Saturday, May 31, 2014

The Bog Blouse, in wear

Here are some long awaited photographs of my Bog Blouse, being worn.  The images are clickable for a larger version.

The blouse tends to pull uncomfortably around the armpits and the tops of the breasts, and the neckline binds a bit when the blouse rides up, but it looks surprisingly good when I have it on.  I made the skirt years ago, based on the Huldremose skirt; it's 100% wool in a 2/2 twill weave (which is period) but my idea that the pattern of the plaid is period is based upon rank speculation.    Still, the two garments look well together--and what's more, they look period, and that pleases me.  (I'll make a better-fitting bog blouse again, sometime).  All three photographs were taken by my loving husband.  Please forgive the funny facial expressions--I can't always manage to smile on command.

On my haunches--a more period posture, at least
The blouse, at rest
The outfit in (too) bright sunshine

6 comments:

  1. Your outfit looks really good! Do you think the pulling you mentioned is related to the actual cut of the blouse (seeing as there are no sleeve gussets), or could it be fixed if it was a size larger?

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    1. Lara, I'm sure there would be no pulling if the whole blouse were about a size larger. The fit through the body and, possibly the shoulders, might be baggier though. It's an interesting suggestion, and worth trying.

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  2. It is a good-looking outfit!

    I can imagine it pulling around the armpit/chest area due to the cut, but I'm sure these things didn't always fit perfectly in period either. One of the things I find quite interesting about making historical clothes is seeing how they fit, and how the fit compares to that of modern clothes. I tend to find that with T shaped garments like this I need to allow more length across the shoulders to provide enough arm movement.

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    1. It's also worth bearing in mind that the original blouses of this style that have survived are all made from wool, which has a greater tendency to stretch with time and wear than does linen. That tendency might well have justified the pattern in the first place; it might be preferable to make your blouse a bit close fitting at first, expecting it to grow more comfortable with wear.

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    2. " I tend to find that with T shaped garments like this I need to allow more length across the shoulders to provide enough arm movement."

      I don't have that problem, likely because I'm very narrow through the shoulders (unlike the hips). :-) I think the way you need to accommodate the shoulders with this type of pattern is to place the shoulder cut lower, so that the sleeves are wider, but not cut in so close to the center of the body (so the sleeves are somewhat shorter as well), if that all makes sense.

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  3. It's not really about the blouse, as good as it is, but as I know you're interested in Viking Age female costume: a nice new find http://www.vikingemuseetladby.dk/om-museet/nyheder/ekstraordinaert-fund-forgyldt-soelvfigur-fra-800-tallet/ and Polish website with good quality photo http://archeowiesci.pl/2014/06/03/wspaniala-bogini-z-dunskiego-pola/

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