Hanya Vladimirovna Polotskaya — Namitka

Long narrow piece of linen wrapped over a cap and usually a braided hair style with two braids wrapped around the head. Worn by married women of the region and can be wrapped in several different styles. It is usually around 40 to 50 cm wide and anywhere from 2 to 4 meters long. Length and amount of embroidery varied by region and occasion. Longer and more embroidery worn for festive occasions and in younger ages. Highest decoration would be at and for a few years after wedding.

The fabric is white linen with red cotton embroidery thread, DMC cotton in 4 strand thickness. Traditionally the embroidery thread could have been wool, linen, silk or cotton, depending on what was available. In the Polesye region and further north, the embroidery color would be red. The embroidery is pattern darning with a blanket stitch border on one edge. This makes the embroidery reversible, with the underside showing an exact reverse color image. Main embroidery at one end of the length that will be left out and visible when wrapped, and two lines along the long ends only in regions where embroidery may be visible. The rest of the fabric is left plain. The embroidery patterns traditionally chosen usually copied elements used by previous embroiderers in the family or village. The patterns chosen for this piece came from a historical towel from a region north of Palesye.

The namitka is worn as part of the dress of the region in a Ruthenian persona.

Additional photo album: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1xYz1nv2ZBuk8PWQt5bQUVKa44Q3mYhBd?usp=drive_link

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Abele Bierzniece — Hugo the Asp Anchanter

When I saw this comfy looking mystery garment in a bestiary illustration, I immediately had that, “Oh no. It’s a project.” feeling. This deep-dive saw me meticulously recreating a 13th century gardecorps with wool, lined in linen and rabbit fur, with linen whip stitches and lapped seams, and self-stuffed buttons. It is accompanied by period undergarments and an embroidered purse to bring the asp from the illustration into the outfit. A few purchased accessories complete the look, including wool chauses, turnshoes, a coif, and pillbox hat. 

Optional Additional Links: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Sc6PuyndTfOIW7sTunnsuUBKmGaH-mmHUHo4EprByPQ/edit?usp=sharing

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Catherine Ruggeley — 1530s English Short Hose

  • Your Name and Title – Catherine Ruggeley
  • Title of your Project – 1530’s English Short Hose
  • Location: Barony of Stonemarche
  • East Kingdom Wiki Link: https://wiki.eastkingdom.org/wiki/Catherine_Ruggeley
  • Website/Blog Link: If you have one
  • Category: Clothing

Hose were worn on the legs to keep warm and provide protection from shoes and the ground.  The hose would be made of wool, often kersey which is a twill weave that is fulled but not aggressively  (Mikhalia & Malcolm-Davies, 2006). For a merchant’s wife in 1530’s England, these would be short hose held up with garters. Unlike earlier period hose construction, the instep would be from the same piece as the rest of the leg, giving a smoother fit.  While the short hose worn with dresses are rarely seen, construction from nether hose worn in masculine attire can be used as a guide.

For this project, a mock up was made using an old bed sheet to get a close fitting hose.  That mock up was used to create a paper pattern.  The final construction was made with a wool twill and assembled with undyed linen thread treated with beeswax.  The bias cut wool cloth gave a surprising amount of stretch and the hose fit nicely.  There will be future iterations to improve the fit through the ankle.  The hose stay up reasonably well but tablet woven garters are showing a tendency to sag.  Future research will focus on the most appropriate types of wool for comfort and longevity. 

Optional Additional Links: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1VpPs0bVBxtG5l_P2Xii4CVmsn7PrqrxAoi4Xvqu4GLM/edit?usp=sharing

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Elena di Cosimo — 1600s Doublet and Pants

Some years ago, I came across pictures of a few decks of 1610s German playing cards and absolutely loved the outfits. Being in a rather desperate need of something new to wear for this year’s East Kingdom Rapier Champions Tournament finally inspired me to try my hand at making garb of that style. I wound up finding some other French, Dutch, and English sources from the same time period as well, so my resulting outfit was an amalgamation of a few of them.

My fabric choices were not as period correct as I would’ve liked but I aspired to go for the spirit of the outfit rather than entirely faithful floral motifs. However, the lining of the doublet is silk, and interlining is linen. For construction, major seams were machine sewn, but all of the lining and the assembly of the doublet parts were done by hand, mostly with whip stitch and ladder stitch. I also cartridge pleated the pants to the waistband to create the poofy look.

The main theme of this project was really pushing myself to reverse my general mentality of “it doesn’t have to be finished, but it has to be perfect.”The patterning of both the doublet and the pants were a mix of guesswork based on looking at the paintings and the cards, Modern Maker patterns and videos, and copious draping, trial, and error. I would’ve liked my patterning to have been less “improvisational” and “terrifying” and more historically accurate, but it was a great learning experience and I hope to make more outfits in this style.

Optional Additional Links: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-5f4WjkNkXB6uBN6akvxm6Cn3z4wrbsIKclT2AX3rzc/edit?usp=sharing

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Hekja Hornabrjotr — At the Venetian Carnevale

  • Your Name and Title: Hekja Hornabrjótr (Title: Herra    Pronouns: They/Them)
  • Title of your Project: At the Venetian Carnevale
  • Location: Barony of Settmour Swamp, Canton of Gryphonwald
  • East Kingdom Wiki Link: https://wiki.eastkingdom.org/wiki/Hekja_Hornabrjotr
  • Category: Clothing

This dress was created for the Venetian Carnivale Event held by the Barony of Settmour Swamp on February 21, 2026, an immersion event focusing on the Italian Renaissance during 1550-1590. The dress was inspired by several examples of paintings of fashion figures during the 15th century Florentine period as well as designs from the Patterns of Fashion book.
The primary fabric for the dress was brocade with a lining of taffeta in period fashion. Several period techniques were highlighted in the process, including cartridge pleats, boning, and French seams. 

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