#chemise embroidery

[shevitsa]

Examples of embroidery on traditional clothes from Vardar (North) Macedonia. | Везани части от носии от Вардарска Македония.

I. 57, 58 — Headkerchiefs embroidered in silken and golden thread, region of Debar. | Мотиви от кърпа за глава, Дебърско.

II. 59 — Hem of a chemise from Prilep. | Пола на кошула, Прилепско. 60 — Sleeve of a chemise with silk embroidery, Ohrid. | Ръкав от кошула, везана с коприна, Охридско.

III. 61 — Chemise sleeve from Bitola. | Ръкав от кошула, Битолско.

From the Album of Bulgarian Macedonian Embroideries by Raina Roumenova.

[aahsoka]

i have been getting off work early bc there isnt a lot to do . which is fine by me because that means I’ve gotten a bunch of extra time to work on my sewing project and literally all I have left is to finish sewing on the trim on the bodice and then gathering and attaching the skirt to it

[sardonyyx]

Lestat in women’s/men’s redingote

[enobariasteeth]

House of the dragon is a prime example of why you need proper historical undergarments when wearing historical/historical-inspired dresses

[dresshistorynerd]

Sewing a turn of the 15th century French kirtle in doll scale

Another day, another historical doll outfit! This time it's Late Medieval. This was a popular style from about 1380-1420 France and Alpine area, but I specifically based this dress on French illuminations from the early 15th century, which mostly effects the details, like headwear. As always I hand stitched everything and stuck to historical construction methods as much as I could.

Chemise

I made a very simple chemise. The construction is based on what we know from extant finds, made out of simple rectangles and triangles, like earlier unlaced kirtles. Based on illustrations, chemise was fairly slim but unfitted enough it didn't need closures. I made it from linen, because it's not very gathered and won't bulk up too much, so I don't need to use my very fine cotton voile.

Cote

Cote is just the French word for kirtle, so appropriate here. This is the supportive layer cote, which was sort of an undergarment, but was considered fully dressed, if informal on it's own. The sleeves on this underlayer were always long and either fully fitted or gathered at the wrist. Some fitted sleeve styles had a flare at the wrist which covered the hand. The very fitted look was achieved with buttons. The silhouette was smooth and fitted, the waistline was slightly above the natural waist, though that was not as pronounced in France as in Northern Italy. Abdomen was emphasized, round lower stomach was the body ideal. The cut of the dress left plenty of room there. To fill that room I folded the chemise under the abdomen as a sort of padding. This was common to do with any kind of skirts, primarily to raise the hem when working, but why not for this purpose also? The necklines were fairly low and very wide.

I used cotton because I didn't have suitable thin enough wool that wouldn't have created too much bulk on this scale, but the cote should have been made from. The cotton is tightly woven and sells the look of a woven wool in this scale well enough for me. I didn't finish seems or line it to avoid bulk. I did give the lacing a cording to reinforce it and avoid wrinkling. The cotton was originally white, but I dyed it with iron oxide, basically rust, which at least is very much historical.

Hose

I made the hose from cotton as well for the same reasons as I did the cote. Long pointed style became fashionable around this time, as well as sewing leather soles in the bottoms of the hose instead of using shoes. Though often pattens (wooden flipflops basically) could be used when walking outside to protect the leather soles.

Cornettes or horned hair

I tied the hair with a tape on cornettes, where the volume of hair was tied on the temples to create a bit of horned appearance, especially when combined with the horned headwear. The sort of fillet which became more of a forehead loop seemed to have been tied into the hair, which I did.

Cotehardie

Cotehardie meant literally "bold cote", and in France that was what the formal outer cote was called. It was basically the same as cote, but made from more expensive materials and often had large hanging sleeves. I went with widening triangular sleeves, since they were perhaps the most popular sleeves at the time. I used fine fulled wool (verka) I had enough scraps left from. White fur was popular lining material, but obviously I can't use fur in this scale, I wish I had some light white velvet, it would have been pretty good, but I didn't. I lined the skirt and the sleeves with white cotton to imitate the look without adding too much body or extra bulk. I decorated the neckline with a simple golden trim. I thought about adding a bit of golden embroidery around it too, like seemed to have been popular, but my local crafts store had run out of golden thread so I decided to go with this only.

Accessories

Unlike the belt used with houppelande, which was below bust, the belt used with the kirtle or cotehardie, was very low, under the abdomen to emphasize it. I went for a silk belt look, which I'm imagining is embroidered/woven with golden thread, since embroidery that small would have been too painful. I had an old broken necklace, which I could use for the metallic parts.

With the pouch I went for the tasseled drawstring look, with simple embroidery manageable in this scale. I used linen for it.

Headwear

I made her a chaperon, which likely was where the escoffion got it's beginning, escoffion being the round tube-like headwear worn on top of the head seen in several primary source images above. Early form of escoffion was becoming very popular at the time, though chaperon's were still seen on women too. Chaperon, as seen below both on the left-most woman and the man in the middle was actually just the hood rolled into a circle.

Because the horned look was popular, the escoffion and chaperon were often worn over the wired horned veil, so I first made that. I made it from cotton to make it as light as possible. It was just a square I hemmed. I just used some wire to poke out the horns from her hair and pinned the veil close from the back and onto her hair from the top.

Then I made the open hood. It was just the regular hood which had become very popular during the last century and which had ever longer narrow tip, but it was pinned and worn open, probably because of the hair style and to again create the horned look. I made if from the same cotton I made the hose, even though it too should be from wool. But it was already too bulky as it was.

And finally I could make the chaperon. Here's first chaperon without wire or veil under it and then with those. The effect isn't as pronounced as I would have hoped because the hood is too bulky, but there is an effect which is nice.

[literaryvein-reblogs]

Some French Loans in Middle English

Loan Word - vocabulary borrowings

Borrow - to introduce a word (or some other linguistic feature) from one language or dialect into another

Administration authority, bailiff, baron, chamberlain, chancellor, constable, coroner, council, court, crown, duke, empire, exchequer, government, liberty, majesty, manor, mayor, messenger, minister, noble, palace, parliament, peasant, prince, realm, reign, revenue, royal, servant, sir, sovereign, squire, statute, tax, traitor, treason, treasurer, treaty, tyrant, vassal, warden

Law accuse, adultery, advocate, arrest, arson, assault, assize, attorney, bail, bar, blame, chattels, convict, crime, decree, depose, estate, evidence, executor, felon, fine, fraud, heir, indictment, inquest, jail, judge, jury, justice, larceny, legacy, libel, pardon, perjury, plaintiff, plea, prison, punishment, sue, summons, trespass, verdict, warrant

Religion abbey, anoint, baptism, cardinal, cathedral, chant, chaplain, charity, clergy, communion, confess, convent, creator, crucifix, divine, faith, friar, heresy, homily, immortality, incense, mercy, miracle, novice, ordain, parson, penance, prayer, prelate, priory, religion, repent, sacrament, sacrilege, saint, salvation, saviour, schism, sermon, solemn, temptation, theology, trinity, vicar, virgin, virtue

Military ambush, archer, army, barbican, battle, besiege, captain, combat, defend, enemy, garrison, guard, hauberk, lance, lieutenant, moat, navy, peace, portcullis, retreat, sergeant, siege, soldier, spy, vanquish

Food and drink appetite, bacon, beef, biscuit, clove, confection, cream, cruet, date, dinner, feast, fig, fruit, fry, grape, gravy, gruel, herb, jelly, lemon, lettuce, mackerel, mince, mustard, mutton, olive, orange, oyster, pigeon, plate, pork, poultry, raisin, repast, roast, salad, salmon, sardine, saucer, sausage, sole, spice, stew, sturgeon, sugar, supper, tart, taste, toast, treacle, tripe, veal, venison, vinegar

Fashion apparel, attire, boots, brooch, buckle, button, cape, chemise, cloak, collar, diamond, dress, embroidery, emerald, ermine, fashion, frock, fur, garment, garter, gown, jewel, lace, mitten, ornament, pearl, petticoat, pleat, robe, satin, taffeta, tassel, train, veil, wardrobe

part 1/2 ⚜ Source ⚜ Word Lists ⚜ Notes & References

[marzipanandminutiae]

You don’t like 1920s, 1940s AND 1950s fashion? Damn what did the mid-century do to you lol. K but seriously why not the 50s? The skirts had volume and were long-ish (at least in high fashion) and blouses were well structured and fitted and often had embroidery or embellishments.

Obviously I don't hate ALL of it; no era is a monolith. But there are a few things these eras have in common that I hate:

The rise of synthetic fabrics, AKA Using Plastic To Make Clothing. We're now at a place in terms of clothing where its actively harder and more expensive to wear natural fibers than to wear clothing made entirely of a substance that leaches into our water, holds odors, makes us sweat more, doesn't generally last as long or admit as much repair over time as most natural textiles, and just Kind of Sucks all around except for a few very specific purposes. Synthetics weren't invented in the 1920s, and natural fibers were common in all of these eras than they are today, but it was definitely increasing amounts of "BUY THESE NEW EXCITING PROGRESSIVE MODERN FABRICS!!!" throughout the early and mid-20th century. Which pisses me off in principle.

Less practical garments unless you lived a very specific lifestyle- namely, access to washing machines and a willingness to launder clothing after just one wear. Modern clothing is just not great unless you have access to very frequent washing (see above re: holding odors more than many natural fibers) and barrier garments to keep sweat away from them and stretch the time between washes aren't a thing anymore for most people. In the eras mentioned, everyone was getting so excited about machine laundry capabilities- and who wouldn't? washing machines ARE a huge boon! no denying that! -that they shifted away from modes of dress designed to minimize the necessity of laundering outer clothes. Except now, with concerns about the aforementioned microplastic leaching from washing machines draining into municipal sewers and less mendable clothing- washing is a huge strain on garments, and wears them out faster if you do it too often -we need to be getting back to the system of having fewer but higher quality garments and washing them less often. Except we can't. Because some idiot in the 1920s said "whoopee nobody will ever need linen combinations or chemises that actually serve a purpose anymore!" and the subsequent decades continued it.

The silhouettes generally do not spark joy for me. 1920s actively makes me fly into a rage and scream into pillows, with the exception of robes de style MAYBE. 1940s...well, let's say there was a reason the New Look was so popular, and that's "no more boxy utility wartime clothes." I will give 1940s the hair prize here, though, because I like it better than any other decade 1920s-50s. I actually DO like the New Look! ...but not its combination with the bullet bra; yikes. This is highly subjective.

Some of the textiles, patterns, colors, and common embellishments used are just not my thing. I don't go in for Bold And Graphic And Geometric anything, usually. With a very very small number of exceptions. Polka dots and florals are also not my thing (unless the florals are on a dark background). Plastic jewelry? Hard pass. ~Fun~ motifs like fruit (except pomegranates which have Goth Appeal), the poodles on a poodle skirt, household objects, transportation, etc? No thank you; reads too Kindergarten Teacher for me. Again, not universal or exclusive to those eras- witness the 1880s chicken-print dress I saw an illustration of once -but more prevalent, to my eyes.

Hair. 1920s bobs make most people's heads look blocks. I love a good bob, but those are not Good in my opinion. 1920s Up Hair is usually meant to mimic a bob. 1930s was only a little bit better. 1940s, as I've said, was skirting the line for me and marginally acceptable. 1950s took us right back to a solid Nope with either short poodle cuts or pageboys as the main options for adult women. An occasional chignon maybe, but nothing else that appeals to me personally. just not great all around.

All of these eras were holier-than-thou about the Victorians and their fashion, which I love, so I'm petty about it. Yes please tell me more about how your plastic bullet bras or potato sack dresses are inherently superior to Grandma's elegant and comfortable long wool skirts with the perfect center back pleating. Oh, the 1860s were the ugliest fashion period ever in your opinion? Fascinating. I am setting your car on fire.

I actually DO like the New Look...which is heavily inspired by mid-19th century fashion, so that's not really any big surprise. Still has the issues with synthetic materials and the end of practical undergarments, though. Also, why stop at mid-calf for everyday skirts? Instep Or Bust You Cowards.

[elfgirlcraftworks]

First part of my #BridgertonChallenge is completed.

Regency chemise with embroidery and decorative stitches.

(Pattern is Laughing Moon 115)

Next up: stays.

[chic-a-gigot]

La Mode nationale, no. 38, 22 septembre 1894, Paris. No. 4. — Chemise de jour. No. 5. — Chemise de nuit. No. 6. — Parure de dentelle. No. 7. — Jupon en soie rose, brochée. Bibliothèque nationale de France

No. 4. — Chemise de jour, en batiste, ornée devant par un empiècement d'entre-deux et des jockeys de dentelle sur les épaules.

No. 4. — Day shirt, in batiste, decorated in front by a yoke of entre-deux and lace jockeys on the shoulders.

—

No. 5. — Chemise de nuit, en soie rose, forme blouse, attachée à la taille par une ceinture en ruban, nouée sur le devant. Sur les épaules, collerette bouillonnée, garnie d'une broderie anglaise.

No. 5. — Night shirt, in pink silk, blouse shape, attached at the waist by a ribbon belt, tied at the front. On the shoulders, ruffled collar, trimmed with English embroidery.

—

No. 6. — Parure de dentelle, formant deux collets droits, froncés au cou.

No. 6. — Lace adornment, forming two straight collars, gathered at the neck.

—

No. 7. — Jupon en soie rose, brochée de feuillages roussis, découpé en grecques dans le bas, sur un volant de mousseline, brodé en soie rose.

No. 7. — Petticoat in pink silk, embroidered with russet foliage, cut in Greek at the bottom, on a muslin flounce, embroidered in pink silk.

[daenysthedreamer101]

Daughter of Steel and Bronze ~ HOTD

Ch 9 - Child no more

HOTD x Targaryen!OC, Targaryen!OC x Harwin Strong (finally lol)

Warnings: Harwin is finally here! Daena indirectly shades Alicent, puberty, physical description of bodily changes, slight teen angst

HOTD masterlist

"In the year 112, on the last of spring, King Viserys I married his second wife, Alicent Hightower. It was a grand celebration with seven days of balls, feasts, and tourneys. Where the King and Her Grace appeared happy, many more wore sour faces during the wedding. 

The King's daughter and niece, Princess Rhaenyra and Princess Daena were said to have been in extremely foul moods throughout the entire ordeal and barely conversed with the new Queen. Daena reportedly uttered no words that whole day instead glaring at Queen Alicent."  

(Fire & Blood, Being a History of the Targaryen Kings of Westeros, by Archmaester Gyldayn)

~

112 AC, King's Landing

Spring would soon end and Daena couldn't wait for it to finish. The last seven days of the spring season were reserved for the royal wedding - her uncle Viserys decided to marry Alicent Hightower.

Ever since the announcement, Rhaenyra's relationship with Alicent has deteriorated. Instead, she started spending more time with Daena; their bond healed and they only got closer. 

Daena also had new companions - her ladies-in-waiting, Joy and Hanna Strong. Over the course of a month, the Princess bonded with the twins and became fond of both sisters. 

She was currently in her room, standing on a small pedestal with her arms stretched out. The tailors and maids were taking measures for the dress she was to wear to the wedding. She was barely able to move or breathe, her entire body covered in materials, measuring tapes, and pins. 

"Ouch!" She exclaimed in pain as a pin pierced her side. Joy smiled apologetically. Daena sighed - she hated everything about this and all it represented. She hated that her uncle chose Alicent, she hated Ser Otto for being a scheming snake, and she hated Alicent for not being honest and going behind Nyra's back. "Are we done?" She asked, annoyance lacing her voice.

"Very soon, Princess. Just need to take a few more measurements and we'll be done." The chief tailor said. She wrapped a measuring tape around Daena's hips, then around her waist, and finally around her bust. 

"You have beautiful hips, Princess. I can tell you'll have no problem birthing children." The lady commented. Daena smiled awkwardly and thanked the woman. Ever since her body started maturing all she's been hearing was how easy birth would be for her because of her wide hips. She hoped all that would be correct.

They soon finished the session and now she was alone in her room, save for Joy and Hanna. She was in her chemise - it was simple, made of fine cotton and she could see her figure when she looked in the mirror. 

Her body was changing, she realized after some time - her hips were widening, her thighs grew bigger and her bosom also grew a bit. She was scared, scared of change and what it meant for her and her life. 

She must have been in deep thought because she didn't hear Joy calling for her. "Princess.." Joy called again. Daena blinked and shook her head. She turned around to see that her supper was brought in for her. 

"Oh...thank you ladies. Will you stay with me and keep me company?"

"But of course, Princess." the sisters responded and sat down.

The three girls talked and after a while the twins left, leaving Daena alone. She unbraided her hair absentmindedly. She crawled into her bed, covered herself, and quickly fell asleep. 

The day has finally arrived - the royal wedding of King Viserys and Alicent Hightower would take place in the Sept a little before midday. 

The two princesses were getting ready together in Nyra's chambers. Rhaenyra wore a long-sleeved, yellow dress with golden embroidery. Her silver hair was beautifully braided and decorated with pearls, and she had a golden headpiece on top of her head. Around her neck was a choker made of black velvet decorated with golden strings. She wore golden wing-shaped earrings. 

Daena was dressed in a gorgeous pale blue, short-sleeved dress with flowers decorating her waist. Hanna and Joy masterfully did her hair. On her ears, she wore earrings of pearl and blue gemstones, and around her neck was a silver moonstone necklace. On top of her head was a beautiful headpiece covered in pearls that once belonged to her late aunt, Queen Aemma. 

"Are we ready, my Princess?" Hanna asked. Daena nodded and joined hands with Nyra. If they were going to suffer, they would suffer together. 

Once they exited the castle and entered the courtyard, Daena could see many coaches and carriages, and around all of them were many flags and banners representing many different Houses that came to the wedding. One banner caught her attention - a red castle on a white field within a red embattled border - House Redfort. 

Daena furrowed her pale brows. That couldn't be possible. She would've written a letter, surely. She excused herself for a moment and walked toward the man holding the banner. He was a young man, maybe a couple of years older than her.

"Excuse me. Is Lady Rowena here?" She inquired politely. The man seemed surprised by her approach and realized who she was. 

"Princess Daena...Yes, she's here." He said and opened the door of the carriage. The person who came out was someone Daena hadn't seen in years.

"...Grandmother?" 

The woman smiled at Daena and pulled her into a tight, rib-crushing hug. She wore a beautiful lilac gown with flower embroidery across the chest and waist. Her dark brown hair was pulled up and held by a hair net.

Daena was speechless. She hadn't seen her grandmother since she left the Vale when she was 12, and now here she was right in front of her. 

"But...but you didn't tell me you were coming." Daena managed to say. Her grandmother just chuckled and caressed her cheek. 

"Oh, my sweet child. I wanted to surprise you! Besides, how often do you get to attend a royal wedding?" 

Daena didn't say anything - she was too happy to think of a response. She loved her grandmother or nanna as she sometimes called her when she was younger. Lady Rowena was a beautiful woman in her youth. She was now in her late forties and much of her beauty remained. 

~

Daena was seated at the high table with the rest of her family. In the middle were the newlyweds - left of Uncle Viserys was Rhaenyra and next to her was Daena. To Alicent's right was her father, Ser Otto, and the rest of the Hightowers whom Daena paid no mind.

Thankfully, there was no one seated to Daena's left. She looked around the Throne room - Hanna and Joy were seated across from their father, Lord Lyonel. Next to Lord Lyonel was his eldest son and heir, Ser Harwin 'Breakbones'. 

Daena has heard many stories about him, thanks to his sisters being her handmaids. They did tell her about his strength and his skill as a warrior. What they didn't tell her was just how handsome he was - he was tall with broad shoulders and long dark curls, and from what she could see he had beautiful blue eyes.

She was pulled from her thoughts by Nyra poking her in the ribs. She turned her head and saw Nyra smirking at her. 

"What?" Daena whisper-shouted. 

"Eying up Ser Harwin, I see. I understand, he is quite handsome." Nyra whispered cheekily.

Daena scoffed and rolled her eyes. "I am not eying him up! I was just...observing."

"Right....keep telling yourself that," Nyra responded and took a sip of her wine.

Daena slapped Nyra's thigh below the table which made the latter giggle. Daena smiled and shook her head and once she did she locked eyes with the man she's been eying all night.

Ser Harwin was looking straight at her and she quickly averted her gaze. She was blushing, her usually fair cheeks now had a pink tint to them. She could feel the way her heart quickened when he looked at her, and she liked it.

~

Many people took notice of Princess Daena's choice of dress. She wore a pale blue dress and was covered in silver, pearls, and moonstones, drawing connections to the late Queen Aemma Arryn. Many would later say the Princess did it to slight the new Queen, but when asked Daena defended herself by saying she just liked the color. 

After gods knows how much time, Daena and Rhaenyra were free to leave the feast. They discreetly left the Throne room and started running once they were out of sight. They ran and ran until they found themselves in the godswood. 

There, they sat under the weirwood, not caring about getting their gowns dirty. The moon was full and the skies were clear, making all the stars visible. Daena could see Nyra was in deep thought while looking up at the moon. 

"Every night, I look out of my window and look at the moon. When I look at it, I think of Mother. I like to think she's somewhere up there in the heavens and she looks over me through the clouds...I know it's foolish." Nyra opened up after a while.

Daena turned and grabbed her cousin's hand. "I don't think it's foolish. I too think of her and I miss her dearly. The Red Keep will never know such warmth ever again." 

Nyra gave her a watery smile and squeezed Daena's hand. Daena wrapped her arm around Nyra and pulled her closer. Nyra placed her head on Daena's shoulder and sighed. "Nothing will ever be the same." 

"No. No, it won't. But we will go through it together." Daena responded as both girls looked at the full moon, reminiscing about the late Queen. 

113 AC, King's Landing

One year has passed since His Grace married Lady Alicent. They had a son, Aegon, who was soon to celebrate his first name day. But Daena didn't care about that - today was Rhaenyra's 16th name day, which meant she was now considered a woman grown and of marriable age.

Despite all the pomp and celebration surrounding her name day, Daena knew Nyra was far from happy. She knew it was something Nyra dreaded because it meant His Grace had every right to marry her off and send her away to squeeze out children until it killed her. 

Daena looked into the mirror with a pleased smile - she was wearing a bright red gown with long cape sleeves. The waist of the dress was decorated with rubies and diamonds. She loved the gown - it was long and flowy, perfectly accentuating her body. In the years to come, she would come to embrace this style of dress and would be known for it. 

She twirled in front of the mirror, enjoying the way the fabric moved and swished. Her curls fell freely down her back like a river of silver and gold. Only the front curls were pulled back to clear her beautiful face. 

She wore golden, square-cut ruby earrings on her ears, and around her neck was the heart-shaped pendant her father gifted her years ago. Satisfied with her appearance, Daena walked over to her writing desk and opened up a drawer.

Inside was a small box with her gift intended for Rhaenyra. She opened it to check if it was still there. It was. She closed the box and with a smile left her room to search for her cousin. 

~

Ser Harwin was walking through the Red Keep, tasked with finding Princess Daena. Usually, she would be with his sisters, seeing as they were her handmaids, but today was different. Apparently, she sent Joy and Hanna to help Princess Rhaenyra ready herself for her name day celebrations. 

This left Princess Daena unsupervised. His father, Lord Lyonel, saw how stressed His Grace was regarding the whole event, and decided to lessen the King's troubles. So, he sent Harwin to find Princess Daena and bring her to the Throne Room where the feast would be held. That way, His Grace wouldn't have to worry himself about his unruly niece.

Harwin has never properly interacted with the Princess. He knew things about her - she was fiery and quick-witted like her father, she rode a very large dragon and if the rumors were true, she wasn't fond of the Hand, Ser Otto, and the new Queen. 

Just as he was turning a corner, he collided with something, or should he say someone. He came to a quick stop once he realized what just happened. He looked down and saw the person he was looking for - Princess Daena. 

"Princess, forgive me, I-"

"It's alright. It's my fault. I shouldn't have been running." 

They spoke over each other. She chuckled and he couldn't help but notice how angelic it sounded. He looked at her - she was wearing a beautiful bright red gown and her silver curls framed her oval face. Her wide lilac eyes gazed up at him, her plump pink lips slightly open as she studied his face.

"I'm sorry, Ser. I wasn't looking where I was going." She apologized again. 

"No need to apologize, Princess." He said, noticing how dry his mouth was all of a sudden.

She smiled and looked down. She gasped and bent down. "Damn it!" She said under her breath. 

"Princess?"

"There were two rings in this box! I can't find the other one." She explained with a sense of urgency and started looking around to find the missing ring. He started looking as well and in the corner of his eye saw something shimmering. 

He picked it up - it was a dainty golden ring with a small heart on top of it. He looked closer and saw that the letter R was carved into the heart. The Princess took the ring from his hand, her warm skin brushing against his. (x)

"It's my gift for Nyra." She said as she put the ring into the box.

"And the other ring?" He asked. 

"It has a D on it. I ordered matching rings made for us. I hope she likes it. " She revealed in a quiet voice.

"I'm sure the Princess will appreciate the gesture." He commented. 

She gave him a small smile and he couldn't ignore the way his heart skipped a beat. 

"Why are you here, Ser Harwin?" She asked softly. He loved the way his name fell from her plump lips. 

"I...I was sent here to find you and escort you to the feast."

"Oh...Well then, what are we waiting for?" She said with a cheeky smile and started walking, her long sleeves flowing behind her like flames. 

~

After the feast, Rhaenyra invited Daena to her chambers so they could open all the gifts she had received. Daena stood behind Nyra as she looked at a gown she was gifted by her maternal cousin, Lady Jeyne Aryyn.

"I have a gift for you as well." Daena broke the silence and handed Nyra the small box. Nyra quirked an eyebrow and opened it. She picked up the ring with her initials and laughed. 

"Oh, it's adorable! I love it! Thank you, cousin!" Nyra said and pulled Daena into a tight hug. 

Daena couldn't help but bask in the warmth of Rhaenyra's hug. "Try it." She said and Nyra placed the ring on her right hand. 

"I ordered matching rings for us. My has a D on it, see?" She said as she picked up the other ring. 

Daena then put the ring on her right hand, just like Rhaenyra. She laughed, not being able to contain her happiness. She proceeded to kiss Nyra on the cheek. "I hope you enjoyed your name day, mandia." (older sister/cousin)

"I have. All thanks to you, hāedar." (younger sister/cousin) Nyra responded and kissed Daena on the cheek. 

***

Harwin is here and he finally interacts with Daena and he is already taken with her and vice versa! We see how deep the bond is between the two princesses as they reminisce about Aemma and how much both girls miss her. And Daena ofc gifts Nyra matching rings to further seal their bond. ☺

Thanks for reading! 💕💕💕

If you have any thoughts, feel free to comment!

[bilehwit]

Just read your Bilehwit Au on Ao3 and was greetes by the amazing ref for the lamb here on tumblr!

And yes i absolutely love it when people explain clothing choices in character design especially since you wrote Lamb culture is based on the Old English pls do ramble 🙏

Well hello!! This my first ask from someone I've never met before, so I'll ask you to please be patient with my wild trails of thought.

This will be a long one, but I'll focus on two main outfits - the daily wear and the ritual outfit, as they have the most symbolism.

The easiest one is obviously the leaf outfit - cute, I love it so much!

The leaf was chosen for its symbolism in English mythology. The tree itself is well beloved as a symbol of strength and a symbol of fertility - acorns are often depicted as lucky, and an oak full of acorns is a good sign of fertility!

I also chose oak because I think they're very beautiful trees - they can live for up to 1,000 years, and they can grow to 30 meters wide in their leaves. That's amazing to me. They also smell nice, and I remember climbing them when I was little, so it's nice to share the oak with my lambsona.

Next, let's talk about the sacrifice outfit - it's oddly bridal, no?

Well it's intended to be!

The use of white/silver to denote Purity is an old concept, but white wedding dresses in England were only truly popularised after Queen Victoria wore the colour to her wedding - previously a mourning shade.

I chose silver satin as the fabric, and a simple design, as I wanted a bridal look but also something that felt sleek and pure. Bilehwit is a virgin (virgin sacrifice in all ways) and it's a cruel trick to play.

Also, Shamura in my fic struggles to see/differentiate between objects, so having an all white lamb made it easier for them to stay focused.

So while this outfit feels bridal to us, the symbolism in fic is more that it was easier than dying fabric, just raw spider thread spun into a dress.

Shamura did make the veil themself, though, for reasons you will see later ;3

Now, we get to the heavy hitters! First up, the daily outfit.

Now, Anglo-Saxons were all about those layers! So this outfit actually has more layers than you'd even think.

Under the base dress is a thin cotton chemise, or under dress, made to soak up the oils of the skin and sweat, changed most often. Bilehwit would use these as pyjamas in the summer months, too, to keep cool while covered and decent.

The next layer is the linen, with the thin dark band. This would be a slightly tighter layer to the body, and would be long sleeved to offer protection from the sun and the cold. Linen would be the lighter colours, as they'd be protected more, and linen was used as a middling layer to hold heat in winter. Air would be trapped between layers and keep people warm, and also it protected them from any scratchy wool. The woven ribbon at the bottom is decorative.

The next layer is my favourite. This is the red layer, the thicker dress, made often from wool or from linen again. This is made from wool, using a technique called naalbinding, which is what the Anglo-Saxons would have used, as they didn't knit like is common today.

Anglo-Saxon embroidery and weaving was actually really well known in Europe for its fine work and was gifted to Emissaries and Kings. The weaving and sewing business in England went hard as hell, and it's where most people would be employed for personal use or as gifts.

The embroidery of flowers on the cuffs of the red dress, as well as the colar, are those of Achillea millefolium, or 'Red Velvet', flowers. These tiny buds are native to Europe, western Asia and North America, and are small blooms that self seed and explode into colour. I chose them after seeing the flowers on a sketch, and decided that I had to include them.

Red in flower language is always to do with romance and passion. I wanted Bilehwit to show that desire, as they are a hopeless romantic at heart, and they also just feel a deep-seated loneliness that they want filled. The red flowers are the only flowers they've ever been given, and they've spent hours tracing the embroidery threads and staring silently at the sky.

The final apron layer is just that - an apron. It's a thin, boxy piece of fabric that is played on top to ensure the front of the dress stays somewhat clean, and there is a secret pocket behind it that they store honey-sweets in for children (and themself). Just a length of plain cut cloth!

Tied together with a woven belt, this outfit is my second favourite - I love every detail, and when I can talk in fic about it, I will spend thousands of words trying to detail what it means to me, and probably failing.

The final outfit now, one that definitely won't be seen in fic for a good long while - the Fancy/Ritual set.

Look at ittttt ahahahahagahqabqgagagquipqguqugjv

Okay, keysmash over, serious time!

Now, this outfit is interesting, because not only does it have embroidery and styles of old English culture, it also has mixes of Indian influence too!

"Well, that's random to add," I hear you murmur, and you're right. Why would I add that?

Well, because originally I was going to make Narinder have a more Egyptian vibe! I thought; ah, perfect, he'd do great as a Sphynx cat, the Egyptians loved those cats.

See, as it turns out, Narinder is actually a Sanskrit/Hindu name. It's a form of the name Narendra, a masculine name that means "Lord of Men". It's a very formal name, and one I immediately knew I had to switch things around for.

Following this, I was also able to determine the domains and cultures of each other Bishop, by tracing back names and meanings! That's a whole other post I fear.

Back to the dress!

The outline is far more recent than Old English, medieval style dresses, and that's because, uh... I wanted it. (This one is not very historically accurate. Forgive me.)

I wanted a mix of English style embroidery and Indian embroidery styles. Will come back and edit in which style I went with specifically, but I wanted the ritual set to be a touch more dedicated to Narinder, with darker colours, and more Indian fusion embroidery.

The black is velvet, the red is silk, and the white is linen - why? Again, it looks cool.

I can't lie, I have very little explanation for this besides the fact it looks bangin'.

But yes!! That's all my explanations at this current point in time for outfits! However, if you have any further questions, please ask away, and I will happily detail everything and anything about my AU and fic! Thank you for joining me on my rambling!

[shevitsa]

Embroidered chemise sleeve from Pernik region, Bulgaria. | Шевица от ръкав на женска риза, Пернишко (Граово).

(source: Bulgarian National History Museum)

[honey-birdette]

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[azulazenin]

Mihaela and her style in the XV century

What’s under her clothes?

Starting with her undergarments, like most women of her time, she wore a chemise under her dress, but hers was a little different, with short skirts and no sleeves, favoring mobility and coolness (1st image, top left). A pair of socks was a must, usually white, always reaching just above the knee (2nd image, top right), as for her shoes, she wears short length boots indoors (3rd image, bottom left), and high length outdoors (4th image, bottom right).

Daily attire

Her dresses are made of the finest materials, its fits tighter on her arms and torso, with very revealing cleavages, but looser as it goes down to the skirts (though not as loose as other ladies of her time wore, since she didn't like much volume in the skirts), always in the colors red, black, gold, purple and sometimes blue.

As for her jewelry, she never takes off her wedding ring and the ring of Styria, not even to sleep or bathe. Loves rubies and sapphires, but has a vast collection of different gems, and she’ll never be seen without a necklace, a bracelet and a nice pair of earrings matching her dress.

Balls and other important events

More gold, more embroidery, more velvet, more expensive jewelry, more everything! Mihaela will be the best dressed in any event she attends, the others don't even stand a chance.

Hair

If you're familiar with my writing, you know how sacrade hair is for Mihaela and how much time I spend describing her beautiful big brown curls. The images below illustrate her hair perfectly: length and color (left) and curl definition/type (right). She's somewhere in between 2b and 2c.

She never wears her hair down though, not in public. Many women in her time had the same sense of preserving their hair for their husbands alone, but Mihaela did that not out of prudeness, far from it, but it felt right allowing no one but Adrian to see it. She didn't exactly hid them, but her braids, buns, hairnets and veils send a clear message that they were a special part of her that should be preserved.

Oh, and when I say she wears veils and headdresses THIS is what I mean👇🏻. The veil isn’t to hide, it is for… well, veiling. People could still see her hair underneath the thin fabrics, but there still was something over it.

[the-nettle-knight]

Prince Caspian rewatch notes:

-Caspian has a sun on his chemise and Ray like embroidery, which I feel like is a parallel to Peter and a symbol of Caspian's destiny to take on Peter's mantle

- Also a possible reference to Aslan, perhaps it's Dr Cornelius' influence or a suggestion that there might be more part Narnian (or Archen) servants in Miraz's castle

-Caspian's naivety about Miraz's intentions may have been more believable if Ben Barnes wasn't in his mid 20s

-When Trumpkin first sees Caspian he's very obviously got a rubber knife

-Susan is reading a copy of the Picture Post that was published on December 9th 1939 featuring a photo of a girl in the Land Army, so as this was probably 1941 this is an old issue

-This definitely shows her practical and logical nature and might suggest that her role as Queen in Narnia may have focused on the practical elements of farming, land management, supplying their armies etc

- There are at least four schools shown in the Underground scene, St Finbars, Hendon House, a boy's school with a red uniform and a possibly mixed sex school with a grey uniform

-St Finbars' crest is a varient on the Tudor Rose - a lot of the Narnian leather belts/straps have rose motifs

-Hendon house has a cross with three stars over it, which also feels very Narnian and looks quite knightly

-Cair Paravel's ruins look to be in pretty good shape for being 1000s of years old. In our world, when a castle is abandoned, people tend to repurpose the stones and timbers. However, due to the Telmarines' superstition they probably left it completely alone

-There's a big wild rose bush covering the ruins, adding to the rose motif

-Susan is the only one who's throne is partially intact, and she's the only one who survives the series

-On the Telmarine Lord's thrones there is a sigil of their mask-helmet over a horizontal spear with a a personalised image beneath. Miraz has tentacles wrapping around shields, probably a nod to their piratical origins

-Lucy's dress sleeves look like an odd length, as if they were 3/4 length sleeves on a taller person

-Peter Dinklige's accent has definitely improved by the time GoT comes round

- The fact that Cornelius is a doctor suggests that there is a university somewhere in the wider Narnian world to award such a title

-I really like the fact that Edmund and Susan basically have their heads right next to each other

-The trees that move first for Lucy are silver birches. They're one of the last trees to loose their leaves in the winter and they start to bud relatively early

[the1920sinpictures]

1927 c. Salmon silk chemise dress trimmed in blue machine embroidery. The skirt has knife pleats and is edged in blue. From Fashion of Bygone Days, FB.

#1927 c. Fashion #1920′s Fashion #1920′s daywear #1927 daywear