Anyone making anything fun lately?

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Elleth
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Anyone making anything fun lately?

Post by Elleth »

The last half-year or so my purse has been pretty darned tight, so I've been entertaining myself in the evenings pulling old fabric out of the "someday" pile and turning it into new toys. Lately I've gone back to my 18th c. roots a bit, and started stitching up a "library" of old-timey forest bags. (Bags are nice for sewing in the evening since I can do them while mentally exhausted - unlike clothes the materials are comparatively cheap and there's usually nothing really complicated enough to get wrong :mrgreen: ).

Here I've got a market wallet / small bed-tick / browse bag, the body of "New Invented" haversack like I've always wanted to play with, a mostly-finished snapsack (Iodo might recognize the canvas!), and the beginnings of a longhunter style haversack-turned-knapsack. That last is going to be a bit odd, as I'd not a good weight of linen for it. So (homestead improvisation fashion) I'm using a fairly light garment-weight, then lining it with some ticking I had. It won't do for hauling rocks or anything, but should be fine as a daybag.

Most of the unfinished stuff is headed for the walnut dunking pot, some are getting a bit of waxing - then all to be set aside until I've the pennies for some leather strapping. Hopefully I get to play with it all before the heat and bugs of next summer really get bad.

What about you guys? Doing anything fun?
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Iodo
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Re: Anyone making anything fun lately?

Post by Iodo »

Those look very nice Elleth :P

I have done a few small projects lately, including some traditional arrows but I haven't yet finished the full set, and I do have some forum posts planned, the other thing I made over Christmas is the ruana style cloak in the photo's I have just uploaded to the adventure pictures thread
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Re: Anyone making anything fun lately?

Post by Eofor »

It's summer here so we're on our annual break (it gets too hot to do anything fun)

Cleaning up and painting our canoe, building a table for medieval faire displays, hafting new spearheads all that sort of stuff is going on.
Lots of long awaited new gear arriving for the re-enactment season too which always fun.
But the white fury of the Northmen burned the hotter, and more skilled was their knighthood with long spears and bitter. Fewer were they but they clove through the Southrons like a fire-bolt in a forest.
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Elleth
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Re: Anyone making anything fun lately?

Post by Elleth »

Iodo - ah! I'd missed that ruana!

... I've been playing with the idea a little. I don't have final thoughts yet, but there's absolutely something there.

Also, I'm starting to think (much like with the back vs. waist quiver debate) that material makes perhaps more difference than cut when it comes to a proper cloak. Not that I've a good answer yet - but this summer I intend to really start playing with lanolin greasing and see what I can learn.

Eofor - neat!
Anything you can share in pictures?

I totally need to get some snowshoes one of these days so I can get out over the winter when the snow's deep. Lately here it's been all impassible slush - not that I've had the time to get out anyhow the last few weeks.
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Re: Anyone making anything fun lately?

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Elleth wrote: Tue Jan 04, 2022 1:01 pm Iodo - ah! I'd missed that ruana!
... I've been playing with the idea a little. I don't have final thoughts yet, but there's absolutely something there.

I agree, the ruana cloak is actually something I had never tried before, have you seen this by Living Anachronism?

https://youtu.be/ZfaPo-zFZz8?t=879

at first I was a bit skeptical because when he says it can be worn with a backpack I thought it looked like one of those "you can, it's technically possible" things, and not one of those "works perfectly" things, because I thought the rucked up fabric would make it uncomfortable and hard to move, and how wrong I was :mrgreen:

I decided that because I own at least one of every other type of cloak he talks about, and have never even tried a ruana, that I should give it a go. So I dug out some fabric from my cupboard (it's actually from the same piece I used for this: viewtopic.php?p=49824#p49824). I did quite a lot of experimentation regarding dimensions with scrap fabric, and what I found was that the backpack/quiver strap thing only works if the width of the front strips is small enough not to reach more than 2-4'' past your elbows with your arms out to the side:

whereas most commercial ruana's are so wide they reach your hands (example: https://www.etsy.com/listing/644055231/ ... cape-cloak), with a cloak as wide as that it is impossible to wear a backpack/quiver strap comfortably. Also the front should be at-least 6" longer than the back or it has a tendency to slip backwards

if you follow those rules with your dimensions it is actually perfectly comfortable to use with straps, backpacks etc... (I think I should do a more detailed post on this)
Elleth wrote: Tue Jan 04, 2022 1:01 pm Also, I'm starting to think (much like with the back vs. waist quiver debate) that material makes perhaps more difference than cut when it comes to a proper cloak. Not that I've a good answer yet - but this summer I intend to really start playing with lanolin greasing and see what I can learn.

I at-least partly agree with that :P I have learned that a good pattern certainly helps (remembering terrible half-circle cosplay cloaks that need adjusting constantly and by the end of one single day at a comic-con they have ended up stuffed in a bag because they are sooooo annoying) but striking the perfect balance between light enough not to weigh you down, heavy enough not to blow in the wind, dense enough to keep out the weather, flexible enough to hang comfortably, durable enough to last well etc... is the key to a good cloak, and I don't think I have got there yet...
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Elleth
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Re: Anyone making anything fun lately?

Post by Elleth »

Iodo wrote: Tue Jan 04, 2022 8:09 pm I agree, the ruana cloak is actually something I had never tried before, have you seen this by Living Anachronism?
https://youtu.be/ZfaPo-zFZz8?t=879
Yes, from the thread here. I can see why it's his most popular.
... I think the design element I was missing was the utility of the long tails in front. I'd been playing with a couple similar options - basically a watchcloak/paenula with a shorter front to free the hands and a longer back. I now realize cutting the front that short has too many tradeeoffs.

Gah. Test and learn, I suppose.

The question I'm currently working with on the ruana/paenula pattern: rounded off corners or flat bottom hem? I THINK it's going to end up as - thigh length can be (possibly should be) squared off, knee length might have to be rounded to keep tails from dragging, shin length should be avoided regardless. But that's TBD at least for my purposes.

I'm a bit biased as I've come to like the squared corner hems you see on a circle-pattern cloak as that matches the archetypal "medieval ranger" image better ... a rounded "paenula" hem now looks too Roman / modern to me, even if at a given length it might be more practical. I think I've got an answer, but it will take some experimenting to be certain.

Speaking of experimenting - the "how wide can it be and still work with straps over the back" is very helpful, thank you!

striking the perfect balance between light enough not to weigh you down, heavy enough not to blow in the wind, dense enough to keep out the weather, flexible enough to hang comfortably, durable enough to last well etc... is the key to a good cloak, and I don't think I have got there yet...
I'm thinking a comparatively thin, tight, medium-coase tweed might be where it's at. I like the "slick" water resistance of the alpine loden, but I think the slightly better grippiness of tweeds work very well with the upsides of the ruana pattern. How well that works once the greasing is done I've yet to figure out - likewise whether the greasing is worth the possible bug attractant issue Fandabi Dozi mentions:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_dojSfWQUeg&t=765s

For what it's worth, in the height of bug season I've walked up to our sheep herd and OMG the cloud of skeeters and black flies that gathers around them! I've never tried a lanolin-greased cloak, but I can absolutely imagine he could be right... which would be rather a disappointment.

Ursus, if you're reading this - I remember you mentioned greasing your cloak. Did you have bug problems?
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Re: Anyone making anything fun lately?

Post by Iodo »

Elleth wrote: Wed Jan 05, 2022 2:22 pm The question I'm currently working with on the ruana/paenula pattern: rounded off corners or flat bottom hem? I THINK it's going to end up as - thigh length can be (possibly should be) squared off, knee length might have to be rounded to keep tails from dragging, shin length should be avoided regardless. But that's TBD at least for my purposes.

I have wondered this too, Manveruon's ruana (viewtopic.php?p=50473#p50473) appears to have no visible corners, but I don't know if that is just because of the way he is wearing it?

Elleth wrote: Wed Jan 05, 2022 2:22 pm Speaking of experimenting - the "how wide can it be and still work with straps over the back" is very helpful, thank you!

No problem :P

Elleth wrote: Wed Jan 05, 2022 2:22 pm How well that works once the greasing is done I've yet to figure out - likewise whether the greasing is worth the possible bug attractant issue Fandabi Dozi mentions:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_dojSfWQUeg&t=765s

For what it's worth, in the height of bug season I've walked up to our sheep herd and OMG the cloud of skeeters and black flies that gathers around them! I've never tried a lanolin-greased cloak, but I can absolutely imagine he could be right... which would be rather a disappointment.

Ursus, if you're reading this - I remember you mentioned greasing your cloak. Did you have bug problems?

I watched his video a while ago, but because it's only tested between two different people and blood type can also make a huge difference to if someone has trouble with insects, and with his raw felting example cleg flies are also attracted to water, so it isn't a proven experiment unless he tried the treated kilt himself, maybe there is some truth to this theory, and then, maybe not?
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Elleth
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Re: Anyone making anything fun lately?

Post by Elleth »

I have wondered this too, Manveruon's ruana (viewtopic.php?p=50473#p50473) appears to have no visible corners, but I don't know if that is just because of the way he is wearing it?
Yes, his does I believe.

This is the distinction I was talking about - "ruana" left vs "paenula" right:
cloak-corners.jpg
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You'll note that if the Irish lass on the left drops her arms, the corners of her garment will dip pretty low - maybe even get caught in scraggly groundcover. The rounded hem on the Roman man's paenula won't do that. BUT it's got a pretty foreign look, at least to my eyes. The dragging issue might be avoided with a more subtle curve, with a shorter hem (I'm not partial to that for other reasons), or - as you've talked about with your pack - a narrower body. Though that can opens one's sides up a bit more to the weather, I presume.

Compromises, compromises.

In truth, while some of these distinctions aren't entirely trivial from a functionality standpoint, I think "great big piece of wool with a slit up the front and maybe a hood" is a near-universal for any culture with rain and wool-bearing livestock. Which culture's name for the things we happen to call them by is pretty much just luck of the draw I think.
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Re: Anyone making anything fun lately?

Post by Harper »

I have the one on the left and in that color (Silver Gray).

Unfortunately, the Irish lass did not come with it.

I also have it in a forest green.

It's made from alpaca and is very warm for its thickness.
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Re: Anyone making anything fun lately?

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Elleth wrote: Tue Jan 04, 2022 1:01 pm Eofor - neat!
Anything you can share in pictures?
Of course if such things are of interest. I normally keep them as content for our facebook page but I've been neglecting this forum a bit lately.

Image
New Anglo Saxon spearhead by Paul Binns, beautiful stacked wrought iron. I have hafted it on a shaft that I tapered down using a draw knife and then blackened over a small fire. There is scant evidence that this technique was used but it worked so well with the dappled forging on the socket that I went with it.
Spears are so hard to photograph!
Image

Image
Very nice new leg wraps in a golden honey shade by Liz Darbon

Image
A copy of St Cuthberts Gospel book and replica Sutton Hoo shoes by Torvalds leather workshop. Both the shoes and the wraps are for Beowulf performances and should stay nice and shiny!

Image
And a quick and easy table I knocked up in an hour on the weekend. Not to any period design though simple trestle tables were used in the period, it can be adjusted to different heights by moving the middle support.
But the white fury of the Northmen burned the hotter, and more skilled was their knighthood with long spears and bitter. Fewer were they but they clove through the Southrons like a fire-bolt in a forest.
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Re: Anyone making anything fun lately?

Post by Eofor »

Elleth wrote: Wed Jan 05, 2022 6:11 pm The rounded hem on the Roman man's paenula won't do that. BUT it's got a pretty foreign look, at least to my eyes.
That's a weird looking paenula. I have one that works really well and sits a lot more like a hooded cloak than a poncho.

Image
Image
Image
Image

Apologies for the last photo, no room to spread it out here in my study. Shoes are for scale. It's quite big enough to act as a blanket
But the white fury of the Northmen burned the hotter, and more skilled was their knighthood with long spears and bitter. Fewer were they but they clove through the Southrons like a fire-bolt in a forest.
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Elleth
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Re: Anyone making anything fun lately?

Post by Elleth »

Oh very nice!
Did you do all the binding and tooling for the gospel yourself? That looks exquisite!

Also - AH - PERFECT!!

That paenula/cloak/thing is exactly what I was looking for I think.

I'd guessed/hoped that tossing the front wings back left that silhouette, and I see in your photo that it does.

... I think I have my next pattern. :mrgreen:


(ps... your little present is in fact underway, but there's one piece I haven't figured out yet. It'll be shipping in the next few weeks - that is if can you get mail from USPS yet?)
Last edited by Elleth on Thu Jan 06, 2022 1:58 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Anyone making anything fun lately?

Post by Eofor »

Elleth wrote: Thu Jan 06, 2022 1:43 pm ... I think I have my next pattern. :mrgreen:
If you would like I can do full measurements and photos of the cloak including the hood or whatever you need in the morning?

Unfortunately it seems USPS are still not accepting deliveries to Australia. At least I have been unable to find updated advice that the situation has changed. It's all a bit silly.
But the white fury of the Northmen burned the hotter, and more skilled was their knighthood with long spears and bitter. Fewer were they but they clove through the Southrons like a fire-bolt in a forest.
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Re: Anyone making anything fun lately?

Post by Elleth »

I would enjoy details and measurements, yes please!

... is that a half circle with a hood stiched on then? Or a great big circle/oval with a slit up the center?

I was thinking about doing eyelets and lucet-cord points at the neck as well: did you just stitch down the leather ties there, or is something fancier going on?
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Re: Anyone making anything fun lately?

Post by caedmon »

Eofor wrote: Thu Jan 06, 2022 12:59 pm
Image
A copy of St Cuthberts Gospel book and replica Sutton Hoo shoes by Torvalds leather workshop. Both the shoes and the wraps are for Beowulf performances and should stay nice and shiny!

Where'd you get that?!? Is it a facsimile?
-Jack Horner

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