Be a Hoser!

Custom fitting and sewing

14/15th century hose

Also, modyr, i beseche yow þat ther may

be purueyd some meane þat i myth
haue sent me home by þe same
mesenger ij peyir hose, j peyir blak and an
othyr peyir of roset, whyche be redy made
for me at the
hosers wyth þe crokyd bak next to
þe Blak Freyrs gate wyth-in Ludg…ate;
John Pampyng knowyth hym well j-now. i
suppose and þe blak hose be payid for, he
wyll send me þe roset vnpayd for.

I beseche yow þat þis ger be not forget, for

i haue not an hole hose for to do on. I
trowe they schall cost bothe peyr viij s.
(Letter from John Paston III to Margaret
Paston, September 14, 1465).
Be a Hoser - THL Lucrece de Montsoreau - Revised Feb 2011

The basis for this pattern comes from:

The Bocksten Bog Man
from: http://www.personal.utulsa.edu/~marc-carlson/cloth/bockhose.html

drawing from Marc Carlson after a photo in Nockert

The bold lines in the design above indicate the placement of the selvage edges

London
http://www.personal.utulsa.edu/~marc-carlson/cloth/london.html

Drawing from Marc Carlson based on a compilation of a number of hose fragments found at Baynards
Castle Dock - specifically finds: [55] <1645/2B> TB 41; [55] <1645/5> TB42; [79] <1830/4> TB51; and [150]
<3612.1> TB 78. All are mixed spinning wool tabby cloth.
Drawing from Marc Carlson based on a compilation of a number of hose fragments found at Baynards
Castle Dock - specifically finds: [55] <1645/2B> TB 41; [55] <1645/5> TB42; [79] <1830/4> TB51; and [150]
<3612.1> TB 78. All are mixed spinning wool tabby cloth.

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Be a Hoser - THL Lucrece de Montsoreau - Revised Feb 2011

Hose, making a custom pattern. Steps 1 and 2 are just to help you determine the size piece of fabric
you need without too much waste. You can always choose to start with a larger piece (just not
smaller one!)
1 To start you will need two rectangles of fabric cut on the bias. To determine the size:
a) for the leg: measure from the center of the sole of your heel and up the side of your leg to the height you
want the hose to be (knee for ladies, thigh high for men); add two or three inches to give you some room for
error and allow for seams. Measure around the thickest part of your leg that the hose are to cover (calf for
ladies, thigh for men) add two inches.
b) for the foot: measure the length of your foot (no need to add any) and around the thickest part of the
instep, add three inches.

2 Cut out:

You'll want to ensure you are cutting exactly on the bias; use a ruler or square to assist.

3 Start with the foot piece. Good sides together, fold in in half so that the fold is parallel with the sides of the
rectangle representing the length of your foot. From one end, doesn't matter which, cut along the fold about
3". This will become the "V" seam in the foot mentioned later.

This is what you should now have

4 With the good side of the fabric toward your skin, pin and baste the foot piece to fit your foot. This is hard to
describe in writing; follow the demonstration.

5 Once the foot fits to your liking, trim the seam allowances to 1" from the basted seam. These will be
trimmed narrower later, leave them a bit wider for now "just in case".

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Be a Hoser - THL Lucrece de Montsoreau - Revised Feb 2011

6 Next, we will be starting to make the "M" shape in the Leg piece at the ankle which will fit with the "V" in the
foot piece later.
a) The M needs to be about the width of the front of your ankle. It's a judgment call but making it too wide
seems to cause more problems so when in doubt err a bit on the side of narrow. It helps to measure the
distance from ankle bone to ankle bone around the front of your ankle (top of foot). Write it down here for
reference. 4 to 4.5 inches is fairly typical.

My width is:________________ divided in half is:____________________

b) Now we need to know how high to make the M. Measure the distance from your inside ankle bone to the
outside ankle bone around the bottom of your foot (under the arch) Add 1 1/2" to 2" (easiest to round up to
the next full number too). Divide this in half - this gives you the HEIGHT of the "M".

Ankle to Ankle under foot:__________+ 1.5 to 2 inches:__________divided in half is:__________

Example: From ankle to ankle under the foot 8.5". Add 1.5" = 10". 10" Divided by 2 = 5".
5" is the measurement to use.
7 Fold the leg piece in half so the fold is parallel with the long edges.
FOLD
Then: Measure over from the fold using the
measurement for 1/2 the WIDTH of the M.
Measure up from bottom using the measurement
for the HEIGHT of the M.

From the example this will be 2" wide from the

fold, and 5" tall.

Now cut ONLY the vertical line leaving the top of

the rectangle uncut and attached.

This is what you should now have.

Two vertical cuts.

These are the
sides of the "M"

8
Put the prepared foot piece back on your foot with the good side of the fabric toward your skin, pin and
baste the leg piece to the foot and fit the leg. This is hard to describe in writing; follow the demonstration.

9 Once all is fit to your liking. Trim all the seam allowances to 1/2". Follow the demonstration to mark and
trim the "M" of the leg and "V" of the foot.

10 Take the basting out, and trace them onto paper for a permanent pattern you can keep.

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Be a Hoser - THL Lucrece de Montsoreau - Revised Feb 2011

11 Follow the instructions for sewing.

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Be a Hoser - THL Lucrece de Montsoreau - Revised Feb 2011

Important tips.

Watch out for pattern expansion.

Remember that when you trace the fabric to make a paper pattern, and when you cut out around the paper
pattern in the future - it tends to add just a little bit to the measurements. Keep this in mind when you're
tracing and cutting, be accurate, and try to avoid having your pattern "expand" too much. Final fitting on the
leg will help with this - except when it comes to the "M" and the "V" so pay particular attention to these.
Don't skip the fitting
Because of the above and because the stretchiness of one fabric can differ from the next , it's important to
fit and baste on the leg every time - even when you start from the paper pattern. With an item that fits this
closely, even a 1/4" difference can make for a poor fit. For a good result - don't skip the fitting.
Basting is your friend
Don't try to do all the on-the-leg fitting with pins. Do the basting - that way you can try on with the hose
turned right side out. You can also use the basting as a guide for final sewing.
Give hand sewing a try.
This is a small, fast project - give hand sewing a try for these, even if never for anything else. Backstitch is
fantastic for hose - durable and stretchy. If you must machine sew, you need to use a stretch stitch or risk
snapping thread and popping seams. Even when machine sewing you'll likely need to do the finishing by
hand.
Give Wool a Chance.
Wool really makes the best hose. Unless you're very sensitive or allergic there may yet be a wool out there
that works for you. Look for a high quality wool like Merino (or cheat a bit and look for cashmere or
cashmere/wool blend coating). Tuck a swatch into your sock and see if it causes a reaction or is too itchy to
bear. Wool hose can be lined with linen (I haven't tried it), or you can try wearing thin socks or nylons under
the hose to keep the wool off your skin. If all else fails you can make hose from linen (if period-plausible
fabric is your first priority) and there are some polar fleeces that look like fulled wool (if looking period and fit
are your priorities). Look for a hi-tech polar fleece that wicks.
Don't skimp on the pâté…...er, I mean seam finishing.
Seams need to be flat under the foot. A bumpy seam can hurt! - sew the seam flat, it's worth the little bit of
extra work.

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Be a Hoser - THL Lucrece de Montsoreau - Revised Feb 2011

Sewing the hose.

These instructions assume you're using a fulled wool that does not fray. If you are using a fabric that does
fray or ravel, you will need to finish the seams differently. Please read the note at the end of the instructions
before proceeding.
1 Using your pattern, cut out two sets of feet and two sets of legs, being careful to ensure they are on the
bias. Cut one set at a time as it's more accurate. Make sure you flip the pattern over after cutting the first
set so that you make a right and a left. It's a good idea to mark the fabric so you can tell which is the good
side, and which is the right or left foot.
2 On the good side of the foot piece, baste or mark a line 1/2" from the edge of the "V" and side seams. Use
this as a guide to line up the "M" from the leg piece. Working from the good side, Lap the M of the leg over
the V of the foot using the baste/mark as a guide, baste the pieces in place. This seam, joining the foot to
the leg will be referred to as the "M/V" seam in the rest of the instructions.

Mark or baste a line 1/2" from the

"V" edge of the foot piece and the Lap the M of the leg over the V and
side seams side seams of the foot. Baste.

3 Drape the now-joined hose over your foot and leg. Pin the sole-seam of foot piece starting at the toe and
ending at the "M/V" seam, adjusting to fit. Baste following the pins, try it on again adjust and re-baste as
necessary. You can pin the leg around your upper calf to keep it out of your way during this.
4 Sew the M/V seam permanently. Working from the good side, sew a line of backstitch close to the edge of
the fabric (1/8" ish). On the wrong side, whip/hem stitch the edge to finish it. Pull out the basting either as
you go, or once you're done.
5 Permanently sew the sole of the foot seam from the toe to the "M/V" seam using backstitch.
6 With the hose on, pin from the top of the heel at the ankle down to the "M/V" seam which you just finished.
Also pin about 4" up the leg (do not baste this part of the leg yet). Baste from the top of the heel to the M/V
seam, try on, adjust as necessary until you are satisfied. Try to make the ankle fairly tight, you must be able
to get your foot in and out, but it shouldn't fit through very easily. Take out the pins from the ankle up the
leg.
7
Using backstitch, sew the seam from the top of the heel to the M/V seam permanently. Remove basting.

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8 Finish the foot seams. It's much easier to do this now, before the leg is sewn up.
Trim the seams to 1/2" if necessary. You can go narrower but I find if you do, you'll feel them more. Clip or
notch the seam allowance at the toe and heel where necessary taking care not to clip any closer to the
seam than 3/16".

Parallel to the sole seam, sew two lines of back stitch, one on either side, close to the seam (~1/8"). Sew
through both layers of fabric. Do this from the toe to 1" before the seam stops at the top of the heel. (if you
sew too close to where the seam stops it will be hard to sew up the back of the leg). This will make the
seams lie very flat which is important if you don't want a nasty feeling bump under your foot or heel.
9 Finish the edge of the seam allowance by Whip/hem stitching it down (stop about a 1 1/2" before the seam
stops at the top of the heel).
10
Put the hose on, pin, fit, baste, repeat as necessary to fit the leg. Also you'll want to trim them for height at
this point. Do not finish the height until you've fit the leg. The bias stretch effects the height; tightening the
leg will make them shorter, loosening it will make them taller, due to the stretch. Leave enough seam
allowance at the top for either a single turned, or double turned hem of about 3/4". A. double turn can be
helpful with thinner wools as it will help to keep the hose from slipping under the garters.
11 Starting where you left off at the ankle, permanently sew the back seam using running stitch (you can use
back stitch if you like but it's not necessary). DO take one back stitch every inch or two so the seam has
give and the thread won't snap when you're pulling up your hose.
12 Trim the seams to 1/2" if necessary. You can go narrower if you wish.
13 Finish the seams by hem/whip stitching them down (starting where you left off at the ankle). You can sew a
line of stitching next to the seam as you did with the foot if you like, or if you find the seam isn't very flat, but
it's normally not necessary for the leg.
14 Turn a hem at the top (single turn or double) hem stitch it down. Fini!

What to do if your fabric tends to fray.

For wool I like to pre-wash in the washer, in hot water, then hang to dry. This felts/fulls the wool a bit more
which helps it not fray. Be careful though, too much felting spoils the stretch. Use this tip at your own risk!
If you choose a fabric that will fray you will need to do more seam finishing
1) When sewing the M/V: from the good side turn under a thin hem of fabric and then backstitch as
instructed in step 4. From the inside you can do the same, or just whip stitch using close-together stitches
ensuring your stitch bites far enough into the seam allowance that it won't just pull out.
2) When finishing the foot seam: Do NOT double turn this seam - it will be too lumpy. Instead, sew
backstitch as in step 9, but repeat it three or four times on each side of the sole seam, each time getting
further from the seam. Whip the edge of the seam.

3) When finishing the leg, double turn the seam as you would in most sewing.

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Be a Hoser - THL Lucrece de Montsoreau - Revised Feb 2011

Sewing Diagram and Summary

Step 1: Cut out fabric - mark the seam allowance on the V of the foot piece.
Step 2: Baste the M/V seam
Step 3: Pin then baste the sole seam from toe to M/V
Step 4: Sew and finish the M/V seam permanently
Step 5: Sew the sole seam from toe to M/V
Step 6: Pin then baste from the top of the heel at the ankle down to the "M/V" seam
Step 7: Sew from the top of the heel to the M/V seam permanently
Steps 8 and 9: Trim then Finish sole seam
Step 10: Pin/baste the leg seam then trim for height
Step 11: Sew the leg seam
Steps 12 and 13: Trim then Finish the leg seam
Step 14 Hem the top
Step 10 Baste the leg, also trim for height.
Step 11 Sew the leg seam
Steps 12 and 13 Trim and finish the leg seam

Step 14 Hem the top

Step 6 Baste from heel to M/V

Step 7 Sew from heel to M/V

Step 2: Baste M/V seam

Step 4: Sew M/V seam

Steps 8 and 9 finish

the sole seam from
toe to heel in this
spot

Step 3: Pin/Baste sole seam toe to MV

Step 5: Sew sole seam toe to MV

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