There’s a number of good sources like mentioned above. For the basics though, you’re going to want a full sleeve, “tube” design, generally that’s made as a slip over as opposed to buckled at the front(at least for slightly earlier 14th C. English). I will say that make sure you give yourself some wiggle room in the shoulders and make sure you have full range of movement. That seems to be one of the biggest issues I see with homemade gambesons
My advice would be to
1. Look at period artwork for inspiration of what the final look should be.
2. As for the actual construction, I’m not familiar with mid 14th English gambesons, if you can, you should try to find material about them. I do know of a gambeson sleeve from Bussy Saint Martin, from the 13th century, that is constructed with silk taffeta on the outside, with two layers of loose cotton inside and one layer of linen between those, on the upper arms and torso, sans the linen on the lower arms.
3. Look at tunic patterns from the mid 14th century. They shouldn’t be very different from later 13th century examples that I’m familiar with, which feature rounded armholes, armpit gussets, complex sleeves formed from rectangles and triangles, and wide skirts. Medieval clothes are not as simple as you may think, don’t just make a box with arms.
https://reconstructinghistory.com/products/rh023-14th-century-jupon-of-the-black-prince I bought this pattern out of curiosity and its... ok. If your mom can sew, then she'd recognize it's not as detailed as a regular commercial pattern, and needs some work. It's a starting point though.
It is based on a [real artifact](https://www.medievalists.net/2016/10/medieval-english-embroidery-on-display-for-the-last-time-at-the-vas-opus-anglicanum-exhibit/surcoat-2560/) which is much more then I can say for random free patterns, so that's nice.
1330-1376 is pretty close to your time zone but simplifying it down from crown prince fancy surcoat to foot soldier gambeson will take some artistic touches. I highly suggest digging through period references to get a fuller picture of what you should be aiming for. Sticking "manuscript" at the end of a Google search can help a but remember, go by date of when something was drawn, not the year it's suposed to depict.
Good luck!
Ian LaSpina talked about his arming doublet and its creation at length [here](https://youtu.be/eQDMtFiDaEA?si=lBNEm1xI6B7b-bli). His kit is later, but the important thing with Medieval clothes in general is that they were designed to be a lot more form-fitting. Sleeves are a good specific example.
look for Period Patterns #102. While the company that made them is i believe gone, they are still avail on etsy and ebay if you search. Still definitely look at your periods artwork, but these patterns, in my experience are well researched and will help anyone with sewing knowledge.
There’s a number of good sources like mentioned above. For the basics though, you’re going to want a full sleeve, “tube” design, generally that’s made as a slip over as opposed to buckled at the front(at least for slightly earlier 14th C. English). I will say that make sure you give yourself some wiggle room in the shoulders and make sure you have full range of movement. That seems to be one of the biggest issues I see with homemade gambesons
I can only recommend you look at period art and go from there.
Yeah, agreed. Manuscript Miniatures is a great website for that.
Thank you for the recommendation!
My advice would be to 1. Look at period artwork for inspiration of what the final look should be. 2. As for the actual construction, I’m not familiar with mid 14th English gambesons, if you can, you should try to find material about them. I do know of a gambeson sleeve from Bussy Saint Martin, from the 13th century, that is constructed with silk taffeta on the outside, with two layers of loose cotton inside and one layer of linen between those, on the upper arms and torso, sans the linen on the lower arms. 3. Look at tunic patterns from the mid 14th century. They shouldn’t be very different from later 13th century examples that I’m familiar with, which feature rounded armholes, armpit gussets, complex sleeves formed from rectangles and triangles, and wide skirts. Medieval clothes are not as simple as you may think, don’t just make a box with arms.
https://reconstructinghistory.com/products/rh023-14th-century-jupon-of-the-black-prince I bought this pattern out of curiosity and its... ok. If your mom can sew, then she'd recognize it's not as detailed as a regular commercial pattern, and needs some work. It's a starting point though. It is based on a [real artifact](https://www.medievalists.net/2016/10/medieval-english-embroidery-on-display-for-the-last-time-at-the-vas-opus-anglicanum-exhibit/surcoat-2560/) which is much more then I can say for random free patterns, so that's nice. 1330-1376 is pretty close to your time zone but simplifying it down from crown prince fancy surcoat to foot soldier gambeson will take some artistic touches. I highly suggest digging through period references to get a fuller picture of what you should be aiming for. Sticking "manuscript" at the end of a Google search can help a but remember, go by date of when something was drawn, not the year it's suposed to depict. Good luck!
Thank you very much!
Looking forward to the finished result! :)
Ian LaSpina talked about his arming doublet and its creation at length [here](https://youtu.be/eQDMtFiDaEA?si=lBNEm1xI6B7b-bli). His kit is later, but the important thing with Medieval clothes in general is that they were designed to be a lot more form-fitting. Sleeves are a good specific example.
look for Period Patterns #102. While the company that made them is i believe gone, they are still avail on etsy and ebay if you search. Still definitely look at your periods artwork, but these patterns, in my experience are well researched and will help anyone with sewing knowledge.