As far as I can tell from the available evidence, even the huge
post-1600 ruffs were not set into wide cartridge pleats at the neck
edge which were then butted up against and sewn to the entire height
of the neck band. Every extant piece I've ever seen has had the ruff
gathered tightly or set with hundreds of teeny tiny pleats into the
top edge of the neckband. There are a couple of the really wide
"head-on-a-platter" ones surviving, and even those are constructed
with the same method (see POF 4). Those portraits that show the
shape of the ruff near the neck or the edge of the neckband also
support this construction. I've never seen any evidence for a
stiffening method for the figure-eights other than starching, though
I'd be most interested to hear about it if anyone else has. In my
experience, gathering into the top of the neckband and starching is
the only way to get the effect seen in portraits.
As others have mentioned, Arnold shows an extant piece with blobs of
wax holding the sets, and she mentions the possibility of pins
holding them in place. I've found that if I pin the ruff while it's
drying, I can take the pins out later and the ruff will hold its
shape. Instructions for the way I do mine can be found on my website
at http://www.faucet.net/costume/period/ruff.html for those who wish
to try it.
Melanie Schuessler
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