At NorsebyGod, we have been doing a close study of the book Bog Fashion: Recreating Bronze and Iron Age Clothes, by Nicole DeRushie. We are going to be recreating pieces based on her patterns and instructions, and organizing contests with (eventually) absolutely fantastic blow-your-socks-off-your-body prizes.
Welcome to the First Contest
For our first contest, we are going to keep it simply, hopefully, and are asking you to recreate a woven wool belt. Archeologists have uncovered examples of belts and belt rings, such as this one, featured in the Bog Fashion book.
We (Dane and Nico) are going to be working on this belt right along with you. We will be posting pictures and accounts of our efforts (and misadventures) as we spin our own wool with a drop spindle, dye it with madder root, and try to create our own bog masterpieces.
Instructions
You can find these on page 150. First attach the ends of the strands to a belt loop or ring, if not using one then tie these strands into a knot at the end. Next anchor the loop or your not by using a pin and sticking it in something, or clipping it to a clipboard or placing it under something heavy. Then spread out the cords so they are ready to work with. Next, alternating sides, take the outer string, pass it over the string next to it and then under the following two. Start on the left then the right. Keep repeating this step until you reach the length you want for your belt. Once you have the correct length, tie the end and cut off any excess cord. Now your belt is done! If it wants to curl in on itself, you can press it flat with an iron.
Materials Needed
- string or yarn (7 strands) (use premade yarn OR try spinning your own with a drop spindle!)
- scissors
- a loop or a ring (preferably made out of animal bone) for the belt loop
Be sure to send your finished products to [email protected] by January 1. We will decide a winner and the winner will receive a shoutout.
Best of luck to all!
If you want to get your own copy of Bog Fashion, you can order them in North America from the Emerald Ewe:
https://www.theemeraldewe.com/shop/p/bog-fashion-book
Happy Weaving!
Bronze Age Tunic Recreation
October 7, 2025
Hello! Today we, Dane and Nico, will update you guys about our current progress with the Bronze Age tunic recreation project. We have been recently working on spinning the thread and creating authentic bone needles to use in the project. As a beginner to spinning as compared with Dane, I have had to really gain the feel of what spinning truly feels like. One thing that I have struggled with is letting the wool bunch up and spin too thick of thread. Thankfully I have been able to troubleshoot, with the help of Dane, how to fix this problem. Since the troubleshooting, spinning has been very easy and quite relaxing. Dane says that they still struggle with creating too thick of yarn, but if there is anything limiting their spinning it’s their allergy to wool.
One thing that has become apparent while working with the bone needles is that we are unsure how peoples of the past created such objects.
We employed the use of modern tools to create the needles such as a vise, a dremel and a hacksaw. During this process we discovered that using power tools on bone is very smelly and creates a lot of dust.
One thing is sure, from recreating the process of making bone needles, especially with the use of modern tools, our respect for past people who made such things with no help has definitely increased!
Keep watching for more update as we continue with our recreations! And check out Bog Fashion by Nicole DeRushie!