Acknowledgements

The research for this book began in 2016, when I received an ERC Consolidator grant for my five-year research project ‘Refashioning the Renaissance: Popular Groups, Fashion and the Material and Cultural Significance of Clothing in Europe, 1550–1650’ at Aalto University, Helsinki. The generous funding from the European Research Council enabled me, alongside a team of five talented international dress historians and numerous collaborators from academia, museums, conservators and craft experts, to conduct extensive archival work and experiments. Together, we aimed to create new perspectives in early modern everyday and fashion history. My heartfelt appreciation goes out to the remarkable ‘Refashioning’ team: Sophie Pitman, who led the experimental research; Michele Robinson, who meticulously co-ordinated the research in the printed sources and archival work on Italian dress fashions; Stefania Montemezzo, who conducted the core archival work and transcriptions for the database; Victoria Bartels, who carried out extensive supplementary archival work; and Anne-Kristine Sindvald Larsen, who studied numerous documents in the Scandinavian archives and translated them into creative research. Additionally, I extend my warm thanks to our co-ordinator Piia Lempiäinen for project administration and co-ordination of the citizen science experiment, Lena Kingelin for helping us to bring the project to a successful completion, and our research assistants Mattia Viale and Umberto Signori for their efforts with transcriptions. It was the energy, expertise and insights of this incredible team that enabled us not only to dive deep into the symbolic and material meanings of Renaissance fashion but also to organise numerous successful research activities, workshops, hands-on experiments, exhibitions and conferences.

Our research, experiments and activities would not have been possible, however, without extensive collaboration. I extend my heartfelt gratitude to the members of our advisory board, John Styles, Evelyn Welch, Ulinka Rublack, Maria Hayward, Flora Dennis, Tessa Storey and Susan North, for their insightful guidance and participation in the project. Additionally, I am also profoundly thankful to all the skilled experts in crafts and costume-making whose expertise made our historical reconstructions possible, with special thanks to Jenny Tiramani and the London School of Historical Dress for the amazing work on the doublet, the thirty-five volunteer knitters from Finland who participated in our citizen science knitting project and Elena Kanagy-Loux for her bobbin-lace reconstruction.

Throughout the project, we learned new historical craft skills from many of our colleagues and engaged in discussions with peers. Special thanks are extended to Jo Kirby, Pamela Smith, Art Proaño Gabor and Natalie Ortega-Saez for sharing their expertise on historical colours and recipes; Miriam Pugliese for allowing us to learn how silk fibres were traditionally made; Melanie Brown, Claire Thornton and Jane Malcolm-Davis for teaching how early modern garments were stitched together, Maj Ringaard and Christel Brandenbourgh for their advice concerning early modern knitting and citizen science; Valerio Zanetti for being a model for our doublet fittings; Krista Wright for carrying out fibre analysis for our project, and Tim McCall, Flora Dennis, Tessa Storey and Elizabeth Currie for sharing their expert knowledge at our experimental workshops. Additionally, collaboration with creative design students, photographers, designers, filmmakers and editors was crucial for the dissemination of our results. My sincere gratitude to Maarit Kalmakurki, Eero Brandt, Jodie Cox, Ana deMatos and others for their exceptional contributions.

During the project, we visited numerous craft workshops and museums storerooms to study early modern textiles. I am very grateful for the many curators, conservators and researchers who generously allowed us to study textile objects with them, including those at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and Antonio Ratti Textile Centre, New York, Museum of Copenhagen, Museum of London, Bata shoe museum, Fondazione Lisio, Museo del tessuto Prato, Tessitura Bevilaqua, Maison de Canuts Lyon, Trelleborgen Viking museum, Museo del merletto Burano, Museo del tessuto Venice and Turku Cathedral Museum.

This book is a product of the fruitful collaboration during the project. I express my gratitude to all the authors of this book, as well as Emma Brennan from Manchester University Press for her invaluable support.

Lastly, I extend my deepest thanks to my loving family for their continuing support and encouragement.