Fingerloop Braid Color Variations

Two fingerloop braids, with bonus whetstone and shears.

Getting ready for Faire, and realized I never posted these fingerloop braids from my last 16th century event. They're braids #4 & #6 ("A Lace Baston", "An Endented Lace") from Tak V Bowes Departed. Both have the same braiding patterns as #2 "A Round Lace of Five Loops", which I previously used as purse strings. I've technically made #6 before (the endented braid for a drawstring on the sweetbag project), but revisiting it in conjunction with the others really helped me internalize how the color patterns work.

Close up on the patterns: stripes and chevrons.

All three of these are the same braiding pattern. Number #2 (the black purse string) just uses 5 loops of the same material, giving a plain round cord. Number #6 (above, tied on the whetstone) uses two loops of one color and three of the other, each starting on separate hands, so the colors alternate and change place as you work; this produces the chevron design. Number #4 also uses five identical bicolor 'loops' made by tying a thread of one color to a thread of the other: this produces the vertical lines down the cord IF you keep the loops aligned.

It's probably obvious to everyone else, but I found this this experiment very helpful for improving my understanding of how the braiding really works. The patterns were also nice training tools for keeping tracking of your loops (chevron) and picking up the right side of the loop (stripe). The solid color looks more forgiving, but makes it harder to tell where errors occurred. I'd honestly recommend that anyone starting on fingerloop braiding try all three of these variant braids together as an exercise.

Bicycling Skirt, 1950s

 A quick project from one of the 1950s Haslan books: a bicycling skirt. I made it up in mid-weight linen, so it photographs horrible, but is really comfortable to wear in the current heat-wave.

Bicycling Skirt, 30 seconds after ironing

Even with felling the seams (necessary to keep the linen from unravelling in the wash), this pattern made up quickly: two hours from cut pieces to finished garment. It's basically a four-piece, shaped-seam, mid-calf-length skirt with each piece extended at the center front/back. This pattern was a bonus at the end of the book, so there was no garment illustration, just the draft with instructions to take a large pleat the center front and back. 

 

My construction process began with joining up the left front/back pieces into one left "leg" and the right front/back pieces into another, then hemming each leg, sewing the two together at the fork (basically making a pair of giant shorts) and then fitting it into a waistband using a large inverted box-pleat at the center front and center back. This puts all the extra fabric in the center and provides lots of ease for movement. With no fastening information, I put a zipper in the right side-seam with a hook/bar at the waistband. 

I am mostly happy with the result: it's comfortable to wear, and easy to take on and off. In appearance, the skirt is adequate: neither sloppy nor super flattering. I used a new zipper-insertion method Jessica showed me, to good effect--you baste the seam, sew the zipper to each seam allowance, and cut the basting--it goes in quickly, and makes a functional fastener, albeit a visible one. The waistband is self fabric, folded in half. The instructions had it assembled in four slightly sloped pieces, but also called for folding it down, would have made a mess of the sloped pieces. I instead used a rectangular band with straight sides. I think a shaped waistband (two separate layers) could make a lovely variation in the future.

Next time (and there will be many more), I will put a pocket in the side seam opposite the zipper. Honestly, I'll probably add one to this skirt within a week. I'll also skip the small pleats I added to the waist at the skirt's side seams, as the fullness is generous enough through the hips without it, and it only makes the lines look awkward. Until I actually get good at zippers, I probably won't be making any of these split skirts for smart ensembles, but I do intend to make another one or two for practical summer daywear. This skirt is much more comfortable than jeans or even shorts for walking, gardening, pitching tents, and other summery activities. The split skirt has most of the benefits of a skirt (flowy, draping, loose fit) and of shorts (protection from chafing and accidental exposure). Each leg is very generously cut, so it might be possible to have problems with the skirt flying up, but it would take some pretty extreme gymnastics to make that an issue.

HFF 5.26: Reflection

The Challenge: Reflection. Give yourself a second chance at any previous challenge or at a dish you've made before. Fix something that went wrong, or try a new variation of an old favorite.

The Recipe: I decided to revisit my most troublesome receipt from this season: "A Light Cake to Bake in Cups" from the heartfelt challenge.

After consulting with noted bread expert Quinn, I decided to increase the liquid in this recipe (ie, interpret 1 wineglass as more than 1.5 oz, which is an option, since it seems to mean between 0.5 and 4oz depending on the receipt). She also observed that the ingredient list has some similarities to rum baba, and advised borrowing techniques from such a recipe.

The Date/Year and Region: 1852, New York

How Did You Make It: I once again started by waking up the yeast, this time using 2 Tbsp of yeast in 4 oz of warm water (double the yeast of the previous attempt). After about 10 minutes I added 2oz of white wine and 4 oz of butter (melted). I then mixed together the 4 oz granulated sugar, 1 lb flour, and a generous 1/4 tsp nutmeg, and kneaded that into the liquids. It worked into a smooth dough in a matter of minutes, and I then let it rise in a 100F oven until doubled (not the 1 hour in the instructions, but closer to 4 hours). I then gently kneaded it again, filled three round tins with dough, mixed in a scant handful of currant into the remainder, and divided that between 2 oval tins. These went back into the oven to rise for 1 hour (I meant 15 min but forgot to retrieve them), then baked for 25 min at 325F.

Total Time: About 6 hours including rising and baking time.

Total Cost: I had everything on hand.

How Successful Was It?: Distinct improvement over last time. Still not quite what I'd call 'light', but certainly lighter than last time. The flavor worked out well (currants, wine, and nutmeg, in that order). Even cooking much lower than the modern recipe recommended (I don't want to risk my tins), the tops on these browned in less than 10 minutes, so I ended up watching them very carefully for the rest of the time.

How Accurate Is It? The technique remains conjectural, but at least this one was more of an educated guess. As before, I used active dry yeast in water to substitute for the fresh yeast. I took 1 wineglass for 2 oz, which seems to have worked much better for the liquid balance. I did opt for the round and oval tins this time, since the original recipe called for "cups" rather than "queencake tins" in all their fun glory. Used pre-ground nutmeg because I still can't source whole ones, and Barefoot "buttery chardonnay" for the wine, since that's what I had on hand.

Lighter this time. Also in 'cups' after a fashion.

Original: Embroidered Collar, c.1850

Woman's collar, American, c.1850. From LACMA.

 This one is worth clicking through for the close-ups. This is one of the most densely embroidered collars I've ever seen: the semi-sheer fabric is barely visible around the thick (couched?) embroidery motif, with dozens of worked eyelets creating a net-like background to the scallops.