2.6.

It’s summer time and everything is relax... not. I have only one weekend not planned full at this summer. It is not a new situation... it’s like this every year. There is too much things to do at summer and summer is always too short. There are always some things that I would like to do but I have no time for it. It looks like we are not able to go to Tofa’s herbal party because it’s one week before the Summer Coronation. We need to plan Cudgel War’s foodstuff and time is running up very fast. Again we are going to make lunches and snacks at Cudgel War (nine days long event). It is also my only summer vacation so I am waiting for that very much. The situation with the foodstuff is not bad at all, we have many ideas written down but it takes quite lot time to write everything to the computer (every recipes and lists). And then there are the clothes I was planning to do before the Summer Coronation. I had hopes to have something new for UlfR for next weekend’s Summer Nights event.. I don’t have many days left. I have to harden our new leather shoes with beeswax before using them (I might need some tar for soles.. or something heavier than beeswax) and UlfR’s Kragelund tunic is almost done and his naalbinded socks but I haven’t started to make the pants yet. And my blue linen Eura style underdress is not even nearly done. I think that I am just little bit too tired today. I went to Helsinki yesterday because I had a work related meeting there (had to woke up crazy early … 5 a.m.). But I found some long pepper at Hakaniemi market place after the meeting so the trip to Helsinki wasn’t fruitless :D. I better go to sew little bit more and go to bed early. Next weekend is going to be fabulous. I am quite sure about it!

Dyeing is FUN!

Yesterday we had some vegetable dyeing experiments with white and grey wool yarns with Elzebeth and Sahra. I didn’t remember how fun it is to do vegetable dyeing. It has been beyond over ten years I have tried it last time. We had dried tansy flowers, fresh lupin (which has arrived to Europe about 1800s and is not medieval... but gives interesting colour), dried carrot greens and onion peelings. Before starting our experiment we soaked the vegetables in water overnight. Then we used alum for pre-mordant the yarns before dyeing. The tansy and carrot greens yarns turned out yellow and somewhat similar looking, lupin yarns was light green (very beautiful) and onion peelings yarns orange. And if I remember right, after dyeing once we put some iron sulfate to the tansy and carrot greens water to make the colour more like green and made second dyeing. I haven’t seen the results of second dyeing yet because we had to leave to home before the yarns was washed after dyeing. I will get the yarns after two weeks when I see Elzebeth next time. It was very hard to take pictures about the colours because the camera makes the colours look different than they are.

Yarns in alum water

Beautiful lupin yarns coming..

That's not spaghetti... :D it's onion yarns

Result from the first dyeing

We had other reasons to visit Elzebeth also. She is going to make the food for our wedding. We actually have almost complete list of foods that we are going to have... and it’s little bit over a year now before the big day. Of course something might change but the main things we know now. One of the reasons for planning the foodstuff this early was that we are going to make several liqueurs and other beverages to the wedding. That means we have to pick different kinds of vegetables, berries etc. this spring and summer. Hmm... I should pick nettles also just in case I need some :D.

Viking Finn Apron

This is my first attempt to make a Viking Finn Apron with some bronze spiral decorations. The wool is not handmade, I found the wool from normal Finnish fabric store and I dyed it little bit. So that’s why there aren’t any (tube) selvedges or tablet woven fastenings on the edges as it should be. The original fabric was more light brown than the result. The wool I used is the same fabric than my blue overdress. Dyeing changes the wool little bit fluffier (as the washing the wool does also). Then I made four strings to the edges and made four corner decorations to the apron. The string and the bronze spiral decorations to the edges are made as the instructions for reconstruction about archaeological findings of Kaarina Kirkonmäki from about 11^th century. Only change I made was with the strings that are holding the spirals together. I am not very good to make 3-loop fingerloop braids, so I took a shortcut and made plain braids.

Vegetable dyed threads

Usually I don’t have to work during weekends, but today was exception. After work I went to a small gift store called Päkäpirtti. It’s at OId Rauma (Old Rauma is one of UNESCO’s World Heritage sites... Old Rauma is the largest unified historical wooden town in the Nordic countries. And it is in middle of Town of Rauma, where I am working so I am always thought that my worksite is very unique and very beautiful place). The gift shop Päkäpirtti is as I descript small but very interesting because there is quite large selection of vegetable dyed wool threads. I am highly recommending the shop for every re-enactor! I also have to tell that the shop keeper is very nice person, I spend about one hour talking with her about dyeing and re-enactment and herbal things. I bought one yarn of yellow (dyed with tansy flower), one yard of red (dyed with Cortinarius semisanguineus mushroom) and one yard of green (probably dyed with tansy and meadowsweet) wool. I also love baskets so I bought this small basket at Rauma Spring Fair today.

Computer problems solved and socks

I am so happy that our computer is finally fixed, thanks Robert! The problems took too long in my opinion (over a month). It is very frustrating when you can’t use your computer at home. It feels like you are missing a limb or something. I have to admit that I am that I am very much hooked on computers. But anyway yesterday Elsa and Robert take a short visit to us. It was very nice to have quests (we seldom have). They promised to come to visit us more often, next time after two weeks :D. Elsa and I made plans for Elsa’s dress and for her Flemish kerchief. And plans for lots of other things. Today I finally made my order for some of the fabrics for our wedding dresses. I am still thinking about ordering some very light weight hemp and some medium hemp for our shirts. Ordering the fabrics from the internet was the biggest order for me this far (from internet I mean), so I am looking for very anxious what’s going to happen.

My first naalbinded socks are done. I made the socks last weekend for me (to wear at summer with the Viking shoes). I have started to make socks for Ulf also. Sahra is making at the moment a woollen cloak with real wolf fur decorations for Ulf. She is thinking about having it done till Summer Coronation. Can’t wait to see the finished cloak..

My Lord needs clothes also!

I have been thinking about men’s clothing today. I want to do this and that to him but first I’ll do some early period clothing. I am thinking about maybe Kragelund tunic and Thorsberg trousers. If my Lord approves... :) .

May Day x 3

I still have flu (nothing new about it) but I have little bit more strenght now than week ago. But I am not feeling completely well yet and I am starting to feel annoyed. It’s not very easy at work right now either... And I am very tired today. But I am also very happy about last weekend and also that I had time to relax.

Last weekend we went to Lahti to see Sahra and Knut and celebrate the May Day. The theme was supposed to be renaissance clothing for Sahra but we end up doing lots of other things... like cutting apple trees, collecting apple tree bark and lichen for dyeing...The weather was so wonderful that we spend most of the time at the garden. And we had three garden parties also...grilling, chilling and laughing alot. But luckily we were not too tired at Sunday and we had enough time to cut a smock and make pattern for Flemish kirtle for Sahra.

I now have some blue linen for my next Eura style under dress (I want something light to wear for summer and for the camping also). Suski promised to give me more bronze for the spirals...I have just enough spirals for the apron but that’s it. I want new shoes...

... and we still have some problems with our computer... so I can’t add any photos here yet (hopefully tomorrow)...

Planning..

I should be resting but I am too excited. I am thinking about the Summer Coronation and what I should do before that. The Summer Coronation is going to be at Viking Village near Stockholm this summer and the theme is of course Viking. It’s camping event so I will take wool clothes with me although it’s summer and it’s supposed to be warm. Here are the things I am planning to do before the event:

Fix the white linen Eura style under dress
Make another linen Eura style under dress
Make a long belt (tablet woven)
Make an apron and decorate it with bronze spirals (I hope that I have enough bronze for the decoration, I might have to buy more)
Decorate the upper dress with bronze spirals also (not sure about this yet, I might leave the dress as it is now)
a headdress (I have couple of ideas for this)

And now.. I concentrate on getting better.. need more strength for doing thing :). 

(I put some pictures about the brown wool Eura style under dress to my Flickr account  )

The Mooseskiing, Viking Clothing and Flu

After the Mooseskiinig (eight days ago) I got a bad flu and I couldn’t do anything except sleep and watch TV. I still have this week off from work and my fever is almost gone so I can stay little bit at the computer and write something. 

The Mooseskiing was very fun event. I missed the actual Mooseskiing but I heard that it was very cool. The idea was something about the populace of canton of Torna had made elfs angry and the people at the event had to do different tasks so we could get dinner. And at the end they tried to kill the moose (made of snow) with spears. Later during the feast the moose appeared to the feast hall and it yelled and pooped golden chocolate eggs. Very extraordinary :D. I am not sure if the Torna people have now made the moose angry or what. Ok.. but anyway there was some heavy fighting as well and a archery competition. It was the first archery competition for me (I was miserably bad.. only hit once to the sack … but not the animal figure at the sack which I was supposed to shoot). And it was Ulf’s first time to try archery also and he liked it very much. Now I have to start talking about buying the bow and arrows to us :D. Our (Sahra’s and mine) handicraft workshops went also well. We end up cutting a Eura style under dress for the baroness Katariina and Rikissa and Elzebeth got their patterns for the dress also. I taught little bit naalbinding to Kaukameeli and Sahra was very busy with teaching the tablet woven basics for Torna’s young ladies. And what about the food! I was absolutely fantastic!! Very simple ingredients, enough spices lots of Laplander touch at the menus.  

The journey to the event and back was also easier and funnier than I thought. It took about 9 hours in one way to travel. We went to the event with Robert and Vilhelm (Robert was driving) by car. So I had plenty of time to do things. I started to do a naalbinded hat for Vilhelm (as I had promised couple months ago). Here is footage about the progress of making the hat while going to the event and back again: 

8th of April at 11.30 a.m.

at 3.43 p.m.

at 5.35 p.m.

11th of April at 6.41 p.m. ... Done

Besides the apron (and a headdress) I now have a set of Viking Finn outfit. The white linen Eura style under dress is a little bit too long and I am going to fix it as soon as I can. My blue wool upper dress is very good and I am happy about it. Still I am planning to put some bronze spirals to the end of the tablet woven decoration. I am very happy with the brown wool Eura style under dress also (unfortunately I don’t have very good pictures about the dress yet). I can wear the linen and the brown dress together with or without the blue over dress, or separate with the blue over dress. How versatile!

Back home, before the flu, Ulf and I put together my Eura style necklace. I am planning to change some of the glass beads to the better ones as soon as I can. It is very pretty, but looks too “clean” to me. Oh, and I almost forget… I bought the bronze brooches and some bronze chain from Thorstein at the event.

8.4.

We have had some problems with our computer at home and that’s why updating this blog has been difficult. The problems are not yet solved but I will do some serious actions next week if it will not be better till Monday. So no photos this time :( .

Despite of the problems I have lots of good news. Both related to the personal life and hobbies. We have now set a date for our marriage (it’s during May 2010). The ceremonies will be held at Pyhtää medieval church. It is obviously easier now to start making things because now we know the deadline for things. I have been lazy and not ordered the fabrics fot the wedding dressess (I am trying to do it as soon as possible... I can do things quite quick when I started to do something). And the good news that are related to the re-enactment are that I finished the upper dress for the Viking Finn outfit yesterday and as I have told my woolen under dress is finished and the linen underdress is almost finished. I borrowd my mom’s tablet woven belt (that I have made) and I am lacking only apron and headdress (well I don’t know if I really need a headdress but anyway). And I need some jewellery aswell.. I did some digging at home and I “found” some Kalevala Koru jewellery that I can wear with the Viking dressess (it is very common here at Finland to give Kalevala Koru jewelleries for birthday, graduation etc. gifts). Some of the Kalevala Koru jewelleries are based on Viking Age archaeological findings at Finland.

This evening I am going to pack for the Mooseskiing/Border War event and do little sewing (we are leaving early tomorrow). I can’t pack lots of things because there will be four people at the car (9 hours drive to the event site HUH!)... but I will pack some cooking books for Elzebeth and some craft books etc. for the handicraft workshop that we are going to have at the event.