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What to wear & what NOT to wear! WHAT TO WEAR - HOW TO WEAR A VEIL - FOOTWEAR- WHAT NOT TO WEAR Thanks to Hollywood, many people do not have an accurate picture of medieval clothing. Those crushed velvet dresses with the batwing sleeves which lace up under the bust are all wrong. So are those wenchy corsets with the off-the-shoulder peasant tops. Deep purples, blacks and mauvy-pinks... all wrong. Sumptuary Laws strictly prohibited the wearing or selling of purple cloth, limiting it to the Royal household and offenders are severly dealt with. Peasants wore unbleached or brown cloth, with blue for attending church or festivals. Middle class people were permitted more colours. Everyday people, traders and merchants dress in blues, greens, browns and yellows of brightly coloured wools and linens. The colour wheel at left shows colours naturally dyed on wool. There's an autumn shade from the palest cream and yellow to the richest brown and some nice blues! Some very nice shades of gold and reddish-browns can be had. Avoid bright oranges. More blues and greens of many shades are suitable also. The trick here is to pick colours which contrast to give you an overall colourful effect- something that is very possible using the colours shown here. Bare in mind colours shown here are viewed on a computer screen and may differ slightly in real life. Violet was not worn by the regular population until well into the 1600s. Entertainers and musicians were fond of very wide horizontal stripes, often in a mi-parti tunic- that is, one half of the tunic in a solid colour and the other half in great, big stripes. There are some great pictures on the Clothing In Medieval Art page under the performers section. Men wore decorative hoods or felt hats and any good lady covered her hair. Wealthier persons might favour red, the most popular colour for hose and hoods. Women of all classes covered their hair. Either with a veil or a hood or a wimple if they were more mature or widowed. Many women in cultures today still wear a veil, but back in the middle ages, all women did. Earrings were not generally worn, nor decorative necklaces. Crosses and signs of devotion were popular. Amulets to protect one from the Black Death were worn, along with Christian symbols or pilgrim badges. Rings were worn in great profusion, althought usually only by the rich. Clothing styles of the Middle Ages consisted of usually at least three layers. The undergarment (called chemise or smock), underdress or cotehardie or kyrtle and outer dress or surcote. Layers are an easy way to keep warm, change your look and add extra colour into your wardrobe. If your clothing is lined (make 2 exact tunics and sew them together) you would line with a different colour so that as you walk or hitch your dress up, there is a flash of another colour. Many medieval paintings show a coloured lining, but it is really is for those who want either more warmth or colour or to hide machine sewing. Stallholders need not line their clothes if they don't want to. The design of your underdress should be the basic tunic or the laced cotehardie if you are a more experienced sewer. Your overdress or surcote can vary greatly. It can be fitted, have shorter sleeves and hem, have wide sleeves or have large cut-away armholes (known as a sideless surcote). The sideless surcote or overtunic is always in a contrasting colour and often shows off the dress underneath, as shown at left. Pictured at right is a very simple 12th century tunic which has pretty bands of embroidery around the neck and sleeves. Using two different colour for the different layers makes a very pretty outfit. Pictured at left, Elizabeth is an excellent example of simple dressing which looks great. Her hair is covered with a wimple in green, she wears a plain, white linen tunic with a green woolen surcote over the top. Although not a part of her daily, real-life wardrobe, Elizabeth's merchant persona also wears a cross on a chain to denote her devotion to the church. Not only will it protect her from the Black Death, she will be less likely to be burnt at the stake as a heretic. Below you will find examples of different looks for clothing, shoe options and veils for women, other finishing touches to complete your look and what not to wear Basic stallholder and merchant clothing WOMAN - Basic T-tunic in solid, suitable colour. - Long, thin belt looped down front. - Small leather bag on belt. - Small leather money pouch. - Veil worn in a variety of ways. - Slip on suede shoes or ballet flats. MAN - Basic shorter T-tunic in suitable solid colour. - Long, thin belt looped down front. - Small leather bag. - Small leather money pouch. - White linen coif. Could wear felt hat over it. - Plain hood with cowl. - Drawstring trousers. - Could wear slip on suede shoes. Middle class stallholder or trader clothing WOMAN - Basic front laced T-tunic in solid, suitable colour. - Long, thin belt looped down front. - Small leather bag slung across shoulder. - Small leather money pouch. - Slip on suede shoes. - Hood with no buttons (closed with a brooch or pin) MAN - Long tunic with split up front - Could also wear a white coif (skullcap) - Long, thin belt looped down front. - Small leather bag on belt. - Small leather money pouch. - White linen undershert. - Lined hood with fancy daggueing. - Fitted drawstring trousers or hose. Wealthier stallholder or merchant clothing WOMAN - Laced cotehardie in solid, suitable colour. - Long, thin belt looped down front. - Long, white linen apron or cloth tucked into belt. - Small leather bag & money pouch on belt. - Lined linen hood (buttons up at front). - Slip on leather shoes. - Woven basket & paternoster. MAN - Tunic with wide sleeves & Vee front. - Long, thin belt looped down front. - Small leather bag and money pouch. - White linen undershert. - Silk chaperon (padded roll hat). - Fitted drawstring trousers or hose. - Leather slip on shoes. Other clothing suggestions for women WOMAN'S WIDE SLEEVE TUNIC If you really have your heart set on something feminine with big sleeves, this tunic is made following the basic T-tunic pattern on the patterns page. - Silken veil with metal circlet - Wide sleeves (lined with contrasting fabric) - Large skirt with extra triangular gores for fullness - No lacing, pulls on over head - Thin leather belt ot embroidered fabric belt - Can have embroidery over sleeve seams - Can have embroidered neckline, often very beautiful - Can have celtic embroidery at neck - Can have square, round or keyhole neckline - Purses suspended from belt can be fabric and have tassels   PARTI-COLOUR CLOTHING. A great way to brighten your look or appear more festive is by making parti-colour clothing. That is, one half of your garment in one colour, and the opposing side in another colour. The halves do not have to be plain either. Wide bands of horizontal striped fabric or textured weaves in geometrical shapes are great too. This one is for a noble lady and will have her coat of arms on one side when it is finished. It is made from the Tshirt method on the patterns page and still looks great! It was taken in to fit the bodice snugly and again at the lower arm. You could add your business logo if it is suitable. This kind of clothing is generally associated with entertainers or the "court jester", but it could have been worn as festive wear for the middle classes on special occasions if you were wealthy enough to affort it or as part of a heraldic design.   The finishing touches Finishing touches make a world of difference to the way you look. Try these! - A long white apron - A coif or skullcap (seen above) - A hood for women or men or felt hat for men - A surcote can be worn over the basic tunic for women - A leather or linen pouch hanging from your belt - A Pilgrim Badge pinned on your clothes or hood What NOT to wear and why Pictured at left, clothing from 1640-1670. It IS NOT medieval. It's Renaissance. This woman is a member of a re-enactment group. She is dressed in historically accurate clothing, however she is dressed in 17th century clothes, the style of which is not suited to earlier events. The medieval period is generally accepted as ending at 1485. These clothes are not for medieval events, no matter how great and accurate they are. These 3 dresses below are very beautiful, but they are not medieval. They are fantasy. If you are a stallholder at a medieval event, you shouldn't be wearing one of these or anything similar.     VISIT OUR PARENT SITE Copyright © Rosalie Gilbert All text & photographs within this site are the property of Rosalie Gilbert unless stated. Artifact images remain the property of the owner. Images and text may not be copied and used without permission.