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As with most costuming, you need to start with the inside out. So it seems to go with German ladies hats as well. Most of their head coverings appear to have started out life as simple covers for their hair and then got more and more extravagant with time and by class. False hair or fabric was added to bulk out braids, covers became encrusted in gold and pearls and eventually evolved into free standing headdress with wire structure. Extant paintings show hints of this, and in playing around with my hair and scarves this seems to bear out.
Modernly, you still see this in Orthodox Jewish communities amongst the ladies who wear headscarves. Many pad out their hair or wear padded caps to give the illusion of more hair under their scarves, to beautiful effect.
So with this all in mind, I decided to work with the assumption that my hair would need to be the foundation for most of the headdress I want to replicate, as the shape of the hat is either supported or shaped by the hair (or padding) beneath it.
Here are just a couple of examples of early to mid 1500s ladies braids - they are taped (sewn), or tied into place as was common at the time:
My hair is super fine, and on its own will not give the same look as the period examples. Thankfully false hair is easy to come by, and has historical precedent as well. These extant ones are made out of braided linen:
I took a section of wig weft that I bought from Arda Wigs in a colour fairly close to my natural hair (my hair colour is a devil to match FYI) and cut it in half to end up with two pieces I could work into a set of pigtails. I sewed each half individually into tight rolls so it would blend at the base of my hair so if I did decide to wear it with either a sheer scarf or no covering at all, it would not be so obvious. Gives me options. Worked very well I think.
Very pleased with the finished falls, I will need a bit of practice with them to get them braided into my own hair smoothly. For the test run, I taped (sewed) them in with a length of wool yarn I had on hand. I have ordered some cotton/linen ribbon from a local shop for regular use, and have plans for a hair band based on period portraits as well. No hair pins required at all!
Final result without headscarf:
Overall, I am happy with the result. Tested it with a small scarf and it looks very much like artwork of the early German renaissance. Will get a better photograph of it during daylight.
Now, onwards to hats!
Modernly, you still see this in Orthodox Jewish communities amongst the ladies who wear headscarves. Many pad out their hair or wear padded caps to give the illusion of more hair under their scarves, to beautiful effect.
So with this all in mind, I decided to work with the assumption that my hair would need to be the foundation for most of the headdress I want to replicate, as the shape of the hat is either supported or shaped by the hair (or padding) beneath it.
Here are just a couple of examples of early to mid 1500s ladies braids - they are taped (sewn), or tied into place as was common at the time:
My hair is super fine, and on its own will not give the same look as the period examples. Thankfully false hair is easy to come by, and has historical precedent as well. These extant ones are made out of braided linen:
I took a section of wig weft that I bought from Arda Wigs in a colour fairly close to my natural hair (my hair colour is a devil to match FYI) and cut it in half to end up with two pieces I could work into a set of pigtails. I sewed each half individually into tight rolls so it would blend at the base of my hair so if I did decide to wear it with either a sheer scarf or no covering at all, it would not be so obvious. Gives me options. Worked very well I think.
Very pleased with the finished falls, I will need a bit of practice with them to get them braided into my own hair smoothly. For the test run, I taped (sewed) them in with a length of wool yarn I had on hand. I have ordered some cotton/linen ribbon from a local shop for regular use, and have plans for a hair band based on period portraits as well. No hair pins required at all!
Final result without headscarf:
Overall, I am happy with the result. Tested it with a small scarf and it looks very much like artwork of the early German renaissance. Will get a better photograph of it during daylight.
Now, onwards to hats!
