Costumers/ResearchHere are some of my current favorite costuming sites, some of which have excellent links pages of their own, so I won't bother with huge lists here:Costumers with good how-to's, detailed dress diaries, or great research sections in the Elizabethan period. - The Elizabethan Costuming Page
- A best place to start for anyone researching Elizabethan costuming.
- The Renaissance Tailor
- Tammie's site is indispensable for research, demos, and how-to's. She also has some webbed pages from period tailor's books!
- A Festive Attyre
- Jen has some great research on her site and great image resources. Check it out!
- The Realm of Venus
- Bella has the best info on Italian Courtesans on the web, including an extensive image database sorted by decade.
- Démodé
- Kendra covers a lot of time periods but she has a good section on construction tips and her dress diaries are detailed. Also, check out her movie reviews section if you ever wondered if that dress you love is really period, and extremely extensive catalog of extant Victorian clothing.
- La Couturiere Parisienne
- Good portrait database for research. Actual patterns for later periods. Lots of tips on hair & makeup, and quick overviews of silhouette transitions through eras.
There are so many online costumers who's work I admire, but other people have very extensive lists of costumers' sites. I am including here only a few of these talented people who have image, research, or construction sections that I think are especially helpful to the ER1 period costumer who wants something better than the typical ren-faire outfit. - Ninya Mikhaila Historical Costumes
- Drool-worthy and very accurate. If you want to know how to make your costume look like clothes, look at what she does.
- Suzi Clarke
- Another drool-worthy UK costumer.
- Isabella's Frocks
- Another UK costumer, Isabella makes the most lovely dresses that look the most like real clothes to me. I am in awe!
- Frazzled Frau
- A large database of images of German Clothing by Michaela. She also has a formidable site on Spanish clothing as well.
- Mode Historique
- Sarah has great construction technique and suggestions with an Elizabethan focus. She was the first person I know to use cable ties for corset boning.
- Semptress
- Melissa has some very interesting ideas especially for hardware store finds.
- Marie Chantal Cadieux
- Marie Chantal is one of the more prolific costumers on the web. Most of her creations are earlier than ER1, but her techniques still apply.
Giant Costume Super Sites. Lots of junk to sift through but a good place to look if you can't find anything else. Patterns I'd use if I were going to use a pattern... You can use these to make any class of clothes, just be sure to read ALL the instructions first. :-) Miscellaneous useful sites Costume or Clothes?
Stuff to Finish Your LookJewelry Hats Shoes - Gelderse Roos
- Beautiful custom shoes. Not in English - click on schoenen then schoenmodellen
- Armlann
- Custom period shoes from Roman thru pattens thru choppines. Good period latchet shoes.
- Dru Shoemaker
- Custom period shoes & pouches.
- Plantagenet Shoes
- More beautiful custom shoes and they look very well made.
- Sarah Juniper
- More fine English shoes, custom made.
- Schrader Bootmaker
- John Schrader makes shoes for most of the St. George's guild members. I have mine and they are amazing!
- Soles Thru Time
- Colorful custom shoes and a budget line that's made to size in 4 weeks.
- K.M.Garlick
- More custom period shoes.
- Marc Carlson
- Want to try and make your own shoes? Marc is the expert!
Other Random LinksHere are some groups I'm involved with, other groups I know, and random info I check regularly: | Fabrics, Trims, Notions, Corset SuppliesI'm getting asked a lot about online suppliers of fabrics, trims, and notions, so here's a list of vendors I've found useful for natural fiber supplies for historical costuming. General - Denver Gabrics
- Good prices on plain linens and silks. They also carry leather hides. Good service.
- Discount Fabrics USA
- Keep your eyes out for good deals.
- Wm. Booth - Draper
- Plain linen, wool, hemp fabrics, and real linsey-woolsey. Also notions like bone needles, buttons, etc.
- Fashion Fabrics Club
- good selection of linens, wools, etc.
- Fabric Direct
- good selection of linens, wools, etc.
- Fabric Guru
- Lots of designer brocades, etc, but hard to find all natural fibers.
- Fabrics Store
- My favorite source for linen. Local, so service is fast and usually the best prices.
- House Fabric
- My favorite source for crewel fabric and canvas. Most fabrics 60" wide. Check the silk section for occasional sale damasks.
- Period Fabric
- Good plainweave source. Real Fustian at $5/yd. :-)
- Trim Fabric
- Designer Fabrics Online
- Keep your eyes out for good deals.
- Dharma Trading Co.
- Silk, Linen, Cotton, Hemp fabrics and THE source for all your dye needs. Includes dyeing tutorials.
High-end fabrics to drool over: - Eastern Christian Supply Co.
- Vestment brocades, some in period weaves.
- Bevilacqua
- Oh my GOD! These are often period weaves on period looms. If you win the lottery, this is what you can buy me! The best of the best.
- Exotic India
- Indian silks by the yard. Most not period appropriate, but some too go to pass up!
- Istok
- Beautiful vestment silks, some period weaves.
- Church Linens & Vestments
- Same as the other vestment fabric sites, but with some different designs.
- M. Perkins & Son
- More vestment fabrics. God, I love this stuff...
- B. Black & Sons
- English tailoring quality wools. Pricey but the best quality.
All-Silk Vendors/Importers Trims & Notions- M&J Trimming
- Good variety, not the best deals.
- JKM Ribbon
- Some good fins - mostly the same kind of stuff you can get at JoAnn's
- Waterbury Button Co.
- TL Barnes
- Trims, buttons, ribbons, threads, etc. Mostly geared toward SCA but some reenactment quality stuff there.
- Pillaged Village
- Good source for aglets, buttons, some trim. Also good for tableware. Stay away from the clothes and shoes.
- Cybertrims
- Some unusual stuff but their site doesn't always work.
- Hedgehog Handworks
- Everything you'll ever need for your embroidery projects; including silk threads, stuff for goldwork, and real precious metal spangles. They also have corset supplies, hoop wire, and tools for lacemaking, netting, and some buttons, lacers, and clasps.
- Wyvern Productions
- Custom machine embroidery including blackwork strips and cauls.
- Cheep Trims
Corset Supplies 
General Stuff Vendors.Be careful! Many of these vendors sell items that are out of period for what your group may do. Know what you're looking for before you buy something and don't get to play with it at your event. :-( - By The Sword
- General Stuff vendor, mostly OOP. Occasional deals of shoes, knives, etc.
- Jas Townsend
- Great vendor for lots of stuff. Shoes, socks, linen thread, cooking equipment, table ware, etc. Good service and reputation.
- Keradwc's Pavillions
- Even wonder how to make a pavilion? How about a yurt? Include an extensive links page so I won't go into more pavilion stuff here.
- Ok, one more pavilion links page and that's it.
- Medieval Design
- Lots of great early period stuff, but for Ives, stick to stockings, tableware (great period glass!) and furniture.
- Medieval Weapon Art
- Good stuff if you can sift through all the OOP gear. A few pair of non custom shoes that will work
- Back to When
- Very nice period tableware and accessories.
- Historic Enterprises
- Clothing is too early for Ives, but lots of nice tableware, furniture, and accessories. Also a few nice men's shirts - pricey but they include blackwork.
- Museum Replicas
- Edged weapon replicas meticulously copied from originals in museums and private collections.
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