The garment now known as the lady's bliaut is a product of the mid to late 12th century, although it is clearly descended from the similar "Norman gown" of the 11th and early 12th centuries. It appears to have been worn wherever French culture reached at the time, from England to the Crusader states, although the best and most famous examples of this style in artwork of the period are the statue-columns at Chartres Cathedral, made from about 1145 to 1155 CE. It was clearly a fashionable gown worn by nobility and royalty, although lower-class versions of the gown are also represented in artwork of the period.
Period sources make it clear that the preferred fabric of the time for a fashionable bliaut was silk, a material that became readily available to the European market at this time, with the increase in travel to the Middle East that was due to the Crusades. This does not mean that the only fabric appropriate to the bliaut is silk, for we have documentation of working-class women wearing their versions of the gown, which would have been made of the wools they could acquire. Wealthier ladies might also have stretched their funds by using fine wools for the gowns and trimming them in silk. There are many period options open for the re-creator, although the most desirable is certainly a gown completely of silk. A medium-weight silk, such as a 10 momme crepe de chine, seems most appropriate to the gown. A good challis would be a lovely second choice.
The colour of the fabric should most likely be a bright "heraldic" tone, since the few paintings of the time show these gowns in such rich tones. Period literature shows an apparent preference for rich colours as well, and they are certainly achievable tones when the fabric is silk!
Layout:
Certain measurements are needed if you are to make a bliaut. They are:
1) torso circumference at bust: add ease, divide by two, and add two seam allowances
2) torso circumference at bra band: add ease, divide by two, and add two seam allowances
3) waist circumference: add ease, divide by two, and add two seam allowances
4) bicep circumference: add ease and two seam allowances
5 - 8) distances from base of neck to #s 1 through 4: add seam allowance to bicep distance
9) distance from bicep to wrist: (best to get by subtracting neck-to-bicep measurement from neck-to-wrist measurement) add seam allowance for bicep seam, another for hemming if it is necessary at the wrist
10) distance from waist to floor at hip: add seam allowance and hem allowance
11) desired length of maunches: (to calf or floor) multiply by two, add two seam allowances.
The most important piece of the bliaut is the cors, or bodice (I don't like the English term "bodice" in this instance because we've come to associate it with the very different bodices of Tudor and Elizabethan-era gowns). This is the piece that covers the torso and abdomen, and from which the rest of the bliaut depends. The usual shoulder seam appears to be located at the bicep, and is straight. The sleeve is cut comfortably snug, bearing in mind that at least one long-sleeved garment will be worn under it. Just under the bust, the width of the cors curves in dramatically to its width through the abdomen; it is at this point that the side seams go from being sewn shut to being laced shut. If there is a great deal of variation between your dimensions at the bra band and waist, you can account for this when cutting out the garment, otherwise I'd cut the abdomen with straight sides. About two inches above the bottom of the cors, flare the cutting line back out to the width of the cors at the bust, to make the garment easier to wear and to help achieve the characteristic drape. The abdomen of the cors should be cut at least twice as long as your abdomen, so there is enough excess fabric for the rucked look.
The skirt is made of simple rectangles, as many as are needed for the desired fullness, which for me is about 120". The back is sewn on without alteration, but the drooping waistline necessitates the removal of a curved sliver of cloth from the top of the front panel, cut as shown on the layout page.
The lower sleeves, or maunches, are as wide as the distance from the bicep to wrist, with seam and hemming allowances. For me, this is about 15". The sleeves continue straight for about half this distance, then curve dramatically, so they fall almost vertically to the desired length. They are cut straight across the bottom, which is sewn shut. On the statues, the front edges of the maunches appear to be left open and is sometimes obviously left open all the way down.
Construction:
First, before doing anything else, hem your neckline. Many necklines are appropriate, from a close keyhole, to a round, to my favourite, a simple slit held open as a narrow "V" pushed open by the wearer's neck. Your best chance to hem and trim the neckline is before the garment is closed up in any way, so do it now! Next, hem the lower sides of the cors, where the lacing will go. After that, you are ready to attach the maunches and sew them shut from the lower edge of the maunches to where the lacing starts on the cors. I prefer a french or flat-feld seam, done by hand, since this is a seam that will be very visible!
Now, pleat your skirt panels to the cors. Knife pleats are too directional for this look and many others are too late-period, but I've found that fine pin-pleats work well. Small (less than an inch across) box pleats should work just as well, and may be better for springy silks. Sew the sides of the skirt together to within two or three inches of the waist seam, then sew raw edges under -- silk unravels rather quickly!
At this point, you are ready to sew in your lacing rings, which I find work better than grommets or loops. You'll want small rings, preferably under half an inch in diameter. I use small metal washers or cabone rings (used for roman shades). Sew them in 3/4" to 1" apart along the open length of the cors, making sure they are evenly placed and that one is placed at each edge of the waist seams. If the rings look modern, they can be covered by chaining buttonhole stitches around the visible length of ring. Lace the rings together (I prefer lucet cord for its smooth strength), try the bliaut on, and decide how deep to make your hem. Most of the Chartres ladies appear to be wearing floor-length bliauts.
Embellishment:
For the bliaut, embellishment appears to be trim, located at the neckline, wrists, and possibly biceps. The belt, worn wrapped twice around the waist, is similarly embellished. Additionally, some bliauts appear to have trim or embroidery at the waist seam and the hem of the skirt. The trims could easily have been tabletwoven, as it was a fashionable pastime of the era. Incredibly detailed pieces dating from the 12th century have been discovered, similar to those trims on the Chartres gowns but far more complex than any carved in stone. Straight-line geometrics, circles, and pointed ovals are depicted on the statues, while fleurs and curlicues are added on the extant pieces.
Accompanying Garments:
The chainse is the undergown worn with the bliaut. We know that undergowns of this era were generally made of linen and thus were most likely white (as they are in the few coloured paintings of the era that show them). As they are always shown worn under the bliaut, little is known of the design of the chainse, only that it has a high keyhole neckline and extremely long sleeves that are tight enough to stay rucked on the wearer's forearms.
The belt, or ceinture, is worn wrapped twice around the wearer's waist, with the ends of the second wrapping coming down to a "V" in front. The two ends are knotted together, and several strings or cords hang down in front to the wearer's calves. The belt portion of the ceinture is patterned, and there are often knots shown in the hanging cords. We don't know how the medieval ladies fought gravity to keep their belts adjusted so one wrapping was tight and the other loose, but there are many options, including large snaps, safety pins, and short ribbons sewn to the belt and tied together. Take your pick, or figure out how they did it!
While the Chartres sculptors neglected to give their ladies veils, they appear ubiquitous elsewhere. These veils appear long, full, and round or oval, and were likely of silk whenever possible, considering it was available and these veils were worn with the high-fashion bliaut. A circlet, if anything, is all that is needed to finish the headdress. Since the veil is not shown worn with a gorget or wimple, I would suggest pinning it in place using long corsage-type pins through french braids if you need to do something to keep your veil from sliding around. I prefer to hem my veils with the fine rolled hem discussed in Textiles and Clothing, although this stitch has only been documented to the fourteenth century. Hair should be worn simply, in two braids that are as long as possible. Hair additions are period!
The cloak or mantle is quite apparent on the Chartres statues. These mantles appear to be half-circle or perhaps three-quarter circle lightweight cloaks, with bands of trim along at least the neckline and front opening. They also appear to be quite long, reaching down to the "ground" or nearly so, despite being draped artistically. On the Chartres statues, they are held in place magically, but you may prefer to attach loops on each side of the neck opening and thread a good cord through the loops. I'd make it rather long, to be decorative. Look at thirteenth century statues for lovely representations of these cord ties being used.
The "Turkish" or "Oriental" surcote is one garment, supposedly worn with the bliaut, that I've been unable to find any reasonable documentation for. Supposedly, the fashion came home from the Crusades as a lightweight silk wrap for the knights' lady-loves, and was later made out of heavier fabric to keep the dainty ladies warm. The heavier version, at least, sounds like something I may eventually need to make for cold events, but I strongly suspect that this garment came straight from Herbert Norris' very fertile imagination.
The Statues:
The Chartres statues include seven statues of women, queens from the Old Testament dressed in clothing appropriate to the 12th century. Lacking their names, I choose to call them by descriptives. From left to right, with the locations of their photos, they are:
"Lady Underfoot" (2nd to left of left portal, literally underfoot); Sullivan website
"Lady with Embroidered Hem" (left beside left portal); Aries, p. 508
"Queen Clasping Book" (outermost statue to left of central portal); Holy Cross website
"Literary Queen" (3rd to left of central portal); Shaver-Crandell, p. 40
"Handless Queen" (3rd to right of central portal); Boucher, p. 175
"Missing Lady" (outermost on left of right portal, out for reconstruction)
"Cloaked Lady" (3rd to right of right portal); Sullivan website
Bibliography:
Aries, Phillipe, and Duby, Georges. A History of Private Life: II: Revelations of the Medieval World. Cambridge, Mass: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1988 (Original French 1985).
Boucher, Francois. 20,000 Years of Fashion: The History of Costume and Personal Adornment. Expanded Edition. New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 1987 (Original French 1965).
Crockett, Candace. Card Weaving. Loveland, Colorado: Interweave Press, Inc., 1973. Revised 1991.
Crowfoot, Pritchard, and Staniland. Textiles and Clothing c. 1150 - 1450. From the Museum of London's "Medieval Finds From Excavations in London" series. Norwich, UK: HMSO, 1992.
Duby, Georges. France in the Middle Ages 987 - 1460. Malden, Mass: Blackwell Publishers, Inc., 2000 (Original French 1987).
Holy Cross, College of. "Chartres Cathedral, Chartres France". <http://ashby.holycross.edu/departments/visarts/chartres/chartres.htm>. This site contains many excellent photographs of the Chartres statues, including ones that are not published elsewhere.
Klapisch-Zuber, Christiane, editor. A History of Women: Silences of the Middle Ages. Cambridge, Mass: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1995 (Original 1990).
Shaver-Crandell, Anne. The Middle Ages. From Cambridge University's "Introduction to the History of Art" series. NY: Cambridge University Press, 1982.
Sullivan, Mary Ann. "Images of Chartres Cathedral, Chartres, France -- page 5". <http://www.bluffton.edu/%7Esullivanm/chartreswest/jambs.html>. This site contains many excellent photographs of the Chartres statues, including ones that are not published elsewhere.
Please feel free to share this handout for educational purposes, as long as my name remains attached.
Email me if you have any questions about the bliaut or this handout.