Eva's journal

Drachenwald's crown Tourney

2021-10-26T08:55:18Z

I was too busy to take many photos at Drachenwald's Autumn Crown in the Netherlands: the first in person event since March 2020, the first since I got better from my exhaustion, me entering the tourney with my dear frend Sir Måns, the long delayed elevations of the lovely Baroness Anna von Syveken and Baroness Magdalena Grace Vane to the Order of the Pelican and the Laurel respectively... well the list is long.

And their was such an elevated sense of joy throughout the whole event - when we finally got to see each other in person again.

So, here we go. For the tournament I chose not to mach Sir Måns 16th century waffenrock, that I just had made, but to go for as romantic as you can get: 12th century, in my green wool bliaut. I also wore my husband's wool cloak, lined in silk. I had braided my hair with red wool yarn, to make longer braids, and sewed brass points to them I made thos braid ends in 1998, but haven't actually used them at an event. They're very basic, just sheet brass with a simple pattern made by a needle and cut and folded to a cone. I really should make new and prettier ones.

The coronet is made by Johanna Lawrence

Sir Måns and I actually got to the finals, and I nearly fainted while we watched the fight then.

The finals was against Count Morales, and this photo is from when they met earlier in the tourney.

After the tourney I changed to my very comfy silk brocade gown, as did sir Måns. These were our investiture outfits when we became baron and baroness of Gotvik in 2016, and we thought it wise to be prepared with matching outfits, just in case ;)

At this event I also received a beatiful scroll for an award that I got in May, in an online court. It is for the Orden des Lindquistringes, a Dracehnwald award for service.

It was made by Lord Maredudd ap Gwylim, and is based on a late 12th-early 13th century manuscript.

In all a wonderful weekend, well worth the two whole days travelling there and two whole days travelling home.

Now I really need to start working ;)

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The new Italian 15th century gown

2021-05-19T12:05:55Z

I finished it and I wore it at Plague Wars - the online verison of Double Wars - last week.

In court, which is totally inappropriate for this working class gown:

And at a picnic which I organized with a very few friends: Alfhild who is fully vaccinated, Anna, who we have been in a bubble with throughout most of the pandemic, and who works from home, and Sara who also is at home all the time except for necessary visits to the shops. And we were outdoors and kept the distance.

Me munching melon:

It was both a nice picnic and a nice event. I have more photos in my costuming blog, here.

In other news I managed to get an appointment and go tmy first shot of Moderna on Monday. On Tuesday I had my first appointment at an agency that handles people with certain disabilities, of which autism is one. I have found that I need to deal with all of the emotions that came after I got my diagnosis, so I hope to see a psychologist through them. They might also help me with my dealings with the agency that handles sick and disability benefits, which has for decades done their best to make my life miserable.

This morning I had an online appointment with the GP that handles my sick leave, and then I didn't ahve much energy left, I am also feeling a little bit tired and ill from the vaccination. However, not worse than that I am going to start making a toile for my 13th century Spanish saya encordata now.

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More from my Double wars at home.

2020-05-24T08:37:27Z

So, I've been busy with lots of stuff, but I have done at least one thing that I would have done at Double Wars every day, and here are some photos to prove it :)

Tuesday the 19th

This day I enjoyed one of my favourite pasttimes in the current middle ages, as it is called in the SCA: hanging out in my underwear :)

There is nothing as nice as hanging out in your hand sewn linen shift; before getting dressed in the morning, as in this case, I hadn't even rebraided my hair, or after a swim or shower, or a hot day in your wool gown.

Wednesday the 20th

I had breakfast on the balcony in my shift this day too, but you've already seen that.

This day there was a zoom event, the online version of the traditional Double wars Sill(y) party. Sill means herring in Swedish, so people had prepared with pickled herring and other food and drink. I don't like herring, so I just hung out with some tea and embroidery. I am wearing my cotton Italian c. 1300 gown.

Afterwards I put on a woollen cloak and sat on my balcony, enjoying the spring evening. The blackbirds were singing like crazy, and if it hadn't been for the sound of motorway in the distance and my neighbours smoking on their balconies, and someone playing techno somewhere I could have imagined myself at a camping event.

Thursday the 21st

A very typical Double Wars thing, is the lavish, and not particularly medieval brunch that you can order in advance, when you sign up for the event.

On thursday morning I made a smaller version of this for the family: Rice porridge, bacon, American pancakes. And hoummus, which isn't part of the traditional Double Wras breakfast, but which I had made for a Lebanese meal some days ago.

Then, since I am participating in Medieval May on instagram and that day's theme was luxury, we can say that I got dressed for court ;) 13th-early 14th century silk brocade gown.

What I really did that day was to walk 10 kilometres and meet my best friend and then get thoroughly sloshed on prosecco in the sun, which is a very Double Wars thing (without the walking), and then I walked the same distance home, late in the night.

Friday the 22nd

Well, I was mostly hung over, but I worked on the embroidery for my 12th century wool gown, and actually got to attach it to the gown.
The embroidery is silk thread, metal thread and glass beads on silk.

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A virtual Double Wars.

2020-05-17T08:03:58Z

Copied from my costuming blog.

By now I should have been at Double wars (or at least on my way, Maja should have had her dance recital yesterday, so I wouldn't have left until today), I would have struggled with my anxiety over having the pavillion put up, and been releveed when my dear friends had helped me and I had fixed everything. And this would have been my home:

But not this year.

So I have decided to post photos of me doing things that I would have done, had there been a Double wars this year. This is helped by people organizing lots of social activites online, so that I have a reason to dress up in medeival clothes every day.

I have posted these on instagram and on facebook, but there you don't really have space to explain what you're doing. So I will try to get a photo up every day until next Sunday, when we would have been packing and gone home.

Friday the 15th
As I said, I wouldn't even have been there, but I did join an impromptu zoom pity party, which was lovely. And which had attendants from both Sweden, the US and Canada.

I went for Italian ca 1300, though I wasn't perfectly committed to that style, since I probably wouldn't have worn a veil the way I did then.

Saturday the 16th

What I always do at Double wars is to teach. This year Countess Agnes Odygd had organized a Pride day, and I had offered to give an old lacture (last given in 2017) lecture of mine about same-sex sexuality in the Middle ages. Sine tehre was no Double Wras, the lecture moved online, as did the other Pride activities. It was my first online lecture, and I think that it went well. I think that the lecture needs to be re-made, with a different structure, and with some new stuff, but peopel seemed pleased.
Here I am wearing my c. 1300 gown from Verona. And I use rainbow ribbon for my hair taping, and as a belt on top of my bust.

Today it is the Princess of Nordmark's mimosa party, so I have to get orange juice before 1 pm. I'll get back to you on that.

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Nordmark goes Benny Hill

2020-04-28T13:19:25Z

My friend Agnes did a thing, with people from Nordmark, the SCA principality which covers Sweden. I'm in it, in 12th century clothing.

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A thing happened at Kingdom Unviersity

2019-11-13T21:49:50Z

Last weekend I togehter with four friends organized Drachenwald's Kingdom University. I think we did a very good job and the c. 130 people who were there seemed to agree. We had a good programme (if you're curious you can find it on the web site I linked to), a good site and excellent food. And royal courts. And this happened.

Photo: Danel Styringheim

( more photos... )
I was suspecting it when hubby packed the 50 years gift champagne that I got from some of my co-workers, but of course I wasn't sure. So instead of sitting at the registration all Friday evening with my friend Alfhild I spent it in vigil, contemplating becoming a member of the Order of the Laurel (SCA stuff). And, as you can see from the images of my scroll, medallion and the pillows that were gifts from my Laurel mother/mistress Helwig and my Laurel sister Lia, I accepted this honour.

The scroll was made by a very dear friend who lives in New York and doesn't play in the SCA anymore, so I managed to produce an interestign mix of tears and laughter when I heard his name.
The medallion used to be my Mistress Helwig's and the box for it was made by Mistress Renike.

I got lots of other gifts, but I haven't had the time to photograph them all, or figure out who gave me what, since my head was all spinning when I got them at the vigil.

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Rainy Friday - hopefully not rainy Saturday

2019-09-27T08:11:13Z

It's raining cats and dogs. I should probably be grateful for the lovely days we've had recently, and accept the rain. But my arthritis gets mucgh worse when it's raining and I also have to go outside later, to get to the annual book fair, where I am part of a panel discussion on clothing, gender and class.

I was at the book fair yesterday too and bought some old Swedish films (30s-40s) on DVD and a new Swedish fantasy book that I am looking forward to reading. I also had some beer and wine with my friend Caroline and some peopel that she knows. That was ncie, but then I got so tired that I went home around nine, when they went on to other publishers' parties.
Probably a good idea, since I have to to do a lot of things before my own appearance at the book fair today; like comment on peoples' papers in the pedagogical development course I am taking (because I have to). I also need to finish packing for the SCA event that I am going to this evening. It's called "Boar Hunt" and is an archery event so I really hope it doesn't rain tomorrow. Or at least not too much. I have actually not used my bow that I got as a 50 years' present from my family. Partly because I haven't made arrows yet, partly because of my surgery last autumn. For this weekend I will borrow Rickard's arrows and I will also make an appointment with a guy to make my own.

Well, if it rains too much I can always socialize and work on my event embroidery (= the embroidery that gets brought along on events and when I'm flying, but that I never work on at other times)

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I've been gone like forever

2019-06-20T08:31:58Z

But here I am again.

I have been to Scotland, to celebrate my friend Sara's 50th birthday. We stayed at Gargunnock house and had a lovely time.

( Photos of me in fancy clothes )

I went to a Sound of Music sing-a-long with Sara:

I have been to Double Wars - photos, more photos.

We've had our annual Gotvik picnic, and I wore a (re-amde) gothic fittd dress that I made in 1998. Photos here.

I made two rather insane jersey dresses:

I managed to survive work until end of term (barely)

And now I am working on my paper for the International Medieval Congress in Leeds, which means reading Norse adaptations of courtly romances.
I will be in Leeds between the 30th of June and mornignteh 5th of July and then I will go to London and stay until the 8th.

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What I made at the sewing meeting in April

2019-05-09T06:15:18Z

A banner for Nordmark, so the Prince and Princess won't have to bring one when they are visting Gotvik.

It's cotton broadcloth, textile paint, and fringe from my stash. I think it looks pretty.

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8 hours of sewing meeting

2019-04-14T07:03:06Z

I don't know what I was thinking of when I scheduled a sewing meeting for Gotvik between 10 and 18 today - hopefully we can agree together to end it a few hours earlier, because I need some rest before Monday :)

Hopefully we will also be finish at leat one of the banners we are making - one for Nordmark (the SCA prinicpality we belong to) and one for Drachenwald (the SCA kingdom we belong to) so visiting royals won't have tobring banners with them on trains and planes.

Now I should get dressed, because Katarina will pick me up in 30 minutes time.

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Not queen

2019-04-02T06:28:44Z

Well. Crown Tourney is over, and luckily I didn't become queen. I don't know my fighter well enough for that to be a god idea, even if it had been fun to win. But with some other person, someone I know well.

I was, as my friend Mistress Lia said: bouncy. I drank too much, hugged too many people, told too many people that I love them and generally had a very good time. Though I wonder how this old, hard-partying Eva came back from the (almost) dead.

Now my body, and my feet especially, are killing me, and it was hard to give two lectures yesterday.

I got very few photos of my nw gown being worn, but here are three:

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Last weekend

2019-03-25T11:13:39Z

Thursday evening and Friday morning I was in such a bad shape that I didn't look forward to the Full Moon celebration on Friday, nor the Spring Equinox celebration on Saturday. But I got better and I actually felt rather well when I took the tram and bus out to my best friend's place.
We had a lovely full moon celebration and when we woke on Saturday it was sunny and rather nice when you were out of the wind.

Our ritual place is rather windy, so we diecded to have our lunch outside Inger's house instead and that was really lovely.

Sunday we had a meeting about Drachenwald's Kingdom University which we are organizing in November. It was very nice, but I am a bit overwhelmed and today I am tired, and affected by the metothrexate I took yesterday, so I am mostly resting. I will try and finish my 16th century Saxon Court gown today too

I am skivvying from work right now - I am not well anough to work 75% so i rest and do other stuff and only do my lectures and seminars. Unfortunately this means that I won't be prepared at all when I start lecturing on two new courses next week, but I am not well enough to work more than just a little right now, so what can I do?

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Surprisingly amazing weekend

2019-03-17T17:30:47Z

It didn't start particularly good, but it turned out to be one of the most fun events I've been to in years.
The pain in my stomach didn't go away so on Friday morning I actually went to the ER. After X-rays were made they found out that it "only" was a really bad constipation, but they still thought it was a good thing that I came in, given the fact that I so recently had surgery in my stomach.
I got home again around 3 pm and started packing for us to go to the event. I had then not slept anything since Thursday morning, but kept going on sheer will power.

My friend Amanda picked up me and Rickard in her car. When we reached the event, c 40 minutes drive from Gothenburg, we ofund that one piece of the lid that covers the big air hole on our inflatable mattress was missing. After a few unsuccesful attempts to McGyver it, Rickard took the car back home and gor our foam rubber mattress. This was actually much better for my body - the only reason we hadn't taken that mattress was that Amanda's car is really small. We did manage to get all our stuff into the car on the way home anyway, but it was a squeeze.

Anyway, despite not having slept I managed both to hold the Annual General Meeting of Gotvik, and become the chair of the group,and to be up drinking white wine mixed with bubbly water until 2 am.

On Saturday I tried my bow for the first time. I didn't compete in the challenge though, but went inside and hung out with friends. It was nice not having anything to do on the event after cooking feast two events in a row.

Court was a little too long, but still nice. And Rickard got a local award, with a very beautiful scroll. I had made two scrolls too, and the recipients liked them.

Feast was good, though not spectacular in any way, and I had very good company at the table. After feast I stayed up to 4 am - drinking and chatting! I don't know how this older version of myself has come back :)

This was the first event since I got my coronet, so we took photos of me in garb with it on.

A few more photos here.

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Well, that didn't happen...

2019-03-14T21:55:24Z

After trying to fix the sleeves on my gothic fitted dress from 1998 (or 97) that had made larger armscyes on to me teh cut more period correct, by adding triangula rgussets I had reached a working solution. But it just wasn't good enough.

So I decided to make it a short sleeved GFD and make fancy sleeves to wear with it. I did start on the fancy sleeves and I had planned to ask Anna to help me with the sleeves on the GFD tonight. But then I got too tired and too much in pain, so I just spent most of my time on my acupuncture mat talking to Anna, and another friend: Gaby. It will be tricky to get the sleeves right and I have very little fabric to work with, so I won't rush this project.

My 15th century gown from 1999 also had some issues, so I won't be wearing that one this weekend either.

It's okay, I have more garb than anyone needs. And I'll just go for something less sexy, but very cool, like my striped brocade 1330s italian gown. it's the right period for my coronet too.

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Some sewing and shopping

2019-03-08T16:35:36Z

I still ahve trouble with my arthritis, but now a more "normal" genreal pain, rather than swollen joints (except the bones and tendons in my left foot). On Monday I will start working again, but I have started a little today with grading. I am so behind at work so it is less stressful to have some of that done. Actually I probably ought to be off work for another week, but that would make things very,very complicated with a few of the courses that I teach.

I can sew and read and I can take walks, but I have a hard time focusing on intellectual work and lecture planning because of pain.

Yesterday I had another SCA sewing meeting at home and it was really nice, even if there was a short while when I thought that some people were triggering each other into complaining about people in the SCA, so I tried to steer the conversation into a more constructive discussion about feelings, and I think that I was successful.

I also helped Mattias to cut out a red woollen surcoat and even did some sewing myself. I am reworking a gown that I made for Visby medieval week 1999 - my 15th century Visby :)
( Photo of the folded gown, and of Kenya the cat )

I might wear it on St. Egon's Feast next weekend. I may even wear a mi-parti Gothic fitted dress from velvet that I made in 1998 for court, depending on if I have the time/inclination to fix the sleeves.

But I have also finished most of my new Saxon court gown, which I probably will wear at Spring Crown in three weeks time. This is how it looks without sleeves or brustfleck.

The shopping: I also got up early-ish and took trams to another part of town to be there when a certain second hand market opened. Because just before I went to bed I saw that they had posted this chair on their facebook page, and I didn't want to miss it. Sicne it's foldable I could also take it with me on the tram home, but it took its toll on my sick body. Still worth it though.

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The box is finished on the inside too now.

2019-03-02T20:52:27Z

I have written about it in my costuming blog, where you can get more photos and text - here.

But here's a photo of the finished thing, if you don't want to go there :)

The sewing and teachign with parts of my coven was really nice. They stayed for six hours, one tunic and one linen shift were made (except for hand hemming) and we had good, long discussions and plenty of tea :)

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Better - and the outer part of the coronet box is finished

2019-03-01T22:09:28Z

So, the doctor gave me prednisolone, which generally is very effective, and I started taking it yesterday morning. it's strong stuff though, so while it makes the arthritis better I also feel a little like I have a sinus infection, with the typical headache. But I am getting much better, my fingers are nearly normal, it's mostly my feet and my left knee that bothers me now. Today I could even use my brain for a while, reading and commenting on a friend's project description for an application for a PhD student position.

I have also started on the bodice for my 16th century Saxon court gown. I have cut out the bodice pieces and zig-zagged the velvet pieces. Because velvet.
I made the skirt in the autumn, but because I had no idea how my waist and tummy would be after my surgery I didn't start on the bodice. Now I feel confident that I won't have to make any large adjustments soon, if I make it now. The plan is to wear it to Spring Crown, which is the last weekend in March.

Skirt, just gathered with a belt:

I have also covered my paper box in paper clay, pressed and sculpted shapes in the clay, let it dry and finally lacquered it. This is how the box looks:

After I went to the hospital om Wednesday I used the little energy that I had left to go to a fabric store and get foam rubber, to line the box with (covered with fabric of course). And then I was so tired that I forgot it on the tram. Fortunately it was found and today Rickard went downtown to retrieve it from the lost items office.

I have now, after it was too late to use a sewing machine cut and shaped it to make a good protection for the coronet. It was a bit tricky, but I think that it will be fine. Or at least good enough. Tomorrow there will be fabric and glue.

Also tomorrow, best friend Inger and two women from our coven are coming over. Two will be making ritual robes, and one will be making her first medieval shift - since I am luring her into that other sect: the SCA.

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My baronial coronet

2019-02-20T22:19:06Z

When I stepped down as baroness (SCA) I became a court baroness. it has taken a while fro me to decide what I wanted, but my friend Johanna, from Eva Johanna Arts &Crafts made this wonderful coronet for me. It is based on early to mid- 14th century Italian examples, but with a little fairy tale/romantic twist: the white flowers which are from my device, are more medieval romance than historically correct.

I'm wearing a t-shirt and haven't done anything with my hair, but you see the coronet at least. I will take proper photos soon, I've just been too busy with work, excercise and other projects.'

BTW, you really should follow that link to Johanna's busienss page, she makes droolworthy stuff.

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SCA: The start of a Society of the Golden Egg challenge

2018-08-03T07:45:11Z

A little more than one year ago, when Contessa Isabetta del Verde was queen of Drachenwald, she founded the Society of the Golden Egg. The Society of the Golden Egg is a challenge household for the arts and sciences in the Kingdom of Drachenwald, within the Society for Creative Anachronism.

This is the web page of the society, which will tell you much more, including ongoing projects. Members of the household are either in the process of making their challenge or have finished their challenges, after which you remain a member of the household for three years. After that you will have to make another challenge if you want to stay.

There are currently eight challengers, and I am one of them.

I liked the idea of the society from the start, but since I research and make stuff all the time I wasn't sure if I needed this/it was for me. Especially since even the largest projects, such as Valeria's Eleonora di Toldeo gown, tend to be finished much quicker than in a year.

But then I found this, which if we take into account the fact that I have started working 75 % instead of 50 % probably will take a year - at least if I include research, blogging about it and making an article. It really is the perfect project for me:

A quilted auqueton from 13th century France

A Golden Egg challenge by Aleydis van Vilvoorde

The project is to research and recreate the auqueton of St.Isabelle of France, the sister of St. Louis, who lived 1224-1270. While St. Isabelle did become a saint the garment in question is not a religious habit, but a secular garment worn for warmth, and a rather fashionable one too, since quilted garments had recently become popular under the influence of muslim manners of dress. The garment has its name from the Arabic al coton. While fashionable it was not only a high-status garment; quilted garments made from linen or half cotton/linen and with cotton wadding were made as ready-to-wear, at least in Italy, in the period and since the materials were relatively cheap (and labour very cheap in the Middle Ages), they were actually a cheaper alternative to wool garments to keep warm.

When making it I will be using the correct materials and with period sewing techniques but make the garment in a size that fits me. The aqueton will also act as the focus for wider research on quilted non-military garments in medieval Europe. Included in the challenge is that I will blog about the research, tests and finished results. I will also write at least one article on the subject for Dragon’s tale and present the finished aqueton and the research on a web page at my blog.

The project is a challenge in several ways: I have never quilted a garment before, so I will learn new skills. Patterning for a quilted fabric will be an interesting challenge which will mean making samplers to see how much the fabric shrinks from being quilted. it will also be a challenge to make all that hand quilting in less than a year. My goal is to finish the challenge so that I can present it at Double Wars 2019.

To sum it up why it is perfect for me:

• It is from one of the time periods I mainly make and wear.

• It’s a preserved garment

• It involves the new fashions for quilted clothing, and cotton, which is something I am very

interested in researching further.

• It will provide opportunity to continue my research in the field of cotton and quilted clothing of

the high Middle Ages.

• It is rarely done, the reconstruction of Sihame Cornetet linked to below, being the only example

that I have found.

• It will be a challenge to make all that hand quilting in less than a year, and I need something to

push me.

• It is a practical garment to keep warm. Though wool I does this admirably, so this is the least

concern.

I have started on the research: The garment is one of those included in the recent book by Elizabeth Coatsworth and Gale R. Owen-Crocker: Clothing the past: surviving garments from early medieval to early modern western Europe. I have also studied Sihame Cornetet's analysis from her blog. There you find many interesting photos and information, and she has also has begun a reconstruction.

Apart from reading my first step was to make a test quilt, to see how much the fabric would shrink from quilting.

Yesterday, during the sewigng meeting that I host for the barony of Gotvik every other week I took some linen scraps of the approximate weight that I am going to use and I measured and marked a rectangle on it.

The cotton batting is spread very thinly, just like the original. When I make the actual pieces I will probably comb it to make it a little more even though.

I then quilted it with waxed linen thread, using running stitches. The finished piece is still flexible, due to the thinness of the cotton wadding, and it didn't shrink noticably.

The next step is finding if there are any older publications in French about this garment and if possible hunt them down. Actually starting on the quilting will have to wait until next salary, because I have bought quite enough fabric this month already.

So instead I cut out and started on the short sleeved linen shift that I mentioned in my precious post.

The other challenges include cooking, brewing, clothing reconstruction, spinning and weaving and lace making - you can read about them here.

There is also a facebook group for the Society, which will keep you updated about what is happening with the various challenges.

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My 2nd chest is finished

2018-03-11T20:18:05Z

I had intended to work on that application for research funding today, but I just didn't feel well enough to work, and thought that I deserved my weekend ;)

So I actually put in all the hinges on my second take-apart wooden chest for SCA camping. I want to move one of the hinges about a millimetre, but it works as it is too.

The first painted chest that I made had a variety of courtly couples on it (see it here) For this one I decide to keep to one medieval story, the story of Lancelot and Guinevere.

All sides can be seen over in my other blog.

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Another weekend, another SCA event

2018-03-02T07:09:25Z

Well, not really, last weekend there wasn't an event, but going to two events with only a fortnight between them is really rare for me and I look so much forward to this one, which is Nordmark's (Sweden) Coronet Tourney. I haven't 100% decided what to wear yet, except that I'm wearing this for court and feast.
So I could either go Italian 15th century all the way,. by wearing my working class outift during the day; I ahve made a wool overgown for it so that I won't get too cold (it's below freezing and rather windy at the site, snow is also expected) or I could wear some of my stuff from the high Middle Ages, which probably will be warmer. Or I can just bring along one of my high medieval thick wool overgowns and wear it over the quattrocento gown. So many decisions. I thought that I would want to wear everything but the 13th-early 14th century after Måns and I stepped down, after wearing it for two years, but I really am very enthusiastic over Italian garb from this period.

In any case I will bring my Italian cotton gown, because I'm showing it at the A&S display.

It's five past eight in the morning and I have to work first, so I'll just let those thoughts simmer in the back of my head and make a decision later.

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Painting another six glasses

2018-02-26T20:51:55Z

Since I am no more the baroness of Gotvik, I have passed on the glasses and cases that I made to the next baron and baroness. Of course I have replicas of historical glasses, but ever sicne I frits saw them I have been fascinated by painted glasses from the Middle Ages and Renaissance. Especially the beaker shaped ones from the High Middle Ages, I wrote about them here, with a few pictures.

Unfortunately I haven't found anyone who makes plain beaker shaped historical glasses, they always have some kind of decoration. I am not sure if I would have dared to harden the paint in the oven with a historical replica either, but probably.

Since I can't have historcial replicas to paint on I have had to make do with a substitute with reasonably the right shape: beer glasses.

The upside to this is that they are very hard to break. And you can get them cheaply from 2nd hand shops.

The motif is my badge, surrounded by flowers, which were taken from the Aldrevandini Beaker in British museum, made in Venice in the 1330s.

The arms of the Aldrevandini family also has antlers, which provided the basic shape for the ones on my glasses, which are my personal badge in the SCA.

My badge is a deer's antler with a white cinquefoil, that is a flower with five petals, om each tine. The flowers reflect my device, and I got inspired to put them on the tines of the antlers from this Codex Manesse image.

Next step is to make box for all six glasses that will make it easy to bring them to events.

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The feast at St.Egon's

2018-02-22T07:05:05Z

I wrote about the feast that I was cooking for St.Egon's feast in our local SCA barony, what was on i it. Anyway, this is my first feast as a head cook and I knew that at least one person eating it is very critical about feasts (he's cooked lots of feast and he's a total foodie). But he, and everybody else loved it! He said that it was the best feast he's eaten in Gotvik! And another friend who has been active since 1992 and has eaten LOTS of feasts said that this one was among the top five.

I am amazed, and so happy and inspired to do it again. Ve were only 36 people for the feast, which helps when you're making your own fresh pasta, but we could have handled the double with maybe one more person to help out and another oven (which was available in the basement where there's another kitchen).
With so few people eating and extremely good planning from Anna's side, plus me making all pies the weekend before, we even got to sit down and eat the last meat course and, then again, the desserts.

All food was served in bowls on the tables, which held six people, since at least in the High Middle Ages, is was considered more courtly to have several small tables where people can talk to each other, than long tables. The bowls where then left on the table so you could always get a little more of some dish. Up until the dessert, when we needed the bowls used for stew to have pears cooked in wine in. So we collected them and I washed them and then we served dessert. There was some entertainment during this break too.

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My last day

2018-02-16T14:32:26Z

My last day as baroness is nearing, tomorrow I will step down. The coronet has been polished, the regalia has been packed.
Soon Rickard and I will take the car to do the shopping for the feast and then we'll pick up Maja and Anna (neighbour/friend) and go out to the site. We're sleeping at home, because if I'm cooking feast I need to sleep in a bed somewhere without people who snore.

I have to learn the ceremony by heart too, but that shouldn't be a problem, I'm used to learning rituals by heart in a short time.

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Clothes, bodies and gender - and a planned SCA feast

2018-02-12T11:47:38Z

As always...

I'm feeling lazy and tired, probably due to pain from a weather change (from cold and dry to sleet) but I am at least working on a blog post I've been asked to write by the Textile Museum. 900 words, it should be possible to finish today. its about clothes, gender and bodies in the Middle Ages, which I feel that I have been writing/talking about constantly for 15 years now ;)

Rickard was away over the weekend, in Copenhagen to play X-wing and he's working the evening shift today, so I'm working from home so that I can be around him (and avoid the sleet). Maja is out on town with a friend.

I will work a couple of hours and then I'll go to the gym. I feel that I enjoy it more than I thought would be possible.

Oh, and I finished a scroll yesterday, as well as baking all the pies for the SCA event the coming weekend on Friday and Saturday. They are now in the freezer.

Anna and I did some planning for the cooking of the feast, and I made a document with all the recipes - since the new baron and baroness will wear 15th century Italian I've used Italian recipes from that period (or slightly earlier)

This is the menu:

On the table as we start:

Bread, salt, olive oil, olives

Antipasti (I don't know it that is the period term, but the order and idea was the same)

Insalate - green salad with lots of fresh spices

Finochio - Fennel braised in olive oil

Fave Fresche con Brodo di Carne - Fresh fava beans cooked in meat broth

Pasta

Lasini – Lasgna made by cooking home made pasta made from fermented dough and layering with mozzarella and cinnamon. It's incredibly yummy.

Insalata di sparagi - aspargus with lemon and orange juice dressing

Primi Piatti

Florentine potage from meat, thickened with breadcrumbs, eggs and cheese - very filling

Torta d’herbe alla Lombarda – pies with spinach, parsley and fresh mint, eggs, cream cheese and mozzarella.

Secondi Piatti

Florentine style meat in a baking dish

Fungi di monte - mushrooms and onions fried in olive oil

Dulce

Suppa di pere - pears cooked in wine with spices

Torta Bianca - Pie with filling of ricotta, sugar and ginger. Served dusted with confectioner's sugar and sprinkled with rose water

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