I'm trying to come up with a costume design that would be both historical and attractive to modern viewer. Have a look at my latest endeavour and tell me your opinions...

This time it's a more civilian clothing - she has a blue tunic, a yellow sideless surcoat with fur trimming and a red peaked hat.
As she is a bit of she-knight, she has a sword too (no two-hander this time :)

[ Linked Image ]

interestingly, the more accurate your costume, the more attractive it will look to modern eyes. Period clothing has a cohesive quality to it that mix-and-match fantasy nearly always fails to match. If you pick clothing from different periods (and different sexes!) and try and patch them together to attempt to satisfy modern sensibilities normally you will produce something that somehow always looks 'wrong' - even if the viewer can't identify what is actually out of place.

As to your image:

The garments your lady are wearing are mid 14th Century; and no earlier.

The kirtle and surcote are FAR too short. They should reach the floor. Even peasants don't wear calf-length garments. The surcote looks like it was stolen from a child!

Nice touch on the buttons (a very 14th Century feature) - although there should be LOTs of them (and smaller)

The brown belt should be worn under the surcote, on the hips; and the belt should almost reach the floor.

I can't find an image of any woman in-period wearing a hat; and certainly not the Robin Hood-style bycocket hat. A young, unmarried woman may have her hair uncovered, but for hunting I would expect it to be tied back. A married woman would have her hair covered by a veil.

Finally: why would a woman (or anyone for that matter) wear court dress - and a HUGE sword!- for hunting? It's impractical, at best.


Rather than inventing stuff yourself why not examine what was, and wasn't, worn in period. Check out Karen Larsdatter's site for a huge image resource:

http://www.larsdatter.com/sitemap.htm

Late medieval images of the Roman goddesses hunting show some interesting juxtapositions of dresses and hunting weapons. It's fantasy, but it's fantasy from the Middle Ages.

http://classes.bnf.fr/echecs/grand/6_11.htm

http://visualiseur.bnf.fr/ConsulterElementNum...mp;Param=C

http://resources42.kb.nl/MIMI/mimi_74G27/MIMI_74G27_059R_MIN.JPG (Note the short-ish hemline)

http://visualiseur.bnf.fr/ConsulterElementNum...mp;Param=C

http://amphibologista.files.wordpress.com/200...&h=599