Shopping

A reminder that this Scadian does not own any of these shops nor does she earn any income from them. These are shops that she has bought from, actively buys from, or will be buying from in the future. 

She writes in first-person on this page as it is not persona-based but experienced as her normal non-scadian self purchasing from these businesses.

Garb

• AlaniaWorkshop (Poland)

  • Several hats (Kievan Rus/Bulgarian of 9th-11th century and Alan silk hats from Nizhny Arhyz and Moshchevaya Balka, North Caucasus 8th-10th century) are listed that list several brocade patterns to choose from, including many Byzantine patterns. 

• DaleboraCrafts (Poland)

• I've ordered through Etsy, though they also have an online store. 

• I custom ordered a women's medieval/Viking reenactment dress with silk brocade based on an already listed and completed product seen on her site (I do not tend to fit women's clothes that were not custom made for me). She took my measurements and they worked very well. It is the primary blue dress I wear with the red Esztergom lion brocade. No complaints, communication about my custom order was smooth. 

• • Aleksandra is the person you would communicate with via Etsy. She is very nice. I don't believe I've ordered more than one garment from her but her other listings on Etsy are beautiful. 

• Living-History-Market Rus Svita/Byzantines Hypokhamision (France)

  • I've ordered on Etsy as well as through his website.

  • I've ordered both garb and brocades from this shop. His shop includes a lot of other things, Ottoman/Byzantine/Kiev-focused for me but he also does Viking and Eastern/Central Asia. No issues with ordering custom garb through Etsy but he DOES prefer email for custom orders. 

  • Damien is the person I have communicated with both on Etsy and via email from his site. His health doesn't always allow him to make garb, but as of July 2023 he said he has been able to start making garments again with an expected delivery date of mid-October. He does not always message back right away, and sometimes if he missed something in one email he may require another one (he's wicked busy, I don't fault him since I know my emails can be long). 

  • He has taken full payment upon order as well as 50% up front for various orders. He can do custom larger pieces (check his Facebook page for custom orders that get sent out regularly they are AMAZING), but brocaded hats and belts are made with the leftover brocades from larger garments, he will not make custom hats or belts (I have a big head, I asked after seeing that listed circumferences were too small for me, and a belt I ordered had a seam going down the middle on one side with two tiger heads mirroring across the seam and two tiger butts lining the other side instead of a whole lion). Unless you like the picture listed and see that the measurements already fit your body for some of his listings (you're getting what you see), I would stick with the custom orders (again, he would prefer custom orders be conducted via email rather than through Etsy messages). They are well-made and BEAUTIFUL. He's doesn't nail shades of wool or silk 100% of the time, I think he uses similar shades he has in stock instead of ordering something you want, so even with sending images and written descriptions of what you want before paying, you will end up getting something kind of similar (I like dark reds, he made my garments with bright red wool). I've accepted this, as the garments are still beautiful. I still order from him. 

  • He always says "Thanks for your good vibes!" and it always makes me happy.

• Norna's Mystery Craft (Sweden)

  • I've ordered through Etsy. 

  • I ordered a Viking tunic with silk brocade that was already listed in the store. It was made for men, and I tend to fit men's pre-made clothes pretty well. Women's clothes I have to custom order and I am larger than the average lady.  

  • Uladzimir is the main contact on Etsy. Good customer service. No complaints about that nor about their product. I think the lady in the images is his wife. I would definitely order from them again. They would be happy to to custom orders as well, I had been in the process of getting a custom order communication thing set up but something in life happened and I forgot to reach back out to them. I will need to apologise. 

• Nornir (Slovakia)

  • I've ordered through her website as well as her store on Etsy - goes by NNornir on Etsy)

  • The shop owner's name is Natália. She is based in Slovakia. She speaks English. The BEST customer service ever. GREAT at communication to get exactly what you're looking for, and if you have particular things you like (like me and my lions), she'll reach out to let you know if she has anything new in stock so you don't miss out (her non-custom products go quickly). I remember she says there is a particular season of year where she is sewing more than she is checking her online stores (I don't remember which season), but if she knows to expect contact from you then she will make sure she checks her messages and emails. I can't compliment her customer service enough. 

  • I believe her dresses have been listed as Oseberg/Byzantine/Slavic/Kievan/Rus/Viking, with Byzantine silk damasks that I've liked, but I know she also has viking aprons and other male apparel with damask as well. She also does tablet weaving. If you want a custom order, she is VERY communicative about what she has in stock and will work with you to get a beautiful garment fitting your needs. 

  • I asked if she would be willing to make a custom piece of something she has not sold in her shop before based on something I saw in another shop that just didn't fit my franchise with its pattern, and she was willing to give it a go. It came out very well. I hope she gets more business because she makes excellent work. 

  • She did 70 meters of tablet weaving for the Northman movie starring Alexander Skarsgård!

• ZabavaSilk (location??? Their facebook page shows German as their primary posted language with euro being the listed currency)

  • Etsy store, sells printed silk garments, not woven brocade. Many block print patterns similar to brocade. Lots of Rus/Slav jewelry. 

I probably have an equal amount of garb between Nornir and Living History Market. Those would be my top two recommendations. 

Printing Blocks

• Cat-Man-Do (TyeDye Travels on Etsy) (Little Rock, Arkansas)

  • They go to Pennsic!

  • They will make patterns for you if requested, with a drawing fee factored into the order.

• Living-History-Market Stamps (France)

  • They don't SELL their blocks for making your own printed garb at home (they DO sell brocade), but they do sell GARB with their printed block patterns.

Silk/Brocade/Damask/Jacquard Sellers (not necessarily the people that make them)

What is the difference between brocade, damask, and jacquard? "Brocade is a heavy, decorative fabric with a raised pattern or design. Damask is a reversible fabric with a pattern on both sides. While jacquard is characterized by its intricate, woven patterns, it has many types, both Brocade and Damask is a type of jacquard fabric." Most shopkeepers below seem to list their patterned silks (non-printed patterns) using these words interchangeably, especially if they did not make the pattern themselves or used the wrong English translation of a word on their site. 

Note: I think most of these stores get their brocaded patterns from a specific supplier since so many of them sell some of the same patterns. 

Another Note: If you're looking for patterns these stores used to sell, check out their facebook pages or other social media. If you want a pattern that is not available from the silk supplier anymore, chances are a garb maker may have purchased some supply that they use to make a piece of garb for you. 

• Benedicamus' Medieval Silk (Poland)

  •  Vestment shop. I can only find them on Etsy but I've found a lot of Roman-Catholic articles about their work online.

  • I haven't ordered from them but wow they're expensive. I don't know if that includes shipping or if you can modify how much of each garment you order. 

  • They have a lot of patterns I've seen from various other websites (in different colour options too), so that's nice. I have come across several liturgical stores online that primarily sell to modern-leaning Roman Catholic/Greek Orthodox audiences, but this is the first I've seen that has listed many medieval Byzantine patterns. Most only list one or no medieval patterns.  

• Kazar Bazar Silk (Hungary)

  • You can shop by period, century, or width of material. I have not yet purchased from them, but they have 3 Esztergom lion patterns that I am interested in. Click "Kazar Bazar" to see their main page, click "Silk" to see their silks.

• Korkonti (Poland)

  • Brocaded silks and hand-woven bands. Most of the brocaded silks appear to be Byzantine. I have not purchased from them yet, I have only just seen them pop up on Etsy recently. 

• Northern Trader's Historical Fabrics (Spain)

  • They do a ton of other historical things like tents & pavilions too. Pictures of their products look amazing. I have only ordered brocades from them. No complaints. You can still find images of old listings on google images if you know what kind of brocade you are looking for (my Google searches are typically that of Byzantine lions), but if you click the link their website will say that page is no longer available. Google images could still help you if you are possibly looking for a custom order, but I do not know if they do custom brocades. I believe I have purchased both Esztergom and St. Julien lion patterns from them in orange and red, though in the past they have listed the St. Julien pattern in Blue/Gold and Blue/Silver.

• Sartor's Historical Brocades (Czech Republic)

  • They sell TONS of historical fabrics, I once saw a Lord of the Rings brocade listed as well if that interests anyone. 

  •  It appears if you select different languages to view their site, sometimes you can see old things they used to sell, like their old listing for Brocade with lions of St. Julian, burgundy on their German page. Use google translate to have access to what is written on their site in different languages. While you may not be able to buy old listings anymore, the old listings may be able to help you with getting a custom order if you want to give that a try.

  • From their site: Do you produce your historical reproductions several times?

    • Rarely! We produce limited edition reproductions of historical fabrics . We want to guarantee a certain authenticity to all owners of historical costumes and decorations. We recommend that you purchase these fabrics while they are in stock as this is the only way to secure them for your project, barring custom orders.

  • Languages apart from Czech: they DO speak English in addition to some speaking German, it would appear from their staff page that most if not all employees speak English. If you are in their country, they welcome visitors to their physical shop.

  • If there is a small imperfection or they are nearly out of a product (you can't order as much as you might like), they sell for discounted prices. They will tell you where the small imperfections are so you can figure out if you can stich it out of your garment.

  • I have yet to order from them but I've heard GREAT things and their site is very well organized, I haven't had any issue finding anything while window shopping online. 

• Living-History-Market Silk Brocades & Monochrome Silks (France)

  • I've ordered both garb and brocades from this shop. His shop includes a lot of other personas outside of Ottoman/Byzantine/Kiev styles, that's just my focus when shopping. No issues with ordering brocades ever through Etsy, but you can also order them through his website or via email. You can see more detail about this shop under "Garb" above. 

• Matuls Brocade (Poland)

  • They sell pre-made patterns but also list custom orders. They sell many other period things like tents.

  • I have not had the best luck with them. I've had bad communication throughout my interactions with them. I ordered a custom silk piece (however when the order was put in, I got a message from them saying they don't make custom brocades, though the link is to the page on their site that says they do), and some of the pre-made silk patterns they list aren't ones they actually have in stock. Upon ordering something they listed on their site, they responded to my order showing an image of something similar in color but didn't have any of the details I was looking for (they sent me an image of blue and yellow fleurs asking if I'd like them when I ordered blue and yellow lions from their original listing). Very confusing. I asked for a refund for both the blue/yellow lion and custom orders (I believe I ordered them at the same time), they sent some of the refund to me as a test to make sure the bank account was right, I confirmed it was, they said they sent the rest but I never got it. I emailed them several times about it and they kept telling me that the money went through. 

  • Maybe other people have had better luck with them, I am only listing them here because I'm trying to include all historical silk stores I've come across in this list. Their site is a little hard to navigate compared to a site like Sartor's Bohemia as well. I know I saw an Etsy for Matuls but last I saw it didn't have anywhere near as much listed as their regular website does. 

  • Again, other people may have had better experiences, I will likely not be going back to this store in the future. 

• True History Silk (Russia)

  • I have not ordered from them but they have a variety of period pieces, mostly Byzantine. They have other things apart from silk on their site as well.

• Watts & Co. Textiles (England) 

  • I haven't ordered from them, but they have some Byzantine-inspired patterns with roundels if not completely period pieces, as well as a lot of imagery used for peerage in the SCA (more specifically roses). 

Jewelry

There are many stores that have things you may be looking for. Ebay and Etsy are full of Byzantine replications. I am listing shops that I go back to regularly, or can easily name, that cater to a specific type of product (replication jewelry from a specific group/time, etc). 

• AnewAgain (Pennsylvania, United States)

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• FenrirS

  • I have some pieces from this Etsy shop, however, while they list Byzantine items, I believe their listings lean more toward Viking/Rus as opposed to Byzantine Constantinople, and most are later centuries. I typically wear early century jewelry, but their work is still lovely. 

• HandmadeEarringsUk (United Kingdom)

  • I have purchased from this Etsy shop several times from her Roman/Byzantine section of replicas/inspired pieces of jewelry (most of which have the image the listing is based on but not necessary the details of the original piece of jewelry - I had to reverse Google image search to find these details). She also sells Tudor/Renaissance, Regency/Jane Austen, Victorian/Edwardian, and Art Deco. 

• NomadswithBaggage (USA)

  • • I've ordered from this Etsy shop MANY MANY MANY times for Etruscan, Hellenistic, and Byzantine jewelry. The shop is run by a fellow SCAdian who goes by Anna von Osnabruck in the Society. After chatting for the past few years about our mutual love for jewelry, we've become great friends.  She specializes in vintage and hand-made museum reproductions that cover 4000 years of human history including Bronze Age, Iron Age, Roman and Byzantine Empires, Late Antiquity throug the Renaissance, and also 18th and 19th century jewelry. She tends to list items according to what is most popular throughout the year (Christian items like crosses are popular around Christmas but Pagan jewelry is purchased regularly throughout the year). She works in-person at various markets and has had a stand at Pennsic in years past. She is looking to do Birka in the next few years. 

    • Anna puts in the time and effort to list historically accurate information about the real-life item the piece is based on (time, culture, etc), will tell you the maker of the item (whether or not the company that originally made it is still in business), and if information is known what the item is made from as well as tidbits on how to take care of these items. A lot of these treasures come in their original packaging (like vintage MET jewelry replications). She does live showings of things on Instagram that she'll be listing on Etsy. She's happy to communicate with you about any item you may be looking for and help you find it. 

• TheFairyTalesChest (United States)

  • I have ordered a few items from this shop. This shopkeeper does list SCA in their listings, I would assume they are a fellow SCAdian. Many items are made from brass, covering a variety of Viking, Greek/Roman, Kievan, and other Slavic styles. 

"Other"/Replica/SCA Things

• larp-sword replicas (Czech Republic)

  • I purchased a replica rug from them. 

  • How historically accurate do you want it to be? (there are synthetic and historical options for make of any rug which is why the price variations are SO huge for one listing, like $40 - $15,000).

  • Site is available in English, if you have an issue with an order (PayPal payments didn't allow an order to go through) they respond well with English, I wasn't waiting long to hear back from them. 

• Spoonflower

  • For patterns no longer available in brocade (or other patterns found from block printing), Spoonflower has many medieval patterns in different colours that you can order as a fabric or order as one of their "also available as" modern-day pieces like blankets or other things for the home. I like the lion patterns from red_tansy, and she has many medieval and renaissance patterns available as well. muhlenkott has a 13th century Mongol winged lions and gryphons pattern available as well. 

• WakingTheLion (Enfield, CT)

  • Etsy shop, has some lion/byzantine-inspired patterns similar to patterns seen on tiles of Corinium Museum of Cirencester Abbey and Glastonbury Abbey in England. Patterns can be put on various modern-day pieces like travel bags, armour bags, and suitcases, plus other "home" things like Spoonflower lists on their site.

• Zazzle

  • Lots of SCA things on Zazzle.

  • Red_Tansy (Portales, New Mexico)

  • Antiquitas Arts (Kansas City, Missouri)