I was a whisper on the breeze and a secret in her ear,
Her hair was a bonfire and eyes shining like wet stone,
Her heart was like a rosebush, stems as hard as bone,
There was a story on her lips, but a song too quiet to hear.
She was like the springtime, our love was fresh and clear,
But I grew thorns, and like ugly wings I sprouted fear.
If I had one chance I’d throw myself below her and atone,
She would be my finest rose.
Without her, autumn came and trees became austere,
And after that the time grew quickly, year by year by year.
Still, I listen for whispers of that song I could have known,
And look to my garden, gnarled and my flowers overgrown.
I tell myself, as winter comes, if I could just have her here,
She would be my finest rose.
German Dress Costume “German Rose”
Renaissance linen dress with chemise and overdress
With this collection, we wanted to prove that just because something is historically inspired does not mean it has to be less striking. Though this medieval German clothing is devoid of fancy trims and sparkly adornment, the cut of the dress and the silhouette more than make up for it! The set in this listing includes three main items: a chemise, a kirtle dress, and an overdress.
The overall look for this collection was inspired particularly by “The Crucifixion”, an oil painting by Anton Woensam circa 1540. In the painting, a woman can be seen kneeling in the foreground wearing a natural coloured chemise with a square-necked dress over top. From here, we have used historical information about garments from Central Europe in this time period to put together a pattern that re-imagines how this dress could have been constructed. The result is a perfect blend of simple and breathtaking.
This particular German costume probably would have been worn by a woman in a strong socioeconomic position, as the back lacing would require a servant to lace up. A working-class woman would likely wear something a bit easier to dress herself in. All three pieces can be worn together, but are also versatile enough to be combined with other similar costumes from the same time period.
Fine Flax Linen Underdress/ Chemise
The chemise for this collection has been completely re-designed from our previous Central-European underdress. It is still made from the same soft fine linen, but we have applied our advanced sewing techniques to make something that stands out just a little bit more in a subtle way. All around the neckline the dress is gathered in with tiny, perfect pleats, which neatly create a border. A tie in the middle of this border is what holds the dress closed. The same neat little pleats are again featured at the bottom of the sleeves, bringing in the voluminous sleeves to gracefully fitted cuffs. The chemise is not full length so you won’t have to worry about accidentally standing on it or tripping - it comes down to just below knee length.
Fitted Renaissance Kirtle with Boning
The middle layer of this collection is actually one of our best-selling dresses. Our linen kirtle is popular for being form-fitting and tight, but also comfortable. Plastic boning has been used to give it a little bit of structure without restricting you too much. It also has the added bonus of being an excellent sleeveless dress, with the option of tying on the stunning buttoned sleeves at the shoulder as well. It is versatile, generic enough to be customised, but gorgeous enough on its own to be perfect for SCA events, Renaissance Faires, LARPs, and tons of other types of parties. The dress features a square neckline that comes down quite low, so it exposes the pleats of the chemise and gives them room to shine as well. Back lacing of the dress keeps the bodice clear and simple, while also maintaining that nice fitted look. The full skirt of the dress flares out from the tight waist, falling to the ground.
Short-Sleeved, Asymmetric Hemmed Overdress
To give you an enviable silhouette and the most flattering fit, the overdress is closed with the help of numerous metal eyelets that allow you to lace it up at the back. This gives the back of the dress a beautiful shape, which helps it to fall beautifully. The hem of this dress is pretty massive - 9 meters around! It trails behind you a little bit, falling in generous pleats at the back and draping to the floor. We don’t want you tripping, though, which is why the front of the dress is shorter than the back, making it much easier to knee and walk in - it comes down to just below your knees. The sleeves of the overdress are shorter than the kirtle, only falling halfway down your bicep. They tie up at the shoulder with a cord to expose the beautiful lining and add another contrasting colour and texture to your dress overall. Just to make sure everything is perfect, the bodice of the dress is lined with the same linen and the bottom hem of the dress has been reinforced with a fine strip of linen to make sure it falls correctly.
All aspects of this German woman costume have been finely finished, including reinforcing around the eyelets, strong cord, and modern tailoring techniques to ensure everything is as neat as possible. The image that this whole collection evokes is one of beauty, grace, and independence. The German Rose is gorgeous and strong behind belief, sure of herself and happy to forge her own way. We hope that in wearing this collection you feel that strength running through you as you make your way in the world.
Because this is a very fitted dress, please ensure you measure yourself correctly, overtop of the undergarments you intend to wear with it.
To check how to measure yourself please click here.
Please contact us if you have any additional questions.
Chemise Materials:
- 100% fine linen
Kirtle Materials:
- 100% flax linen;
- Plastic boning;
- Metal eyelets;
- Metal buttons;
- Cord.
Overdress Materials:
- 100% flax linen;
- 100% fine linen (sleeves lining);
- Metal eyelets,
- Cord.
Chemise Features:
- Tiny neat pleats;
- Gathered at the neck and cuff;
- Billowy sleeves;
- Soft, fine linen.
Kirtle Features:
- Corset-style bodice;
- Low, square neckline;
- Wide skirt;
- Back lacing;
- Detachable sleeves;
- Metal buttons.
Overdress Features:
- Low, square neckline;
- Tightly fitted bodice with lining;
- Short sleeves with lining;
- Asymmetric hem;
- Wide skirt.
This item is part of the “Renaissance Memories” collection
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18 Feedbacks
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Juliette 21 of November 2024:
This outfit is so beautiful that I didn't want to take it off. The quality is exceptional and the fit is perfect! Going to buy more costumes from you guys soon!
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Guest 26 of October 2024:
I bought the full costume, each piece separately, over the course of a year 1) The shift is fine, but it doesn't have enough fabric to pull through the sleeve slits to give it a true "renaissance" look. It's true to what the model shows, but it seems a waste to have sleeve openings and now sell a shift that will let you use them. I might sew in extra linen fabric onto the sleeves just so I can pull something through. It's also really not historically accurate to the period. 2. The kirtle came far too large and I had to spend a lot of money at a tailor to get it to fit correctly. The buttons will fall off immediately and I am actually missing two now (see photo.) I wish armstreet sold the buttons because I can't find a match for them. 3. The overdress is longer than what the model shows -- almost no under dress shows in the front unless you hike it up, which isn't accurate to period. The sleeves only stay up like on the model if you sewn buttons or pin or sew them. I'm not sure why they don't just include a tie down there too. It's not double lined, so the train will get damaged very quickly if you intend to wear this outside. Unless you have very large breasts that you don't compress with the kirtle, the front will fit strangely because while the kirtle flattens your breasts (historically accurate) the overdress is designed for them to be front and center (not historically accurate.) Almost all of this can be fixed with a visit to the tailor, but you're probably looking at $100-200 Overall, it's a good costume in that for under $600 you can get a nearly accurate historical costume and the corsets are done really well. I just wish Armstreet paid a little bit more to the details.
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Parker 20 of July 2024:
Beautiful high quality items! The outfit looks gorgeous. The underdress and overdress fit very well, and the chemise had sleeves that were a little long but overall fit well enough.
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Rachelle Dykema 24 of December 2022:
Very lovely. Seems a little long despite being custom, but maybe just supposed to be that way. The top dress also seems a little big in the bust, but I haven't had a chance to try it on again with someone to help me tighten everything up (I couldn't tell if I had gotten the back tightly laced or not). Even if it is slightly large that will be easy enough to work around and its a gorgeous set! It did take quite a long while to make, it wasn't shipped till after originally expected latest arrival date (shipping itself took about a month but that has nothing to do with the company). I was getting two outfits made and shipped together though, so maybe that is why it took so much longer. I've since placed another order and that one shipped quicker than expected.
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Kamela 18 of October 2022:
The whole ensemble is beautiful, well-made, fits perfectly, and is surprisingly comfortable as well! I've worn it about 10 times so far, and I'm so happy with this purchase. I'll definitely continue to order from Armstreet! I decided to tea-dye the chemise because I the bright white I ordered ended up being too bright for me. Next time I order a chemise, I'll get the natural linen color. But if pure white is what you're going for, don't hesitate to order it!
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Guest 17 of February 2022:
LOVE it! Ordered 10/25/21 and received 2/16/22 for a custom sized full ensemble. It's perfectly fitted, lots of fabric, a massively gorgeous, well made outfit that is absolutely worth what you pay. I'm so happy with it and will be wearing it in just a few days for our festival!
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Tawnya Heilman 21 of October 2021:
It fits fantastically! The quality of the cloth and stitching for each item is great and I really do enjoy wearing this and cannot wait to wear it again. It's incredibly comfortable. The color match for their provided laces was spot on! The laces were split into 2 sections, which made lacing a little cumbersome. I did go ahead and replace my laces with 1 long strand of floss instead of 2 separate ones, I wish I could have gotten one strand instead of split ones, so maybe ask for that if you place the order and lace yourself. I was not expecting the overdress to be boned, which makes for a great look, but is extremely difficult to take off or put on without assistance. Make sure you have a helper if you plan on wearing all the layers. I love that this can be worn with or without the overdress however and am extremely pleased!
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Rebekah 26 of September 2021:
Absolutely gorgeous outfit. I did end up replacing the too slippery lacing with waxed jute cord, but it's a beautiful and comfortable dress.
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Allyson Hardin 20 of September 2021:
Gorgeous bag, belt and dress set! Processing took a little longer than usual so they upgraded the shipping which was awesome! Can't wait to wear this at my local ren faire!
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Anna Malmer 30 of August 2021:
Beautiful, made to measure and custom reaquests (no train). Delivery on time. Looks amazing. So much fabric!! I love this <3. Only 2 issues with the dresses and I won't redact any points because they are really lovely anyway. A seam in the bodice of the middle layer dress loosend during first use. Also, the sholder straps of that dress are always pulled down, off the sholders, when wearing the tie on sleeves. Only wearing under dress and over dress in photo, it was way to warm for all 3 layers.
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Angelina 21 of June 2021:
I am blown away by the dress! Not only does it fit perfectly it is made so well and feels great. Could not get a better picture because I put it on right after it came in the mail (so please excuse the pic) But I can honestly tell you if you are considering buying a dress this is for you. Not only can you wear the red dress without the overdress, the material is so nice, not scratchy and has a vibrant color. For anyone wondering I had a wine red underdress and a black overdress.
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Blaze 07 of March 2021:
I can't express my happiness enough with this gorgeous outfit! And the team at Armstreet was incredibly kind and accommodating of all my questions, adjustments, and requests, which was above and beyond what they had to do to deliver a quality experience. They truly cared and made sure I got exactly what I wanted! I am in love with this dress, and will definitely do business with you wonderful folks again. Thank you for delivering so much more than a dress. You gave me a year's worth of fulfilled dreams!
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Jeanne 18 of February 2021:
Hello! I have a question. Is it possible to get the plastic boning replaced by metal ones if an extra cost is made? Plastic boning sadly doesn't stand up to a lot of wear in my experience.
ArmStreet Team:Hello Jeanne, unfortunately, it is not possible. We use only plastic boning, sorry.
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Vanisa 14 of November 2020:
Hi, which color is the model in blue costume wearing for the chemise and counterpoints? Is it natural or white?
ArmStreet Team:Hi Vanisa, it is natural linen color.
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pizzaPounder 16 of September 2020:
Sorry for the poor photos, this dress deserves so much better. Nothing short of perfect. A lovely and noteworthy investment.
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Kim 23 of August 2020:
The moment I opened the package, I fell in love with this dress! Every bit of it fits like a glove with not even a quarter inch to spare in any fashion. This is absolutely the best dress I have ever owned! I love the quality of the fabric and the beautiful colors. My dress is blue flax with the midnight overdress and it is gorgeous. I have discovered with this dress set, exactly how many ways I can wear this! With so many pieces to choose from, I can mix this dress up for any occasion. Thank you so much Armstreet for your attention to detail in even the smallest of things!
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Bree 16 of May 2020:I finally broke down and bought this dress I’d been looking at for a couple years... Got it in Red Burgundy with a Yellow Flax overgown, and golly, is this ever a lovely dress!! It’s a striking silhouette, especially with the overgown cut shorter in the front to see the skirt underneath for extra interest and color. The detachable sleeves add so much versatility to the style. And the undergown can look lovely on its own, especially with the very flattering boning in the bodice. Absolutely a great buy, especially with Armstreet’s quality and thoughtful construction behind it. Love this addition to my historical clothing closet!
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Ida Vilhelmiina 12 of May 2020:
Ordered German Rose dress with blue dress and midnight overdress, made to measure, fitted like a glove and as always I was blown away by the quality. The colours are so bright and vivid, design beautiful and execution flawless. Definitely happy with my purchase.
ArmStreet team:Good to hear! Thank you for your feedback :-)
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2 Comments
Do you anticipate getting any of the out-of-stock fabric colors back in stock? Thank you!
Yes, of course! The missing linen colors should be back in stock within a couple of weeks.
Hi! I have a question about the length of the sleeves on the corset dress, how long are they? I have somewhat short arms and am worried that the sleeves will be awkwardly long, is there a way to get the arms shortened?
This costume is made in custom size according to your personal measurements and the sleeves will be shortened accordingly