Sabina di Zorzi

Category: Arts & Sciences

  • The lacing!

    I’d hit a wall on my Venetian mourning gown when I realized that, due to using a smaller and more squishy cording for lacing than on my previous gowns, my results weren’t what I’d experienced previously with this technique. Part of what I’m working on is documenting this different way that I create the ladder lacing using offset lacing rings, but this time, they weren’t successfully creating the parallel ladder lacing, which is the *entire* goal.

    But, unexpected results just mean a learning opportunity, right? So I pivoted and figured out a good alternate way of determining placement, rather than basic math that wasn’t taking the cord’s *squish* factor into account.

    First, I put the bodice with my first attempt at the lacing still in place around a pillow inside out. After I pinned it in place to keep things from shifting, I put a lined notepad between the pillow and the lacing so I could see where the lacing rungs were landing compared to the goal. I then removed the stitching from a ring I felt needed relocating, shifted it until the lacing was level, and then stitched it down before moving on to the next one that needed adjusting.

    This was added steps, but might be the makings of a better starting point for this method in the future! 😊

    The first two pictures are showing the inside of the bodice. The last pic is the current state of it while quickly trying it on tonight and I think I’m finally ready to move on to the skirt!

  • A&S Tiny Talks at Banner War 2025

    In the style of Dame Lissette de la Rose, I’ll be hosting Tiny Talks at Banner War! Tiny Talks are a low-stakes opportunity to geek out about whatever your current passion is, in this case something that falls in the theme of SCA Arts and Sciences, without the pressure of running a full class or even being a subject expert. Each Talk runs for only 10 minutes followed by a 5 minute Q&A period, and then we tag in the next Talk. This also means the audience’s attention span doesn’t have to stay on one topic for a very long time either, before being given something new to get inspired by! You don’t have to give a Tiny Talk in order to be part of the audience, so please join us and discover new things!

    And YES, there will be WAR POINTS!

    If you are interested in doing a Tiny Talk, you can sign up in advance at [https://forms.office.com/r/95mRXh1iAV](https://forms.office.com/r/95mRXh1iAV) to be sure you get a spot or if there’s more time and interest on site, we can add more folk, giving new folk a chance to do a Talk before opening the floor up to a second talk from previous speakers. You can bring visual aids, handouts, or project kits if you like, but it’s not required.

    11:30 am start time at the A&S Pavilion. We’ll go for about an hour before taking a lunch break and then can continue after that if we have more speakers. Bring a chair if you like as there will be limited seating available.

  • 2025 Aquaterra Arts and Sciences Championship will officially be happening at our Good Yule event on December 6th

    As the current A&S Champion of Aquaterra, I’ll officially be hosting the 2025 Aquaterra Arts and Sciences Championship at our Good Yule event on December 6th!

    Given that art takes time, I’m putting this year’s A&S Championship details out now (below) so folk have time to get their entries together. Please message me directly if you have any questions or if you’re willing to be a judge for this competition. These details will also be able to be found on the Kingdom Calendar soon:

    ***Aquaterra Arts and Sciences Championship Competition 2025***

    “Anachronism within our anachronism”

    *Overview*

    In this competition, artisans are invited to showcase their skills by creating an item using a technique from one time and place inspired by artwork or objects from a different time and place. Think of it as two SCA personas working together on one piece of art. This challenge is meant to encourage creativity, experimentation, and historical exploration, combining the beauty of one time and place with the techniques of another.

    *Competition Guidelines*

    *Creation*

    Choose any period technique from a specific time and place. Select a piece of artwork, an object, or a style from a different time period and/or place than the technique you have chosen for inspiration. For example, you might create an embroidered pocket using 16th Century Venetian stitching techniques, but with a design inspired by early Scandinavian wood carvings.

    *Documentation*

    Provide a brief written explanation (1-2 paragraphs) detailing the historical period of the inspiration piece, the period technique used, and how they were combined in your final creation. Include references to primary sources or academic research where possible.

    *Judging Criteria*

    – Historical Accuracy: How well does the item align with the chosen period technique? Is it made using authentic materials and methods?

    – Creativity & Interpretation: How effectively does the artwork inspire and influence the finished piece? Did you take creative liberties that enhance or explore the historical context?

    – Craftsmanship: The overall execution of the technique, attention to detail, and the quality of the final item.

    *Submissions*

    Items must be presented in person to the judges and other interested witnesses who may ask questions as well.

    *Championship will be awarded* based on the above judging criteria and our Coronets approval. All participants will receive feedback on their work to encourage growth and exploration.

    *Requirements* for Champions can currently be found in our Customary on the baronial website, but that’s up for review, so check in with the Coronets if you have questions regarding that.

  • Badge project – travel stool

    I’ve been on a break from my Venetian mourning gown project while dealing with other priorities, but took some time to finally tackle the first of a few painting projects: I painted my recently registered badge on a travel stool I bought at Autumn War last year! I’m stupidly proud of this!

  • The bodice continues

    Project update – yesterday I sewed the vertical interior seams of the bodice main fabric and liner on the machine, inserted the boning in their homes, and started turning in the edges on the exterior of the bodice and stitched them down by hand to help keep things clean and crisp.

    Today I finished that up and tried it on so I could confirm things were on track and still lining up well even with the edges turned. To do this, I pinned together the extra fabric I left on each edge at the center front. This excess will be turned in when the lining and boning panel are attached, but for now it made this stage easier.

    I’ve also included a bonus picture of the support layers I have on under the bodice that make it possible to make up a lightweight gown without building in heavy support structures. I will be publishing my write up on that soon – life just got in the way for a while.

    Let me know if you have questions!

  • Mourning gown – mock up and other progress

    Today started with a successful mock up, so I cut the wool outer fabric and the linen lining, thinking I can skip interlining in hopes the resulting gown is at least a little less warm. I also got the boning cut to size and sanded and the cotton coutil pieces cut that I plan to sandwich the bones between inside both front edges of the bodice to help keep things smooth when laced.

    You may notice a different pattern in the last picture. That’s the one that had been misplaced and I spent time recreating yesterday! It had been “safely” stored with the ‘bodies’ supplies… I suppose it’ll be good to have a back up!

  • Gambeson #2

    Here’s Rollo’s new gambeson I finished last week. Fairly similar to the original I made about four years ago, though I believe I did more by hand this time, and per his request, the arms are attached at the shoulder instead of being tied on. It’s ready for him to add the closures, arming points, and some leather coverage where his armor bit into the last one.

  • Re-patterning the bodice complete

    New pattern copies done. Next step: muslin (test run) to make sure I did that right before I cut into my “real” fabric.

    🙏

    That’ll probably be my goal for tomorrow, but I’m really looking forward to getting to the point I was at yesterday *before* I realized I’d misplaced the original pattern!

  • Mourning Gown Project

    I started working on my next personal SCA project: a late period Venetian mourning gown. It’s been a gothy dream for a long while, but I feel like current real-world reasons are telling me now is the time.

    First step – fabric has been chosen, purchased, and pre-washed/shrunk as best I was able other than the veil fabric that should arrive today.

    Next step – discover I’m missing my Venetian bodice pattern…

    Current step – recreate the pattern from existing makes, creating separate patterns in the process for the front lacing gown bodice vs. the side lacing bodies that were previously combined into one pattern.

    Inspiration and progress pics included – I’m trying to get better about this!

  • Aquaterra’s Arts and Sciences Championship

    This past weekend, I attended Aquaterra’s Good Yule event and entered my 16th-century Venetian-style gown in the barony’s Arts and Sciences Championship—and won! There was only one other competitor, so the competition wasn’t particularly fierce, but I’m still proud of myself for completing the entire process. From creating the gown last winter to putting together documentation and presentation at the last minute, I couldn’t have done it without the encouragement of the current Champion, Sigbjórg, who urged me to enter just a few days before the event.

    The project wasn’t so much about my sewing skills, or an intricately finished gown, so much as engineering that style to fit my body as well as accomplishing parallel ladder lacing rungs with a new method using period techniques—while ensuring I could still dress myself without assistance. I believe other recreationists could benefit from these techniques, so I’ve always planned to write it up, I just needed the push of a deadline to finally get started! The judges gave me some great feedback on improving my documentation, which I plan to refine before sharing it more widely. If I don’t finish by Ursulmas, it will be done soon after. (edited 10/7/25 to note – life happened, and I learned more along the way, so this is taking longer than expected, but coming!)

    Being a Champion comes with certain responsibilities, most of which align with my goal of leaning more into the arts. One of these is taking care of the A&S Champion’s regalia (the fancy drinking horn and tote bag) for a year, to pass on to the next Champion. I also received an Aquaterra Champion’s medallion and a lovely box to store it in, which are mine to keep!

    In other news, this was my first event wearing my new, beautiful circlet, which I commissioned from my friend Tabby (Tabitta Eliza Longtail), who will soon become our next baroness. That just made it even more special! The design is meant to be worn more like a headband since it’s more in keeping with the styling of my persona and is a more flattering style for me to wear. I love how it turned out! Thank you so much, Tabby!

    I also want to point out the beautiful site tokens created by Camilla. She made around 100 unique beaded necklaces for the event, which made for quite a display at gate!

    And finally, I’ve included my purchase from the dessert auction. I just couldn’t pass up the Krampus cookies!