"One Kirtle to Rule Them All"

Burnley and Trowbridge time travels to the Renaissance with one supportive dress that can be accessorized to work not only for Florence in the late 15th century, but also England and the Holy Roman Empire during the early 16th century. The kirtle was the the main dress garment worn during the medieval and Renaissance periods, providing bust support and structure under the outer gowns. Many European countries wore similar styles of a foundational dress. By making accessories that are distinct to their regions, such as varying partlets, aprons, caps, and underwear, the same kirtle can be styled for different cultures. Suggested reading material for how to construct your own kirtle will be briefly discussed. This KZbin Live is going to focus on the accessories and garment layers worn by the middle classes in Florence, England, and the Holy Roman Empire at the turn of the 16th century. It is geared for fans of the Renaissance who might be attending Faires or other non-academic historical recreation events.
Suggested Supplies List: burnleyandtrowbridge.com/page...
Britney's Blog-Jane Fox Historical Costumes: jezebeljane.blogspot.com/
Marion McNealy's The Curious Frau bit.ly/2Njl8Eg
Tudor Tailor bit.ly/3vd0zu6
And to buy their patterns, books and more www.tudortailor.com
Suggested Reading List:
Drei Schnittbucher: Three Austrian Master Tailor Books of the 16th Century: amzn.to/2Osuaz5
The Tudor Tailor: amzn.to/3cv937g
The Queen's Servants: etsy.me/2NjkYwE
Period Costumes for Stage & Screen: amzn.to/30FTt3s

[@eleanormccarthy2713]

It would be great if you did have a kirtle sew-along.

[@asiabryant207]

PLEASE

[@Imjetta7]

Yes!!

[@darrahjones-reddy6100]

Definitely!

[@Raegrea]

I have yet to find a sew-along of a supported kirtle without boning - I'd be delighted to see this done and dissected!

[@beatricewhitcombe]

Adding my vote to this, one year later!! 😍

[@OpusElenae]

Oh my gosh thank you so much for the shout out! A++ video, this was super great!

[@elizabethsloan3192]

I’m Italian/German in ethnicity, and it’s great to see portraits with this figure type. There is a book called Cut My Cote, which covers the relationship between fabric sizes and materials and how clothes are made.

[@BurnleyandTrowbridge]

Cut my Cote is excellent

[@poetmaggie1]

So many of these older dresses I noticed make it easy for mothers to nurse.

[@greeneyedjrzgrl]

Matthew Gnagy (The Modern Maker) does an awesome tutorial on padstitching.

[@erdbeermilch2083]

German here! Your pronunciation is really good.

[@Neddoest]

This was very helpful! I’m new to the SCA and it’s kind of stunning how expensive fabric can be, and not being able to afford wool or linen (much less silks and brocade) makes me super sad. Maybe one day people will pay me to make their clothes and even if I don’t wear it I can still sew with it 🤔

[@ABC1701A]

This is also the era of the so called Lengburg Bra, but I know breast bags were also spoken, or written, of in this era as well and those who have made versions of these report that they are very comfortable, supportive and give the rounded effect as well.

[@rowanwyatt1692]

This was great! Loved the questions, conversation, and seeing the different fabrics being handled

[@angelagrimes8237]

Thank you. Great program. I have used the Tudor Tailor patterns. I did bone my kirtle but that was a personal choice. Thanks

[@christinapapp7143]

Fantastic presentation! Thank you, Brittany, Angela, Christina and the Renaissance experts who added info!!

[@katesoehnlen7075]

Thank you for such an in-depth look at kirtles and accessories. I've never made one but am now considering it because of you!

[@ladyjusticesusan]

Thank you so much for this. Very informative.

[@judyhacker]

Such fun!!!!!!! I'm fired up after today's presentation!

[@GoingGreenMom]

Thank you for this! In the well endowed camp and needing something that isnt elastic for clothing support.

[@patrizia3170]

I used the Tudor Tailor kirtle pattern with the v-shaped neck/back. I added boning because it was a practice project and I wanted to try several things out. I also tweaked it to have side lacing on both sides in stead of front or back lacing. I am eagerly awaiting the next Tudor tailor book the Stuart tailor :-) Love this vid btw, it answered a lot of my questions about how to use fabric to stiffen in stead of boning (I see some new kirtle making in my future). I also love the "proto kirtle"! After this I am going to binge the rest of the vids on your channel, lol, allready have the "making buckram" one ready to go :-) Lot's of love from Belgium!

[@BurnleyandTrowbridge]

Thank you!

[@mmcgartland2095]

Incredible information

[@DanceswithDustBunnies]

Just a note on wool. The robes of the nomadic tribes of North Africa were historically made of wool. It is actually a very versatile fabric.

[@BurnleyandTrowbridge]

Thank you for sharing!

[@rebeccawayman4219]

I love my madder color kersey. I can’t wait to make a 13th century kirtle so with it.

[@teddy-3765]

Coming to this party late, obviously but, in addition to the excellent books mentioned in the video Drea Leed's book The Well dress'd Peasant has some excellent information and closer-fitting/supportive shift.

[@BurnleyandTrowbridge]

Yes thank you!

[@ah5721]

I need a sewing tutorial now !! bras are the devil built in suports sounds lovely!

[@terrierkeeper]

I really enjoyed your article here but I must ask since you do all these accessories though they're not of the same time period Have You thought of also doing a medieval kirtle hood as part of your dress?

[@realcbglacier]

I loved seeing the multi 'cultural' (?) use for the kirtle, I'm so excited to learn/choose which accessories to make to to increase my persona options! I had the great luck to take a Tudor Tailor Kirtle making class last year (right before lockdown) with Harlie Des Roches (Harls Barkley) who graces the cover of the The Typical Tudor, we also got to make the 'cote/coat' from the new book. ~C

[@BurnleyandTrowbridge]

How wonderful!

[@knotyourcup0ftea]

Love the video, does anyone have the link to that supportive shift blog post?

[@BurnleyandTrowbridge]

Yes here is the blog www.neulakko.net/

[@nicolemulready6329]

I had a q in the live chat of this that we ran out of time for. Is there a washable alternative for buckram for bodice stiffening that would be suitable for kirtles and for things like stays? Obviously they aren't meant to be washed in the same way historically, but, modern sensibilities 🤷🏽‍♀️

[@BurnleyandTrowbridge]

Possibly synthetic buckram? TBH we have never used anything but linen

[@nicolemulready6329]

@@BurnleyandTrowbridge thanks for replying! what's the difference between synthetic buckram and normal?

[@BurnleyandTrowbridge]

@@nicolemulready6329 actually a quick search and I can only find drapery buckram that is washable. Most buckrams say dry clean only unfortunately

[@nicolemulready6329]

@@BurnleyandTrowbridge I appreciate you taking the time to look! I'll have to pick up some buckram to compare it to other fabrics I think

[@BookishLish]

I would think that there is probably a modern iron-on interfacing that would be a similar weight if you're okay with using that for a historical project where it won't be seen, maybe try making a small piece of buckram as a swatch and then bring that with you to the store to compare to modern weight interfacings in terms of weight. Only thing I know is that what fabric stores generally carry that is labeled as buckram today is millinery buckram, which is NOT the same thing and cannot be used as a substitute for historical buckram. I hope this helps!

[@lyleea]

Schleier is pronounced SHLAY-ER. Thank you for the interesting video.

[@BurnleyandTrowbridge]

Thanks for the info!

[@eilatanggoh693]

I love the look of kirtles and would love to make one for myself, but I've only seen them made of wool (which I can't use) would it work made completely out of linen? Was that a thing?

[@BurnleyandTrowbridge]

Yes you can use linen although I think typically they were wool

[@ThreadsofEden]

Are you wearing a Wool& dress? It looks like the Maggie to me, but they no longer have that color.

[@BurnleyandTrowbridge]

Everything worn by Britney was sewn by her.

[@beagleissleeping5359]

I was watching Brave. I decide I "need" Queen Elinor's purple dress she has on in the very beginning. I turn on this video. An ad for Disney+ pops up. Hmmm.....🤔🤣

[@ColorJoyLynnH]

Tenterhooks? Ouch!!!!!

[@tondriasanders6306]

Cathey Hay and Bernadette Banner did a collab video with a contemporary German corset maker, that centered around tailoring. It doesn't get extremely in-depth, but it's a decent jumping off point. If I can find it, I'll edit this post and add a link.

[@karencronk4284]

Lovely where did you get the ouches from hun and could you make me a belt and necklace?