“Renaissance Memories” St. Brigitta’s Cap

Historically inspired women's coif with embroidery

When you are old, you spend so much time reflecting on who you were and whom you loved. I can still see her, clear as day: sweet, smart and as pure as the morning air. When I close my eyes, I can still hear her soft laugh. It is difficult to tell these days - was she simply a dream? Or perhaps a distant memory.

Our “Renaissance Memories” collection combines the modesty of historical garments with the beauty of the modern figure to create the perfect balance of history and fantasy. Feminine, delicate and gorgeous, the collection sits somewhere between the XIII century and the Renaissance. We have worked hard to create something versatile and timelessly medieval, which should suit a variety of different characters and time periods.

This piece is based on the historical “St Birgitta’s Cap”, a well-documented head covering found in various visual sources starting in the XIII century with the Maciejowski Bible. These little caps were sometimes worn on their own, to cover the hair and keep it out of the wearer’s face. They can also be seen being worn underneath hats, performing the same function as linen coifs did for men: protecting more expensive headwear from the oil of your scalp.

This coif is made from fine linen, the same material we use for underclothes. As with historical examples, it features a central seam that sits on the middle of your head. From there the cap grows more voluminous towards the back, allowing you to fit your hair into it comfortably. Two long drawstrings at the back can be wrapped around your head twice to make sure you get a good, secure fit. We have made a few changes from the historical version to make it more comfortable and to also accommodate some beautiful embroidery.

The embroidery on this cap runs along the front, meaning it will sit along your hairline. It is ArmStreet exclusive embroidery, drawn by one of our talented designers, especially for this collection. The embroidery is sharp, expertly done and applied by hand by one of our experienced seamstresses, so it looks utterly fantastic.

We feel that this little cap will be a great accessory for many different types of character and events. Any medieval woman hoping to preserve her modesty would be smart to cover her hair, so this would fit anyone from a farmer to a noblewoman.

To check how to measure yourself please click here.

Please contact us if you have any additional questions.