My Laurel Scroll by Lady Godaeth and Lady Aeffe Based on a 16th c. Flemish Manuscript

When I was placed on vigil to join the Order of the Laurel, I thought carefully about who I would ask to make this important scroll. I am fortunate to know many, many talented and well-recognized scribes. After some deliberation, I decided to start off as I intend to go on in my career as a Laurel, during which time… (more…)

Stickelchen Cap (Worn by Anne of Cleves and other North Rhine Women in the 16th Century)

The cap is a “Stickelchen.” We get this name from Albrecht Durer, who labeled one of his drawings with it. Also,  the inventories of the area around Cologne (in North Rhine-Westphalia) list them by this name. The Stickelchen appears to be made of several layers, as follows: A forehead cloth. This is likely a wide band of silk that wraps around… (more…)

On the Vigil Table: German Treats by Hannah Schrieber, Ilse Strauss, Uillec MacLamont, Helena Sibylla, and Alexander von Lübeck

At my vigil* this weekend, we were all treated to a table full of delicious German foods prepared by my good friends Hannah, Ilse, Uillec, Helena, and Katherine. It was such a delightful culinary experience that I feel it deserves a post all of its own. And perhaps this will inspire those of you to laden your own table with Germanic… (more…)

Drawn Thead Work: The Hemstitch (Tutorial)

Drawn thread work likely began in the 16th century and was popular in Italy, Germany, Sweden, and England. I discovered it while researching pleated aprons and I theorize that some German aprons utilized drawn thread techniques based on imagery. Drawn thread work can be seen in a simple form on the 1567 Nils Sture shirt (in the Cathedral Museum) and… (more…)

Pleatwork Guide: The Gather Method of Creating Pleats

[This is section 1.3 of my Pleatwork Guide. See the Introduction (Main Page) or the Table of Contents to learn more.] The gather method of creating pleats involves sewing evenly-spaced running stitches in parallel lines to one another and then pulling the threads to gather the material into folds. This method is generally accepted as the most likely method of… (more…)

Pleatwork Guide: The Press Method of Creating Pleats

In addition to folding pleats into fabric, you can also press them in using a variety of techniques. No manual from the 15th or 16th centuries is known to exist that explains the press folding method of creating pleats, so it is unclear if the sempstresses of this era would have employed such a method to pleat their cloth. However,… (more…)

Pleatwork Guide: The Fold Method of Creating Pleats

Material can be pleated in a variety of ways. The most basic method, and likely the very first method our ancestors ever employed, is to simply fold the material. Let’s look at the research and the actual practice of pleating material using the Fold Method. Research: Some undergarments were pleated with the fold method, which involves doubling the material upon… (more…)

Pleatwork in the 15th and 16th Centuries: An Introduction to Pleatwork (m.k.a. Smocking)

Preface: I’ve been studying pleatwork (known modernly as smocking) for several years now. In 2014 I wrote a research paper called “Techniques of 15th and 16th Century Pleated Undergarments” which discussed the nature of pleatwork and the various stitches that create and secure it. I didn’t put the paper online, however — instead, I fussed over it. Well, it’s time… (more…)

Making and Wearing a Steuchlein with a Wulsthaube and Schleier (German Bulge Hat and Veil)

The steuchlein is quintessential headwear for 16th c. German women of virtually all classes. You see steuchlein on Landsknecht trossfrau, farmer’s wives, and burger’s wives—in other words, married German women. I am wearing a steuchlein in the image on the right. A steuchlein is composed of four parts: Umbinderlein – linen strip at hairline Unterhauben – linen undercap Wulst – round… (more…)

German Split-Brim Beret Hat Tutorial

One of the iconic German hats seen in paintings and woodcuts is an oversized, brimmed hat with cuts/overlaps in the fold of the brim. They appear frequently in Cranach paintings, for example. To my knowledge this hat has no name, so I’m naming it the German Split-Brim Beret! Knitted versions of this hat, or ones very like it, appear in… (more…)