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Sewing
Tutorial:
Easy Cheaty Basic T-tunic: Chemise, Undertunic or Overtunic
Not historically accurate sleeves, but easy to make and suitable
for getting started,
or for stallholders who need a basic look or for fun feasts!
 The
basic T-tunic for an early Norman medieval gown is possibly
one of the easiest gowns to make for the beginner sewer and
it looks nice made in a nice colour with embroidered bands at
the neck and sleeves and worn with a coloured belt and hood.
It hangs like a sack in a very unattractive manner until the
belt is on, when it drapes much nicer.
It also makes a very serviceable basic chemise or smock
pattern for underwear for most time periods.
Re-enactors use a slightly
more complicated pattern with underarm gores and a separate
sleeve, but to make a slightly cheaty one which uses
less sewing and fussing, you can cut the top of the dress and
the sleeve all in one piece.
There are no zips or lacing in this gown. It pulls
on over the head giving a lot of upper body room-to-move
for active people and little ones! Made from linen or wool,
it makes a great basic starter garb. Made out of silk or cotton
velveteen (for non-re-enactors) and with a train, it's gorgeous
for feasts!
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Step
1
You need: your fabric, pins, scissors and a cotton shirt for
sizing.
Don't use a stretchy shirt as it can give a false sense of
how it will fit you. If you don't have a cotton shirt, get
thee to an Op Shop and spend a couple of dollars and and get
one.
Lie your fabric flat on the floor unfolded.
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Step
2
Fold your shirt and your fabric in half lengthways.
If you arm goes to the edge of the fabric like the picture,
HOORAY, you can make this with very little fabric at all.
If your fabric is skinny, you will need to fold your fabric
double (two runs of fabric instead of a folded over piece)
before you begin.
Your folded shirt matches the side with the folded fabric
on the left hand side. |
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Step
3
Fold your long, skinny folded fabric again the other way so
you have one fold where your shirt centre fold is and
one fold at the top of the sleeve.
You should have your one piece of fabric folded in four with
the neck in the top left hand corner. At the top of the
arms, there is folded fabric. At the centreline of the shirt,
there is folded fabric.
The loose edges of fabric are at the right and at the
bottom.
Not sure what I mean? Check the next picture to double check
that you've folded it right. |
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Step
4
Looking at it from a different angle to double check you've
folded your fabric the right way before you cut anything.
Your four loose corners are at the bottom right.
Your corner fold where everything meets is at the top
left.
Your shirt is sitting right in that top left hand corner ready
to mark out your dress. |
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Step
5
(Sorry for the wonky picture.)
Marking out your pattern. This is not quite so terrifying
as it sounds.
Always ALWAYS cut the seams a bit bigger than
you think you need. You can always take a dress in but it's
really hard to add pieces in once it's cut.
Your pattern is based around your non-stretchy shirt. Because
it pulls on over the head, you need to allow extra room
at the sides.
The underarm curves up and the sleeve follows your
shirt to the wrist, tapering a bit as you go so the sleeves
is close at your wrist. Make sure you are marking a little
wider than you think you need to allow for seams. You can
pin in again to make it smaller if you'd like to!
If your sleeve seam is on the fabric edge, it doesn't even
need hemming!
To get the size of your skirt, draw a line from the hip (the
bottom of the shirt) to the very edge of the fabric. The wider
your fabric, the more skirt you'll have. Your centre seam
is as long as you are to the ground. If you want a train,
allow more. |
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Step 6
Just double check again that the fabric is folded the right
way before you cut anything...
... it should look like this...
all the loose corners are in the lower right hand side?
Are you sure? You'll still be able to use your pattern if
it isn't but it means extra sewing to rejoin where we have
folded today.
Right!
Start pinning!
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Step
7
Cut your new dress out.
Unpin the side now that your dress is cut.
Make sure you don't cut your head hole too large at
this point.
Plenty of time to think about what kind of neckline you want
later, and when you fold the edges over to sew, it will make
the hole bigger too.
You don't need to sew any centre seam as it's on a fold. |
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Step 8
Unfold your dress altogether. When it's spread out of the
floor, it looks like this.
You are ready to fold your gown the right way and sew the
two side seams. Fold horizontally where the brown
line is on the picture, right through the middle of the
arms.
At this point, it's
exactly the same front and back. Choose the side you want
to be the front and cut the neckline a little lower.
Just a little.
Remember, you can take more off, but it's really hard to
put it back on.
Okay, so now you have a front.
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Step 9
You now have a dress which looks like this. Before you start
to sew, check if your fabric has a right side or a pattern.
Fold your dress with the right side of the fabric facing
together.
Pin, pin, pin those
side seams all the way from the hem, along the body, under
the arms and down the sleeves.
Now very, very carefully check you can get it on
over your head. You can put a teeny slit in the front if
you like.
If it's very loose through the body, take the side seams
in a little. Try it on again. Still loose? Pin in
again and try it on. Remember, it will be a little
loose so you can pull it on over your head. Once you're
happy with the fit and you've adjusted your neckline, sew
your two side seams and you're ready to hem!
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  The
finished product!
Your new gown will
hang like a sack a little at first, but don't be depressed.
When you put your belt on, it will pull in at the waist
like it does in medieval manuscripts and the picture at
the top.
Add a pretty hood and pouch and you're all dressed!
This pattern also makes
a very good undergown for the 13th century gown, the wide-sleeve
gown and a nice basic linen chemise as well.
Happy
sewing!
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Copyright
© Rosalie Gilbert
All text & photographs within this site are the property of
Rosalie Gilbert unless stated.
Art & artifact images remain the property of the owner.
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