Did I make my breastplate correctly?

[Mahekun-Ikwe]

I made my own breastplate recently (I'm a women's traditional dancer)

I don't have a picture but it looks almost exactly like this one:

It is very long. The bells at the bottom touch my ankles. I'm happy with it except - it's REALLY heavy and causes neck pain. The part at the top where it's tied hangs around my neck. Dancing was difficult with it on.

The pipe beads are all real bone and the pony/crow beads are glass. I made it to a pattern, and it looks like it came out right but I'm wondering if I did actually do it right, because it hurts so much to wear. Is this normal?

[SuzzeQ4]

yep that's right...it's called fortitude.

[Mahekun-Ikwe]

Fortitude is me staying by the bedside of my grandparents when they were dying of cancer.

THIS is me asking if I made a breastplate right so I can prevent permanent neck problems.

There is no need to talk down to me.

[SuzzeQ4]

just teasing, cause they are heavy, chill out and btw dealing with physical discomfort quietly is fortitude.

[wyo_rose]

What you need to do is make a thicker part to go around the back of your neck. I've seen it done many ways, but since you're already finished, you could just wrap it with something to make it thicker where it sits on your neck.

Unfortunately, using the real bone and glass beads will make it very heavy. It's funny, but if you used plastic it would be much lighter.

An alternative is to add a back section kinda like how southern ladies have their breastplates which will serve as a kind of counter weight. Then the weight would be more on your shoulders.

[Mahekun-Ikwe]

Thanks...good idea on the padded strap! I have a lot of scrap leather that will probably do it..right now it's just all the sinew twisted together and it cuts into the neck. Wrapping it up should solve the problem...

[wyo_rose]

Yeah, padded....that's what I meant!

[Tibiki Kinew]

Take a piece of terry cloth from a towel and sew it to the underside of the leather strap that you put on your neck, this way the soft towel area comes against your skin and makes it easier to wear. Fortitude is good in this case! LOL I wear mine and then take it off fast too! I even have a bad spine to begin with and so the towel section makes it bearable!
Another way of making the breast plate lighter and still look great is,,, instead of using bone beads, take 4 porky quills and four threads and needles and go through one bead. When the 4 porky quills line up as a square the diameter is much the same as a bone bead but soooooooooooo much lighter to wear. Oh, one small seed bead on either side of the quill and that goes into one pony bead. This way they all stay in place. If you make the breast plate wider, you can attach straps that act as belts, takes the load off too.

[SuzzeQ4]

the straps are an interesting idea tibiki but wouldn't look right on a Woman's regalia. My boys breastplate when he was younger had wood beads they were lighter (just thought about that). Mine has plastic pony beds withe bone pipe beads but I went old old school(1890's ) so it is significantly smaller....still standin by my fortitude statement, we're a tough lot ya know.

[steelemagnolia63]

lol.... when did this become all about comfort???? next thing you know people will want light weight regalia because it's to hot and to heavy....they just want to look good so they can get their picture in the paper.... Yes it's hot, yes it's heavy and yes sometimes it's freaking uncomfortable... make the best of it, do what you can to make it the best as possible.....

bone hair pipe and glass beads are heavy.... in the words of a rodeoing friend cowboy up and deal with it.... or cash out and sit in the corner....

[Mahekun-Ikwe]

I dance to pray. Not to "look good" as you put it. My regailia is several layers deer hide and not lightweight at all. I'm just looking to make the strap of the breastplate more bearable so I can dance as long as possible. I've only been dancing for 5 years and have never worn a breastplate before so didn't know what the weight differences in different material beads would be.

Lots of judgement being passed here, that's pretty sad and mean-spirited.

[Joe's Dad]

I dance to pray. Not to "look good" as you put it. My regailia is several layers deer hide and not lightweight at all. I'm just looking to make the strap of the breastplate more bearable so I can dance as long as possible. I've only been dancing for 5 years and have never worn a breastplate before so didn't know what the weight differences in different material beads would be.

Lots of judgement being passed here, that's pretty sad and mean-spirited.

I also wonder why some are just better than others.

I've seen some ladies with neck support from what looks like that comfort strap that people use on seatbelts. Looks like sheepskin with foam inside (help me out wyo rose, what's it called). Are women's breastplates tied around the waist like men's breastplates? I've never worn one? hahaa

I made one for my daughter when she was a teenager. Real bone and glass faceted beads. Dang, that thing was heavy!

Hope you find some comfort.

[Tibiki Kinew]

Actually no meaness whatsoever, we just do what is needed to wear the parts of the regalia, by whatever means. There is no judgement here either.
I agree with you Suzzze that we just grin and wear it (grin and bear it).

You know Steele that there were days when I saw a guy ask a gal if she wanted her stuff in styrofoam so that it would be lightweight! She fell for it and asked how to assemble it. We were all laughing and then she caught on.

Mine is with real bone beads, glass beads and sterling silver beads. It weighs more than I figured at first but I grin and wear it too! It would be easy to use plastics but then again the look would be toooooo fake. The neck part being padded makes it easier to wear and not feel like I am carrying an anchor with me all the time!
And yes Mahekun-Ikwe, I wear multiple layers of MOOSE leather, heavy and thick no simulated lightweight leathers for me! I dance not only to pray, my main reason to dance is to dance for those that can not dance.

[Mahekun-Ikwe]

Joe's Dad I know what that sheepskin stuff is you're talking about but the name escapes me too, lol. I'm pretty sure my dad has some of that stuff actually, I'll check with him. The type of breastplate I have isn't tied around the waist, women's usually swing loose, but I don't know if they can be made to tie at the waist too?

[Tibiki Kinew]

Mahekun-Ikwe, they can be made to tie at the waist too? Well that would be evolution and new idea, so yes make it so that you are comfy! The sheep fur look is fake fur from fabric land! I use that too for some projects. But one hint on that, make it a slide on for the neck so that you can wash it when you need to!!!!!