Roman Tunica 2016

Here is a post that has been waiting to be posted for *three years* because somehow I missed it.

Also, I don't particularly like the way this tunica looks on me, so I don't wear it often and only reach for it when it is really hot.

We have some very hot days here in South Australia, and a collegium class presented by my talented friend Mistress Ursula von Memingen back in 2016 inspired me to sew a Roman style tunica.

I decided on the style which is billowed out over the bust above a belt. Basically, the style is two rectangles, which when hemmed, are sewn into a cylinder which is long enough to allow for the top part to be pulled out loosely and for the arms to fit in.

This pattern layout gives the basic idea, although my measurements would be different
Image from: https://www.pinterest.com.au/pin/273171533621522685/

I had some light blue linen, which I hand sewed. The edges of the fabric all have a thin edge turned over and hand sewed down. I  tried on the cylinder on to gauge where the neck edge should be and where the arm holes should end. I used safety pins to mark the spot on each side of the neck where the join should start and where the armhole should finish. I then extended my arms so that I could mark the spots where I would gather the top of arm seam to form decorative little bobbles.

The next step was to take off the rectangles and sew them up by hand with a whip stitch, leaving holes for the arms. I didn't sew the top or arm/neck edge because the bobbles would hold this seam together. I did put a few anchoring stitches in first though, for extra strength.

A small hem doubles over twice.

The little bobbles are basically just small puffs of the fabric with thread wrapped around them to form a base or a shank. Use pins or safety pins to mark and check the position before you sew, and make sure both sides have the bobbles in the same place. You could alternatively use decorative buttons, or pins/fibulae.

I bought some geometric trim to decorate the tunica, but I decided not to in the end. (I like it plain.)

Fresco Detail: The Dressing a Priestess or Bride,  Excavated in the palaestra of the Forum Baths at Herculaneum, 79 CE Image from: http://jeannepompadour.tumblr.com/post/66774756105/dressing-a-priestess-or-bridefound-in-the via Pinterest https://www.pinterest.com.au/pin/487585097132476822/

Me in the completed tunica and matching jewellery. I don't wear it much because I don't feel that it flatters my body type. A softer linen might have been more flattering and drape better.

Further reading on Roman Fashion: Croom, Alexandra 2010. Roman Clothing and Fashion ISBN: 9781848689770