The brat was worn by both men and women and the pictorial evidence is quite consistent. All
show the brat worn around the shoulders. It was secured with a pennanular brooch [example to the right of a falcon pennanular brooch; below that another example of a brooch, tho as to either of their periodness, I haven't researched yet] on the right shoulder for men and below the chin for women. There are no illustrations showing the brat being worn across the body as in 'Braveheart' or in the style favoured by some Welsh groups. The length of the brat was a symbol of wealth and status although by our period it seemed to have been a standard length roughly equivalent to the wearer's height. There is no clear evidence for a hood attached to the brat although some illustrations show the brat worn covering the head and secured as usual with a brooch. If the brat was at least the same length as the
wearer's height it would be possible to form a hood and still secure it with a brooch. The brat was usually rectangular in shape, of a single colour with a contrasting border. It could be lined with a contrasting colour which wrapped around to form the border. Another decorative device was the addition of a tablet woven fringe or braid, again of a contrasting colour. There is no evidence that the fringe was an integral part of the brat itself. In Henken's Lagore Report he illustrates a method for tablet weaving a fringed braid. When making a brat it would be best to cut a large piece of cloth into narrower strips of material which are then sown together to simulate the cloth production of the period. Strips could vary between 24" and 36".
show the brat worn around the shoulders. It was secured with a pennanular brooch [example to the right of a falcon pennanular brooch; below that another example of a brooch, tho as to either of their periodness, I haven't researched yet] on the right shoulder for men and below the chin for women. There are no illustrations showing the brat being worn across the body as in 'Braveheart' or in the style favoured by some Welsh groups. The length of the brat was a symbol of wealth and status although by our period it seemed to have been a standard length roughly equivalent to the wearer's height. There is no clear evidence for a hood attached to the brat although some illustrations show the brat worn covering the head and secured as usual with a brooch. If the brat was at least the same length as the 
wearer's height it would be possible to form a hood and still secure it with a brooch. The brat was usually rectangular in shape, of a single colour with a contrasting border. It could be lined with a contrasting colour which wrapped around to form the border. Another decorative device was the addition of a tablet woven fringe or braid, again of a contrasting colour. There is no evidence that the fringe was an integral part of the brat itself. In Henken's Lagore Report he illustrates a method for tablet weaving a fringed braid. When making a brat it would be best to cut a large piece of cloth into narrower strips of material which are then sown together to simulate the cloth production of the period. Strips could vary between 24" and 36".
