15th century

Our largest selection: the 15th century is the high point of medieval tailoring. Here you will find the farsetti (Italian and striped versions), the arming doublet, the houppelande with dagged sleeves, the giornea, fully laced and side-laced women's dresses, the chaperon and mi-parti hose.
Our patterns are based on surviving originals on display, on period paintings and on the work of Janet Arnold, Katrin Kania and Federico Marangoni. Wherever we can, we print the reference in the product description.

15th-Century Italian and European Clothing

Men's clothing here is built on a linen shirt, a farsetto and wool hose, which are tied to the farsetto with points. Our shirt pattern draws on the work of Federico Marangoni and Katrin Kania, among others, and the hose follow Piero della Francesca's battle scene of around 1460.

Farsetto, Vest and Arming Doublet

The original of our Italian farsetto is on display at the Museo Civico in Fano, and we based our pattern on it. Its special feature is the shaped elbow, which makes it very comfortable. Our standard version is quilted horizontally, but the original vertical quilting can be requested. The striped farsetto follows the frescoes of the Castle of Issogne: it is cut very short, so it holds the hose comfortably. The vest is essentially a sleeveless farsetto. The Italian arming doublet is made to be worn under armour: short and fitted, with holes at the neck and sleeves for tying on the harness.

Overgarments, Headwear and Women's Dresses

The giornea is the most characteristic sleeveless overgarment of the period, decorated at the sides and hem. It is made of wool, silk, velvet or brocade. The coat with a fringed hem has slashed sleeves, practical in both warm and cold weather. The chaperon with oak-leaf dagging is made entirely by hand. Among the women's dresses, the fully laced dress works much like a corset and is worn over a chemise.

This category also contains the mi-parti hose subcategory. A 10% deposit secures your order.

• Guide: what is a farsetto?
• Guide: 15th-century Italian men's clothing explained
• Guide: how to measure for made-to-measure medieval clothing
• Mi-parti hose