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A Wandering Elf

My original site exploring both Viking Age textiles and clothing and discussing topics relevant to the SCA.

Quick Link to Viking Textiles

Worth a Watch: Lendbreen Tunic

11/30/2015

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Below is a really fascinating video about the Lendbreen tunic and its recreation.  Definitely worth taking the time to watch if you are interested in early textiles!
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Socks finished!

11/24/2015

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I am so thrilled right now.  Finished my first pair of naalbinding socks (Oslo stitch).  I learned a great deal over the last couple of weeks making these, and look forward to starting another pair this weekend.  I need to do a few things differently with the next pair, but I am more than pleased with the results for my first go-around!

I absolutely recommend this woman's videos for those who want to try this art for themselves!  http://www.en.neulakintaat.fi/

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Coming Soon and Resource Reminders

11/23/2015

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I saw this weekend that there is a new book about the Hedeby textiles coming out.  I am beyond excited about this!  Textilien und Tracht in Haithabu und Schleswig. Die Ausgrabungen in Haithabu 18 can be found here:  http://www.amazon.de/gp/product/3529014184?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=od_aui_detailpages00

I usually add upcoming books, as well as legal downloads as they become available, to this blog, but I know that going back to search for them can be difficult so am going to paste a few of my favorite resources for free, legal material below.  When one starts out doing research it can be confusing as to which books are work the expenditure and which are not.  ILL is an amazing way to get a hold of older, rare books, but sometimes the wait is very long so below there are some fantastic things you can use for free!

Pangur Press:  This is the Anglo-Saxon Labratory's downloadable books and papers.  Several of Penelope Walton Rogers most sought-after publications can be found here for free!  http://www.aslab.co.uk/pangur-press/

Academia.edu has several "must read" authors as members:
Marianne Vedeler, who covers Viking silks as well as other textile items: https://uio.academia.edu/MarianneVedeler

Lise Bender Jorgensen has been covering Viking era textiles for decades.  A few of her papers are here (including the excellent one about the pre-Viking era Lendbreen tunic):  https://ntnu-no.academia.edu/LiseBenderJ%C3%B8rgensen

Dagfinn Skre recently added his volumes of work on Kaupang (which are lovely enough that you will likely want to get the hard copies even if you opt to down load them):  https://uio.academia.edu/DagfinnSkre

Eva Andersson Strand has done a good deal of work concerning textile production at Viking sites and many of her papers are on Academia.edu.  (I still recommend that you get her book Textile Tools for Production from Birka and Hedeby which is available at Oxbow Books.)  https://ku-dk.academia.edu/EvaAnderssonStrand

Individual Articles:
Elizabeth Wincott Heckett is the author of the book Viking Age Headcoverings from Dublin (which is available in print again from Oxbow and I highly recommend this title which can be purchased here http://www.oxbowbooks.com/oxbow/viking-age-headcoverings-from-dublin.html ), but you can get her article "Irish Viking Age silks and their place in Hiberno-Norse society" by running a Google search on that title (the direct PDF download does not link well).

The entire series of Viking publications can be downloaded here.  I especially recommend the issue from 2011:  https://www.duo.uio.no/handle/10852/37522

The Archaeology Data Service has a number of publications online as well.  You have to do some searching but there is an amazing amount of material there:  http://archaeologydataservice.ac.uk/archives/

Jstor is a research site for academic institutions, but they do let you look at many articles online (up to 3 at a time) if you do not have academic access.  http://www.jstor.org/


And as always, I cannot recommend Mendeley enough for storing your documents and taking notes!  https://www.mendeley.com/
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Progress!!!

11/16/2015

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In addition to updating some research (and the Resources tab on this page), as well as some of the materials and bibliography for the Viking Wool class that I am teaching this weekend, I think I can say I am grasping naalbinding.  My first sock is done save for finishing the top. Second sock just needs the toe and heel.  Aside from some videos on Oslo stitch, I have pretty much winged it and tried to do what seemed to intuitively work just to figure out the mechanics of this.  It really does make sense now.  I cannot wait to finish the second sock and then start a pair for my boyfriend.  Yarn used is Alafoss Lopi wool from Iceland.
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Presentation

11/11/2015

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PictureMy Viking Era Norse linen display from Siege of Glengary 2014
Over the last several years I have gotten many compliments not only on the work that I display at events, but also on the manner in which I present my work.  It has even been suggested that I teach a class on displaying.  Honestly, it is not something I would want to spend time instructing on (wool is much more interesting to me!). Additionally, I think that something like that might cause additional "display anxiety" that many new artisans already feel.  Beyond that, it is easy to get lost in the idea of building an eye-catching display, rather than to utilizing it as a tool to better showcase one's own work.

In my case, most of my larger projects are more research based.  Those need something that is visual enough to catch someone's attention to get them over to the table to take a peek.  For example, a 20 page, corner stapled, research paper would easily get passed over, but there are ways to dress it up that will help attract an audience.  Below are some tips that I have found to be successful over the years for enhancing a display:

Presentation Tips
  • Table cloth:  I often use small pieces of hand woven fabrics (items I did as samples or to use up yarn) as a base for my displays.  This makes sense since my work is fiber arts related.  Handwoven goods would certainly not be necessary, but a nice cloth for the area under your display is advantageous.  If your item is a spectacular piece of handwoven trim that is a muted color, it might be totally lost on a dull colored cafeteria style table.  A richly colored fabric might help your item stand out.  Likewise, a jeweltone faux brocade might be a nice background to a display of Ottoman style jewelry.  I do recommend, however, to avoid busy prints or fabrics with too much shine. 
  • Display Cards for each item:  Often at larger events like the Pennsic A&S Display artisans will present multiple items spread out on the table.  It can be difficult to tell where one individual's display stops and another begins.  Using a table cloth can help with this, as can small cards with a brief bit of information about each item.  If the cards are all identical, it will be clear which items belong to the entry.
  • Elevation: Raising some items will make them easier to see, or can enhance the composition of the entire display.  It can also make items in the back of a display easier to reach.
  • Accessories: If your display is period painting and you want to show your paints, they would look nicer in period vessels.  Even if what you have to use is not perfectly period, something less modern than plastic cups will still serve you well and not distract from your medieval craft. 
  • Cards:  If you will not be sitting with your display for a long period of time, you should make sure that there are cards with your contact information for people to take with them (most folks use a business card format set up with their SCA information).  Someone might want to contact you later about how you did something or they might want you to come teach at their event.  They are also exceptionally handy for networking (geeking) with other artisans with whom you might want to later share resources or information.  (Of course you cannot leave cards out for blind competitions, but they are handy to have when speaking to people afterwards!)
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Mistress Behiye bint Kismet from the Kingdom of Ansteorra did a fantastic display of Ottoman sweets. Her table was laid out nicely and used color and elevation to accent her selection of sweets.
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Helping Your Audience Helps You
  • Lighted magnifying glass: We all know that many display halls do not have optimal lighting. Additionally, it is not uncommon for individuals who only use glasses to read to forget to carry those glasses with them as they wander around an event.  If your work is detail oriented or small in scale, it can greatly help your audience to provide a magnifying glass along side your work.  (I have several I use for displays and that I also offer for use in my classes.  I got them on Amazon for about $5 each).
  • Font: Make sure that documentation and display cards make use of legible fonts that are large enough for the average person to read.  There are so many lovely medievaloid fonts out there and it is quite tempting to use them, but most often they just end up confusing.  Opt for simplicity.
  • "Touch Me" Signs: More often than not, we love for people to handle our goods.  Occasionally, however, we sometimes have very delicate items that are just better off not being handled.  A small sign that lets viewer know that it is safe to touch will encourage them to take the time to really examine your work, and likewise, a similar sign letting people know that the item should not be handled can preserve a fragile piece.  (And of course, signs listing ingredients of food items are a matter of safety for many individuals.)
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Documentation
  • Multiple copies:  I was advised several years ago by my Laurel to have a second copy of my documentation available at my display.  If someone is looking at my book and another person has questions, I still have something to refer them to without interrupting the first person.
  • Binders/Folders:  A stack of paper stapled together can actually be mistaken for a handout and someone just might walk off with it (yes, I have seen that happen).  Even a simple plastic folder can denote that the material is part of the display and meant to be left there. 
  • Organization:  If your book of documentation is thick, adding tabs to the edges of the pages for each section can help people navigate to the portion they are most interested in.  For example, my book with textiles documentation from Pennsic had multiple projects, so I added labeled tabs to the edges for each item.  This allowed people to skip right to the item for which the desired more information.
  • Stand: A small easel serves two purposes.  The first is that it elevates the documentation and makes it easier to reach and the second is that this allows more space on the actual table for your art.  Wire stands such as those shown to the left are small, unobtrusive and can be purchased on Amazon for just a few dollars.
  • Professionalism:  I think many of us have pulled something out at the last moment to add to a display.  This might mean hand written insta-documentaion, and there is really not much to do about that.  Aside from that though, your documentation should look like it was meant to be presented to the public.  An over stuffed binder with loose pages falling out and large chunks of irrelevant material is never appropriate for a display or competition.
  • Process: Do not forget to include process information in your display.  People LOVE to see how you created something, and including some of the items (such as spun yarn before the weaving) can really help them better understand how you created your work of art.

Below are some displays that very much worked for me in how they were presented.  They made good use of both the space and visual tactics to showcase their wares.
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Elska Fjarfell's soap display from the AEthelmearc Kingdom A&S Champions Event. She won the title of A&S Champion and also the Populace's Choice.
Displays from Pennsic A&S War Point Competition
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Lady Sorcha Brecc ingen Donnchada did a display of period paintings that also nicely showed the materials with which she works.
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Baroness Genoveva von Lübeck of the Midrealm did a fantastic vertical display of her pleatwork garments.
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Lady Abigail Kelhoge of AEthelmearc crafted a doll to better display her children's clothing.
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Lissa Underhill nicely elevated her beads and shows samples of her working materials as well.
Images of my own display materials
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Scale and Scaling Back

11/2/2015

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When we start out into a new area of costuming in the SCA, it is very common (and perfectly acceptable) to base your work on what other reenactors are doing or teaching, or on things you see people wearing at events.  Sometimes we get hooked on a specific time or place and start to dig deeper into academic works and eventually start to reevaluate what we have been doing.  Many things are open to interpretation, or reinterpretation, as time passes and more evidence becomes available.
 
As I start to base my work and my kit more on evidence and less on what other others are choosing to do, I really am seeing the importance of both looking closely at certain details in order to both avoid reenactorisms and to present the best image of what I think a woman of the Viking era would have worn.  During this process, I am finding it very important to look at scale of certain items and equally important to look at scaling back some other things.

Below are things that I am working on or towards in my own upper class Viking kit:
 
Scale
  • Trim:  Most trim (when used at all) was in the form of tablet-woven bands or silk strips and most of these were less than a half an inch wide.  Some of the silk I used in the past was far too wide (and glaringly the wrong patterns).
  • Cording:  When braid or cord was used to trim the edges of garments, it was only a few millimeters wide (typically 2-3mm with the “coarse” braids being labled as 4-5mm). 
  • Textiles:  The garments from upper class graves were well woven and of fine threads with high thread counts.  Even many of the garment textiles from reports that were classified as “coarse” were not thick, rough burlap that one would imagine Dark Ages folk wearing. 
  • Patterned Fabrics:  In my survey of patterned textiles I discovered that plaids used in garments were typically very, very tiny and stripes were narrow.  I have used large plaids in the past, but will have a more watchful eye when looking for textiles like these in the future.  (Survey can be found here: http://awanderingelf.weebly.com/blog-my-journey/viking-textiles-a-deeper-look-at-plaids-stripes-and-checks )
  • Belts:  Historically these were much narrower than those we often seen used in the SCA (very narrow in many cases).  While I do not always wear a belt (as I think that it was less common for a well to do woman to wear a belt), I have already selected a belt that is less than half an inch wide for when I do need or want one.
  • Stitches:  In the past I did some very bold rows of running stitches (in contrasting thread) on garments that visibly stood out.  I am now looking to use smaller stitches and often it is in the same color as the garment or in a natural color (ivory or natural linen typically if I am using linen thread).
  • Loops/straps:  Most of the extant loops from smokkrs were less than half an inch, and some were much, much narrower than that.  My early dresses were a bit over half an inch, but later garments I made were more narrow and I find them just as comfortable and functional as wider ones and like the look better.
 
 
Scaling Back
  • Sleeves:  The extant sleeves we do have all taper towards the wrist.  I have a few dresses on which I love the sleeves, and plan to modify that pattern to better match the narrow cuffs on extant pieces.
  • Hemlines:  I think many of my early dresses are far too full.  The lines that would be created by the Hedeby smokkr fragment would slim.  The gores found at the same site were also much more narrow than those I often cut for myself.  The more recent slim garments I have made still offer room for movement and I much prefer them now.  I plan to work more with these layouts to see how I can further improve the design.  These also use less fabric, which I find to be an important consideration.
  • Beads:  Even some of the most extravagant graves have only a few beads or a single strand.  Festoons and giant swags of beads were just not common, even among the wealthy.  Over the years I have amassed quite a collection of handcrafted beads that I adore, but now I typically choose to wear one strand at a time rather than all of them at once. 
 
I love discovering new knowledge and love the process of recreating my presentation based on that.  I look at some of my early works and see that there is little to no evidence to support choices I made, but I still learned a great many things as I crafted each item.  I just as much look forward to new directions (and new garb)!

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    About Me

    I am mother to a billion cats and am on journey to recreate the past via costume, textiles, culture and food.

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    Blogroll of SCA & Costume Bloggers

    Below is a collection of some of my favorite places online to look for SCA and historic costuming information.

    More Amie Sparrow - 16th Century German Costuming


    Gianetta Veronese - SCA and Costuming Blog

    Grazia Morgano - 16th Century A&S

    Mistress Sahra -Dress From Medieval Turku 

    Hibernaatiopesäke

    Loose Threads: Cathy's Costume Blog

    Mistress Mathilde Bourrette - By My Measure: 14th and 15th Century Costuming

    More than Cod: Exploring Medieval Norway

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