I visited our local art/craft store and set up shop in the free craft space to measure the hood.

There's only a few pieces, really, so measuring didn't take long. But I was surprised!

"In 1936 a body was found in marshland near Skjoldehamn (Shield Harbor) on the Norwegian island of Andoya.  The body was not part of an archeological dig but rather found and sent to the Tromso University Museum, the oldest scientific institution in Northern Norway, by a local farmer.  He found the body (accidentally cutting off a foot in the process) when cutting peat from the bog and sent it via mail to the museum for further analysis."

Very interesting to see these little braided ropes on the sides of the hood! This article says that people aren't quite sure what the braids are for - maybe tying behind the head for peripheral vision, maybe tying under the chin to keep the hood secure.

The hood I have is felted wool, but the historical hood is actually a 2/2 woolen twill.

This PDF also introduced me to the term gore, which seems similar to a dart - a little chunk of fabric that changes the shape of a sewn garment. I found a great article from Handcrafted History on how to use gores for medieval fashion. The square pieces of the Skjoldenhamn hood are gores.

This document also mentions that the hood is slightly lower in the front, which hugs the face a little tighter. The one I have is straight on the top.

Very good craft info here!!

This is how I've been looking lately, no joke.

This article is obviously wonderful and thorough because Handcrafted History is amazing.

I found a couple videos on this method and it seems pretty dang simple.

Using some dry willow, I made four little pegs.

I got a few nice thick pieces of yarn, doubled them up, tied them to the ceiling, and wrapped each yarn to a willow peg.

Then I summoned a friend to juggle the pins with me!

I kid you not that it took only moments for us to make a beautiful, strong, lovely braid.

Sunday, 2 March 2025, 2:15pm

Cutting the liner first. I found a great cotton flannel pattern, and I'm going to cut it at 17" wide and 56" tall.

It's so fantastically easy to cut on a woven pattern!

I added 1/2" to the dimensions I measured on my own hood, in order to give some room for seams.

The side panels I cut at 12.5" on each side.

I don't have any way to mark the wool, so I just placed the cotton liner on top of the wool fabric and cut it along the same line. I don't know if this is best practice or not but it seems to be working!

Yeah I know my floor is dirty! So what!!

Saturday, 15 March 2025, 11:15am - 11:30am (15min)

I have quite a random fabric stash I'd like to bust up, and another hood might be just the thing for it.

I really like this fabric, it's quite loose-woven but is very soft. Good for a spring hood rather than a deep-winter hood!

I'm going to try and cut a double-wide piece for the hood section, because this fabric is big enough to save me a seam (I hope!)

I realize I'll still have to cut halfway up the back of the hood to fit the two square sections... oh well.

Done! Two 12" squares. These dimensions are a bit smaller than the first hood I made, because that one ended up feeling a bit oversized.

Saturday, 15 March 2025, 11:45am - 12:15pm (30min)

After a quick break to make some coffee, I'm back. Looking through my stash I was tempted by this huge burlap sack.

But, for me, I don't really like clothes or objects that look like they are made from garbage. Upcycling makes me feel like a rat, living on the scraps of infrastructure. I'd rather make good things out of good things.