With a Halloween party coming up in a week I decided I should get around to making a costume. Since I only recently began sewing, I haven't had the opportunity to create a really awesome Halloween costume yet.
I decided to go as King Arthur from Monty Python and the Holy Grail.
If you haven't watched the movie (please do so immediately), here is what he looks like:
Yes, he has a beard - I toyed with the idea of crocheting one, but if I can find a fake one, even better.
One problem I found was that there is a lot of chainmail, and I only have a week so I can't exactly make the stuff myself. A while ago I bought a bulk lot of grey wool, so I decided to crochet the coif and top. Using my biggest hook and very loose stitches, I came up with something that's "good enough".
One slight problem - these need to be gold! Since I'm going to need to get gold spray paint for the armour, I figured I might be able to get away with painting over it. Obviously I'll need to experiment - the single sleeve took me about five hours!
The thing I'm looking forward to making the most is the tunic. I've gathered my materials and I will soon be drafting up a pattern. It should be fairly straightforward - it is a shapeless tunic with a slit down the front and back. What you can't see from the reference photo above is the gold underlining in the skirt part of the tunic. I'm yet to completely figure out how to do it...
Time to start drafting!
Part One • Part Two • Part Three • Part Four
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I would love to crochet the chainmail hood and gloves. Do you have a published pattern?
ReplyDeleteI took some notes while I was making it, but they aren't very comprehensive (it was a while ago, so I have no idea what I actually did). You can see them for the gloves here: http://textuploader.com/tt9o
DeleteFairly sure I used a beanie pattern for the coif. Just make the top of a simple beanie (patterns on Ravelry). When it gets low enough on your forehead, mark out the gap with a couple of markers or safety pins. When you get the the gap, just chain 1 and turn. Then you'll be working in rows (you can see where the texture changes on the photos above. Then just work straight until it gets low enough. From there, work in some increases - an even amount each side (say, work 10 stitches, inc, repeat).
Totally guessing here! Just use a large hook, single crochet, and 4ply yarn, and you'll get that loopy chainmail look.