23. 1485, 1490, English

Left Late style of gown with separate collar dipping below the bodice edge at the front. There might be a waist seam under the wide belt, which is at waist level. Note the generous length of her skirts. She wears an elaborate necklace and a 'butterfly' or truncated hennin head-dress. (Brass to Isabella Cheyne, Blickling church, Norfolk).

Right Less fitted version of the late style, pulled in by a belt. The flounced kirtle skirt is visible. The head-dress is a form of combined cap and hood. (Brass, Charwelton church, Northamptonshire).

22

139

Late medieval fitted gown

28

To plan your garment use the wearer's personal bodice Block (see Blocks). The patterns shown here correspond approx. to modern size 42 for men and size 14 for women. The fine lines show the original Block outline. Fine broken lines indicate Fold lines. Heavy broken lines indicate alternative outlines. Letters indicate joining points. For abbreviations and symbols see p. 10.

Measure on the wearer the shoulder to hem length required, or take the Back length plus the Waist to knee, Waist to ankle or Waist to floor measurement.

You will need plenty of space to spread the work out, and a long tape measure. Trace the personal bodice Block to waist only and enlarge it to fit over the doublet or kirtle (Blocks, Fig 25-27). This is a simple enlargement with vertical CB and side seams; the CF seam may slant out slightly on larger figures.

Plan the collar: details are given with the patterns. Measure the enlarged armhole and plan the sleeve to match, either by adapting the sleeve Block or using one of the sleeves shown. Decide on the total hem for the gown, see Quantities above and the captions. The hem on each panel will be one quarter of this amount.

Plan the Front first, then the Back: the method is the same. Draw a CF line equal to the garment length required. At the top, square out a short construction line. At the bottom, square out a construction line equal to the hem width, and from here draw a short vertical guideline.

Position the front bodice on the CF line, with the short construction line passing through the shoulder. Measure straight down from UP to the hem: this will be the side seam length.

Use this length to draw the side seam line from UP to the vertical guideline at the hem. Draw the curved hem line: the wider the hem, the longer the curve.

Plan the Back by the same method using the side seam length from the Front.

To add extra length to the back skirt on women's gowns see Figs 26, 30.

Check that the side seams are the same length and at the same angle to the construction line on Back and Front. Add seam allowances, and balance points on side seams, BP, at waist level on all seams, and at the base of the CF opening, if appropriate. Trace round the whole pattern, marking details such as fold lines and, for Fig 20, pleat positions. The gown will hang better with a seam at CB even if CB falls on a fold in the layout.

Cutting and making up

Cut out Back, Front, sleeves and any collar from the outer fabric. If using a patterned fabric ensure you have enough material for repeats and that the designs on left and right sides match. Ensure that any pile or nap also matches on left and right sides. You can use wheel pieces (Blocks, Fig 28) on the side seams for economy. Identify all pattern pieces on the wrong side.

Use the same patterns to cut the lining, and interlining if required, matching the SG. Cut the interlining for the collar, and separate facings if used (Methods, p. 52, 53). Secure bias seams and edges on a stay band.

Follow the usual assembly procedure (p. 46): tack in the interlining; sew the shoulder, side and CB seams, and part of CF if required. Make up and attach the collar, noting the methods for different collars (Methods, Fig 14); make up the sleeves and set them in; make up the lining and set it in (p. 51; Pl 1).

For men's pleated gowns use tailor's tacks to mark the pleat positions at waist level (Fig 20). Secure the pleats on the finished gown to a stay band as described for Plate 14.

Fastenings

These must match the style. Buttons (Methods, Figs 19-21) were used for short neck and full- length openings up to the early 15th century; lacing was sometimes used for short openings (Methods, Fig 17). After that hooks and eyes became usual for men's gowns. In the 15th century the opening of women's gowns was often controlled by the belt, though later fitted gowns had concealed lacing.

140

Buttoned gown

Early gowns, worn by both men and women