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bookmark_border14th-century Japanese Toolchest Mark 3

Posted on by Elliott Evans

I have been putting off the next step in this long-running experimental archaeology project more because I wanted to work on it at a particular event than because of my normal level of procrastination. I planed down the 1by lumber months ago, then I cut and assembled the chest at Aethelmearc War Practice. I started this project working on the Mark Zero “proof of concept” chest at War Practice back in 2018 or 2019.

Anyway, this is the fourth try at making a tool chest that looks like one you can see in the Kasuga Gongen Engi-e. This emaki illustrated scroll is from the 14th century and shows scenes from the history of a Kasuga shrine, including the shrine’s construction.

To better match the size and look of the Kasuga chest, I started with 1×6 lumber instead of the 1×8 I used on the Mark 2. It’s only about 39 inches long instead of the fifty-something inches of the Mark 2. I also used the thicker battens like I discussed, which I think worked out well.

Here is what the four chests look like laid out in a row:

I think I really have the look now. The size an proportions may not be exactly right, but it’s pretty much there. I’ll maybe work on a few tweaks at some point in the future.

It’s long enough that I can get some of my longer saws in there, just deep enough that things don’t get buried under several layers, and still wide enough that some of my organizer tills fit in there sideways to keep things from sliding around.

bookmark_borderKarakusa Mousepads

Posted on by Elliott Evans

Although I have been working for my current company for almost three years, nobody ever gave me a mouse pad for either my desktop in the office or for the laptop I use to work from home. I went to the office store to buy mousepads, and they only come with generic graphics or in a small selection of solid colors. I guess nothing else really sells these days. Anyway, I wound up buying a 2-pack of royal blue mousepads. Because that was boring me, I took a marker and doodled some karakusa decorative vinework around he edges.

The one at work
The one at home

That’s better. I’m so glad that I taught myself how to do this for the Tachi Kake project.

bookmark_borderKaminari Sweatshirt

Posted on by Elliott Evans

The motivations for this shirt are complex, but the execution was straightforward. I bought a blank red sweatshirt from the craft store, block-printed the Yama Kaminari clan mon in the center of the back and at the front left shoulder in white, then painted the kanji for my SCA name on the back beneath the mon. I had to re-paint the white by hand, which is almost always necessary when trying to paint white on dark color, but it’s pretty easy once the graphic is established. I used Jacquard Textile Color on this instead of heavier acrylic paint, since it soaks into the fabric more and changes the texture of the garment less. I’m really starting to like the Textile Color quite a lot.

Please forgive the mirror photo.
I love the Droste effect, don't you?
Re-mirrored so the kanji-enabled can read the name.

Anyway, this came in very handy on the chilly first night of War Practice this year, and on the chilly morning of pack-out at that same event.

bookmark_borderThird Takadai Braid

Posted on by Elliott Evans

For my third takadai braid, I decided to both continue my progression through Rodrick Owen’s book, but go a little less dainty with the braid. Changing two variables at once is always risky, and this did lead to some regret.

Takadai rep braid in reeled silk thread

It is about five feet long. The tension is inconsistent so the width varies, but it’s about 1.125″ wide and 0.375″ thick. Heavy.

The structure is called a “rep braid”. Each time you open a shed, 3 bobbins pass through it. This creates the big knobbly stitches and thickness.

I used 16 ends of reeled-silk thread per tama, and this braid is done with 43 tama. I used the new 100-gram tama that Sweetie gave me as a present.

I think that I was not beating hard enough at the beginning, and I was beating too hard at the end. I guess this will get more consistent with practice. If I did this with half as many ends per tama, it probably would be easier.

bookmark_borderCoronation Braids, Spring A.S. 47

Posted on by Elliott Evans

Our SCA Kingdom, the Sylvan Kingdom of Aethelmearc, had its Spring Coronation last weekend, so I made some braided medallion cords for the Baronial gift basket to the Crown.

Six silk medallion cords in red and white

I was a little short of time, having entered the six 16-tama braids I made in the fall into a largess derby in January, so I did mostly 8-tama braids. One of the braids is the 16-tama double-rai braid, four are yatsu se, and one is shige uchi. I should do a batch of the 9-tama shige uchi braid next time.

bookmark_borderBanner for Hara Kikumatsu

Posted on by Elliott Evans

My sweetie answers her writ to the Order of the Laurel tomorrow. Here is the silk banner I made for her!

Argent, a brown rabbit sejant affronty proper within eight irises in annulo purpure slipped and leaved vert

This banner is made with “Dye-na-flow” paint on habotai silk. I pre-treated the silk with “No-Flow” sizing to make it react to ink more like paper than fabric, so I could just trace the artwork as if it was an illustrated scroll. I’ve had mixed results with this method, but I think it came out wonderful this time around. The suspensory braid is a 16-strand braid in white silk, actually a length of braid left over from Duchess Sir Morgen’s elevation garb.

bookmark_borderToken Braids

Posted on by Elliott Evans

Sweetie needs some braids to make tokens for her elevation later this month, so I spent a few weeks doing nothing (braiding-wise) besides edo yatsu in silk.

Edo Yatsu in violet silk
Edo Yatsu in violet silk
Edo Yatsu in lilac silk
Edo Yatsu in lilac silk

These are all 8-strand “round” braids about an eighth of an inch in diameter. The violet braids use lace-weight silk yarn, but the lilac braids use reeled-silk. This fine filament silk is a bear to work with, especially in bulk lengths like this. Each braid is about four yards long, starting from about five yards of material.

bookmark_borderIf this review exists, you are in the wrong universe

Posted on by Elliott Evans

Last night, I finished reading the latest book in Jason “David Wong” Pargin‘s “John Dies at the End” series, If This Book Exists, You’re in the Wrong Universe. I liked it quite a bit.

This series, if you can find it in a store, typically gets shelved under “Horror”, but I don’t know. I found out about the first book while trying to watch all of the movies directed by Don Coscarelli. He mostly directs horror movies like Phantasm and Bubba Ho Tep, so I guess that makes the book that the horror movie was based on a horror book. There is plenty of horror in it, but it’s also very funny because there is plenty of humor in it, but it’s not a comedy because there is a good solid serious story under those other layers.

The thing about these books is that each one is better than the last. The horror is more involved. The humor is more pervasive and integrated. The story and the development of the characters is stronger, more personal, and more positive (no, really).

Interspersed with all the bloodshed and explosions, with all the running gags and one-liners, there is some intricate plotting and utterly awesome prose. I read some passages out loud to Sharon because I was just stunned by some of the wonderful things Pargin writes for his characters.

You don’ have to read all the books in order to appreciate any one of them. If you don’t think you have the patience to “get all caught up”, I say don’t bother. Jump straight to this last one even though it will spoil the shock that John doesn’t die at the end of the first one. It’s definitely the best of the series so far.

bookmark_borderMore Parts for the Sokutai Sugata

Posted on by Elliott Evans

Back in 2018, when I was being elevated to the Order of the Laurel in the SCA, Sharon made some parts of a Sokutai Sugata for me to wear as my elevation garb. She made the two most important upper-body garments, the houeki no hou outer robe and the shitagasane middle-layer robe with its long kyo tail. I made or purchased many of the accessories for the garment such as the kanmuri headgear, sekitai belt of stones, shaku baton, and hirao belt. However, the lower-body garments and some accessories were substituted with less-formal items because we ran out of time.

To prepare for her elevation next month, I decided to make at leat two of the missing items, which had been on my to-do list for some time. I made the uenohakama out pants, and the oguchi lining pants.

Uenohakama from white silk

Most of the time, when you see the uenohakama, they are lined and appear to be both of these garments in one. The lined uenohakama are for winter wear. These are for summer wear and are unlined. uenohkama are made very differently from regular hakama. They open in the front, and they only have one long waist tie that connects the front and back at the sides. The tie is arranged so that it can be knotted at the right hip, and there is a fly strip that covers the opening at the front.

Oguchi from red silk

The oguchi are supposed to be a bit longer so that the hems are visible sticking out from beneath the hems of the uenohakama. I wound up making mine about the same length as the uenohakama, so I sewed on an extra bit at the bottom to add weight and appear as a hem. The oguchi also only have one tie, and it is arranged to tie at the left hip.

Layered together, the two garments look like this, though you’ll have to wait until after Hara’s elevation to see what they look like as part of the outfit.

Sokutai no hakama