The Tudor Tailor: Reconstructing Sixteenth-Century Dress

For some time, The Tudor Tailor: Reconstructing Sixteenth-Century Dress sat atop my wishlist. And now I can happily write that this treasure has completely exceeded my expectations! The Tudor Tailor is simply extraordinary. Readers will find themselves riveted from the very first page. Jam-packed with such goodies as rare photographs, art, and all manner of unusual trivia, this book is a keepsake.Visual guides depicting what ordinary citizens wore as opposed to the Tudor elite, even garments usually worn by persons according to occupation, are included. There are photographs of actual clothing that survive to this day, and these are truly remarkable. One could comb the internet endlessly and not locate such rare photographs. I know as I've often searched for visuals of actual Tudor clothing. Surviving Tudor garments attest to the painstaking technique employed by tailors and dressmakers, and even ordinary housewives of the 16th century.Descriptive fabric tables which detail what sort of materials were used, and even subcategories of various textiles are astonishing. Readers are presented with precise instruction of sewing techniques employed in construction of Tudor clothing and the respective tools which were used. A plethora of diagrams and candid photographs demonstrate the artistry of Tudor clothing. (I've often marveled at the incredible skill with which Tudor clothing was made and wondered how this was accomplished, always keeping in mind that this was all done by hand! I believe that the 'Tudor Tailors' of the 16th century could have gone to bat against the finest couturiers of today.)Fans and members of reenactment societies will find The Tudor Tailor to be an absolute necessity for personal libraries. Not only does the book offer accurate overviews of Tudor period clothing, but provides clear and concise instruction on recreating such garments. Various stitches are diagrammed, as is the method of dressing in true Tudor style, from undergarments on out.The Tudor Tailor is also a marvelous book for history buffs, and one that any Tudor history devotee would be thrilled to own. This book would also serve as a lovely addition for the libraries of students of textiles, and dressmaking.Thank you to Authors Ninya Mikhaila and Jane Malcolm-Davies for a true treasure!C. R. Wall

I bought it for the patterns, and knew a bit about what was included in the book, the history and evolution of the 1500's fashion, but the best part was the color and fabric information. There was a bunch of information on colors available at the time and which were used in historical records. This was the information I found the most fascinating.

I admit, I'm not an expert on Tudor era clothing. But the Tudor Tailor provided me with enough visual references from the era (both paintings and statues) to fill me with confidence that the authors of the book ARE experts, and that I can trust in their judgements.The book begins with a discussion on the history of the costumes of the era, and those visual references I mentioned. This is great, because if you're putting together a costume, you really want to know why (and when!) each separate garment goes with another one. Plus there was a nice division between lower and upper class clothing, and visuals to support the conclusions presented.The second two thirds of the book deal with making the costumes. There are patterns, and suggestions for modifying them, and instructions. I'm fortunate enough to be the same size as the patterns were made for (if a little short) but there are instructions on modifying the patterns as well.I definitely recommend reading the entire instructions (twice) before starting. It will save you a lot of grief. Additionally, you ought to have at least some experience in sewing, because some of these instructions are not for the faint of heart. They've been laid out clearly, but they do assume some prior knowledge. You'll have to take some guesses (How, exactly, am I suppose to sew in the optional boning in this bodice? Precisely which sleeve pattern should I use to make those detachable sleeves?), and I definitely made some things up as I went along, but the Tudor Tailor gave me a firm foundation to start with, which was invaluable.

I love this book!! The patterns are easy to scale, they even include instructions to fit the garments! Even if you don’t sew, the pictures are amazing and it’s pretty educational. Overall it’s a fantastic resource!!

This book will change your thinking about costuming for the English Renaissance. The research on wills in Elizabethan Essex was particularly interesting, revealing that the color red was not limited to the upper class as earlier research suggested. The line drawings are extremely useful, showing variations of styles. The most interesting part, to me, was the information that a separate "bodies" or corset was a very late variation. I'd always been taught that the lineup was chemise, corset, underskirt, overskirt and bodice, with all the bulk of separate waistbands, lacing, etc. This book shows that the clothing was actually much simpler, with a boned "kirtle" as the basic garment over the chemise, with a petticoat underneath. High class women could get dressed by themselves, with easily accessible lacing hidden under gown fronts. It also puts to rest the idea that serving up one's bosoms, as we all too often see at the Renaissance Faires, as if they were on a tray, is NOT a period practice. I'm in the midst of creating a new costume based on these ideas, and the scaled down patterns in the book are exactly what I need to do that. The book also gives very detailed instructions on constructing the garments. All around, this book is one of the best new costume books I've ever seen, building on the greats and bringing a fresh new perspective to the art of recreating the dress of the past.

This was a gift for a friend who sews their own historical dresses and gowns for fun and she really loved it!

It’s a fantastic book. Don’t doubt to get it.

Libro molto completo ed esaustivo per la realizzaziome di costumi storicamente accurati, consigliato a sarti per lo spettacolo e costumisti.

Livré sous d'excellentes conditions, le livre est très beau avec des patrons à reproduire. Tout est en anglais, mais n'ayant qu'un niveau moyen, je l'ai facilement compris après la recherche de quelques mots de vocabulaire.Plutôt pour des couturiers moyennement avec quelques notions de base.Livre très agréable et nombreux modèles disponibles.

An excellent source book for anyone interested in the history of costume, re-enactment/stage work, or sewing. A nice blend from the academic to the practical.It includes notes on history (with photos, sketches on development over time etc), notes on fabrics/colours, construction techniques (including types of stitches, details on things like how to make buttons from cloth or wooden beads), resizing information, preparation techniques (how to starch & dress a ruff), how to wear (well how do you put on a farthingale once you've made it?), how to fit items like hose, & how to put your hair up to fit under a coif.This takes the excellent Janet Arnold books a stage further. The patterns are similar to the Janet Arnold series but with photos of people wearing made up costumes. As it is full of colour photos as well as detailed sketches, it makes an attractive book to skim through even if you have no intention of making up any of the garments.Overall, I'm impressed.

I needed information quickly on this subject to be able to make a costume for an appearance at Hampton Court Palace with our hawking team. I am no tailor, and had only previously made a couple of medieval shirts with varying success.For a book of this size this publication is a treasure trove. The explanations are adequate, and basic stitching of the period is explained. There is a print errata on page 103, where in the pattern for Venetian Hose, front panel, should read CF, and not CB, but this is pretty obvious.The table on pages 36/37 is very informative, and lists the materials and their characteristics in use in the Tudor period, and is an invaluable aid in finding a near match with a modern equivalent.The patterns are drawn to the average sized person of the period, and instructions are given as to increase or decrease the sizes as required. The patterns are produced consistently at a scale of 1/8 inch to one inch, which makes scaling up easy, and I made a one inch grid on a large piece of card to place the tracing paper on in order to make the initial patterns. I followed the authors' advice and made a toile for each garment in order to get the measurements correct. The manufacture of Tudor cloth buttons (page 51) is a useful way of using up scraps of material, as would have been done at that time, but I prefer to use a tweezer to tuck in the corners, rather than the point of a small pair of scissors. Need to make Tudor garments? You can do no better than to purchase this publication.