Introduction

The coif is possibly the most variable of all the Tudor garments. I'll be listing a couple of different options as well as giving step by step instructions on how I make mine. But this really is an area where it's worth hitting the library and looking at paintings from the period.

The coif is in essence a linen cap. It should be made of white, off-white or cream linen and, ideally, should be all hand-sewn. Certainly there should be no visible machine sewing.

If you have non-period hair - braids, dreadlocks, or bright purple dye-jobs - then the coif should cover all of these. The fringe appears to be an entirely modern style, so that should be pulled back and covered, too. If, like me, you're hair-dresser phobic and so have entirely natural hair, it's not so critical if little wisps show at forehead and nape of neck. Young girls (say under the age of ten) with natural hair can get away with wearing it loose, with the coif on top. But everyone must have their heads covered.

The headscarf

The simplest style is undoubtedly the headscarf. This should be substantially larger than the little triangles that were fashionable a couple of years ago, and are seen on some types of Christians now, and the hair should be entirely covered. To make it, take a large, hemmed square of linen (a yard on a side is about right) and fold it in half to make a triangle. Place this with the fold on the forehead and the point hanging towards the nape of the neck. Hold one end of the triangle in each hand and twist it; run the twisted cords down towards the nape of the neck so they secure the triangular tip against the base of the skull. Then take them up the other side, over to the top of the head and twist them together, tucking the lose ends in to secure them. Simple, easy and quick: you'll see a lot of these on the manor.

Making my coif - the pattern

Note: This coif pattern is not my own. I am grateful for the work of Libby Brown, who researched and made the coif from which this was copied.

My coif is a little more complicated, but I'm delighted with it. You can see it to the left and, although I know it's not the most ideal picture because I've a wool hat balanced on top, hopefully it's enough to give you the idea. It's made out of two basic pieces: a long, strip that runs all the way around my head, and a circle that puffs out slightly to make space for my hair. The strip conforms tightly to my head and holds the thing on, as well as being shaped at the front so it frames my face nicely.

I've drawn a sketch of my basic pattern shape and, although it is just a sketch, hopefully it's enough to give you the idea. You'll need to make a mock up in muslin and adjust it, both so it fits, and so the curve suits your particular face shape, but it's a place to start. This is actually cut out with the red line on a fold so you end up with a piece twice that size, rather like the sketch to the right. When it's finished, the two straight short lines join together at the nape of the neck, creating a ring. The long, almost m-shaped line forms the front 'face' edge of the coif. The inner circle joins onto the second piece and forms the border of the central 'puffed' part of the coif; it's length can be guestimated by putting a piece of string round the head where you want that seam to run.

The second piece is very simple: it's just a circle. This needs to be substantially larger than you'd expect. My first one was too small and I ended up having to dismantle and remake. I ended up drawning around my very largest casserole pan, and it's still slightly on the snug side. Again, making a trial run in something dirt cheap is recommended.

Making my coif - assembly

Cut out two brim pieces and one circle piece.

Plunk the two brim pieces down on top of each other, right sides together. Sew them down where the red line is, making sure to stop a centimetre or so short of where the short side meets the inner circle. You can use either use back-stitch or the machine. Turn this inside out and iron the thing flat. Then, because my back-stitch is messy, I tend to overcast the front edge to make it lie neat and crisp. I do this by passing the needle through one side of the fabric, out the other, back through the first and so on, so the thread forms a tiny spiral round the coif edge and keeps it neat. Overcast stitch is illustrated towards the bottom of this page.

The next stage is to turn under all the remaining raw edges and iron them into place. This fold only needs to be three or four millimetres deep - just enough to hide the raw edges.

You've in effect formed a giant cuff and the next stage is to stuff the circle into it. Your circle should have a substantially larger diameter than the edge of the pocket you've created, so it poofs out. So the first stage is to spread that excess evenly.

Take the cuff piece and fold it in half. Mark the centre point with a pin. Fold it in half again, and mark those points with a pin. Unfold it and pin the two short edges together. This leaves you with four equidistant points: one at the crown of the head; two at approx the temples and one - where the edges of the strip join - at the nape of the neck.

Then take the circle of linen, fold it in half and fold it in half again. Pinch those folds firmly at fabric edge, so you have four distinct creases marking points ninety degrees apart.

The final stage is to join together the short ends, using either whip stitch (shown at the bottom of this page) or ladder stitch.

I've put a couple of pictures of my finished coif below. It's pretty grubby, I'm afraid. The first is side on - you can see the shape of the brim part, the front edge, and the way the top part pleats down into it. The second is the road kill picture. The coif is splatted out, showing the seam that joints the two ends of the band at the nape of the neck.

Another coif

This one's rather similar to my coif, in that it again has a band forming the brim and a circular piece to allow space for the hair. However, the brim doesn't join up at the back. Instead, it runs from ear-lobe to ear-lobe, leaving the part of the circle which is at the back on the head outside it.

Measure from ear-lobe to ear-lobe, running over the top of the head. Cut a strip of linen this distance plus seam allowance by twice the width you want your band to be. Say six inches or so wide. Iron a narrow fold on all four sides, as if you were about to hem it. Instead, fold it in half lengthways and iron the fold.

Cut out a large circle of linen and hem it. Gather it until it fits snuggly over your head, running from the crown to just behind the ears to the nape of your neck. Do this by using a tough thread to sew a running stitch all the way round, and then bunch the fabric up on that thread.

Line one folded edge of the band up with the edge of the circle, with the right side on the circle. Sew it into place. Fold the band over and line up the other edge fold with the seam you've just sewn. Whip-stitch it into place. Sew up the open ends of the band, but do not connect them.

You can see the bag part of the coif gathered up at the nape of the neck in these pictures.

More coifs

The Elizabethan Costume Page has instructions on making a muffin cap or a simple caul. However the look she suggests, with the cap sitting on the back of the head and much of the hair uncovered, is not one that Kentwell considers appropriate. A similar cap, made slightly larger so it covers most of the head, should serve well, though.