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Sewing Your Own Renfest Clothes?

Hello chaps. Okay, here is an odd one. It is once again Renaissance Festival season here in Kansas City. It really is a fun time if you let yourself get into it and just have fun. I have never donned the garb of the Renaissance and thought this year should be different. However, a quick perusal of the vendors at the faire and online reveals that a set of togs for a gent will set you back several hundred quid if they are decently made! So of course my thoughts went to making some of this myself. I am not an experienced at sewing(I know. You were thiking; No, really?) but wouldn't mind tackling some of it.

A bunch of Googling for things like trunkhose, breeches, and other items for men does not reveal much in the way of DIY. Now I am not talking one of the very nice brocade or jacquard material items like a custom jerkin or doublet. More along the lines of peasant or middle class style of dress at this late stage of the game. This would work well as a Halloween costume as well and by then, maybe a fancier set could be made. What I balk at are the ubiquitous, "one size fits most", 50" drawstring "pirate pants" sold at Renfests for $45-65. Most are made of cheap material that won't last long enough to wash five times. And the ginormous size is ridiculous.

So with that in mind, can someone hazard any advice about sewing up a set of breeches themselves? I found one YouTube video of a lady who used a pattern set to make jerkin, shirt, and breeches for her hubby and they looked pretty good. She used a cotton bed sheet for the shirt material and it looked very nice. The breeches seemed simple enough but she didn't spend much time talking about them. I could go with trunkhose and nether hosen for a more authentic look but I like the idea of a more regular fitting pair of breeches with a tie cinch(NOT eleastic) below the knee. A simple drop font yoke shirt would suffice for a top.

We attended opening festivities and some of the garb this year is superb. The detail, historical accuracy, and quality of the costumes were top notch. I cannot aspire to that. At least not this year but wouldn't mind a really nice set for the heck of it. Told you guys I was an eccentric old curmudgeon.

Regards, Todd
 
Hi Jim. Thank you for the links. A few of them I have been to, others look promising. While I can find patterns, I am finding it quite hard to locate tutorials. I don't blame people. Sewing is a tedious and time consuming and I suspect those who do it are not exactly worried about keeping a video or pictorial log of it. They have enough going on at the time. I will have to see what I can do.

Regards, Todd
 
You can look up plenty of sewing tutorials online. While they aren't specific to the pattern you want to sew, they will show how to sew whatever you want to make.
 
How about paying a visit to a local craft or fabric shop? Somewhere that sells sewing machines is usually a good bet. You will probably find that they have regularly scheduled lessons covering all kinds of sewing. While there might be a fee for the class, you can spend a couple of hours in the evenings and get the basics down.

Let us know how your search goes. It sounds like an excellent idea.
 
Sewing isn't incredibly difficult. I've made a few items from patterns. (ski jacket for one). I do have the added advantage of being married to a woman who worked for some years as a tailor, so I had good backup and explanations handy whenever I needed.
 
Check out a local college to see if it has an SCA (Society for Creative Anachronists) student group. Someone in it would probably be able to help you.

And, yes, I'm embarrassed that I know that.
 
Thank you for the responses. I have friends who sew and one makes beautiful shirts. In fact, now that I think of that, why in thunder did I not look to her for guidance in the first place?

As for the SCA, do not feel bad. I knew exactly what you were referencing. I work at a large state university and meet many of these types. Most are good fun. And indeed, I will keep you updated Nid.

Regards, Todd

Here is the video of a pattern review I mentioned above. I like the look of the shirt made from sheeting fabric.

[YOUTUBE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5CO6nfjavww[/YOUTUBE]
 
Last edited:

luvmysuper

My elbows leak
Staff member
I recently attended a Ren Fair in Bristol Wisconsin and had asked some of the folks where they got their stuff, the resounding response was "Just browse through Thrift Stores, there is so much there that can be re-purposed".

Good luck.
 
Hello chaps. Okay, here is an odd one. It is once again Renaissance Festival season here in Kansas City. It really is a fun time if you let yourself get into it and just have fun. I have never donned the garb of the Renaissance and thought this year should be different. However, a quick perusal of the vendors at the faire and online reveals that a set of togs for a gent will set you back several hundred quid if they are decently made! So of course my thoughts went to making some of this myself. I am not an experienced at sewing(I know. You were thiking; No, really?) but wouldn't mind tackling some of it.

A bunch of Googling for things like trunkhose, breeches, and other items for men does not reveal much in the way of DIY. Now I am not talking one of the very nice brocade or jacquard material items like a custom jerkin or doublet. More along the lines of peasant or middle class style of dress at this late stage of the game. This would work well as a Halloween costume as well and by then, maybe a fancier set could be made. What I balk at are the ubiquitous, "one size fits most", 50" drawstring "pirate pants" sold at Renfests for $45-65. Most are made of cheap material that won't last long enough to wash five times. And the ginormous size is ridiculous.

So with that in mind, can someone hazard any advice about sewing up a set of breeches themselves? I found one YouTube video of a lady who used a pattern set to make jerkin, shirt, and breeches for her hubby and they looked pretty good. She used a cotton bed sheet for the shirt material and it looked very nice. The breeches seemed simple enough but she didn't spend much time talking about them. I could go with trunkhose and nether hosen for a more authentic look but I like the idea of a more regular fitting pair of breeches with a tie cinch(NOT eleastic) below the knee. A simple drop font yoke shirt would suffice for a top.

We attended opening festivities and some of the garb this year is superb. The detail, historical accuracy, and quality of the costumes were top notch. I cannot aspire to that. At least not this year but wouldn't mind a really nice set for the heck of it. Told you guys I was an eccentric old curmudgeon.

Regards, Todd


Google Society for Creative Anachronism. You might some websites with pattern designs on them. You could also just check out the clothing at the vendors there to come up with your own ideas. FWIW, I still have my garb that I bought there back in the mid 90's and they are still as good as the day I bought them.

Oh, and btw, Huzzah!
 
I didn't read every thing but my advice is if your makeing your own desgin is to buy Pattern paper and sketch it out, cut it, tack it to muslin, skech it on the muslin, sew it up, and try it on to check fit and drape, the adjust. It will take you more then a few tries, and if you can get one a maniquin will make it much eaiser. You would need a seperate one for mens and womans trousers as they are proprtiaonly correct.
 
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