Cloak Fabric

[Lady Rebecca]

I'm planning to make a cloak from Simplicity 5794. I'm thinking I will use the B style, but without the tassel. Is that the best, as far as comfort/warmth/HA? I'm going to use a nice closure, not tie it. My biggest question, though, is what sort of fabric should I use? I don't want it to be overly heavy, but I do want something that would be warm. I would like something that is good for rainy situations, too, but I don't know if that just comes in some sort of treatment of the fabric?

So any help? Wool, linen, velvet, other? What's best?

[sealion]

Wool is naturally water repellant, especially if you give it a good hot wash and dry before cutting.

[Alisoun]

I've done view B in wool with flannel lining (button and loop closure) and view C in velvet with satin lining (ties).  The wool holds up very well in difficult weather, is very warm, and isn't heavy at all.  The velvet hangs heavier near the hem, which may have had something to do with the slipping (because of the satin).  It kept the wind off, but I wouldn't wear the velvet in inclement weather. 

I cannot comment on the pattern's HA, but my vote would definitely be wool as an all-purpose piece.

[Lady Rebecca]

Thanks! I've never made anything with wool before - is there anything special I have to know about working with it? I've heard it has special prewashing instructions, too, right?

[operafantomet]

Wool comes in all kinds of qualities and weaves, so my comments will have to be very general. I'm not an expert on the field either... But: choose a fabric with a tight weave, maybe a twill ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twill ), as it will give you an endurable cloak. As others I would recommend to pre-wash the fabric as well.

Contrary to modern beliefs, wool handles wash rather well. What wool DOESN'T handle is rapid temperature changes in the water. Most modern washing machines wash in warm water and rinse in cold or luke-warm water. This will cause wool (especially knitted items) to shrink... a LOT. If you have a wool program on your machine, it will give you an even temperature all the way - much recommended.

You might find a wool weave to get a bit "tighter" after wash, but for a cloak I think that will be a plus. It will make the fabric warmer and a bit more water repellent.

[Marietta Graziella]

Wool cloak fabric needed?  Why not check out your local army surplus store?  Military wool blankets come in a couple shades of green and grey.  Great wool fabric and have probably already been washed washed and more washed.

That's what I used.  Love it.

[Dinobabe]

I just bought that pattern!  Keep us updated.
Hardware stores also carry wool blankets, like Harbor Freight or TSC.

[Elennare]

I made my cloak from that pattern.  I used a heavy-weight suiting fabric for the outside, and strech velvet for the lining.  I also used a frog for the closure, rather than ties.  I have no idea what the actual fabric content of the stuff I used for the outside is, because I made it years ago.  I am very happy with it, though.  It's quite water resistant (I've had the fabric get damp, but it has yet to soak through), is quite warm, and has no signs of wear after about 6 years of going to faires and being worn as a rain coat. 

One problem I had with it, though, is that the hood never stayed on my head.  It's big and cool looking, but it is a kite.  Even the slight bit of wind from me walking was enough to blow it off.  I fixed that by sewing little metal leaf-shaped beads along the edge of the hood.  That gave it enough weight to stay on, and it looks cool.

I have no idea how historically accurate my cloak is, but I love it.

[Lady Rebecca]

Well I struck out at Hancocks and Joanns. Hancocks had one wool twill in a light green, but I'm not sure it would have been the right green, and it was $7.99/yd. And Joanns had a bunch of thicker wools, but they were all plaids (and my bodice is already a different plaid), and they were onsale for $13/yd. I'll try the army surplus store later, but in case I can't find wool, is there an alternative fabric that would still work? And one that would be cheap? (Like onsale for less than $5/yd, preferably)

Also, do you guys all recommend flannel for the lining, or should I be looking at something else?

[gem]

As far as H/A goes, for the Renaissance, coats would have been far more common (lovely coat pattern in Tudor Tailor, and Margo Anderson has a loose gown pattern that also makes a nice coat.).  But who doesn't love a good cloak?

As for fabric, my walking cape is made from DWR (durable water-repellant) microfiber, the same fabric that those wonderful mundane raincoats are made of.  It has a lovely hand, and it looks like a very heavy silk.  It's lightweight enough for warm days, and the water just *rolls* off it.  I ordered the fabric from Rose City Textiles, who were *wonderful* to work with (it took *months* to find the fabric I was looking for, since it's not usually available to the retail market for some insane reason!).  I'm actually going to use the rest of my blue microfiber to make the Margo Anderson loose gown.

For wools, I love Renaissance Fabrics, but I don't know what would make a good waterproof cloak fabric (I love their flannel, but haven't gotten it wet to see how it handles).  Another good source for wools is Fashion Fabrics Club, but their stock is huge and they don't do free swatches, so it can be hard to figure out what you're looking at there.

[Adriana Rose]

See I am on a heck of a budget so I have made all of my cloaks out of polar fleece. They are noce and warm and they wick water off fairly well. They just dont like HEAVY rain.

You dont have to line it and if you are feeling particulary lazy you really dont even have to hem it..

[Kate XXXXXX]

If you want water repellent wool, look for a closely woven GABARDINE - the original rain coat fabric.  It won't be cheap...  If you want to make it more water resistant and repellent, you can treat it with the appropriate Nikwax product.  Put your fabric through your usual gentle wool cycle and then shove some Polarproof in the final rinse.  Hang to dry and press on the wrong side in the usual manner.  That will also deal with any shrinkage issues...

Line with something reasonably smooth, or it will stick to you and bind you up!  For a good wool gabardine, which is going to cost, it's worth shelling out for silk.  If you don't want it super slippery, use Habotai or taffeta rather than satin.  If you can't quite run to silk on top (or under, really!    ) the wool, go for something like bremsilk, which is viscose and smooth without being too slick or slithery.

[Hoowil]

If you want it for warmth, I've been warned about lining with sysntetic satins, as not only will the thing slide badly, but the lining will almost always feel cold to the skin. I haven't experiences this myself ( my cloak is mid-weight coat wool, lined with flannel, and warm enough I've worn it in the snow). But keep in mind too the amount of weight that much fabric can have as you choose your shell and lining. It can add up pretty quick.

[Jon Foster]

Don't forget Harbor Freight! They have cheap wool moving blankets. I think I have a thread here that talked about using them for a hunters shirt with links etc. I'll look for it...

Edit: http://www.renaissancefestival.com/forums/index.php?topic=5161.0

Jon.

[Woodland Artisan]

I went the Army Surplus blanket route.  For mine, I made it out of 2 of the larger British Army wool blankets that they had.  I'm thinking they were around $21 each.  They were also completely white.  I looked at the dark ones that they had (all sorts of colors in there, really) but didn't know if I could color them well and completely enough to make them a uniform color.  So, I went with the completely white ones.

Hand washed and rinsed them in warm water.  Then dyed them in a concentrated walnut dye I made myself.  I continued to dye them a few times until I got the color I wanted.  Drained them as best I could and hung them to dry completely.  Then cut them and sewed them myself.

That cloak is HEAVY ... and I'm not a frail man ... my daily activities involve lugging tree logs around.  But, it certainly is warm!  I just pull the hood all the way down over my face/neck and wrap it around me.  I had it out in zero degree weather this past winter and it was actually a bit too warm for me.  Had to pull the hood off a bit and vent.  While it does shed the snow smartly and the light rain quite well, when it does get good and wet ... it's about unbearably heavy for me.  Even then, it's warm.