Udwin wrote: ↑Tue Jul 26, 2022 12:36 am
Ooh, that weave is gorgeous. Very nice. I kitted up for my other period last weekend and realized the braintan thongs at the ends of my puttees kinda stand out and halfway go against the 'no visible fasteners' rule, so I for one would love to know how you've wrapped the tops of yours here!
Oh yes. I asked for a dark green and brown and with that wonderful herringbone weave, it looks amazing. I'm having trouble picturing your issue with thongs holding up your puttees. I believe there's several illustrations depicting a cord tied at the top of these types of leg-wraps to hold them up. I can't imagine a simple brain-tan thong being much different. Although it is a galaxy far far away.
So in the historical record there's a couple ways of holding these suckers up. You can use a pair of metal hooks sewn into the ends of the wraps to hook into itself. (Caveat though. Most of the the hook finds I have seen in various archaeological reports have been found individually, not in pairs, or found somewhere other than the knee. So they may actually be for a different use entirely. Of course, I am far from an expert and this is just something I have noted in my readings. Though there is a famous pair found at Birka that is a pair found exactly at the knee so I suspect re-enactor's usage of these is following a common-sense deduction.)
Alternately, you could use a organic pin that would have degraded in the grave sediment over time. A carved bone or a sharp thorn would do the trick.
Or most simply (and this is what I have done here) is to just tuck it into itself. Held firm and tight all afternoon as I was being active cleaning the apartment. You have to take care to tuck it under, not over as over will work the top of the wrap down and make it loose. Otherwise it is the model of simplicity.
A good video on it -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fzHLQ7ILBKQ
[Edit] Y'know, thinking about it, I bet if you found them in the right shape, it would be real easy to sew in a pair of magnets to hold a pair of puttees tight. That would definitely be an invisible fastener appropriate for a far off galaxy.
Iodo wrote: ↑Tue Jul 26, 2022 7:08 amVery nice
![Razz :P](./images/smilies/icon_razz.gif)
Thank you!
Jack wrote: ↑Wed Jul 27, 2022 5:24 am
Neat, are you wrapping your feet as well?
Unfortunately they aren't quite long enough for that. For them to properly hold, you have to wrap it over the top of the calf and there just isn't enough material to do both. My wife is naalbinding me a pair of wool socks though so I shouldn't have any problems there.
Togon wrote: ↑Thu Jul 28, 2022 4:43 am
Those are really nice! I'm jealous!
![Razz :P](./images/smilies/icon_razz.gif)
Do those get hot or do they breathe well?
On the whole they are loosely woven and wool breathes wonderfully so they are not overbearing in warmth. However, I have no interest in kitting up as a Dúnedain during the summer months and have accordingly designed my kit around keeping warm in the fall and winter. So they will be no problem in that regard.
caedmon wrote: ↑Fri Jul 29, 2022 2:34 pm
How are these finished? They look to me to be narrowband woven rather than cut down from wider cloth? (ie. are the edges selvedge or folded & hemmed?)
Correctamundo. Most of the leg-band finds have been found woven to width and not cut from a larger cloth. That is indeed a selvedge edge you see before you and the reason I commissioned it instead of trying to make my own haha. I have no skill in weaving so it was just easier to ask a master crafter make it for me.
Elleth wrote: ↑Fri Jul 29, 2022 6:14 pm
I love the colors!
Thank you! I had considered a dark grey but I think I want to leave most of the grey in my kit to the cloak. Green and brown is a nice color to get a little contrast.