Wool leg wrap's the easy way

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Iodo
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Wool leg wrap's the easy way

Post by Iodo »

A while ago I saw this post by Cimrandir and I said I would make some, it took a little more experimentation than I originally expected to get it to work right, but I did and here's what I ended up with:

Image

At first I used the string method of fastening but that had a habit of getting to tight to easily untie, so I switched to wide linen ties that I sewed on with a short tail on one side to make them quicker to fasten, they would probably benefit from being a darker color so I might change them. I also ended up cutting the wool rectangles a bit shorter than I originally made them because I had too many layers at my ankle to comfortably bunch up the fabric

Image

Once I worked out the dimensions making these was seriously easy, they seem to work best with the width of the rectangle the same as the distance between your ankle and just below your knee/above calf muscle, and twice the width is the best length for it (or so it wraps about 1 ¾ way around your leg). The top tie needs to be above the calf so they don't slip down, much the same as fastening Viking leg wraps. The wool I used is a densely woven herringbone upholstery fabric (that the mill actually calls Darkdale, fitting I guess :P ) but anything would work providing it was reasonably stiff

And as for how well these work, I've tested them out compared to both Viking leg wraps and the leather gaiters I usually use with my kit:

Image

And they work really well, I think that for the foreseeable future I'm sold on the idea, sometimes the simplest solutions are the best :lol:

Obviously they'll never be as waterproof, as abrasion resistant or as wind-proof as the leather gaiters (unless I make a leather set of them) and I have no clue how good they would be in snow but if I tie them with the ¼ that is only one layer of wool on the inside of my legs, there's two layers on most of the showing edges and water didn't get through very quickly. I quite like the lightness and breathability of the wool, and of course the lack of noise

In terms of functionality/warmth/durability/waterproofness etc.. they're identical to Viking leg wraps, but they're soooooo much faster to put on, they play better with modern footwear and can be tied over the outside of boots so the water doesn't run straight onto my feet, for me anyway these make Viking leg wraps almost completely redundant

And I think I'll be adding them to my modern hiking kit to :mrgreen:
Gimli: It's true you don't see many Dwarf-women. And in fact, they are so alike in voice and appearance, that they are often mistaken for Dwarf-men.
Aragorn: It's the beards.
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theowl
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Re: Wool leg wrap's the easy way

Post by theowl »

I like it!
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Eofor
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Re: Wool leg wrap's the easy way

Post by Eofor »

A nice interpretation Iodo, and I like the fabric you chose too. They don't slip at all? I've always liked the set and forget nature of viking wraps but was thinking of making a set of these for my living history kit.
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Ghostsoldier
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Re: Wool leg wrap's the easy way

Post by Ghostsoldier »

Great idea. I'm thinking that leather version you mentioned would be equally awesome, and offer much more protection. :P

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Cimrandir
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Re: Wool leg wrap's the easy way

Post by Cimrandir »

Ohh, that looks amazing Iodo! Very well done and I will definitely be taking notes on this for my own pair. Thank you for posting this!

Regarding a leather version, I'm not sure on the different leather types but I imagine a brain-tanned pair like Udwin's would be both tough and breathable.
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Shadrack
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Re: Wool leg wrap's the easy way

Post by Shadrack »

They came out really nice! I like the way that the colours tie into the rest of your kit, it gives the whole setup a lot of consistency!
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Iodo
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Re: Wool leg wrap's the easy way

Post by Iodo »

Thank you all :P
Eofor wrote: Mon Mar 29, 2021 7:04 am They don't slip at all? I've always liked the set and forget nature of viking wraps but was thinking of making a set of these for my living history kit.
They don't seem to move, providing the top tie is in the same place as where the top of viking wraps should be, I wore them for a day in mud and rain without adjusting them once

Cimrandir wrote: Mon Mar 29, 2021 9:38 pm Regarding a leather version, I'm not sure on the different leather types but I imagine a brain-tanned pair like Udwin's would be both tough and breathable.
Thanks for the tip, although I've never been able to find a supplier for brain-tanned leather
Gimli: It's true you don't see many Dwarf-women. And in fact, they are so alike in voice and appearance, that they are often mistaken for Dwarf-men.
Aragorn: It's the beards.
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Iodo
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Re: Wool leg wrap's the easy way

Post by Iodo »

As for how well these do in the snow, last weekends freak weather gave me the opportunity to test them out:

Image

and I was quite surprised by how well they did, I walked for about 2 hours in 6'' of snow and my legs/feet stayed totally dry, if I had been wearing viking leg wraps the snow would have got into my boots through the top
Gimli: It's true you don't see many Dwarf-women. And in fact, they are so alike in voice and appearance, that they are often mistaken for Dwarf-men.
Aragorn: It's the beards.
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Iodo
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Re: Wool leg wrap's the easy way

Post by Iodo »

I noticed that these are on Etsy now, I think they're by the same people who first shared them on facebook:

https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/1061822 ... e_active_3

they're a bit of a lot though, but they are hand woven
Gimli: It's true you don't see many Dwarf-women. And in fact, they are so alike in voice and appearance, that they are often mistaken for Dwarf-men.
Aragorn: It's the beards.
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Re: Wool leg wrap's the easy way

Post by RangerofAngmar »

yeah Kram Bu is a little pricey, but she does good work.

i have a few things from her for my re-enactment kit

there are a few makers making the Søgård Mose leg wraps now, i just received my order of 2 hand woven pairs the other week (from another maker), one dyed red with madder and the other yellow with buckthorn.

Good Germanic cultured wraps!

now just have to wait for re-enactment season to start back up again once all this lock down stuff is over and done with
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Iodo
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Re: Wool leg wrap's the easy way

Post by Iodo »

RangerofAngmar wrote: Sat Sep 04, 2021 7:11 am yeah Kram Bu is a little pricey, but she does good work.
agreed, I've got a few things from her store as well
Gimli: It's true you don't see many Dwarf-women. And in fact, they are so alike in voice and appearance, that they are often mistaken for Dwarf-men.
Aragorn: It's the beards.
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