The Barding is done!
Mostly. Its taken me all week, but I'm calling the blanket part done tonight -- WOOT!
"Barding" is the term for the horse armor and covers that we try and mimic with our costumes today. I was having a ROTTEN time finding any information about medieval horse costumes on the internet -- boy, did that get easier when I had the secret code word 'barding' to search for.
And yes, it has been a learning experience. :-D I borrowed a co-worker's sewing machine last week. I was a bit nervous about knowing how to work it, but it turned out pretty straight forward...
When Carol and Dan came over to let us play games with their equipment, Carol had also brought over a couple of horse costumes that she has for me to look at or borrow. LOL! What I hadn't anticipated is that Jordan is so much bigger than her horse, they didn't have a prayer of fitting. HEE! But she left them with me to use as patterns for making a new one.
So here he is - being all good and model-like out in pasture when I threw this blanket on him.
But that wasn't a very good shot as I'd cut off his nose, so I backed up to get another. But J aparently had decided this modeling business wasn't all that entertaining:
Nuh-UNH, son. You going to stand there all pretty for me??
Yes! ;-D Aparently he got the message.
So, measuring this pattern on him, I decided his needed to be 1 foot longer in length, and 1 foot lower on both sides -- making it 2 feet wider! I went and bought fabric, and ended up just getting a ton of on-sale cotton. Before I started I had to call Phyllis, for moral support as much as anything. Heh. She did tell me to wash it first. Hrumph. An evening lost in washing and then somewhat ironing the fabric.
Measuring it out:
Since our blanket was to be two toned, it was convenient that the material I got came in 41" widths - as the center part was close enough to needing to be 1 full width, and the edge parts close enough to be 1/2 that. Sewed those three pieces together, and did a little gathering along the topline to fit to the shape of his back, and went back out to try it on:
Unfortunately, trying to do these fittings by myself in pasture is hard enough -- ten times so when it was as windy as it was this day!
(my friend Lydia saw these pictures and commented right away on Jordan's french manicure look -- LOL! I guess it is pretty dramatic looking. This is, of course, just the dry peeley stuff left on the hoof surface on the new growth. Hah - maybe he needs a scrub down)
Satisfied with the over all size and shape, I sewed a second layer identical to this, and then sewed them togther. Unfortunately, as the abject novice I am -- I sewed the wrong side to wrong side, rather than the traditional, right side to right side. And I KNOW to lay these out wrong to wrong -- but I'd done it a tricky way to save space and ... well, it was completely wrong. Oh well. Ripped out that very long seam and put them together the correct way.
Tried it on him a few times, under saddle to figure out where the holes needed to be for the girth and saddle pad straps:
And once making those 'button holes' I was structurally done.. Time for the decorations!
My sister Nancy is like the applique queen, so I called her for advice. Only... turns out she was camping. In Colorado! GETTING RAINED OUT! What the hell I said when we finally talked? We are DYING up here. Have had less than 4 inches of rain all year - and they were getting dumped on. >:(
Oh well, I muddled through the applique process and then talked to her after I was mostly done. I didn't do all bad on my own, I think!
And then the trim pieces went on last night and tonight. Hee - turns out an ironing board does a passable job as Horse-Standin.
Whoo whee, I just can't wait to try this on Jordan! Ginger says J has always believed himself to be king of the herd, and now he'll just feel like he's finally dressed appropriately. ;-D
Of course, I'm not done yet. I'm obviously working at incorporating my herald into the horse barding. Supposed to resemble this:
So I still need to do the horse head. But the event is a mere 5?? days away, and I still need to make tunics for Dave and I, and the rein covers for Jordan -- so those last appliques will have to wait until last to see if I have time to get them in...
"Barding" is the term for the horse armor and covers that we try and mimic with our costumes today. I was having a ROTTEN time finding any information about medieval horse costumes on the internet -- boy, did that get easier when I had the secret code word 'barding' to search for.
And yes, it has been a learning experience. :-D I borrowed a co-worker's sewing machine last week. I was a bit nervous about knowing how to work it, but it turned out pretty straight forward...
When Carol and Dan came over to let us play games with their equipment, Carol had also brought over a couple of horse costumes that she has for me to look at or borrow. LOL! What I hadn't anticipated is that Jordan is so much bigger than her horse, they didn't have a prayer of fitting. HEE! But she left them with me to use as patterns for making a new one.
So here he is - being all good and model-like out in pasture when I threw this blanket on him.
But that wasn't a very good shot as I'd cut off his nose, so I backed up to get another. But J aparently had decided this modeling business wasn't all that entertaining:
Nuh-UNH, son. You going to stand there all pretty for me??
Yes! ;-D Aparently he got the message.
So, measuring this pattern on him, I decided his needed to be 1 foot longer in length, and 1 foot lower on both sides -- making it 2 feet wider! I went and bought fabric, and ended up just getting a ton of on-sale cotton. Before I started I had to call Phyllis, for moral support as much as anything. Heh. She did tell me to wash it first. Hrumph. An evening lost in washing and then somewhat ironing the fabric.
Measuring it out:
Since our blanket was to be two toned, it was convenient that the material I got came in 41" widths - as the center part was close enough to needing to be 1 full width, and the edge parts close enough to be 1/2 that. Sewed those three pieces together, and did a little gathering along the topline to fit to the shape of his back, and went back out to try it on:
Unfortunately, trying to do these fittings by myself in pasture is hard enough -- ten times so when it was as windy as it was this day!
(my friend Lydia saw these pictures and commented right away on Jordan's french manicure look -- LOL! I guess it is pretty dramatic looking. This is, of course, just the dry peeley stuff left on the hoof surface on the new growth. Hah - maybe he needs a scrub down)
Satisfied with the over all size and shape, I sewed a second layer identical to this, and then sewed them togther. Unfortunately, as the abject novice I am -- I sewed the wrong side to wrong side, rather than the traditional, right side to right side. And I KNOW to lay these out wrong to wrong -- but I'd done it a tricky way to save space and ... well, it was completely wrong. Oh well. Ripped out that very long seam and put them together the correct way.
Tried it on him a few times, under saddle to figure out where the holes needed to be for the girth and saddle pad straps:
And once making those 'button holes' I was structurally done.. Time for the decorations!
My sister Nancy is like the applique queen, so I called her for advice. Only... turns out she was camping. In Colorado! GETTING RAINED OUT! What the hell I said when we finally talked? We are DYING up here. Have had less than 4 inches of rain all year - and they were getting dumped on. >:(
Oh well, I muddled through the applique process and then talked to her after I was mostly done. I didn't do all bad on my own, I think!
And then the trim pieces went on last night and tonight. Hee - turns out an ironing board does a passable job as Horse-Standin.
Whoo whee, I just can't wait to try this on Jordan! Ginger says J has always believed himself to be king of the herd, and now he'll just feel like he's finally dressed appropriately. ;-D
Of course, I'm not done yet. I'm obviously working at incorporating my herald into the horse barding. Supposed to resemble this:
So I still need to do the horse head. But the event is a mere 5?? days away, and I still need to make tunics for Dave and I, and the rein covers for Jordan -- so those last appliques will have to wait until last to see if I have time to get them in...
Labels: SCA
posted by Monica at Sun Pony |
7:34 PM
2 Comments:
Monica! That looks fantastic! I love the way you incorporated the suns and I've already told you that the color looks fantastic on Jordan! Nice work!
I could use some new clothes for work this fall - I'll be sending you the patterns. ;-)
~Lydia
LOL -- If you got a close up look at this thing, I think you'd say differently. But as I told my sister - most people should be seeing this from OUTSIDE the arena, so it's good enough.
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