Crafty Gift Guide For your history loving loved one

You’ve found this article (or been sent it) because you have a loved one into historical reenactments.  Now, this blog is associated with the Society for Creative Anachronism, but many of these suggestions will apply to other history-related hobbies as well.

1.      Books
The best thing you can buy your history nerd is books.  I guarantee that they have a wish list full of books that they think are too expensive, you just have to find out what’s on that list. If your history buff is new to the hobby, here are some recommendations from our experienced members.
Carving
Bone, Antler, Ivory, and Horn by Arthur MacGregor
Knitting
History of Hand Knitting by Richard Rutt
Food
Uncommon Grounds by Mark Pendergast
Coffee and Houses by Ralph Hattox
The Opera of Bartolomeo Scappi by Terence Scully
Pleyn Delit,
Take a Thousand Eggs
Medieval Kitchen
Dying
Natural Dyes by Dominique Cardon
Costuming
The Medieval Tailor's Assistant by Sarah Thursfeld
Leatherwork
Purses in Pieces by Olaf Goubitz
Stepping through Time by Olaf Goubitz
Covering the Blade by Olaf Goubitz
Embroidery
Elizabethan Stitches by Jacqui Carey
Bayeux Stitch by Tanya Bentham

2.      Tools
Every crafter may have their favourite tool or brand or whatnot, so buying tools can be a little tricky. Research your loved-one’s craft, read forums, find out what the “golden egg” is of their tools. For example, for needlecrafts (embroidery especially), that Paragon of Platinum standard for needles is “Tulip” brand. It’s like a religious cult. There are similar things for the other crafts.
If you’re looking for small gift ideas, consider getting some of the consumables they already use. Some ideas include sanding tools, needles, saw blades.

3     Inputs
Every craft has inputs. The materials you start with to create the final product. Leather, fabric, wood, metals, gems, threads, yarns, rovings, dye materials, and chemicals are all possibilities. Some specialized information is needed, strategic snooping will be your ally. Theft of scraps is recommended. Take them (the scraps) shopping with you to show the shop attendants.
For leather, choose vegetable or veg(gie) tan leathers. It comes in different weights that could be important depending on what your loved one makes.
Fabrics should be natural fibers, like wool or linen. Silk is an option, especially if you know of something your loved one specifically wants.
Woods are another one where you need to do some snooping. What does your loved one make? What do they do with the wood? Ask for advice from their friends, or steal from their scrap pile, take pictures of their work.
Metals should match the kind that your loved-one already uses. Working with fine metals is a big difference than working with steel. Even the fine metals have different personalities.
Threads, yarns, and rovings should also be natural fibers. There’s such variety in these areas, gift cards might be the solution.
Many crafts need chemicals, lye, ammonia, dye stuffs. Just be careful you don’t get put on a watch list somewhere.

One theory of gift giving is to give something that the person would never get for themselves. Crafting can be an expensive hobby, following this theory of gifting can ensure that the crafter can have all the best equipment without spending all the money themselves.

I firmly believe in consent in gift giving, so I recommend talking to your loved one for their wish lists or preferred merchants for gift cards.

Happy gifting, and Happy Holidays

Your annual reminder: Award Recommendations

 It’s that time of year again. Time to think about Award Recommendations.

Ealdormere has a tradition of custom scrolls. Making such intricate art takes time. Therefore, it is advisable that the Populace (that’s you) send in recommendations a few months before events in your area.

The Althing is hosting two events this fall, Crown Tournament in October, and Feast of the Hare in November. Your award recommendations will lead to there being business in those Courts.

So, how is it that people end up getting awards? The answer is two-fold. The person has to do stuff. And having done that stuff, someone has to report it to Their Majesties. It’s like tattling, but for good behaviour. The second part is the most important. If we don’t snitch on our friends, how will the Crown, who may live on the other side of the Kingdom, know that they are deserving of recognition?

So, who’s worthy of being snitched on? And what do we recommend them for?

Firstly, you, at whatever rank you are at now, whatever awards you currently have, you can recommend anyone for any award.

The first award that most people will get is an Award of Arms (AOA). Super keeners who jump right in and volunteer for Canton offices will often get their AOA within a year. Most people though, with steady participation will get their AOA around the 2 year mark. So if you know of someone who has been around for two years and does not yet have their AOA, you should recommend them.

Next a person will be recognized for their activities in one of the three pillars of the society: Marshal, A&S, and Service. Now that they are a Noble, what are they doing? Have they authorized in a combat style? Are they showing an interest in a particular art? Have they volunteered for jobs to help the group run? Those are the people who should be recommended for a Scarlet Banner, Orion, or Maiden’s Heart (respectively).

Higher level awards are usually awarded after consultation with the Orders, but you can and should still recommend people for these awards.

Descriptions of the awards can be found on the Awards page on the Ealdormere page. These descriptions will help you phrase your recommendations to Their Majesties more effectively.

Before you write your recommendations, you should check the Order of Precedence for your nominee, if they already have the award you are thinking of, perhaps there is another that would fit?

Maybe, instead of a Kingdom level award, you feel the Baron and Baroness should be made aware of an outstanding individual. Just as there are awards for Marshal, Arts, and Service at the Kingdom level, there are similar awards under the purview of the Baron and Baroness. The Baron and Baroness hold Court within our Barony far more often than Their Majesties, so recommending people of the Althing to Their Excellencies is a year-round job.

Awards aren’t just for adults, either. There are Youth specific awards, but there’s no rule that you have to be 18 to receive an AOA or any of the others.

Look around, think about your friends and family. It’s not nepotism or favouritism or bias to recommend your friends. Sometimes, you may be the only one who sees their contribution, and it is your Duty in the Society to snitch on them.

Decorating (while camping)

Decorations can make your tent and kitchen shade more comfortable physically and visually. These tips will work for encampments of any level of period accuracy. 

Flooring:

Carpets are the answer.

In the sleeping tent, a carpet layer will offer softness, cushion, and warmth beneath your feet. Some who have the cargo space use actual tuffed carpets. “Real” carpets will tend to be thicker and therefore better at providing the benefits of carpeting. However, a thick upholstery fabric packs well, while also being washable.

In the kitchen or dining room, a carpet layer will keep the mud down and hide the dried up grass. It will expand the usable space available (yay for floor sitters!), and generally be more comfortable. Visually, it demarcates the space, better than any wall can, and really brings the “inside” feeling. Without carpets, a kitchen/dinning space feels sparse and (if you’ll forgive me) like you’re camping. You’ll want some sort of “outdoor” carpet for this task, meant for beach or patio. These sorts of carpeting will pack well and wash well, and can handle the dampness of the ground.

 Walls:

While there’s not a lot to do to decorate the walls in your tent, especially if it’s a “dome home” and has curved or slanted walls. If your tent lends itself to division, hanging a curtain to separate areas of the tent. Curtains inside a tent can help when it’s cold by maintaining your body heat in a smaller area. Dividing the space can concentrate your efforts on one area that you will see in your tent, as in you won’t be seeing your sleeping area as much as your dressing area.

In your dining tent, a wall can add shade and privacy, while also adding a medieval atmosphere. The standard 10x10 popup day shade seen at farmers’ markets everywhere is lightweight and compact to take to events. It’s easy to put up and ugly as sin. There are walls that can be purchased, but for our purposes, any fabric would be an improvement. Old flat sheets, cheap shears, or printed “tapestries” can be used. If you want to go a little farther, a painted canvas (or even any painted cotton) elevates the look of your nylon and aluminum pop up. Walls of any kind, but especially painted ones can transform a space from what feels like a Noble on campaign to one on holiday.

Furniture:

Focus on having wooden furniture. It often packs smaller than it’s modern counterparts.

When wood isn’t an option, or you just really can’t accommodate the planks of wood in your vehicle, and only a roll top table will do, think cloth covers. Some make custom cloth cozies for their coolers. Others just put a table cloth over their metal tables. Cloth covers a multitude of sins.

Storage:

Most of us pack in plastic tubs. They are excellent for keeping humidity, bugs and animals out. And they lie around looking awful and getting in the way. You can hide one or two under your table (that has a cloth), keeping them out from underfoot, and out of direct sight. Sill there always seems to be more. Consider: Shelves. There are a number of folding, collapsable shelves available that can help give those totes somewhere to live. Tidying up those tubs gives you more room to move in your tight space, and consolidates the modernity to one spot. Doing this can also make it easier to cover these things, adding to the medieval atmosphere.

Bench boxes are another great solution. For anything that doesn’t need to be sealed away, a bench box provides storage and seating, in a truly medieval way. They are easy to make with a minimal amount of tools, there are even plans out there to make them collapsible.

Lighting:

Lighting is a conundrum. It’s not as easy as “just light a candle”. Candles can be a hazard that some are not willing to risk. There are plenty of electric candles these days – just be careful of the ones made from real wax inside your nylon tent in 30+ degree weather. Another option is an oil lamp. A lamp burning olive oil, with a reservoir of water can burn all night, and self-extinguishes should it be knocked over.

Consider many lamps, whatever your solution. Placing them along paths, and to mark hazards, as well as on your tables and shelves and around your tent(s) will lend a glow that can be truly magical.

In the end, your decorations should make you feel comfortable and bring you joy. A perfectly period trestle table, chairs, dishes and lamps can still feel like camping in a field, while a modern structure, with the right wall hangings and carpets can feel like the medieval room of your dreams. 

Eating (while camping)

Eating while camping doesn’t have to be complicated.  Much like the rest of camping, you will be happier if you stick to your usual routines.

For years, I needed a hot breakfast, a hot lunch, and a hot supper.  In order to be able to do this, I teamed up with my friends (Galfrid and Helen) and ran a food-group. I planned all our meals, did all the grocery shopping, and all the pre-cooking and on site cooking. Galfrid and Helen brought all the gear and infrastructure.  I made pot after pot of oatmeal for breakfast. We ate medieval stews with pasta or rice for lunch, with salads and veggie sticks.  And for supper we roasted something on the fire and had side dishes using medieval recipes. At the time this worked for us. Everyone enjoyed the food and the atmosphere. It was a lot of work and hassle and mess.

Life moves on and our needs and preferences change and this plan doesn’t work for us anymore.  Galfrid and Helen still have the amazing kitchen and now cook meals that suit them rather than putting up with my preferences.

Currently, what works for us is a grazing board with fruit, meat, pastries, cheese, nuts, and crackers. We eat from this all morning, with a hot one or two pot meal for supper.

When you are planning what to eat, also write down what you need to make it. You don’t want to have a bag of raw pasta and no pot to boil it in. Or worse, a can of sauce and no can opener. As a baseline you will need to think about a heat source, cooking vessels, cooking utensils, eating dishes and utensils, and how to wash things.

When planning your meals, consider how much time you want to spend on cooking, eating, and cleaning. Think about how much gear you want to take and how much space you have for that. Consider what you can cook at home to warm up at the event. A little Preparation before the event avoids hangry afternoons and empty bellies at bedtime.

When polled, someone asked for tips on how to eat when you don’t have a kitchen. I was told a story, in the misty years of my Youth, of an Ealdormerean Duke who would go to camping events  solo - without his household, without the cooks and the kitchen.  His strategy was to bring a single can of baked beans, wander into a friendly camp while something tasty was on the hob, and ask to borrow their can-opener.  He would then proceed to act like he had every intention of eating these beans, cold, straight from the can, in front of the Cook.  His success rate at beguiling a meal out of these camps was extraordinary.

In reality, you can exist for a weekend with no hot food and/or no cooler – without resorting to ‘a backpack full of granola bars’. The secret is to know what you can live without.

Many meats come in cans, tuna, salmon, shrimp, chicken, ham and corned beef. They can be eaten as is, or mixed with spices and dressings. Similarly, meats can be cooked at home and eaten cold. When paired with bread or pre-cooked pasta, salad greens or veggie sticks, you can have a balanced meal without a stove on site. Look for “summer” recipes online and try a few at home.

Maybe you don’t want all cold food – but you still don’t want to pack a full chuck box. A kettle and a small hiking stove can go a long way. Freeze dried camping/hiking meals are readily available these days, you need only add hot water.  There are also plenty of options in a regular grocery store that are prepared the same way. If your meal plan needs only boiling water, you will no doubt find a welcoming flame in your neighbours and won’t even need to pack your own stove.

If your needs are a little more complicated, you should consider banding together with a group of like-minded people. That way you can coordinate who brings what in the way of gear (lest you find yourself with more Coleman stoves than people), and in this way end up with a full kitchen without having to do it all yourself. Grouping together is also economical on land when space is at a premium.

As it has been said above, test run your plans before the event if you’ve never tried a recipe or product before. Another good tip is to do a review of how your cooking and meals went in order to make improvements for the next event.

Sleeping (while camping)

You will not have a good time at an event if you weren’t able to sleep well over the night. Ensuring you are warm and comfortable at night is vital.

The number one most important thing is what’s under you. You can use an air mattress, a sleeping pad, a cot, or a full-out bed. When making your choice, consider how long you are going to be at the event, how easy it is for you to get up off the “bed”, and how much storage/transport space you can use. An air mattress collapses well, but is it firm enough, will it stay inflated, can you stand up from the edge of it. Is a cot too firm? What if you put a foam mattress on it?

Once you have figured out the structure of your bed, next look to bedding. One word: Wool. Regardless of the bed you choose, you should have a thermal layer between you and the bed. Otherwise, that air mattress will be a heat sink and the cot will just expose your poor bottom to the whole of the air. Sheets like you use at home will go a long way to keeping you comfortable. A variety of blankets will ensure that you are warm when the temperature drops, but not too hot if it doesn’t. Wool makes the best thermal under layer, and should be the top most blanket on the bed. The wool will keep the humidity out during the day (always make your bed at camp!) and will keep you warmer at night. Your tent will not keep the heat inside the same way your home does. Even 20 degrees at night can feel frigid when it was 30 during the day and there’s only a thin fabric between you and the open air.

Pillows are a must. You sleep with a pillow at home, don’t expect to go without for four days just because you’re camping. Bring a pillow or pillows similar to what you use at home. There are camping pillows that are inflatable, or compressible, if packing space is limited.

Set up your tent mindfully. Pitch your tent on flat ground, if possible, removing any rocks, sticks, or debris. If the terrain isn't perfectly level, position your head uphill to minimize discomfort.

A tent isn’t as light proof as your bedroom. By a long shot. If you need darkness, consider taking an eye mask to sleep with.

Similarly, a tent is hardly sound proof, and events are loud late into the night. Plus your camp-mates probably snore. I know this because I’ve camped near most folk of the Althing and trust me, they all snore. Ear plugs are your friends. If you haven’t really used any before, do a couple of test runs some nights before the event to get used to them.

Anything you have next to your bed you should consider taking as well. I, myself, always have Kleenex and lip balm on my bed-side table, so I make sure I have these things when I go camping. Sleeping is highly ritualistic and your routines are fundamental to a good sleep.

SCA camping can be anywhere from minimalist to “glamping”. Your comfort is paramount, if you need to sacrifice some other “more period” gear in order to be comfortable while sleeping, do it.

Camping

 

Let’s start at the beginning.  SCA “camping” events are multi day events in the warmer months.  Camping is not mandatory.  If you truly hate it, you can always get a hotel near by.

Camping is an inexpensive and convenient way to experience everything the multi-day events have to offer.  Activities at these events can begin early, and end well past midnight.

Camping to attend an SCA event isn’t any different than car camping at a provincial park. More and more people are even bringing their RVs. So if you’ve been camping, you’re ready to just show up.

Camping events are Events. You must wear garb every day, in all weather. One can be forgiven for running to the latrine in mundane sleeping clothes or early morning coffees, but dress of the day is pre-17^th century.

There is no requirement for any of your camping gear to be a perfectly period artifact to match your persona. Bring your nylon tent and your popup and your propane stove.  Eat hot dogs and KD off plastic.

That being said, there are a few easy swaps to immerse yourself in the living history aspect of our hobby.

Bring your usual day event kit.  A pottery mug or cup, a basket to carry your thing (or pilgrim’s sack).

Chairs are in short supply at a camping event, unlike in the halls we usually occupy.  If space allows, a folding wooden chair is an easy thing to get and a nice touch. If you need a modern camping chair for whatever reason, consider covering it with a cloth or cloak.

As a rule, a cloth will hide  many a modern sin. Have a 6’ plastic folding table? Cover it with a cloth. Plastic cooler and no cloth covered table to hide it under? Stick a cloth on it.

We generally recommend packing in rough totes, for protection against infiltration and moisture. If you have equipment that doesn’t mind a little humidity, you could consider storing this kit in a wooden chest or box.

Remember, there are plenty of reasons to use nylon tents, and modern camping equipment. Much like orthotics and glasses, we do what’s right for us.

The Beacon is Lit! The Baron Seeks AID!

 

Our Barony is full of extraordinary people. Inspired artists, powerful combatants, and hardworking volunteers. It is the prerogative of the Baron and Baroness to recognize the populace for their accomplishments. As such a large Barony, both geographically and in population, it’s not possible for any given person to be fully informed about every good thing every other  person is doing. It is the privilege and responsibility of every member of the Barony to recommend people to both Their Excellencies and Their Majesties for awards.

The Baron has put out a request, specifically, for Baronial Award Recommendations. In his words:

If you have knowledge of a fellow Hare who deserves recognition (and your own self may be that fellow hare), high thee hence to an Awards page to send us a missive. The Baronial Awards page: https://skraelingalthing.com/wp/baronial-awards/award-recommendations/ and the Kingdom Awards page:https://ealdormere.ca/awards-submission-form-the-kingdom-of-ealdormere/ await your thoughts. If you do not wish to use either resource, PM myself or Her Excellency. Or speak to us at an event.

Your recommendations are indispensable to the work of recognizing and commending the good works of our fellow Hares. Regardless of your time in the game or your own rank and title, your insights and advice are actively and specifically sought by both Their Exellencies and Their Majesties.

You do not have to have an award in order to recommend someone for it. It’s true, you may not feel qualified to speak to someone’s skill on the field or at the loom or in the office, but your admiration of the gentle in question may shine a light on someone long overlooked.

With Feast of the Hare coming up in November, and Practicum not far behind, now is a great time to be sending your thoughts.

You can see a description of the Baronial Awards at https://skraelingalthing.com/wp/baronial-awards/.