Day 127 of Banishment: Winter Clothes (3)
Thus, the coat was completed.
The coat, made by stitching together the hides of horned rabbits, resembled more of a robe than a traditional coat, but it was warm when worn.
“Ehee, it’s surprisingly warm.”
Marylia immediately tried on the fur coat, spinning around on the spot. It was a bit difficult to move in, but that was to be expected of a coat, so she didn’t mind.
“Next... for the neckline and shoulders, I’ll make a cape... and then, hands. I’d like to make gloves if I can. Mittens should be manageable, right?”
To prepare for the cold, Marylia began brainstorming items she wanted. Luckily, she had a good supply of materials. After all, they came to her! With some ideas and effort, she could make as many things as she needed. Thinking, "What else would be nice to have?", Marylia started making plans.
“Oh, that’s right.”
An idea came to her, so she decided to leave instructions for the Iron Golem upon its return.
“If you find any plants with straight stems, gather as many as you can and cut them down. Vines will do as well.”
The next day. Day 128 of banishment.
“Today, I’ll make a cape.”
Marylia began working on the cape.
As with the coat, she started by stitching the fur pieces together, cutting them to size, and sewing them again to complete the garment.
The cape was designed to warm only the neck and shoulders. Its construction wasn’t too complicated, so it was finished quickly.
She designed it to tie at the neck with leather straps, making it easy to put on and take off. However, the throat felt a bit chilly, so she considered adding a linen scarf or something similar underneath.
Following the cape, she began making mittens.
Creating gloves with separate fingers was difficult due to material and tool limitations, but mittens with a simpler shape were easy enough to craft.
The inner lining was made from soft, tanned leather with the fur removed, while the outer layer was furred. This way, the mittens were both warm and functional, allowing her to grip objects without slipping.
“Well, this should do. I’m not planning on marching through the snow in winter. The most I’ll do outside is gather firewood, fetch water, go to the bath, or check on the golems.”
Marylia didn’t intend to push herself during winter. She had built the Iron Golem precisely to avoid overexertion in the cold season.
Thus, her winter wear prioritized warmth over mobility. Satisfied with her new cape and mittens, she paired them with the coat she made the day before and smiled, feeling cozy. Being warm was a good thing.
While she was basking in her success, the Iron Golem knocked on the door. Marylia responded, “Coming!” and stepped outside, where she found a large pile of harvested plant stems and vines.
“Oh my, that’s quite a lot.”
She sighed in admiration and smiled, pleased with the golem's excellent work.
“With this much, I can do quite a bit.”
Marylia began transporting the plant stems toward the bathhouse.
“After my bath, I’ll boil these!”
That evening.
After bathing, Marylia added a few more hot stones to the water.
When the water became warm enough to slightly discomfort the slime serving as the bath’s stopper, she started placing the plant stems into the bath.
“Let’s leave them soaking like this.”
The temperature was slightly lower than ideal for boiling the plants. It was just enough to leave the fibers intact.
Yes, Marylia planned to extract fibers by boiling the plant stems and vines at a temperature that would soften only the tender parts, leaving the fibers behind. She intended to let them soak and decay to make the process quicker.
“The outside temperature is low enough now, so if I leave them in the pond, they might not rot completely, but they should hold up.”
In summer, soaking the plants in pond water to decay their structure would have been an option. However, with the mornings and evenings growing colder, the decay process would take longer.
That’s why she decided to boil them in the bath. Today, she would leave the stems and vines soaking and attempt to extract the fibers by the next evening.
The following day. Day 129 of banishment.
"A hat would be nice to have. Keeping your head warm is essential."
Marylia decided to make a fur hat.
Head protection against the cold is surprisingly important. Since so much blood flows through the head, cooling it down can chill the entire body quickly!
So, a hat it is. The plan was to sew fur into a simple cylindrical shape to cover the head and keep it warm. Nothing too elaborate for now, though perhaps in the future, she might try creating something more intricate—if she has the luxury of time and resources.
By midday, the hat was completed. And so, Marylia turned her attention away from fur to begin working with plant fibers!
Heading to the bathhouse, Marylia found the slime happily devouring the dissolved plant matter in the water.
"Well, go ahead and eat. But don’t touch the fibers, okay?"
It seemed the slime had suffered some damage from acting as a plug for the overly hot bath the previous day. To help it recover, Marylia didn’t begrudge its hearty meal, cheering it on instead.
While the slime feasted, Marylia busily extracted the plant fibers from the bathwater. She rubbed and cleaned them in water-filled earthenware pots.
"Hmm... it might be better to leave this soaking for another day."
The plant tissues had dissolved and softened beautifully, breaking down into a manageable state. However, some dirt still clung to the fibers, necessitating another day of soaking before she could spin them into thread.
"That’s fine. I’ll need to build a loom anyway, so I wouldn’t start weaving until tomorrow or later."
Smiling, Marylia carefully removed the fibers from the bath, washed them, and left them to soak in clean water.
And, most importantly...
"So, take your time and enjoy your meal. You’ve earned it."
In the bathwater, the slime continued to feast energetically. Interrupting it now would feel too cruel!
That afternoon, Marylia set about constructing a loom.
A loom, in this case, meant a very simple tool. It was nothing more than a basic contraption reminiscent of those she had used as a child for craft projects.
"All I need to do is nail some pegs into a board. Easy enough."
The process was straightforward. She hammered two parallel rows of nails into a wooden board. Long nails were ideal for this purpose.
Strings would be stretched between the two rows of nails to form the warp threads, while the weft threads would be passed through these to weave fabric.
This setup wouldn’t produce fine or large pieces of cloth. But for small items, like hand or face cloths, it was perfectly adequate.
Yes, Marylia wanted "something to wipe with."
In winter, staying dry is essential for warmth. Marylia had even designed her bathhouse with an adjoining heated drying room to ensure she could warm up while drying off.
Wetness quickly saps body heat—not just for the whole body, but even for parts like the hands and face. Wet hands, exposed to the cold, dry winter air, lose dexterity and become susceptible to cracks and irritation.
Thus, Marylia needed cloth for wiping. But the remaining scraps of her petticoat fabric were running low. Since she needed these for filtering and straining tasks, it was time to turn to plant fiber cloth, even if it was rough.
Hence her focus on extracting fibers and creating a simple loom.
Plant fibers, once spun, are highly absorbent and dry quickly.
"Okay, the two rows of nails need to be parallel... and the spacing between the nails must be even to ensure the warp threads are aligned..."
Marylia drew guide lines with charcoal on the wooden board and carefully hammered in nails along these lines. And so, a simple loom was completed!
The next day, on the 130th day of her banishment:
"Great, this looks good!"
Marylia smiled as she retrieved the soaked plant fibers. They had turned a pale white, reduced almost entirely to clean fibers. These could now be spun into thread and eventually woven into cloth!
However...
"Spinning thread by hand is starting to get painful..."
After an hour of spinning, Marylia’s shoulders and eyes were aching. Days of needlework and spinning were taking a toll!
"This isn’t going to work."
Deciding quickly, Marylia made up her mind.
"I’ll build a spinning wheel."
What do you think about this chapter?
