Drafting a Frock Coat, Part I: The Body (and Skirts)

The Orders are as follows. 

Start by marking off a straight line (Line 1).  Mark points at 1/3 depth of scye (plus 1/2 inch, to taste), at depth of scye, natural waist, and fashion waist (which is 1-2 inches below the natural waist--no lower than the hip bone).

Mark in 1inch at the natural waist, and draft a line from point 1 (the top of the line), to the waist.  Then straight down to the fashion waist.

And other Things: plotting a Transitional Frock Coat.

Historically Accurate?  No, not so much.  I do, however, need an outlet, where I do not have to worry about documenting nearly everything.  Steampunk(ish) things are that outlet as--even if there are no local events--I can wear the clothes daily without attracting stares (more or less, anyways).  In this case, while watching the 10th Kingdom, I noted one of the coats being worn by Wolf--a shortish (low thigh length) frock coat, in blue velvet or corduroy (no good screenshots available).  Of course, this immediately got my gears grinding, whether I wanted them to or not.  In addition, I ran across this image...



Wanderer above the Sea of Fog.  1818.
I just discovered this painting, and love it!

Norlund 78, or D10606 Hood: part 2...Mockup

Warning: Contains far too many numbers.  Continued from Part One

With the rough pattern figured  out, it was time to draft out the full scale mockup.  I decided that the best way to do so was to start with a straight base line, to the left of what would become the pattern, measure to the right from that, and essentially connect the dots.

Edited to add, at 11:33 5-5-14

The process was to draw a straight line, 405.9mm long (the height of the hood, plus the extra little bit for the "horn"). 
320mm from the top, I made a mark 15mm from the line--this is the chin, where it slanted in slightly.  Another 95mm in, beyond the chin, another mark was made, and the two points get connected (as does the front opening of the hood).
Going back to your baseline, at the bottom I marked in by 45mm, and connected slantwise to the mark above.

Norlund 78, or D10606 Hood: part 1...First Draft

I woke up today with a project (two, actually) working through my head...one of the hoods found at the Norse settlements of Greenland.  This hood--labeled D10606--is a liripipe, Norlund type II. 

It has an extremely short cape, only a few inches wide, with the gores over the shoulder.  Unlike some examples from the main land, it does not button close to the neck.  The extant hood is 400mm tall (from hem to top seam), with a 695mm long liripipe.  The fabric, while now Bog Trash Brown (or a variant, anyways), was sewn in a vadmal which was light grey with a white weft.  The hood, like many of the ones found, rises to a "horn" in the front.  Norlund 78 is in excellent condition, with most of its original seams.


One of the first orders of business, once I decided I wanted to make this hood, was to figure out my fabric.  I found this far more difficult than I expected...first thinking of (and discarding the idea) using a beautiful light grey wool, interlined with a heavier grey wool--this was not a real option, since there is no evidence of D10606 being lined.  Following that was the option of a heavy wool in another colour (the same I used for my frock coat), or the light grey wool of an old army blanket.  Eventually, after much discussion with other artisans on Facebook, and some research into the dyes used in Herjolfsnes, I decided on the fabric below.