#also i left out anything from essos because the post already became so long

[mrsjadecurtiss]

@captainwordsmith​ thank you for the question! :D

!DISCLAIMER!  Nothing of this is set in stone... since i’m not producing for an official comic or TV show, i keep myself the freedom that i can sometimes change things up if i find a better design idea.

For any history/fashion buff reading this, I’m really sorry if i name things wrong xD this is more about what i’m looking for when i look up references, but i always also change things up or combine them.

So, since the seven kingdoms are loosely based off europe, i always thought it a given that the fashion in them is different from region to region :D When i look at a character or house i get like... an idea in my head, and i try to finetune research until i find the real life fashion that mirrors it. While i always name a country it’s never really 100% consistent since i’m not making accurate historical art... i always mix it around with several influences/time periods, and im more about getting a look that’s semi-consistent in itself than a look that’s necessarily consistent with a historical period. after all im trying to make fashion for a fantasyland... So this is more of a list of what stuff i look up when researching.

Also, unless speciifed, if i say a country’s name i either refer to folk clothing, or medieval fashion and up to the 16th-17th century.

The amount of info is based on how often i draw the people from the region, so sometimes a lot, sometimes very little (yet!).

There’s also my pinterest wall where i collect references, nothing i uploaded myself just stuff i favourited from browsing the site

The North

The North makes me think furs, and clothing from solid materials. My mental image is always primarily slavic countries, but with added scottish and scandinavian influences since it’s a huge region and should have differences in itself.

House Stark: Since they are the main northern house and have many important characters, i try to give them a more standard "fantasy” appearance; they are kind of like an introduction to both the north and the series itself, so while i want to already start with the furs and all, i still like to kind of keep them like the readers and show watchers would expect. though i saw a really rad polish eddard and it makes me want to up the slav with these guys

House Karstark: what i would call “high russian”... I don’t really have a deep reason for this it is just the mental image that immediately springs to my mind. Maybe their sigil reminds me of that aesthetic

House Bolton:  Elegant clothing, not too fancy but not conservative either. I first kind of got an idea for their vibe when i saw someone describe roose as “westeros’ vlad the impaler”; so usually when i look for references i try to stick to romanian and hungarian clothing, and stuff that fits in with that fashion; The dreadfort lies in the east, so hungary/romania/ukraine seems fitting to me.

House Ryswell: Very loosely scottish influences... also for the women, 14th century french/german vibes

White Harbor: They migrated there from the south, so i try to give them a more “southern” fashion (ie fashion that does not look like the rest of the north). Influences from france/italy, and netherlands.

House Umber: Vaguely russian, but not very elaborate. Kind of simple, big, warm, clothing (they are the closest to the wall), but with those cool hats.

House Dustin: Pretty celtic, invoking an idea of “the first king”. Maybe a king arthur vibe added... normannic...

Riverlands

When i read descriptions of it, i always think germany... Green, with a river through it, and medium climate...

House Frey: really vibe me as german, flemish or dutch, so that’s kind of what i’m going for with their clothing. Also some 16th century influences, i often see paintings in museum’s where im like “thats walder!!”

also these hats

House Tully: Kind of a conflict with the german/dutch thing i want to have going on, but the name is irish and they have red hair so irish fits... usually a case by case decision how i mix it

Vale

this is hard to specify because i can’t quite name what exactly im seeing in front of my inner eye... It’s this sort of, really medieval style, maybe 12-15th century, influences english and german?

The eyrie is so far up and kind of magical seeming, it reminds me of a fairy tale... so that is the vibe im slightly trying to achieve, this innocent medieval vibe you get from history books geared at kids. Maybe also sort of a king arthur feel.

Obviously neighbour to the riverlands so it can have similar fashion at times... exchange of trends....

And since It’s near Essos we can also look at cultural exchange there. It would make sense if a vale lord or two had mixed heritage...

House Royce: Their seat is runestone, and runes are on their sigil, so maybe these crowns... or some fantasy dwarf elements... Also general celtic influences (very vague and i WILL research more about celts when i actually draw members of this house). Hope when i research, that i will find a good idea on how to differentiate to two cadet branches well.

Westerlands

House Lannister: I’m seeing the Lannisters as like, really hip english and french fashion. You know the awesome hats, and beautiful dresses... The hair up in this horn-like headgear... jewels and ornaments...

Not so sure on the rest of the westerlands houses since i don’t “see” the characters around as much, i didn’t form a good impression... But I’m thinking solid english/french folk. Not the same as the ryswells, more of a rennaissance flair.

The Reach

House Tyrell: something in me wants bosnian Tyrells... The way the reach’s described in Dunk&Egg makes me think of my summers there, and they have brown hair/brown eyes. Though realistically (as in, what seems intended by grrm) i’m getting a huge french vibe (highgarden like those french gardens), so i’d strive for a good mix. I just need to differenciate it from the Lannisters, probably by keeping the mediterranean influence strong.

House Hightower: Burgfräulein vibes

Crownlands

Nobility/King’s Landing: Should scream “king’s court”, im thinking just the coolest looking medieval fashion i can find. A bit more modern, rennaissance-y, maybe. And stuff like this

House Targaryen: very boring but whatever the influences for LotR elves are, plus generally european kings, those with all the drama that martin was inspired from... i will need to work out something right proper for future targ drawings tbh

Dorne

House Martell: I had a drawing or two using the indian influence that is popular in fan art, but i'm not sure if i want to keep it... ivansbadart gave me the idea for north african influences, i might use morrocco myself, and i think i might also look into middle eastern fashion a bit. Or i mix a bit of both, considering the Region’s history of both the martells and the rhoynar... Most importantly i need to agree with myself on what my main inspiration for the rhoynish look will be.

Stormlands

Mainland: I don’t really have an idea for the stormlands at all, i can’t remember if any of the books ever had a segment there... i just have zero impressions so far.

House Tarth: Toying with a greek vibe, since it is located in the narrow sea... maybe mixed with a bit of italian.

Iron Islands

I really really have to get into researching a bit for this location... whenever i want to draw greyjoys my mind’s just like “uuuh vikings” and that’s that. this is theon

[nightrainlily]

DAY SIXTEEN: TU ME MANQUES

each day is the hottest day of the year. somehow, we’ve managed to come to Europe in a heatwave, and a serious one too; the government was issuing public service announcements about staying hydrated and the news was reporting on the freak wildfires in Sweden. Joelle and I sat around in our towels today after our third showers, because it was too hot to put clothes back on. I wish it would rain.

the Parisians are gritty. people still sit on the canal at night, smoking and drinking, because it’s just as hot inside. I have a suspicion that young French people are more social than young Americans. although I don’t know anything at all about their private lives, I know that in this heat, I wouldn’t want to see anyone but my laptop, wouldn’t want to go anywhere but my bedroom. and yet, they seem to be having a good time, while we’re complaining about the humidity or the temperature or the lack of air conditioning or the perpetual stickiness. perhaps they’re more resilient, or perhaps they simply have to think about the bitter winter to appreciate the few days of hellish weather they do get. I’m not sure what it is that motivates them to congregate outdoors, but its sort of a spectacle, a natural phenomenon if you will.

walking around the city today felt like a long goodbye. between the heat and the general discomfort of living without your creature comforts, we feel ready to go home. I tip my hat to nomads, who live out of a backpack and off the earth, because three weeks is my max. our party has compiled a list, for your reading enjoyment, of things we are glad to return to:

1. air conditioning

2. our beds, homes, dogs, bathrooms, etc.

3. driving

4. kitchens, grocery stores, more control over when and what we eat

5. peanut butter

6. arnold palmers

7. ice

8. readily available wifi

9. quiet

10. soft towels

11. American shower heads

12. water fountains

13. toilets actually in bathrooms, availability of toilets in general

14. clean clothes

15. the public library

16. work and routines

17. labels, signs, menus, etc. in English

18. family and friends (obviously this list is in no particular order)

19. American outlets

every trip I take, I learn a little bit more about myself and my capacity for travel-related inconvenience. I wonder if it is because my childhood has been so happy, that my home has been so comfortable and loving, that I am unable to go without it. we’re having fun, we’re experiencing incredible things, we’re living the actual dream. when I’m home in Phoenix, I often complain about that it’s boring, there’s nothing to do, why would people even live here. and yet when I’m forced to leave it, I miss the familiarity of home. I’m excited to drive up the I-17, which I never thought I’d say, and around the grid system of streets. I miss the restaurants where I always get the same dish, and the grocery store that always carries my favorite products. like I wrote in my post about the feeling of home, part of my ability to settle into a place is to establish a sense of routine and make a place my own.

but Europe has had a place in my heart all my life, because of John and because of my mother’s love of travel. it always existed in my mind as a magical land of art and history. in reality, it is so much more than that: culture, people, languages, politics, economies, communities. although I can never hope to really understand it without living there longterm, I can damn well try, by opening myself to experiences while I’m visiting.

on the whole, the structure of the trip, country to city to country to city, was incredibly beneficial to our physical and mental wellbeing; we needed the recharge periods to power through the insanity of our urban days. Sweden was a return to a place that had become my home; my exchange, which was longer than this trip by a few days, felt quick because I settled in and became a part of a family. London had the most incredible subway system I’ve ever ridden, the best food, Paddington bear. Burgundy and all its quiet peace allowed us to reconnect with family and with ourselves, after the whirlwind of the U.K. and finally, Paris—I discovered an appreciation for history and art that I didn’t realize I had in me, as well as a whole battery of French language. and I know I’ll be back, because John won’t let me stay away for long. knowing that he’ll always be there to make Paris feel like home is comforting, but I there’s something about this city that would draw me back even without that familial ease. I can’t quite put my finger on why I love Paris so, but I miss it already.

in French, you don’t say “I miss you”, you say “tu me manques”, which translates directly to “you are missing from me.” to my home: there is a part of me that feels empty, a part that is usually filled up with friends, family, my dog, my kitchen, my house. to Paris: I feel a pull that I don’t remember feeling when I left last time, maybe because I am older or maybe because I caught a glimpse of how I could make Paris my own.

the more places you visit, the more places you love, the more pieces of yourself you leave behind, the more torn you feel. but ultimately, those pieces are still a part of you, and you can go back to any one at any time; you expand on your knowledge and culture and understanding so that what you give, you also gain.

we’re headed home early tomorrow morning, so this post will be my last, if you couldn’t tell from the nostalgic, reflective tone. after my trip to Sweden, I didn’t know if I would ever blog again, as I started that one sort of on a whim. with college coming up fast, it’s unclear whether or not I’ll be traveling anytime soon. hopefully the next time I make a new tab in my tumblr header, open up a blank document titled “blog”, I’ll be a new person with new insights. but for now, I hope I’ve imparted my thoughts in such a way that portrayed the beauty of this trip, how grateful I am to be here, and how incredible the whole wide world is.

till next time,

amaya

1. Tarifa - Sharon Von Etten

2. Breakin’ Up - Rilo Kiley

3. Give Judy My Notice - Ben Folds

4. To the End - Blur

5. Boys - Charlie XCX

6. Amour, t’es là? - Banda Magna

7. Have You Ever Been (to Electric Ladyland) - Nai Palm

8. Hey Mami - Sylvan Esso