Toss it all and start anew?

It may sound a bit harsh and drastic, but I might just have to do that this winter, since I will probably go through some surgery that will definitely change my shape and appearance. And when I talked to some friends about it this summer, one of them asked the challenging question –Will you then make all new garb into one specific period and region?

I haven´t thought about it earlier, but this certainly is a great opportunity to do just that. To dig deep into one period and one place in time, as good as one can do with modern day goggles on, and explore it all. To make all dress details and accessories well documented and in good materials from the beginning. My chosen period is the late 1400-hundreds and the place northern Europe, mainly the Germanic areas. But now my wardrobe consists of that and viking age clothing, 14th century clothing and even some early 16th century clothing, apart from the things I mainly use nowadays.

Now you all wonder what is she going to do to herself? Well, with the risk of being a bit personal, I have applied for getting a breast reduction. This is not an easy decision to take, I have always been on the busty side and proud of it and taking that away will certainly change how both I and others perceive me. But it is motivated mainly by the fact that I suffer from carpal tunnel-syndrome and with the “dead weight” on the chest my shoulders simply don´t cut it. This makes my right arm to doze off every now and then, and I lose feeling of my fingers and all strength of the arm. Not a good feeling, I tell you! And to get it going again I pay ridiculous amounts of money every year for treatments that make my neck and shoulder hurt like hell for days. It is so bad I get noxious from the pain and no painkillers help.

So there’s my motivation.

Since the Swedish health care system always ask you to loose weight (if you are in any way overweight that is) before doing surgery I have already lost enough for my supportive tight-fitted dresses to hang loose but will of course not do any alterations or making new garb for now.

Back to the challenge! I will and can of course keep hats and headgear, stockings, shoes and the like, but almost all dresses will be hard if not impossible to alter. So I will start with challenging myself in this fashion:

Making a new toile for a tight fitted dress

New short-sleeved 15^th century dresses

New sleeve-less 15^th century dress

A pleated panel-Housebook-dress

A plain overdress with long loose sleeves

A schaube

A partlet if I find documentation for it in my chosen region

New pointy black leather shoes with a wrist strap

New purses after finds and paintings

The list will of course expand by time.

And for those of you that gasp for breath right now, no, I will not toss all my garb away. I will sell it, trade it and give it away. It is all handsewn in good materials and models so I think it will find its use with someone else.