https://www.etsy.com/listing/210801214/lp-pattern-3001-a-late-medieval-ladys?Wearing her SHIFT and laced snugly into her fully-lined KIRTLE, with her gore-enhanced skirts swirling romantically about her and her MANTLE hanging elegantly from her shoulders, your doll will be the perfect picture of a Late Medieval maiden.
With this pattern, your doll can truly step into the world of the 14th and 15th centuries — a turbulent period of great beauty and great tragedy that spanned the crucial century and a half between the waning of the feudal period and the birth of the Renaissance.
One of the most important clothing innovations in history appeared in Europe sometime around 1330: the set-in sleeve. This development allowed garments to fit the torso like never before. The resulting woman's dress, known as a KIRTLE (and also as a gown or cotehardie — and in today's re-enactment circles as a Gothic Fitted Dress) was graceful and flattering, with a wide neckline, a tight bodice typically laced or buttoned in front, tight sleeves often buttoned from the wrist to above the elbow, and a very wide skirt flaring from the hips with side, front and back gores.
The gown we have re-created here for 18" dolls follows our best current knowledge of how the medieval kirtle was made. Our pattern was draped on the doll itself and not cut from a sloper, for the closest-possible fit. We worked especially hard to fit the armscye perfectly to the doll's arm joint, and the sleeve perfectly into the armscye for a truly historical look.
This pattern also includes a half-circle, lined MANTLE — a ceremonial cloak seen in many period illustrations and sculptures — and a sleeveless medieval SHIFT (undergarment), based on the simple shifts seen in a 14th century Bohemian Bible. We have also included suggestions for making medieval GIRDLES (belts), and ideas for creating your own FANTASY kirtles.
Along with the patterns and detailed, photo-illustrated directions, Lee & Pearl #3001 features an eleven page historical introduction, with sections on the era, the garments, the construction techniques, the fabrics, the colors, the patterns, the embellishments and the people, all illustrated with beautiful, period images and backed by a complete bibliography, with links to online inspirational sources — and our very own Late Medieval Inspirations Pinterest board at www.pinterest.com/leeandpearl
This pattern has been a labor of love for us, and we hope you enjoy making outfits from it as much as we enjoyed making it.
