A Tunic Question

[Graff]

I have a question about the construction of tunics that maybe someone can shed some light on. I have noticed that most of the construction patterns used by re-enactors is to cut 2 pieces to the desired size and shape and sew them together. However , I was wondering if construction of a tunic cut in one piece would be a more accurate method or are both correct...I have been dwelling on this for a few days and have not really been able to find an answer searching online. I just wanted to see if anyone here had any thoughts on the matter.....

CHEERS
Mike

[M. Demetrius]

Except and unless the fabric is woven with the neck hole as an integral part, then there will be significant trouble hemming around the hole. Easy enough in the front and back, but where it gets skinny toward the end of the hole, there's no easy way to turn the cloth under. I tried a tunic like that using a blanket stitch around the hole, but it was not very comfortable. The stitching always rubbed on my neck.

[agrimensor]

I think that it is a lot cheaper to because of the size of the fabric (150cm). If you do it your way you will need 3m of fabric .While the other way sewing two pieces together can be done with app. 2 m of fabric.

[Graff]

Thanks for the responses....

I am at the moment most likely going to use the 2 piece method for the tunics I plan to make. I wanted to just look at all the options before I start laying out a pattern and start cutting. I now think I have a plan and I will see how it turns out.

Ive been re-enacting for 15 years and do many different time periods and I enjoy making as much of my stuff as is possible. So me and a friend of mine decided to move further back in time and here I am.....I have found forums like this to be extremely helpful in gathering and passing on information and would like to again say thanks for the response and I really look forward to participating here.....

[Matthew Amt]

Avete!

Go to the sources! Original tunics from the 1st to 2nd centuries AD are made in 2 panels. It seems to have been typical to weave them sideways, with the clavi woven in horizontally. Then the pieces were turned 90 degrees and put together, and hopefully the clavi met up neatly at the top! In fact, Jewish law states that for a ritually pure tunic, the stripes must line up at the top.

With the Roman method, there were no cut edges to be hemmed. That puts us modern reenactors at a disadvantage if we're using modern fabric! It is still helpful to turn the fabric 90 degrees so that the grain and selvedges run horizontally. If you're really lucky, the original width of the fabric will equal the finished height that you need, and you can use the selvedges at top and bottom. But modern wool is usually too wide for that, so we have to cut one selvedge edge off and use the other one at top OR bottom. Your call!

Valete,

Matthew

[Cheyenne]

I usually make plain tunics in one piece, I think the sources are variable, there are examples of weaving in one piece, but the 2 piece method is probably more numerous due to their cost of finishing a neck salvedge (a number of different stitches can be used for this, but the most effective tends to be a tabby woven 2 over/2 under or 4 over/ 4 under if the material or spacing between the warp is wider apart. Looms in Northern & Eastern Europe tended to be larger than those in the east (see K. Barska weighted Loom from Ozarow Mazoweicki, Poland) and the clothing should reflect that. I found that with modern wool that was suitable for roman tunics, having a shoulder seam didn't actually 'sit' right on the body - it would 'bunch' and the fabric would not fold correctly on the shoulder. Tunics with clavii, I make in two pieces and the clavii meet at the shoulder in one continuous line, the shoulder seam is backstitched also to prevent some of the bunching, but it doesn't eradicate it totally. Tabby woven modern melton in 300-550g per m weight can be edge finished using a salvedge after cutting and it doesn't fray - but producing a hand woven salvedge would take quite a bit of time.

Or for those everyday working tunics, melton is knapped enough to not even have to hem the fabric.

For the finer fabric I am having made by a hand weaver - the loom is 60 inches wide, but that is loomstate and the spacing between the warps is as such, that once I have washed the fabric with lanolin soap to 42'c (any hotter and the fibres burst, lanolin soak will make the wool less itchy as its British native breed wool) the width of the fabric will shink down to around 45-50inches - perfect for a rather voluminous tunic and the salvedge represents the finished edges of the garment - and I would then add a tabby woven edge to the drop hem.

Hey presto - more authentic... its easy to try at home. And if anyone wants some help developing a tabby salvedge - please get in touch

(see Pritchard, JP Wilde, Maik, Fluck etc..etc for more details on looms)