SCA: Just Loom Stuff

 I read somewhere that "she who dies with the most looms wins," LOL.  I don't know if I'll ever have the MOST, but now I have FOUR and I'm working on building two more:  

Homemade Inkle loom

This was my first inkle loom, which I built out of 1x3" pine with oak dowels, back in 2019.  It's a bit unwieldy to use because it's so big (3’ long!), and the sliding tension bar with the butterfly nut lock is not all that great - it hurts my fingers to use, and I can never get the tension exactly where I want it.  It makes about 4y of trim when fully warped. This loom worked for me for a few years, but I like my new inkle loom better: 

Hand-me-down Inkle loom

This inkle loom I got from a friend who was moving out of the country, earlier this year.  It’s much smaller, but when fully warped it makes about 4y of band. The tensioning bar on it is sooo much easier to use than my big inkle loom, and it's much more reliable as far as getting the warp to the right tension.  The only problem with it is that some of the pegs are so close together that I can't get my fingers around them to untwist the warp threads, and I don't know what to do about that.  I tried removing one of them with a small saw...but none of my saws are small enough to fit into the space between the pegs, either! Argh.  There's also a spot on the frame where someone repaired [something?] with HUGE lag bolts and nuts, and the bolts stick out and poke me in the leg while I'm trying to weave with this thing in my lap.  

Oseberg loom, A&S April 2024

This is the miniature version of the Oseberg upright loom that I built in YEAR.  The warp is tied to the frame uprights with a leather thong, and it's incredibly easy to move the warp around and untwist the threads - you just remove the thong, untwist, and tie it back up again.  The whole thing breaks down into three pieces, so it's easy to transport and travel with.  There are a couple of problems with this one: firstly, this loom is so lightweight that I have to clamp it to a table in order to use it, and the only table I have that I can use is my dining room table. That's the second problem - at my dining room table I have to stand next to the loom and weave from the side next to the loom, which hurts my shoulder and my hip.  I think a full-sized version of this might take care of both of these issues.  

Beka rigid heddle loom

A friend recently gave me this Beka 4” rigid heddle loom, and I spent some time this past weekend figuring out how to warp it up and weave on it. This is NOT a loom for tablet weaving - it’s meant to be used with a rigid heddle, not cards. I thought I’d try it out for card weaving, but I very quickly realized that dealing with twist in the warp would be such a huge pain in the ass (removing the warp from the backboard, untwisting, putting the board back on) that it’s basically just no good for card weaving. Lesson learned! I do plan to get a rigid heddle and try this thing the way it’s meant to be used at some point in the future. 

Pieces for full-sized upright loom

This is the first loom I'm in the process of building.  It's an upright loom like the Oseberg, but more in the early Medieval style which you see in paintings. The white upright posts are stair banisters (newel posts? I'm not sure of the terminology), and the feet and stretcher bar(s) are made out of 1x2" sticks of maple.  I started working on this in my teacher’s workshop at War of the Rams, and brought it home with me to finish building.  When finished it will warp and weave the same way as my mini Oseberg loom, and I'm hoping it'll be a bit easier to sit at since it's bigger.  

I'm also hoping to build myself a new inkle loom this spring to replace my existing two inkle looms, both of which have problems, but I'm nowhere near there yet.  I have lots of sewing and weaving to get done, and stuff around the house, before I'll have time to build a new loom.  

•

I'm planning to bring my tablet weaving and some of my looms to Laurel's Prize Tourney*  this year as a "body of work" type display.  I have TONS of weaving I want to get done before then, and not enough time to do everything I want, so we'll see how it ends up looking.  

*Laurel's Prize Tourney is NOT a tournament or a competition, and there's no "prize".  Apparently it used to  be a competition many years ago and the name was just never changed, or something.  What it IS, though, is basically a show-and-tell event where you just bring whatever you're working on - a project, or a body of work, or something you're in the middle of that you might want help with or advice about - and you get to speak with various Laurels who stop by to visit with you and see your stuff, and you get to geek out with other artists all day and see everyone's amazing work, and it's a totally AWESOME event.  It can be very stressful - after all, LPT is all about putting yourself out there where everyone can see you, and it can be intimidating trying to make a good impression on people - but it's also VERY fun.  

 

SCA: Some Pictures of Me and Some Random Bits and Pieces

 So, I realized recently that I've never really posted pics of me in any of my Viking outfits - I hate the way I look in photos most of the time, and so I almost always just post stuff on my dress dummy in the craft room.  Of course, the dummy pictures don't really show you what an entire outfit looks like put together, so I thought I'd get dressed up and share pics of ME in my actual Viking clothing. 

Hrefna Hrokrsdottir

Here's me in my favorite (female) Viking outfit.

That's a white linen serk and blue herringbone linen smokkr; with brass brooches from Raymond's, beads and beaded jewelry, leather turnshoes from Bohemond, inkle-woven belt, and Hedeby bag.  Everything except the brooches and shoes was made by me (including the woven shoelaces). 

(The white serk is all caught up underneath my smokkr in this picture, so it looks like the hem is wonky, but it's not.  I just wasn't paying attention when I was getting dressed. Oops!)

(I really need new socks, these turquoise ones are just too loud). 

Hrefn (?)

And here's me as a dude.  I originally developed this outfit because I wanted pants to set up/break down camp in, because skirts get in the way too much; but the more I wear this kit the more I just love dressing as a guy.  It's comfy and workable, and I love the way it looks on me: 

This is my blue linen pants, green-and-blue tunic with inkle woven trim and black top-stitching, blue winingas, the same leather turnshoes, hammered brass arm rings, beaded necklace, Jorvik hood, inkle woven belt, wool cloak, brass cloak brooch, and Hedeby bag.  The winingas, shoes, tablet-woven trim, and brooch were purchased; all the rest was made by me.  

I did just alter these pants, also.  The waistband was sitting too low on me and my pants were falling down, so I added a panel at the top to make the waistband taller - I didn't have any more of the blue linen so I used another color, which thankfully doesn't show under my tunic. 

(I should also note that this whole outfit is about to get a major overhaul, stay tuned). 

Card Weaving!! 

A dear friend of mine recently taught me how to do card/tablet weaving!  I am SO STOKED!  Here's my very first project, done in #3 cotton crochet thread. 

This is so much fun!  Of course, I screwed everything up on my first warp and had to take the whole thing apart and re-do it, but not only did Kate teach me to weave, she taught me how to deal with my mistakes, too, so I was able to get it all sorted out and then create this gorgeous trim.  It's about 3 yards long, which is about as much as my loom can do (either inkle or card).

I can't wait to try new colors and patterns! 

Other Stuff

In addition to the pants alteration and the card weaving, I've been making some minor repairs and alterations to my Viking kit(s) the past few weeks, including: 

•  cut a slit in the neckline of my white serk (above) so that it's a keyhole neckline instead of a round one, because I like the ease and look of a keyhole neckline better, and I love wearing my little silver brooch to close the neckline
• wove (inkle) a striped trim to put onto the male Viking tunic (above) to replace the ratty trim that was on it before, which was falling apart and was too big for the tunic anyway
• I covered my cooler in wood grain duct tape to make it look like a little wooden chest!  Except I'm about to take it all off, because it looks like country-fried ass, LOL
• I made a new necklace to wear with my male Viking kit (above), which is just 9 glass beads (made by me) on a length of blue string - nothing major, I just wanted some bling 

New plans, which I'm hoping to get done by October: 

1. I'm working on refinishing a table I found on the curb into a nice table we can all gather around at Sprezzatra camp - I'm about 85% done with sanding it and am about to start staining it
2. I'll also be making a heraldic table runner to go on the table, with Sprezzatura's device on it
3. I have a blue linen Skjoldehamn hood which needs a lining - I have the fabric, I just haven't made the lining yet
4. I'm hoping to replace the queen-sized air mattress that I use in my tent with a smaller one, so that I can have more walking space in my tent for getting dressed and stuff

Whew!  Lots going on to get ready for the fall event season. Let's go! 

SCA: 6-Strand "Hedeby Braid"

Several clothing fragments have been found at Hedeby (Haithabu, Germany; was Hedeby, Denmark in the Viking Age) - some in graves, some which had been torn up, coated with tar and used as caulking in a ship.  One of these torn remnants was fragment 14, as described by Inga Hagg in 1984, pictured here: 

Hagg, 1984

This piece measures around 30x23cm, is made of wool which has been dyed brown, and is cut straight on one side and torn off in a curve on the other side.  It is thought to be a fragment of a smokrr, or apron dress.  

There is a seam on one side of the dress where two pieces of fabric are stitched together, and on top of that seam is stitched a section of braided cord, highlighted here in blue: 

highlighting by me to show location of braid

As far as we know, based on the finds, the Norse peoples of the 10th century didn't do decorative embroidery on these female garments the way you sometimes see in the SCA; but they did embellish seams and edges with strips of contrasting fabric and braids/cords like this one.  Sometimes braids/cords were applied to seams, like in this example; sometimes they were applied to the top edge of a smokkr along with a section of contrasting fabric, as decoration and reinforcement of the edge.  

illustration by Hagg (1984), red highlighting by
Hilde Thunem to show direction of weave)

This particular braid is made up of 6 strands of thread, originally in red and yellow (3 of each). Each thread is 6-ply; the entire braid is only 1-2mm wide. 

Having several skeins of cotton yarns left over from recent crochet/weaving projects, I decided to use my leftovers to try my hand at weaving this 6-strand braid from Hedeby, to use to further ornament my apron dresses.  I found a very good tutorial video by Wyrd Kindred on YouTube, located here. 

Here is my first attempt, done in fingering weight cotton yarn, in brown and rust-brown.  It's not bad for a first try, but the colors don't go with anything in my wardrobe, which is all done in blues and greens.  So I made a second one - I didn't have any blues or greens, so I dyed some white cotton yarn blue and green for this: 

Rather than use my braid over a seam the way the Hedeby find does, I opted to use it at the top of one of my apron dresses.  Many Viking age finds of smokkr fragments show the top edge of the smokkr hemmed to the inside, and then decorated on the outside with various items, usually contrasting silk ribbon or wool fabric, sometimes along with braids and twisted cords at the top or bottom edge of the contrasting piece to both embellish the decoration and strengthen the construction of the top edge: 

illustration of various examples of ribbon/cord decoration the top edge of a smokkr, 
Hagg 1974; image borrowed from Hilde Thunem's Smokkr page

Since my Hedeby braid is done in blue and teal, I decided to affix it to my teal smokkr, which had only a 2" strip of teal silk ribbon across the top edge. I stitched it on with regular cotton sewing thread, because that's what I had on hand: 

I only braided enough to go around the front of the dress; I poked the ends through the fabric and knotted them in place on the inside in order to finish the ends.  (I hope they stay in place). 

I like the effect.  This feels more "finished" to me; and it's a step towards being more historically accurate than it was before.  I love little details like this; in my opinion it's the little things that combine together to make an outfit look HA - and look good.  

(That said, I know this teal color isn't, to my knowledge, historically accurate;  but I made this smokkr (and all my other ones) before I started my big push to bring everything closer to accurate a year ago - it's still in good condition, so I still wear it, and at least the construction and stitching, and now the top edge ornamentation, is as HA as I can make it at this time. Future projects will be begun and completed very differently, but that's for another blog post).  

*

We're getting closer to the fall event season - only a few weeks away!  I'll have more soon  about clothing, accessories, furniture, and campsite stuff.  

Event: Quest For Valhalla

The event in Bjornsborg this past weekend was *FANTASTIC*, as Bborg events usually are.  Really great (and sometimes hilarious) fighting scenarios, nifty arts & crafts activities, spectacular persona play within the theme of the event - and as always, good friends, great food, and wall-to-wall fun. Actually, make that AMAZING food.  That was seriously one of the best feasts I've ever had.

Even though we were supposed to get a good drop in temperature, it was still too warm to wear half the Viking stuff I've been making all year.  But I did manage to get a couple of pics of me in some of it:

Simona & me

I also finally managed to get a pic of Donnchad in the yellow Viking tunic I made for him last Fall, with the red embroidery on the front placket:

Tom Hiddleston made an appearance...well, sort of:

Since this is the near-Halloween event in Bjornsborg, they held another skull-bedazzling.  I won one of the judges' favorites spots again this year, with my Frida Khalo calavera:

For a little while, I was Odin:

Odin has a migraine. Leave Odin alone.

And finally, my A&S entry, a Hedeby-style bag, about which I'll say more later this week.  Suffice to say, for now, that I love it, everyone else loved it, I broke it Friday night before I had even entered it, but now it has a story and begins to take on a life of its own, so I'm cool with it.  For now, here's a shot of it on the A&S table:

(the pretty blue beads I'm wearing in the preceding
picture were given to me by the baroness as
largesse on my A&S entry )