[Ansteorra] period on a budget

[Sir Lyonel Oliver Grace]

Salut cozyns,

One identified by the messenger as John Fry asks:

>ok I've been reading along with your period not period posts, and now I 
>want
>to know how do you go period on a budget. I'm a current student with 
>limited
>amounts of money to spend on garb, but I still want to go to an event or 
>two
>when I have a chance, without being slapped around by the period nazis.

Allow me first to address the last concern. I wouldn't worry too much about 
being assaulted by authenticity mavens. As long as you're not entering 
non-period efforts into arts and sciences competitions, stretching the truth 
about the provenance of your clothing, or tossing around unwarranted boasts, 
you're unlikely to catch their notice.

Now, when you start on clothing, you can always just throw together a 
t-tunic, belt, and loose hose. The hardest part of this outfit is usually 
the shoes, but moccasins, sandals, or just plain black flats (something like 
the karate shoes sold in many Asian markets), will suffice. That will get 
you on the field but, depending on your own sartorial sense, might not make 
you feel comortable in court. In my experience, most folks are happier with 
their results when they narrow their selections.

In other words, before buying cloth and patterns, pick a time and place. You 
don't have to stay with your first choice. Quite a few of us have done a bit 
of time travel before settling comfortably in a persona. With the budget in 
mind, earlier eras are easier to accommodate than later, but you *can* do 
budget versions of cotehardies, doublets, and hose if your interests tend 
more toward the late Middle Ages and Renaissance.

The next best thing you can do is seek out help. Find someone who does the 
kind of clothing you like and ask lots of annoying questions: did you make 
that? did you use a pattern? where did you get the material? was it 
expensive? You might also ask if your local group (or a nearby group) has a 
clothiers guild or similar garment-making get-together that you could join.

Lacking a local mentor, however, you can turn to the Internet and the local 
libraries. You'll find a lot of resources available online including pattern 
sources, modern patterns that can be adapted, reviews of period patterns, 
instructions. If you're interested in the High Middle Ages, see if your 
local library has a copy of _The Medieval Tailor's Assistant_ 
(http://www.amazon.com/Medieval-Tailor-Assistant-Garments-1200-1500/dp/0896762394/sr=8-1/qid=1158676050/ref=pd_bbs_1/103-3036045-2181469?ie=UTF8&s=books 
). If you're interested in later period garb, you might look into obtainin a 
copy of _The Tudor Tailor_ 
(http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0896762556/ref=pd_cp_b_title/103-3036045-2181469?ie=UTF8). 
If you're interested in another time and place, ask about it on this list.

For fabric, start with natural fibers. They breathe better and tend to look 
less plasticky than most synthetics. Linen, wool, and silk are the best 
materials for most period clothing, but these tend to be a bit more 
expensive. Many cotton and rayon fabrics make passable substitutes, however, 
and tend to be more reasonable. Familiarize yourself with the local fabric 
stores and keep an eye out for sale items. You might also check for online 
sources. We buy linen from fabrics-store.com, and they often have discounted 
items.

By the way, does anyone know of a good discount fabric warehouse in Texas or 
Oklahoma? I used to buy quite a bit of discounted wools in one of those 
places in Salt Lake City. I don't think we have anything of that sort in 
Austin, though. Dallas? Houston?

lo vostre per vos servir
Meser Lyonel
_________________________________
Micel yfel deth se unwritere.
		--AElfric of York