You’ve already seen my medieval dress, and a costume-y medieval belt, but I’ve been working on much more historically accurate accessories.

My first belt was fun and sparkly, but I wanted a proper belt:

(shown, with complete lack of properness, with my Miramar Gothic dress)

I made the belt from two strips of soft leather in mid-brown.  I couldn’t find a leather scrap within my budget that was long enough for a single strip (a $200 hide is out of the question at the moment), so I joined the two strips with a bit of stitching.  I have no idea if a leather join like that is accurate, but I suspect it’s plausible.  And it reminds me of the  mended sashes of the sword-wearers of Damar, so, win!

I used a vintage English-made brass buckle I found at an op shop: it’s not quite right for the 14th century, but isn’t too bad.  I had a stroke of luck the day after I cut my belt, but before I’d finished it.  I found a crappy pleather belt at an op shop with a cool brass end: and it was the perfect width for my belt.  Score!

I’ve also made a proper veil:

The Fabric Store got in a bolt of very fine linen a few years ago, and I knew I’d regret it later if I didn’t buy some.  I was definitely right, because I couldn’t find it the first time I went looking for it for a veil, and spent a week with the devastating conviction that I’d decided against buying the fabric after all!  Luckily, another search revealed it had slipped in between the folds of another fabric.

The linen is much too fine for a chemise, but it’s perfect for a noblewoman’s veil.

I used the guide at Som När Det Begav Sig  for the veil dimensions – mine is 107cm long x 73cm wide: a tiny bit longer and wider, but I like that it isn’t precise dimensions.

I hemmed the curved edge with a tiny rolled hem, but I just used the selvedge edge for the straight edge, because erk, rolled hemming!  Also, I’m pretty sure using the selvedge edges is period accurate.

And finally, to go with the veil when I feel like being posh, a circlet:

I used the same beading technique for the circlet that I used on my costume belt.

The circlet was a little too soft and flimsy the first few times I wore it, so I lined it with silk and a circle of pasteboard.  The lining is caught to the beading at every point where it reaches the edge of the leather.

I have no idea if any of the techniques I used in the circlet are historically plausible.

So, now I just need to find the time to put on my ca. 1369 dress again and show this all off!

The Challenge:  #7 Accessorise (veil & circlet)  #9 Brown  (belt)

Fabric:  75cm of linen for the veil ($10),  a scrap of silk for the circlet (from my scrap bag), and scraps of leather for the belt & circlet ($8).

Pattern:  None for any of them.  The veil was helped by the information  at  Som När Det Begav Sig, a friend in the SCA showed me some belts, and I used period images and materials that would have been available in period for the circlet (though I suspect the decorations would have been studs, not beads).

Year:  last half of the 14th century.

Notions:  silk thread (veil) (>$1),  faux pearl beads, gilded woods beads, linen thread and pasteboard (circlet) ($2), brass findings (belt) ($2).

How historically accurate is it?:  The  veil is close to  100%, the belt is pretty good, but not perfect (especially not if the mend is totally inaccurate), so let’s say 75%, and the circlet is lucky if it 50%.

Hours to complete:  30 minutes for the belt, 2 hours for the circlet, 3 hours for the veil (blasted rolled hem).

First worn:  I wore the circlet unfinished for the historical dinner & my medieval photoshoot, and the belt with the Miramar Gothic dress, but I haven’t managed a proper wear + photoshoot yet.

Total cost:   $6 (belt), $10.50 (veil), $5 (circlet).