Introduction to Clothing of the 1400′s…

The clothing of the 1400′s had an understated elegance.

In the early 1400′s women wore a gown called a “houppelande”. It could be slipped over the head.  Often the neckline was v-shaped and the sleeves were tubular. The neckline became broad showing off the undergarment. By the 1470′s the bodice became more closely fitting requiring the gown to be laced up the back. Many skirts had a train.  Fur trimmed the edges of the necklines and sleeves. Stockings were worn and held up by garters above the knees.  Hats became very elaborate - wide shapes on padded wires with attached veils. Gloves were worn by all levels of society – the wealthy wearing embroidered gloves encrusted with jewels.

To get a better idea of the styles, it is interesting to look at paintings and illustrations from the 1400′s.  The wealthy owed lavishly illustrated books of hours (which were popular forms of prayer books during this period).

Les Tres Riches Heures - April

This illustration is from the Les Tres Heures du Duc de Berry – The Book of Hours commissioned by the Duke de Berry. It is considered the finest work of art by the Limbourg Brothers who were the most famous of all late Gothic illuminators. The book was completed around 1416.

This illustration is for the Month of April. It depicts clothing that is characteristic of what was worn at the Court of France in the early 1400′s.  In it a young gentleman and lady of noble birth are exchanging rings at their betrothal. They are surrounded by friends and family. The young gentleman is wearing a long fur-lined houpplelande. His turban is decorated with snipped material that has been stiffened into fanciful shapes. 

The young lady is wearing a feminine version of the houppelande that is fitted through the bodice and then flows gracefully from the waist. It is also fur lined. She is wearing a fur turban with 3 feathers.

The older man in the back is wearing an embroidered baldric over one shoulder. His garment only reaches to this calf. The older lady is wearing a houppelande; it appears that she is wearing a 2nd set of sleeves.

Grimani Breviay - April

The Grimani Breviary is another famous and well known religious manuscript that contains over 800 pages with 110 illustrations. It was printed in the late 1400′s.   The Cardinal of Venice purchased the manuscript for 500 golden ducats in 1520. The illustration depicted to the right is for the Month of April  when the trees are beginning to get blossoms. The illustration shows nobles (probably Flemish) going on a pleasure excursion into the countryside. 

Notice the style of the ladies gowns.  The lady sitting on the ground is wearing a high waisted gown with the dress falling in heavy folds to the ground. The neckline and cuffs are trimmed in fur.  By this time, the belts are getting wider. The hats are elaborate headdresses made on wire trims with fabric ends hanging shoulder length.

The men are wearing shorter cloaks that are fur trimmed.  Underneath are high collars. All the men are wearing leggings.  Notice that  some of the men are wearing shoes with pointed toes. These shoe styles were adapted from Middle Eastern and Asian styles brought back by the Crusaders.

Renaissance and Victorian Bridal Gowns Video

I’m always looking for new ideas to promote my business without spending a fortune on advertising and design services.

Today I started experimenting with making a video of  Victorian and Renaissance bridal gowns. I came across a really cool website that lets you upload your own photos and select a soundtrack.  The website then it creates a video that sets your photos to music – all within a few minutes. The finished product looks very professional.

Check out this video of Victorian and Renaissance styled bridal gowns….

Medieval Cookbooks and Recipes

I recently enhanced the offerings in the bookshop on my website “Forest Creek Renaissance Shoppe” to include a wonderful selection of books on medieval and renaissance food / recipes. If you are planning a special event, food is always a central focus of the party. Check out these authentic recipes that have been updated for our 21th century kitchens.

Medieval Recipes

I recently joined WeddingWire and started thinking about the things you would need to create the right atmosphere for your Medieval or Renaissance wedding. Besides a beautiful ceremony, food is an important part of the celebrations – whether its your wedding or a special occasion or you just want to have fun!

We often imagine that cooking practices 400-500 years ago produced dishes that would be inedible according to today’s tastes. But that isn’t true. They used many of the same foods and ingredients that we use today to make healthy and tasty dishes.

Here are a couple websites that provide medieval and renaissance recipes. Check them out and have fun planning your special event.

The Medieval Kitchen - This is actually a promotion for a book published by the University of Chicago Press. On the promo website are 6 free recipes for you to browse that look really good – especially the “Omelette for Harlots and Raffians”…

Gode Cookery – This website contains a treasure trove of medieval recipes that have been adapted to work in our 21th Century kitchens.

Medieval British Recipes – This website provides recipes for preparing food and drink from the late Middle Ages and early Renaissance period in the UK. The website provides tips for adapting original recipes so that the results will be authentic reproductions of the flavors of the period.

Enemy of God by Bernard Cornwell

I completely enjoyed the 2nd novel in Cornwell’s Warlords trilogy – “Enemy of God”. Cornwell continues his interpretation of Arthurian legend by breathing life into his major characters making them very believable people who perform heroic deeds, but also possess human flaws. 

This spellbinding tale is narrated by Derfel – one of Arthur’s best friends and warlords - who is now an old monk trying to tell the true story of Arthur.  After securing the throne of Dumnonia for his infant half-brother King Mordred, Arthur tries to bring peace to the British kingdom by uniting the various rival tribes against the Saxon invaders. During this tale of epic battles, Derfel finds his true love while Arthur sinks to the depths of despair. Arthur’s good intentions are gradually eroded by Merlin’s quest for the 13 Treasures of Britain (read “The Holy Grail”); by Lancelot’s and Guinevere’s traitorous deceptions; by Mordred who becomes an unpleasant young man incapable of ruling his kingdom; and by the growing conflict between the old Druid religion and the new Christianity.

Fabrics Worn by the Wealthy in the 1500′s

During this period in history, your place in society was identified by the quality of your clothes and the number of garments you owned. Sumptuary laws attempted to enforce what you were allowed to wear based on your rank in society – including the type of fabric and the amount of material that could be used in garments. As a general rule, you would probably try to wear the best that you could afford.

The fabrics available during the 1500′s were made from natural animal and vegetables fibers – such as wool, linen, and silk.  All of the fabrics were processed by hand by highly skilled professionals. The quality of some of these fabrics is superior to some of the materials available today!

There was a wide range of types of fabrics and quality available during this time period.

• Velvet - a very expensive fabric made from silk. It was used for gowns, kirtles, coats, doublets, jerkins, hats, and hose for the very wealthy. Typically, only people with an annual income of over £200 (circa 1525) could afford it.  As a comparison, it would take a common laborer about 30 years to earn £200.
• Satin - a rich, glossy fabric made from silk that was lighter weight than velvet. It was used in gowns, kirtles, coats, and doublets. Often it was used as a lining for velvet garments.
• Cambric - a very high quality linen that was very white. Used to make the finest shirts, smocks, kerchiefs, and aprons.
• Lawn – very expensive, almost transparent linen made from gossamer-fine thread. Used to make partlets, ruffs, collars, aprons, and kerchiefs.
• Scarlet – highest quality wool. It was usually dyed red and used to make petticoats, waistcoats, gowns, cloaks, and linings.
• Chamlet – lightweight material made from silk and linen. It was the most affordable silk on the market and was used to make doublets, coats, and kirtles.
• Damask – a smooth weave often with a satin background. It was used for summer gowns, kirtles, coats, jerkins, and partlets. 

Winter King by Bernard Cornwell

The Winter King, first in Cornwell’s Arthur Trilogy, is a highly imaginative historical novel. If you are expecting a fantasy or romantic novel with knights in shining armour, damsels in distress, glistening stone castles - stop, this novel isn’t for you. 

The Winter King breathes life into what it might have been like to live during the Dark Ages.  It takes place in the late 5th Century, many decades after the Romans had abandoned their impressive villas, stone roads, and aqueducts to the elements and left Britain. The remaining Britons were as likely to be spending energy fighting amongst themselves as fighting off the dreaded Saxons who had invaded their eastern territories.

The story is narrated by Derfel – identified in some early tales as one of Arthur’s warriors who later becomes a monk.  He introduces Arthur – a great warlord and hero who fought against impossible odds to bring a brief period of peace to a land wrecked by war. In this tale, the Arthur has dreams and ambitions, but can be very rash. His decision to wed beautiful and conniving Guinevere, instead of  Ceinwyn, plunges Britain into a war that should never have been fought. Lancelot comes across as a braggart who takes credit for other people’s heroics. The magical Merlin introduces us to this world of Druids during a time when religion competes with magic for the souls of the people. 

I struggled through the first 80 or pages of unusual names and places, then became so engrossed in the story that it was hard to put down the book. If you want to travel back to a time when Arthur struggled to keep a flicker of civilization alive in a barbaric world – then this book is for you.

Introduction to Renaissance Clothing of the 1500′s

Back in the 16th Century, your clothing gave the world important visual clues about your status in society. Styles of clothing, colors, and and quality of fabrics were “assigned” to various ranks in society. Clothing was less about individuality and more about where you fit into Tudor society. Sumptuary laws tried to impose restrictions on the various details of clothing that were allowable based on your station in society – from the fabrics that you could wear to the yardage that could be used for certain garments. For the most part, very few people were ever prosecuted for violating these laws.

If you were a typical individual during the 1500′s, you would aspire to wear the most expensive clothes that you could afford. The cost of clothes would take up a much higher percentage of your annual salary than clothes do today. A typical suit of clothes was equal to about a year’s salary for many people. A day’s wage for a typical laborer would probably buy only 1 yard of the cheapest canvas cloth while 6 months worth of labor would barely buy 1 yard of the best fabric available.

A study of people’s wills from the 1500′s showed that clothing was an important sign of wealth that could be passed on to heirs. At the top of Tudor society, an inventory taken in 1600 of Queen Elizabeth I’s clothing listed more than 1900 items.  A more typical inventory of middle class ladies would probably show about 4 good outfits, several petticoats, at least 2 flocks, 3-4 pairs of shoes, 10-15 linen under garments (chemises, headwear, etc.), 4-5 smocks, and various velvet accessories.

Hello world!

I decided to start a blog partially to promote my business – Forest Creek Renaissance Shoppe – but more importantly to organize my research findings and thoughts about the Medieval and Renaissance Periods.

While I’m interested in all aspects of the eras, my special interest tends to focus on  Medieval and Renaissance fashion and clothing. I hope to create a weblog that contains historically accurate information on various aspects of both the Medieval and Renaissance Periods.