Lenberg bra!

There is finally an image of the Lenberg bra on line!  Hurray!  The Daily Mail has a short article on the undergarments found in Lenberg Castle which includes pictures of one of the bras and a pair of underpants.  Finally something in English!

This is a really interesting find and from what I can tell a paper should be included in the next NESAT with more details about the garments.  From what I have been able to find so far, the bras and underwear date to the 15th century and look quite a bit like their modern counterparts, save being made in linen.   It does explain how one would be able to get the high-busted look that was so popular at the time.  Fitted and supportive gowns are one option, but something about that approach has always bothered me.  It seems like a  small undergarment with shaped cups that is laced down the waist, like the one shown at right, would work better.  And don't even get me started on the whole "women didn't wear panties" thing.  A man must have come up with that one.

Swamped

Somehow I have gotten very, very busy with sewing projects.  None of them are for me, which is good in the sense that I am getting paid and thus afford to buy what I need for my own projects, but also bad in that I have no time to work on my own things and have to make things out of truly horrifying fabrics.  To be fair, some of the fabrics have been nice, some are just questionable, but the silver lame is just scary.  And really, we live in a swamp, how is wrapping yourself in plastic bags to fence going to work out?

To make matters a little more interesting, I did Something Strange to my right middle finger and have spent the better part of the last two weeks with it swelling up on me.  I ended up getting it x-rayed and there is nothing wrong with the bone so the working theory is that I have gout in just the one finger, or got a strange insect bite of some kind, or maybe stabbed myself with a sewing tool.  Whatever it was, trying to sew or weave or do anything at all with my finger, including type, in a splint wasn't working well.  It's doing better now, but the strange pain has moved on over to my left foot and using scissors is still a little awkward as the scissors press right on the hurt joint.  At least I don't need the foot for sewing.  Much.

I now feel very behind though.  Next weekend I'm teaching a smocking class as practice for what will hopefully become a University class in the fall.  I have done nothing on my handouts or in prepping my kits.  At least the DH is at a martial arts clinic today so I should have pretty much the whole weekend free to get caught up.