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Tudorish For Women:
To be a Lady of Style

by Mistress Jania of Call Duck Manor

This article is written for the Lady who does not find it necessary to wear a corset to force herself out of the top of her gowns and who in fact will find herself though out the day performing such tasks as making lunch, helping her Lord in and out of armor, washing dishes and sitting around in garb for up to 16 hours a stretch. Those elaborate gowns shown on Queen Elizabeth were not worn all day; they were worn for special occasions and for paintings. There were lots of easy styled garments meant for less regal folks and for morning gowns. Even the Queen conducted business in her bedroom while still in bed; she surely didn't have a corset on then, so if you need tourney-comfortable Tudor garb, here are some suggestions.

The first thing you must think about when making Tudor styled garments is the hoop skirt petticoat. My first Twelfth Night outfit was finally done and I put it on for the only audience I had at the moment, my 14 year old son. His comment was 'It looks really great but it needs a hoop skirt'. This being Thursday evening, there was no way I could make one before Saturday (There was still a lot of finishing work to be done.) and so on Friday I called several bridal stores and found one in stock I could buy. My son was right, the hoop skirt changed the pretty dress into an elegant one. Ever since that experience I have found that other pieces of garb also need hoop petticoats.

Now one of the most frequent comments I hear about the hoop is the Lady saying, 'Oh, I could never san age one'. There are only two things to know about managing a hoop skirt, one, when ever you are going to sit, move thru a narrow place, or walk in any manner in which you can not freely move in your outfit, you grab the hoop ring which should be somewhere about hand level and pick it up. This changes the angle of your hoops and they no longer impede your progress or situation. Two, you must wear a petticoat under your hoop, this prevents the hoop grabbing maneuver from being revealing at odd moments and prevents a lost unfortunate view which frequently appears. As our lovely dressed Tudor Lady leans over to reach into her tourney chest on the floor, we are all treated to a view of her hiking boots, argyle socks and bare legs. However much I realize the Lady needs these to keep her feet from freezing as she goes in and out of the rain as at last Twelfth Night, I really wish I didn't have to view them, particularly because an under petticoat solves the problem so easily. I know there are times when I forget to stoop rather than bend when I need both hands to get something from the floor. So much for that one editorial comment.

How to make a Hoop petticoat.

You need at least 3 yards of fabric, 44 inches wide and 8 1/2 yards of boning. The fabric is to be cut into 4 lengthwise strips 11 inches wide. The strips are the cut or sewn together to lake the following lengths. 1 1/3 yds, 2 yds, 2 2/3 yds, and 3 1/3 yds. The remaining piece will be used for the bottom ruffle of 4 yds, but will be cut in half or to whatever width you might need to lake your petticoat the correct length.

You might use eyelet or lace for this piece. Each piece will need 1/4 inch folded under and then a 1 inch casing along one side. On the top piece, this will become your waist band for elastic or draw string. Stitch a gathering thread about 1/4 inch from the edge on the remaining pieces. Stitch the next larger strip above the casing (except for the top waist strip) of the previous strip. This method means the petticoat has the hoops on the inside which creates a smoother her line to your dress. I know that there are sale Italian painting with the hoops on the outside, but I find them unattractive) The boning wire is then cut 2 1/3 yds, 2 2/3 yds, and 3 1/3 yds and inserted in the three casings. Each piece of boning is to overlap at the insertion point a few inches.

Now to the dress. If you have purchased a brides pattern as I suggested in earlier articles, you will probably need about 19 yds of a washable fabric. This could be a stripe, a plaid or soild color or even a print if you can find a simple one which could possible have been a woven or embroidered design. Some border print fabrics could look like an embroidered band about the skirt. I have also used a non-period print which was really not too elaborate to trim and line the flowing sleeves because it was a nice compliment to the solid color fabric I made the dress from. I have seen some striped flowered fabric found in the French Country fabric cut into strips to make what looks like braid trim on both early Norman and Tudor garb. What you should lake is a long dress in a color you will enjoy which washes well. I like garb to be made of a polyester/cotton fabric because it does not wrinkle badly while in transit from home to tourney. Wrinkles lay be period, but the Chinese for many centuries ironed with a flat bottom bowl with handle in which they put hot coals. I am sure although I have yet to find a reference that some sort of flat iron existed and if you had enough servants, they ironed clothing as well as linens. I feel better dressed if I am not wrinkled and lost of the ladies I see appear to have pressed their garb.

What do you do to this brides pattern to make it look Tudor styled.

The first answer would be to cut a square neckline rather than the round one. A reasonably easy adaptation but you must plan to always wear a shift or partlet under your dress. I leave the neckline alone because the straps and top of your regular underwear (bra, camisole) always slide out as you make lunch, or go about your normal routines. Instead I make fancy sleeves (see last month for other sleeve ideas as elegant sleeves were worn by both male and female).

I bead necklines, and/or belts with a long piece in front from which hangs a piece of Goodwill jewelry. I had an old Avon locket in which to put a scented tablet for $2.59 which received many complements as it hung from a piece of braid which I lined. I now have a shoe bauble at $.75 with rhinestones etc. hanging from the same piece of braid. Epaulets are wonderful and can be 4 inch pieces of braid lined with heavy Pellon and inserted in the shoulder seam.

Split the center front of your skirt pattern adding about three inches of fabric to turn back over some medium interfacing. Put a piece of braid about two inches from the edge on each side. Either tack another fabric on to you hoop petticoat in the front or make a separate skirt with a pretty piece in front. Frequently, among the fabric samples for drapery materials, you can find a one yard or so piece that looks like crewel embroidery or brocade stripes for $2 or $3. In fact if you start by looking for a piece of fabric like this, you then build your costume around it looking for a solid color to complement the print, a remnant of something sheer to make a veil to hang from a fabric covered cardboard on which you have sewn or glued a few jewels for a head piece.

My last head piece was made from a piece of sliver lame' 18 inch circular hand bag which I bought at the Goodwill for $0.98. I lined it with Polar Fleece (for March Crown) and covered the draw string with a braid that matched my dress on which I sewed a few plastic rhinestones in colors which latched the underskirt of the outfit. This was delightfully warm and several people liked it. Is it really a Tudor styled head covering? I have never seen a picture of anything like it, but it complemented my garb and was better than a knitted snow hat. It looked like it was a costume piece and the audience of fellow SCA'ers treated it so.

I think the thing to remember is that you want to take the accents found in painting of Tudor garb and add them to you basic dress. Split an over-sleeve so you may see an undersleeve. Join it periodically and put a jeweled button or a ribbon bow over the join and suddenly it is Tudor. Scallop the edge of over-sleeves, make a full over-sleeve which hangs twelve inches longer than your fingertips, run gathering threads up the center of the sleeve and cover it with braid, make a sleeve which is quite full and gathers into a cuff at the bottom edge, slash a long hole forward of the center line above and below the elbow and bind it. Put your shift cover arm out the slash rather than the cuffs. Each of these are a Tudor accent which makes the wedding dress disappear and the costume appear.

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