adventures... party pirate clothes that are comfortable... festival clothes that are more upscale, me captain'in togs... and various accessories.

Plus I've thrown all of it away at least twice in me piratin' life as me personality has changed over the years. Gone from more crewe level apparel to more upper crust stuff - - plus I've gone more for the collectible stuff from movies rather than the run of the mill stuff (can't wait to see how many Jack Sparrows show up to Pirates in Paradise this year). Would rather choose unique things that fit me...

So, open up the pocketbook and have lots of coin ready. All told over the years I'd say I'd blown $2500 to $3500 on piratin' wear.

[Bloody Charity Kidd]

Aye - Tis the same for me - I'll never be done.

[Captian Wolfy Wench]

No, of course not! Even for "costumes," like replications of PotC costumes, I don't think they can ever be complete, unless you buy the actual costume used in the movie.

I remarked about this to someone about costume replication... it's always a work-in-progress... you can always find something better than what you are using now!'

I think our own pyratical garb is also never complete. Not only that, it's evolving all the time, and changing, so there is no way it can ever be "done." I saw an amazing pyrate captain last year at Comic-con and he told me he'd been working on his costume for a few years. It's been over a year now, and mine is nowhere near looking as cool as anyone else's!

Over time, I think the garb will look more authentic. :)

Deviana

[Bloody Charity Kidd]

I am having a hard time finding elements I desire...and am sick of e-bay.

Wish there was a local "garb" store - LOL

[blackjohn]

Heck no. And I don't that will ever be. First, there's the continual need to strive for authenticity. For instance, my shoes are wrong. They are RevWar shoes. So someday I really do need to replace them. Then there's my coat, which is really nice, but it was designed just as a "mock-up." It worked so well that I just decided to stay with it until I had to make another. In fact, I can't even say I'm fine tuning my pirate kit, because I feel like I haven't even finish tuning it yet.

To make matters worse, there are other time periods!!! And some of those are really easy (and fun) to do. I toyed around with WWII 15th (Scottish) Recce for awhile. Talk about easy kit... for a couple hundred bucks I was able to get repro denims and authentic surplus British web gear! And for fun, how about driving around in a Bren gun carrier while shooting at Gerry while WWII vintage airplanes flew overhead.

One last thing about pirates, my ambition is to someday have two distinct sets of pirate kit, one for 1670-80 and one for 1715-25. Wish me luck!

Blackjohn

[Duchess]

I really have three sets of clothes. Tribal Belly Dance and pirate/amazon gear and modern.

The over all look of the first two hasn't changed in nearly 10 years. There are still people at MNRF that know who I am because of the clothes I wear. I do change out shirts, skirts, pants as they wear out. I bought a new pair of boots when the first ones died. I add or subtract extras, such as mugs, knives, scarves, flasks or jewerly. But the whole is still the same.

I like the idea of owning well made things that can be worn day after day. So much so that the clothes become a part of a persons identity. It is one of the things that bothers me about modern clothes. They are trash. Junk meant to be worn a few months and discarded. There was no time invested in their construction, no love in their decoration. Just a state of pre-garbage. When I can I purchase custom made items, knowing that if it is just right for me I will most likely wear it for the rest of my life.

When I sew I do not make costumes, I make clothes. Things well sewn and made to last. Things I could comfortably wear and mend, things worth fixing when they tear. To that end I do not own multiple "costumes" or dresses or outfits, just one set of clothes.

The Duchess

[Toe Cutter]

Interesting, reading through various posts in the diferent forums I have noticed that different people call their pirate gear by different terms:

Garb-1. clothing. 2. a particular way of dressing.

Kit-1. a set of articles used for a particular purpose<survival kit>. 2. a set of parts to be assembled

Costume-1. clothes typical of one country or period. 2. a set of clothes appropriate for a particular season or occasion. 3. clothes worn by one playing a part or dressing up in disguise.

Gear-term no. 3 - equipment.

All according to websters.

I always refer to mine as Garb or Gear, though really it should be garb and gear(my clothes and swords and such).

I wonder if it means anything? The same people tend to use the same terms.

Maybe I just have too much spare time to think of this kind of stuff?

:)

[Bilgemunky]

I don't know what the rest of ya lark are yappin' about, but of course yer garb can be complete!

Why, it wasn't but a month ago that I was looking through the eastern wing of me home - the wing that I've specifically set aside for storing pirate garb. I was in the frock-coat room trying to decide between wool, velvet, or brocade - needed to look me best as the Mrs. and I were planning a trip to Sears. I decided on velvet, as it's getting cooler out, in a nice rusty redish-brown. I considered wearing the green, but that's really more of a Christmas or Spring color.

Next, it was time to choose a hat. I had the cabin-boy and monkey butlers take turns parading them around for me until one of me favorite plumed numbers turned up, complete with gold edging and a genuine voodoo juju bag hidden in the brim.

After spending an hour or so selecting the remainder of my costume (silk ruffle shirt, I decided, complimented by fallfront breeches and black french toe boots - I'd considered the cuban heel, but it just didn't feel right that day, so I went with the block.) And then it was off to the armory to select a sword...

... So you see? It's entirely possible to complete your pirate garb!