clothing my idiot husband, or
make do and mend: a tale of sartorial revenge
Artifacts of a Life IV: Barony Beyond the Mountain, 8 February 2020
In 1953, a 10th century longship was found at the bottom of the harbor at Hedeby, also known as Haithabu, near Schleswig Holstein in Germany. The ship was not excavated until 1979-80, when a coffer dam was rammed around the ship and the water drained. Among other finds in the ship was a fragment of textile that had been torn from a garment, coated in tar, and used as caulking. This fragment is one of the bases for the conjectural Hedeby pinafore gown, variously called a hangerock, trägerrock, smokkr, or apron-dress. But how did that fragment get there, and what happened afterwards?
the spindle & thread.
Bone whorl and holly shaft, Blue Faced Leicester and Manx Loaghtan fiber. It wasn’t enough to use my handspun thread to sew patches on the tunic; I also used it to resew virtually every seam and seam allowance in it.
the mended tunic.
This decade old tunic was savaged by clothes moths. The damage was extensive. I could rebuild it. I had the technology. Better, stronger, less holey.
the weaving tablets & trim.
As long as I was spinning fiber in two different colors, I might as well make some trim, and the tablets to weave it.