It’s the anniversaries of the celebrations of the marriage of Anne of Cleves so I thought I’d share an update.

Each time I follow another seam of evidence I come back to the same answer. Each time I try to break that answer, I find several authors who can back it up even more vividly with records.

I’m bothered by the misinformation about Anne existing in the first place, I suspect I know why it exists, but also by why we seem to keep repeating it as if the misinformation is real. Over the far more interesting pieces we have.

This even affects the artwork. The St John’s portrait is not original. It’s just not. There is confusion in every element of clothing that the workshop of a North Rhine artist just would not misunderstand.

These four images help explain. The left is a portrait of Elisabeth Bellinghausen. The luminosity and depth of facial features are distinctive. Next is the Bernal/Rosenbach portrait of Anne. The similarity of care in shadows around and under her chin follows the same care.

Next is the St John’s copy. While there is an attempt to copy her features it’s in a very different style.

To the right is a portrait said to be of Anne Boleyn with her features a bit cold, and pulled back. The St John’s portrait is more related to this than anything from the Bruyn workshop. She looks like she belongs on a playing card because of the flatness of the painting. The attempt to create dimension results in very hard lines around the eyes especially.

I suspect the Bernal/Rosenbach portrait was copied locally (the wood came from the Black Forest so I need to look into the trade in art supplies) and the artist tried to extrapolate what was going on under her <<benet/bonit.>> I suspect I might know why they didn’t just copy it, but that’s for a much more in depth chapter.

I also need to share the provenances of different portraits and that gets super weird. And results in some interesting takes in costume history books due to the incorrect attributions.

I was an a fast push for my second infusion today, which is shorter so not as much time to work on research, but I was writing up some notes, and realised I’ve absolutely got myself on the right track it’s kind of amazing. But it shouldn’t be!

But when you try to break your theory and find it just is better substantiated it’s then possible to trust yourself to keep going.

So that was nice 🙂

Today is a day many of us celebrate as part of tradition. Ours has changed a lot over the years and Mum and I both need to reduce the stresses that can come with preparing a fest with newer traditions. But it’s also a good time to ask what traditions to keep and what to discard.

Take how to lay out cutlery. It’s supposed to help us, but there are placement rules that mean left handed people are totally ignored. Then depending on where you live you are stuck with how many peas you can skewer with your fork or you can turn tines up and scoop the things.

If you are at a restaurant tradition says you wait for everyone, but I’ve been vegetarian most of my life and for some reason my food always arrived very early and would go cold before everyone else was served.

Eat that food as it’s presented because that’s what the chef put out and it’s supposed to be at perfect temperature when it arrives.

I learn rules so I know if they are based on safety, or about predictable results, or if why we do these have been forgotten over time.

My research into both Anne of Cleves and the various trades involved in producing her clothing and accessories, involves a lot of traditions and it’s really amazing how much is right there. I’m studying in a non traditional manner as well, yet also follows the path a heck of a lot of specialists have trod since antiquity. Many had to sneak into libraries but during my lifetime at least they have been so very open to all.

Investments of all kinds! But primarily how to dedicate time while every single project of mine has been on hiatus for so very long. I’ve just invested in, and been invested in, one of my yearly infusions of monoclonal antibodies. I can’t express how weird it is to just get these. They were still in the trial stages while I was at uni and I still have some of the references I used for my essay. Just.. it’s weird. Our senior lecturer was highly respected and you can find so much of his work in PubMed.

But I got to invest that time in hospital on transcribing the introduction paper to my Anne of Cleves research. I have already presented my earlier draft, but it’s now fuller and acts as an introduction to chapters based on each slide.

I may use my next infusion (it’s about 4hr) to work on some beading. I don’t have the backing I need for the pieces I’d really like to complete but I’ve also finally sorted the jewellery findings into Cleves first. There is a lot. But that’s how it should be.

I’ve been stalled on so many projects for so long I’ve definitely moved into the overwhelmed stage.

But I’m also having to spend so much time dedicated to reading studies and research that has been misrepresented. It’s not far removed from the work I’m doing in my costume research, so that too is weighing on my mind. But with the opportunity to present the first two papers I’ve written and am writing I do need to get on with that.

In terms of projects I’m stuck at some early stages of support. Be it linings or support garments or the boning for each, it’s proving very difficult.

My jewellery too. I desperately need a way to support my nettle flowers and the best option is brass tubing bent to shape. AHAHAHAHAHAHA! No. Not happening with my hands. I can though make some card templates to work out the curves needed and possible. Then I might be able to outsource.

Though there are some bending tools for the size tubing I’d need, and I could probably use a bit of rod inside to hold ends. Worth testing I think.

I’d really like to get the proper connections as per portraits but this is an extant method so definitely worth using.

WP has changed source code making all my galleries broken! But it is for a good reason. This brings all the image elements in line with W3 accessibility. I’ve used a bit of CSS to help while I figure out what to change in my child theme if the theme creator has abandoned updates.

I’ve had a few pings recently about my main focus(es) of research which means I have opportunities to consolidate it all around specific themes. I’m not going to lie though, my focus is shattered.

Shattered.

I’ve tried to rewrite my paper to publish it properly but I admit this lack of focus means I’ve been tidying and forgetting my criteria for said tidying when it comes to my physical and research topics.

Add in some very difficult health issues (whole limb numbness and petechiae on my feet that are getting worse) and it’s pretty difficult to dedicate time each day.

I have a huge project of giving back to work on, because community bonds are not always public. And I have some huge thanks to give my SCA, Lochac, Ildhafn family. It’s so emotional I’ve asked for it to be private until I can do true justice to these incredible gifts.

I’ve been sharing progress of projects on Instagram as there is another conflict between my phone and PC to import images. But I have finally really started to get in some Doing every day.

A little bit of jewellery work

a little bit of documentation of the jewellery

and now my Marie Antoinette stays, which are possibly my nicest support layer ever.

And taking a pattern from my Elsa Ice Gown in case I decide I can use the same pattern as a support for my Epilogue gown. Feel free to use this as inspiration, it uses the super handy double seam/dart of Victorian patterning with the classic modern “princess” type seam.

And for the shell layers I am so very keen on my mid 20thC inspired darting to keep the neckline entirely on the grain, and trying to use fairly precise, graphed, points for the sparkling layers.

I started with 5cm wide base points, but then moved to 4cm and I think that works better.

I’ve felt like I’ve been in a bit of a slump, but really this is a lot to be proud of I think. I’ve been working on my research in the background including drafting patterns of extant garments.

I think if I take my usual 3hr break now (yes, my fibro controls this time of day no matter what I throw at it) having posted all of this? I think I can come back to my work feeling positive.

Thank you to everyone out there who respond and support me. I value every positive or quizzical response so very much.

Oh boy has it been a really difficult “few” years (since 2017) but finally some of the distraction and self soothing techniques in which I tidy whenever I need to (including midnight) is paying off. Yesterday and today I was able to cut 40m of boning to fit my effigy stays and my bobbinet 19thC gusseted stays, and finally my coutil and bobbinet corset. There is maybe 10m left.

My effigy stays are a super smooth linen satin, I have some C1700 stays cut from as well as my 16thC meider/seelgin. My 1700s stays needed straps and an extra section in the back with that classic curved panel that acts a bit like a very small gusset over the side back of the hips.

My 1700 stays have already been stitched but I’m hoping I can stitch between panels for some 3mm boning I really want to use for even more accurate boning density. It is a bit of a tough ask for that though. 7mm into two 3mm channels? Sounds feasible but the boning pushes on the fabric so you really need a good 4mm per channel. I’ll use a long machine stitch to test a panel and from there I should be able to decide if it’s okay. I might be able to de-stitch the panels and re-stitch them if the payoff is what I hope it is.

Tidying meant I had only two places to look for the already cut straps and for enough of the linen to make those built in gusset panels.

Fatigue and pain and recurrent chest infections mean this is still taking far too long, but I’m able to catch up quite quickly if I can trust past me to have tidied efficiently.

My effigy stays are fully boned. So that means every 7mm there is a line of stitching and between every single line of stitching is a piece of boning. This is the only kind of stays in which the advice to alternate the curve of boning (from being stored in rolls) really pays off immediately.

My 19thC style stays with gaps between boning work better with the curve always pushing away at the waist, curling in at the upper and lower edges. I’ll try and get photos of all this today.

I’m now feeing quite free. It was very hard at first. But really I’m just back to where I have always been: reaching out from home to share to the world.

I started this journey by making what I love and to just make then find a reason to wear them. Photoshoot in our back yard? Sure.

To help me with what feels so overwhelming in terms of projects I’m also making a 1/4 doll to drape on, especially for those that I really want to make but, you know, use >20m of fabric.

The very first will be Maleficent and Freya. Maleficent might actually be on my tiny artists mannequin as the original looks like it was about 40m. Wing testing though should be at 1/4 to avoid tiny errors becoming massive errors.

Freya will be first as a calico piece then paper to create the repeats. I have some otherwise perfect shot organza but it’s hot pink and blue (I think) so is lurking with my Bubble Gown inspired frock as an under layer.

This has to be made at 1/4 scale due to the sheer weight. I might wind up really mixing up these different solutions that have been around since the 1620s. Shoot. I want to make one of these so badly. To use the Leloir pattern and the information about how it was restored.

But as we don’t have extant items for them, I need to look to extant garments where we do: Robes de cour.

And then Robes de Style.

But then there is the Clover gown series, and all those fantastic movie costumes.

And all those incredible tulle gowns by Molly Goddard

As to my doll/form I’m using existing doll making patterns as a guide, because none really do what I need. But I have been inspired by particular artists so I need to sort that info for sharing.

She’ll be ball jointed with wooden beads, I just worked out what sizes I need so I’ve also just ordered beads big enough.

And I’ve been in my studio twice this week in a positive frame of mind so that’s been good.

Really good actually.

There is so much sadness that my Boo is no longer with me, as he kept me company. But I can’t stop doing what I love, but more than that I can’t stop doing what we loved doing together. I might have to bring some reminder of him with me when I go.