Finally, after a couple months of work, I can make a post about my danryeong! My internet has been in and out at our house for the past few days so this post has been a little delayed.
I found a paper a few years ago on the characteristics of danryeong found in Joseon women’s tombs, uploaded it to SCA Korea and made a mental note about it. Danryeong, or round collared robes with rank badges, were typically worn by officials, who were male. It was a part of the uniform for government officials during Joseon, so finding ones that were specifically styled for women was pretty neat.
THL (Patent pending!) Ouyang Yingzhao hosted a class during the beginning of quarantine about how to draft a round collared robe. I’ve been meaning to make one of these ever since I found the paper describing them and it just seemed like the perfect time to start!
I made my robe using green cotton, red silk, white ramie and gold acrylic fabric paint for the rank badge. The extant robes found were made of plain or patterned cotton or silk. Korea also has a long history of using gold for gilding and painting fabric, so I decided to use gold paint as a substitute. I did some test swatches with modern gold foil for fabric and fabric paint. I compared these swatches to real gold leaf applied to fabric and found that the paint was actually the closest in terms of finish and color.
I also redesigned my rank badge to incorporate the birds from two orders that I am a member of, The Order of the Velvet Owl and The Order of the Red Raven. The ends of my belt also included the heraldic charges from my two laurels and myself. It was a fun exercise in how to incorporate SCA regalia and symbolism in a period-appropriate way.
My sleeves ended up a bit too short, but I have plans to make a second robe and will adjust accordingly.
This whole project took several months and really tested my ability to work on long-term projects for myself. There are lots of pieces, so it was easier to break it down to components and bite-sized goals.
I entered this robe into Kingdom A&S this past weekend and got a score of 20! I am so pleased and proud of myself! Thanks to my Laurel and husband for their patience, encouragement, proofreading and photos! Now I’ve just gotta find a new project, haha.
If you want to read my documentation or a summary, I’ve posted the project under A&S Entries, or the link is here: http://www.dellacivetta.org/goldandjade/16th-century-joseon-womens-danryeong/
