The dress is mostly assembled; the front is a bit lumpy and requires further work, but I am pleased with the back:

Once I am happy with the front, I only need to hem the sleeves and skirt.

Having finished the construction of the kirtle itself, I then had to deal with the lacing;  making the holes down the front was easy enough…

… but then the eyelets had to be hand stitched.  This was extremely fiddly!

They weren’t too bad when I had finished, but they were rather too small, so I had to lace them with embroidery thread rather than cord.  However, once it was waxed, as per instructions from Gemma, it was more or less acceptable.

Meanwhile, I began making a coif.  This was made out of unbleached calico, which was what I had, and entirely hand stitched, which I was rather proud of!

And so the medieval peasant costume is finished!

I will need to make a more appropriate undergarment at some point, rather than a 20th century thermal vest!!

As usual, I don’t wait to finish one project before starting another; I was inspired by Pastime Historical Dance activities to make a 15th Century kirtle. Having got Phil to help with the measurements – it’s hard to measure your own back, I first drew the pattern shapes on to the last remaining length of some old cotton sheeting.

This was quite a challenge, as I am not exactly the shape anticipated by the sketch (ahem), but eventually I got the pieces cut out.  The bust looked a bit odd, though.

Having done a rough fitting, and adjusted said bust, I cut out the pieces from the main fabric.

The next step will be to stitch the pieces together!

That undergarment is a (fairly) modern nightie – my Tudor chemise is too bulky to fit under.  That’s a problem for another day.