This is a list of Frequently Asked Questions about the planning of medieval and Renaissance theme weddings. Questions (and answers) in this FAQ were originally obtained from readers of the following newsgroups: alt.fairs.renaissance, alt.wedding, rec.food.historic, rec.org.sca, and soc.couples.wedding.
The information in this FAQ was compiled and edited by Barbara J. Kuehl and is, by no means, a final product. All comments and corrections should be emailed to bj@csd.uwm.edu.
c) The Medieval and Renaissance Theme Wedding FAQ is copyrighted by the owner of the FAQ. This document may be freely redistributed without modification provided that the copyright notice is not removed. It may not be sold for profit or incorporated in commercial documents without the written permission of the holder.
The Medieval & Renaissance Theme Wedding FAQ is not meant to be a scholarly treatise on marriage and feasting customs throughout the medieval and renaissance periods. Rather, it is a compilation of suggestions from persons who have attempted to recreate the ambience of such an event using resources available to them today. In some cases, the items and/or foods used may not be historically accurate. The compiler of this FAQ leaves it up to the user to determine the degree of historical authenticity appropriate for his or her own theme wedding.
The Medieval & Renaissance Theme Wedding FAQ is posted on the 15th of each month to ONE of six newsgroups on a rotating basis. These six newsgroups are the five mentioned above plus soc.history.medieval. An announcement of the posting will be sent to each newsgroup which is not serving as the FAQ site during that given month. This announcement will guide interested persons to the newsgroup from which they may obtain the FAQ. This FAQ will also be posted on the 1st of each month to news.answers, a newsgroup with the expressed purpose of posting and archiving FAQ lists.
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Acknowledgements: Many people helped with this FAQ by contributing their ideas and stories. All verbatim contributions are prefaced whenever possible by the email address of the original writer. Others have contributed by sharing their research or by reviewing versions of the FAQ. These people include:
1.1: We would like to be married in a medieval-style wedding and want to make it as real as possible, but we don't even know where to start. What were weddings like during the Middle Ages?
1.2: Weddings are filled with 'traditions' such as the tossing of the bouquet, the garter toss, the bride wearing white dress and veil, the lighting of the unity candle, the exchange of wedding rings, etc. Just how far back do these 'traditions' really go? Do any of them stem from medieval or renaissance times?
1.3: Do the garter and bouquet tosses really date back to medieval times?
1.4: What is the story behind the wedding rhyme:
"Something old, something new,
Something borrowed, something blue,
And a lucky sixpence for your shoe."
1.5: I'm not pagan but my boyfriend is, and he asked me if I'd like to take part in a Handfasting with him. I know the basics of it ...366 days of a trial marriage sort of thing and, at the end of the 366 days, there is a choice of continuing the relationship or ending it. Is handfasting legally binding? What exactly is done and in what order?
1.6: I'm getting married next September, and we plan to have a handfasting. I'm trying to gather ideas for the ceremony, decorations, etc. and would love to hear from anyone who has planned or attended a handfasting.
1.7: My best friend is planning a medieval peasant's wedding and I am in charge of locating appropriate wedding vows. Are there any websites that have samples of medieval vows or could someone please recommend some books?
1.8: Bibliography of Medieval & Renaissance Marriage Practices compiled by Kirsti Thomas
2.1: We're using a medieval theme for our wedding. How can we adapt that look for our invitations?
2.2: Anybody have any creative ideas for wording an invitation in keeping with the medieval style of the wedding?
2.3: I'm thinking of rolling up my invitation (but how would you mail that cheaply!). Any suggestions??!!
2.4: We bought metallic gold wax and two stamps to seal our invitations but can't for the life of us figure out how to use them! Any hints/suggestions out there would be greatly appreciated!
2.5: My fiance and I will be making our own invitations and would like to use a wax seal on the outside of the envelope. I was wondering if anyone ran into problems with the post office, like wax getting stuck in postal machines or anything like that?
2.6: How about thank you cards? Any ideas for how we can make our thank you cards look medieval in style?
3.1: Those who were married in a medieval-style ceremony, what did your wedding party and guests wear?
3.2: Any ideas on how I can encourage my guests to dress in period clothing, too?
3.3: HELP! My fiance wants a medieval-style wedding but I don't know the first thing about that time period, much less about the clothes they wore.
3.4: My wife is desperately in need of a source of patterns for medieval/Renaissance wedding clothing for the bride, groom, and all of the wedding party. Where can we get such patterns?
3.5: I can't sew on a button. Where can I buy medieval clothing?
3.6: Does anybody know of a catalog which offers readymade but affordable period clothes? I can't possibly sew for everyone!
3.7: Does anyone know of good Web sites regarding medieval clothing?
3.8: My fiance has informed me that he hates tuxes and would prefer to get married in a robe rather like the ones worn by Sir Thomas More in A Man for All Seasons. Anyone have a clue where I would find such a beast?
3.9: Does anyone know where I could get a velvet cape? I am thinking about an evening wedding and an off the shoulder gown, and I get cold easily (Plus I just love them!!).
4.1: What flowers can I use in my bouquet to go along with the medieval theme of my clothing?
4.2: Does anyone know (or can anyone point me to a resource for) the meanings of different flowers in a bouquet?
4.3: I've found a wonderful company to make our "costumes", but I'm not sure what to wear for a "veil". I know veils are traditional nowadays, but our medieval wedding is anything but. Could I wear flowers in my hair instead of a veil?
4.4: I would like to use a garland of ivy as a headpiece, as it is symbolic of good luck and all. I have an ivy plant, and I wonder if just cutting off a long extension of the plant and forming it into a circle would work. Any advice?
4.5: Help! I am allergic to flowers and I cannot figure out how to replace them in my wedding. I am having a medieval theme. Are there any suggestions?
5.1: Can you give me some ideas of where we might hold our medieval wedding reception?
5.2: Is it possible to have a wedding at a renaissance faire?
5.3: I've been asked to decorate the reception hall for a friend of mine having a medieval style wedding. Does anyone know of any herbs/plants/assorted greenery that would be appropriate? I would appreciate any ideas as to how to decorate this hall.
5.4: Can you recommend any activities, besides dancing, for our reception?
5.5 If you have an interesting idea for favors for my medieval wedding reception, please tell me!
6.1: What kinds of foods did people serve at wedding feasts during the Middle Ages?
6.2: Sallat (salad), tarts, potage (soup), custard, poultry, suckling pig and spicy mulled wine sound great! But pigeon pies, eels, boar's head, and roast peacock with the feathers put back on! I don't think my guests would go for this, so let me rephrase that question. What kinds of foods could I serve that would have the "feel" of a medieval banquet but would still be edible by my modernday guests?
6.3: Does anyone have any information about the menu at places like Medieval Times (where the knights fight while you have dinner)? I know they do wedding receptions.
6.4: How about drinks? What kinds of beverages did people drink during the Middle Ages?
6.5: It's expected in our family to have a wedding cake. Any ideas of how we could incorporate a wedding cake into the menu and still keep the medieval ambience?
6.6: We have our menu all worked out but need some ideas about how to decorate the banquet hall and serve the food and drink in keeping with the medieval theme. Any suggestions?
6.7: Can you recommend any books or websites where I can get recipes for some of the medieval dishes (and maybe others) mentioned above?
6.8: Bibliography of Medieval Cookbooks compiled by Jaelle of Armida
7.1: My fiance and I love period music. Any ideas for how we could do the music for our medieval/renaissance wedding? Also, what kinds of instruments are considered period?
7.2: Where can I find musicians who play medieval music?
7.3: I am looking for good quality CDs for my Wedding. I need suggestions for both Dancing and Ceremony music. It need not be for any specific period - but would like it to have a medieval flavor. All suggestion are great appreciated.
8.1: How about including a list of well-costumed, atmospheric movies that people could rent to see what a particular period might be like? If a picture is worth a thousand words, a moving picture is worth ten thousand!
1.1: We would like to be married in a medieval-style wedding
and want to make it as real as possible, but we don't even
know where to start. What were weddings like during the
Middle Ages?
================================================================
So long as the couple made the vows before a witness, the marriage was valid--no priest had to be present (although this is increasingly not the case after the 13th century).
-------------------------
Weddings during the Middle Ages were considered family/community affairs. The only thing needed to create a marriage was for both partners to state their consent to take one another as spouses. Witnesses were not always necessary, nor was the presence of the clergy. In Italy, for example, the marriage was divided into three parts. The first portion consisted of the families of the groom and bride drawing up the papers. The bride didn't have to even be there for that. The second, the betrothal, was legally binding and may or may not have involved consummation. At this celebration, the couple exchanged gifts (a ring, a piece of fruit, etc.), clasped hands and exchanged a kiss. The "vows" could be a simple as, "Will you marry me?" "I will." The third part of the wedding, which could occur several years after the betrothal, was the removal of the bride to the groom's home. The role of the clergy at a medieval wedding was simply to bless the couple. It wasn't official church policy until the council of Trent in the 15th century that a third party [c.f. a priest], as opposed to the couple themselves, was responsible for performing the wedding. In the later medieval period, the wedding ceremony moved from the house of the bride to the church. It began with a procession to the church from the bride's house. Vows were exchanged outside the church (BTW, the priest gave the bride to the groom...I don't think she was presented by her father) and then everyone moved inside for Mass. After Mass, the procession went back to the bride's house for a feast. Musicians accompanied the procession.
-------------------------
A word on historical English weddings. Traditionally, in front of the church door, the groom would, in front of witnesses, announce his bride's dower--that portion (usually 1/3) of his holdings she would be allowed to use should he die before she did (she could also inherit land and property, but this was a different thing). They would then go in for the solemnization of vows (very short) and the nuptial mass.
-------------------------
I remember reading Chaucer [d.1400] in High School (the Wife of Bath's Tale). Part of the text (and this is the Wife speaking) says "husbands at church door I have had five". Due to the need to ensure that everyone knew beyond a doubt that the couple were married, weddings would take place outside the church (at the door) rather than inside where only a few people could view it.
-------------------------
For much of Western history, marriage was an exchange of property, i.e. the woman was being given by her father to her husband. The union of property & money & lineage were what was being celebrated --- not so much the union of two lovers. Hence, "real" medieval & Renaissance wedding ceremonies were simple legal unions, sanctioned by the Church, and done with as many important people as possible to witness it. "Real" ceremonies of the time were not terribly intricate in Western Europe & the UK, so I think it would be much more interesting, charming, and enjoyable to make up your own medieval-ish or Renaissance-esque wedding ceremony.
1.2: Weddings are filled with 'traditions' such as the tossing of the bouquet, the garter toss, the bride wearing white dress and veil, the lighting of the unity candle, the exchange of wedding rings, etc. Just how far back do these 'traditions' really go? Do any of them stem from medieval or renaissance times?
================================================================
I was looking through the August/September issue of Modern
Bride, and they had a little sidebar called Wedding Customs.
"Many of today's wedding customs have evolved from the days of
ancient Rome, when evil spirits were believed to lurk about and
pose threats to the bride and groom...Bridesmaids dressed
similarly to the bride, and ushers' attire resembled the
groom's. This was an attempt to confuse the spirits...If [they]
could not tell the bride and groom apart from the attendants,
they would not be able to carry out their plans. The wedding
ring: The early Eqyptians...believed that a circle was the
symbol of eternity--a sign that life, happiness, and love have
no beginning and no end. A wedding ring was placed on the third
finger of the left hand because it was believed that a vein ran
directly from that finger to the heart. The wedding cake:
Intended as a symbol of fertility...To ensure a life of plenty,
the Romans broke a thin layer of cake over the bride's head at
the end of the ceremony. Crumbs were then gathered by guests as
good luck tokens."
-------------------------
This is from http://www.halcyon.com/mganson/traditions.html:
The expression "tie the knot" comes from Roman times when the
bride wore a girdle that was tied in knots which the groom had
the fun of untying. Diamond engagement rings were given by
medieval Italians, because of their belief that the diamond was
created from the flames of love. Ancient Spartan soldiers were
the first to hold stag parties. The groom would feast with his
male friends on the night before the wedding. There he would say
goodbye to the carefree days of bachelorhood and swear continued
allegiance to his comrades. Bridal showers were also meant to
strengthen the friendships between the bride and her friends,
give her moral support, and help her prepare for her marriage.
The idea to give gifts is fairly new, dating from the 1890's. At
one shower, the bride's friend placed small gifts inside a
japanese parasol, and then opened it over the bride's head so
all of the presents would "shower" over her. When word of this
hit the fashion pages, people were so charmed, they decided to
do the same at their showers. The bridal party has many
origins, one of which comes from the Anglo Saxon days. When the
groom was about to capture his bride, he needed the help of his
friends, the "bridesmen" or "brideknights". They would make sure
the bride got to the church and to the groom's house afterwards.
The bride also had women to help her, the "bridesmaids" or
"brideswomen". The white wedding dress was made popular by Anne
of Brittany in 1499. Before that, a woman just wore her best
dress. In biblical days, blue (not white) represented purity,
and the bride and groom would wear a blue band around the bottom
of their wedding attire, hence something blue. It is unknown
when wedding rings were first worn. They were probably made of a
strong metal, like iron so that it wouldn't break easily which
would have been a very bad omen. The ancient Romans believed
that the vein in the third finger ran directly to the heart, so
wearing the ring on that finger joined the couples hearts and
destiny. Weddings just wouldn't be complete without fertility
symbols, like the wedding cake. Ancient Romans would bake a cake
made of wheat or barley and break it over the bride's head as a
symbol of her fertility. It became tradition to pile up several
small cakes, one on top of the other, as high as they could, and
the bride and groom would kiss over the tower and try not to
knock it down. If they were successful, it meant a lifetime of
prosperity. During the reign of King Charles II of England, it
became customary to turn this cake into an enjoyably edible
palace, iced with white sugar. Tying shoes to the bumper of the
car represents the symbolism and power of shoes in ancient
times. Egyptians would exchange sandals when they exchanged
goods, so when the father of the bride gave his daughter to the
groom, he would also give the brides sandals to show that she
now belonged to the groom. In Anglo Saxon times, the groom would
tap the heel of the bride's shoe to show his authority over her.
In later times, people would throw shoes at the couple, and now
we just tie shoes to their car. (This information is from the
book "A Natural History of Love," by Diane Ackerman)
1.3: Do the garter and bouquet tosses really date back to medieval times?
================================================================
THe garter toss is one of the oldest surviving wedding
traditions. Back in medieval times, it was customary for
friends, relatives, guests to accompany the bridal couple to the
marriage bed. As time went on, this became rowdier and rowdier
to the point that some guests were all too eager to help the
bride out of her wedding clothes. To forestall such
impropriety, the garters were quickly removed and thrown to the
mob as a distraction. As time went on, it has evolved into the
tradition we now know.
-------------------------
The wedding guests would follow the couple back to their room,
and try to grab the bride's garter for good luck. Brides
starting tossing their garter to the crowd as a means of self
preservation! As society changed it became inappropriate to
throw part of your underwear, and the bouquet was substituted.
Sometime this century, the garter toss was added back in as a
means of equalizing the tradition. Women could catch the
bouquet and men could catch the garter. Why the groom can't
throw part of his own costume is beyond me.
-------------------------
The sources I read indicated that in the past anything of a
bride's was lucky--gloves, flowers, garters, etc. It was said
that a man who gave his love the garter of a bride would be
guaranteed faithfulness. The guests were so eager to get the
garter, often the bride would be accosted at the altar by men
who stole it from her. Smart brides began having men compete
for the garter--usually a foot or horse race. Also, many would
give out small colored ribbons called "favours" to guests as an
attempt to avoid being turned upside down by men eager for their
garter. I've also read that the guests would sit at the end of
the bed with their backs to the bride and groom. Men would
throw the bride's stocking over their shoulder and try to hit
her nose, while women would do the same for the groom. Those
with good aim were the next to be married. Sound like a fun
wedding night?
-------------------------
I have been photographing some weddings recently where the bride
& groom both toss the bouquet & garter at the same time.... It
works out great! It's faster, the catch is better when it's a
surprise to the guys & ladies of who the other person is that
caught it...This works best when you stand back to back and each
throw at the same time. I only hope that you're either both
righty or lefty to avoid a collision... TRY IT.
1.4: What is the story behind the wedding rhyme:
"Something old, something new,
Something borrowed, something blue,
And a lucky sixpence for your shoe."
================================================================
According to my Bartlett's, it's from the late 19th century,
authorship unknown.
-------------------------
The following is from Oxford's -A Dictionary of Superstitions-
(p.42-43): "Something old, something new, something borrowed,
something blue" was quoted in a 1883 newspaper and ascribed to
"some Lancashire friends." Something old tradition- no pre-20th
century citations. The editors point out a possible link to the
belief that "something old" will protect a baby, first cited at
1659. No citations for "something new." Something borrowed-
same 1883 paper (one issue earlier) "it is widely accounted
'lucky' to wear something...which has already been worn by a
happy bride at her wedding." Something blue- Wearing blue to
express faithfulness traced back as far as a 1390 citation from
Chaucer's "Squire's Tale." -Sixpence- appears twice, as "silver
sixpence" and "lucky sixpence" (the third line scans with a
more staccato rhythym than the first two.). There's 1774 record
of a Scottish groom using a sixpence in his shoe to ward off
evil from his rival, and an 1814 (Scottish again) citation that
the bride "wear a piece of silver in one of her shoes" to ward
evil from disappointed suitors. There are also 20th century
citations to the bride's walking on a gold coin to produce
prosperity. For your curiousity, pre-1650 wedding superstitions
included: 1549 the lifting over the threshhold; 1601 sun seen
shining on the bride = good fortune; 1648 garters passed on to
groomsmen and bridesmaids; 1604 bride's left stocking thrown (as
modern bouquet); 1615 premature marriage producing premature
death; 1592 unmarried elder sisters dancing barefoot at wedding
party; 1634 one wedding brings another; stepping between couple
unlucky (or even caused by the devil).
1.5: I'm not pagan but my boyfriend is, and he asked me if I'd like to take part in a Handfasting with him. I know the basics of it ...366 days of a trial marriage sort of thing and, at the end of the 366 days, there is a choice of continuing the relationship or ending it. Is handfasting legally binding? What exactly is done and in what order?
================================================================
Handfasting refers to the old practice of trial marriages for a
year and a day, supposedly prevalent in Scotland, Wales and
Ireland. I've never actually run across other references to
this other than Sir Walter Scott (19th cent.).
-------------------------
"When we are handfasted, as we term it, we are man and wife
for a year and a day; that space gone by, each may choose
another mate, or, at their pleasure, may call the priest
to marry them for life; and this we call handfasting."
-- Sir Walter Scott, _The Monastery_ (1820), ch. 25.
-------------------------
The old way in Great Britain for couples to pledge their
betrothal was for them to join hands, his right to her right,
his left to her left, so from above they looked like an infinity
symbol. Done in front of witnesses, this made them officially
"married" for a year and a day, following which they could renew
permanently or for another year and a day. This was called
"handfasting" and was used extensively in the rural areas where
priests and ministers didn't go all that often. Sharing a cup
and pledging their betrothal in front of witnesses used to
accomplish the same thing (usually done in taverns) but was
eventually outlawed in most of Europe. In fact, the reference I
got that from mentioned only Switzerland because they were one
of the last to stop recognizing it as a legal marriage.
-------------------------
"This custom of handfasting actually prevailed in the upland
days. It arose partly from the want of priests. While the
convents subsisted, monks were detached on regular circuits
through the wilder districts, to marry those who had lived
in this species of connexion."
-- Andrew Lang, note in his edition of _The Monastery_
-------------------------
This type of marriage survived in Scottish law until the 20th
century.
-------------------------
Handfasting remained legal in Scotland until 1939. Common-law
marriage in general is still legally recognized in several of
the United States: AL, CO, GA, IA, ID, KS, OH, OK, PA, RI, SC,
TX, UT, and even in DC (This list as of 1987, from the current
World Almanac & Book of Facts). Generally, this just takes both
of you saying that you ARE man and wife, and conducting
yourselves accordingly. No particular ceremony needed. This
allows a man and woman in a deserted place with no-one else
around to marry -- and later have it be found legitimate, legal
and binding.(However, I am *NOT* a lawyer. Look up the rules
for your *OWN* state.)
-------------------------
According to common law of Scotland...a handfasting is a ritual
commonly used hundreds of years ago as a trial marriage. The
time limit of a year and a day was considered, though not
required. As such, if you are handfasted, you would be married
under those laws. However, based on the laws here in the states
you would still be considered just engaged. So, if you decide
to go through the handfasting...it would be a chance for the two
of you to make your vows without all the hassles of the state's
approval. One quick note....in the past, if a baby was born
because of the union, the two would be immediately married by a
priest. If one of you, either the husband or the wife, decided
against such an arrangement, then the person who leaves the
marriage loses all rights to the child.
-------------------------
Handfasting is not a "legal" binding agreement between two
people unless that is what the couple wishes. As a nonlegal
binding agreement the period of "commitment" is one year and a
day, after which the vows can either be renewed, the couple
become LEGALLY married, or go separate ways.
-------------------------
Handfasting is a MODERN pagan tradition that is, in part,
derived from traditional medieval/renaissance wedding practices.
-------------------------
Handfasting nowadays is a neopagan wedding ceremony, the
equivalent of a Judeo-Christian marriage ceremony, uniting two
people in love. The essential elements are thanking the
gods/Goddess for bringing this love into their lives; feeding
each other and giving each other a drink (to show their
commitment to caring for the other); and jumping over a broom.
The cutting of the wedding cake usually includes feeding each
other a small portion, and you can make a toast to each other
and drink out of the other's cup. The only element that would
seem out of place in a Christian wedding is the broom.
Depending on the tolerance of your guests and your desire to
include this, you could do it as part of your reception, with
some little explanation. Or you could do what I plan to do,
which is place a broom at the end of the "aisle", so that we can
jump it at the end of the recessional. We plan to get married
in a garden, so I don't have to worry about who might disapprove
of me placing a broom in it, but this probably wouldn't work too
well at a church wedding.
-------------------------
We tied in several period wedding customs as part of our
ceremony. One is to kiss three times while saying "I love thee"
after each kiss, and another is for the couple to jump over a
crossed broom and sword (held by the best man and the maid of
honor). The symbolizes the cutting of ties to their parents and
the ties being swept away.
-------------------------
I am sorry to point this out to you but Jumping over a broom
originated in the days of slavery. Paganism was around a whole
lot longer than that!
1.6: I'm getting married next September, and we plan to have a handfasting. I'm trying to gather ideas for the ceremony, decorations, etc. and would love to hear from anyone who has planned or attended a handfasting.
================================================================
We're going to do it outside, in traditional Scottish attire
(kilts and all! Whoopee! Love the legs, honey!) and we're
planning to have Celtic music and some Scottish food. We don't
have all the details worked out yet, but once we decided how to
go, it started to evolve from there.
-------------------------
We might opt for an outdoor civil ceremony with a celtic style
reception (music, food, entertainment...I'd love to have some
bardic performers). During the vows, we could have our friend
(and most likely our best man) bind our hands with a white
ribbon explaining the tradition to our guests.
-------------------------
We held our ceremony outside. Our minister was incredible; she
had a voice that carried, and announced to all: "Hear Ye, Hear
Ye! The Wedding Ceremony is about to begin!" We wanted our
guests to be participants, not spectators, so we had the
officiant gather them in a circle around an arch in front of
which we were to stand. Mark walked in first, with his two
attendants walking side by side ahead of him. Then my
attendants walked in, also side by side, then my father and me
until we reached his chair, at which point we kissed, and I left
him there to walk towards Mark on my own. Mark held a sword in
his hand, and as I approached, we held the sword together, and
planted it in the ground. That was our "altar". The officiant
said a greeting, which gave meaning to the circle (enclosing the
spirit, etc.). She then poured a libation as offering to those
who couldn't be with us (i.e., my mother has passed away). We
then had two of the attendants come up and pass a cloth about
our clasped hands - we grabbed each other's right with our
right, etc., so the symbol formed was that of "infinity". The
cloth was just a white cloth with a stylized Celtic knot sewn
on. We stood that way while the officiant read our consents, we
repeated said vows, read some things, etc. Our hands were
unbound by the other attendants, and then we did a ring
exchange. After the ring exchange, we had the pronouncement,
and we walked out together while his best man grabbed the sword.
Altogether, I'd say the ceremony itself lasted about 15 minutes.
-------------------------
We wrote our own vows and included a lot of symbolism about the
'circle of life', an important aspect to us. See our ceremony
at: http://www.csusm.edu/public/guests/mitchell/ceremony.html.
-------------------------
I believe that part of the Orthodox Wedding Rite involves the
ceremonial binding of the couple's hands together.
-------------------------
Here are the vows from a handfasting as written by a friend of
mine. I personally find it one of the nicest I've seen. This
is followed by the exchange of rings, or the tieing of the
hands, or whatever you have decided to use as the symbol of your
joining. Use this as you see fit and enjoy.
BRIDE:
I am woman, cherish me.
I give life to all things.
It is I who bring bounty,
From the green things in the fields
To the wild creatures in the forest.
I am light and laughter,
I am Brigid, mother of All.
GROOM:
I am man, respect me.
I bring death to all things.
It is I who am the reaper,
I am the Lord of the Hunt
And lord of the fields.
I lead the dead to the Summerland,
I am Herne, father of All.
BOTH TOGETHER:
Love and honor us.
Together we are life and death,
Darkness and light,
Joy and sorrow,
Order and chaos.
We are summer and winter,
Spring and fall.
We are growth and decay,
Youth and age,
Night and day,
Female and male.
Wherever one of us walks,
The other will be not far behind.
This is the way of things.
-------------------------
These vows are not traditional; they're only a couple a years
old. My husband and I wrote them:
"(Insert name), you have embraced all aspects of my nature.
You love me completely, for both my strengths and my weaknesses.
You have given me the courage and faith to trust you, to let you
love me as an entire person. You have allowed me to embrace all
aspects of your nature. You have let me love you completely, for
both your strengths and your weaknesses. You have shown courage
and faith in me, to trust me to love you as an entire person. I,
(name), take you, (another name), just as you are, and however
you may change, above all others, to share my life."
-------------------------
Here is the text of our handfasting ceremony:
John: Tonight we return to each other the tokens
of our time
apart. (This refers to the fact that before we were married,
we were living in different states. The 'tokens' are necklaces
we gave each other.)
Becca: For tonight we pledge our love, and start our life
together. (John places Becca's token around her neck, Becca
places John's token around his neck)
John: With this knife, I promise to stand beside you through
all the challenges of this life, to support you, and defend
you whenever you need me.
Becca: I accept your promise. (John kisses blade, puts it on,
and rises. Becca kneels and holds her knife)
Becca: With this knife, I promise to stand beside you through
all the challenges of this life, to support you, and defend you
whenever you need me.
John: I accept your promise. (Becca kisses blade, puts it on,
and rises. John takes up his cup and kneels)
John: With this cup, I promise to accept the love you pour upon
me, and to return that love in kind. (Becca takes pitcher and
fills cup)
Becca: Drink, then, of my love. (John drinks, places cup on
table, and rises, Becca takes up her cup and kneels)
Becca: With this cup, I promise to accept the love you pour upon
me, and to return that love in kind. (John takes pitcher and
fills cup)
John: Drink, then, of my love. (Becca drinks, places cup on
table, and stands. John pricks his finger [we used sterile
blood-test stylets available at most pharmacies], bleeds a drop
on the fire)
John: With this blood I ask the gods to bless this union. (Takes
cup from table and bleeds a drop into it) With this blood I
bind my life to yours. (John holds cup up, Becca places her
hands over his)
Becca: I drink of our life together. (Becca drinks, John places
cup on table and stands. Becca pricks her finger and bleeds a
drop on the fire) With this blood I ask the gods to bless this
union. (Takes cup from table and bleeds a drop into it) With
this blood I bind my life to yours. (Becca holds cup up, John
places his hands over hers)
John: I drink of our life together. (John drinks, Becca returns
cup to the table and stands)
Vows before the gods
(The Priest and Priestess turn toward the others, the Priestess
to the right of the Priest. They join hands, raising their arms
aloft at the same time) Priest: May the place of this rite be
consecrated before the gods. For we gather here in a ritual of
love with the two who would be wedded. John and Becca come
forward to stand before us and before the Gods. (The Priest
picks up the wand (with the rings on it, one on each end) and
holds one end of it before him in his right hand, the Priestess
likewise holds the other in with her left hand, the rings on the
exposed wand between them) Place your right hands beside each
other, over this wand, and your rings.
Priestess: Above you are the stars below you the stone. As time
does pass remember... like a star should you be constant. Like
a stone should your love be firm. Be close, yet not too close.
Possess one another, yet be understanding. Have patience each
with the other the other for storms will come, but they will go
quickly. Be free in giving of affection and warmth. Make love
often, and be sensuous to one another. Have no fear, and let
not the ways or words of strangers give you unease. For the
Goddess and the God are with you. Now and always.
(After a pause of five heartbeats) Priest: Is it your wish Becca
to join your life with this man?
Becca: It is.
Priest: Is it your wish John to join your life with this woman?
John: It is
Priest: Then as the Goddess, the God, and the Old Ones are
witness to this rite, I hereby announce to all here that you are
husband and wife.
1.7: My best friend is planning a medieval peasant's wedding and I am in charge of locating appropriate wedding vows. Are there any websites that have samples of medieval vows or could someone please recommend some books?
****************************************************************
I had lunch with our medievalist yesterday, and have I got good
news for you! There are two books -- in paperback, yet -- which
will supply all your needs regarding medieval vows and weddings.
The first book is _Women's Lives in Medieval Europe_, edited by
Emilie Amt. I recommend this book highly as general reading. It
is informative, and well-written. It is also useful as a guide
to medieval marriage ceremonies and customs. The second books
is _Nuptial Blessing_ (1982) by Kenneth Stevenson [Oxford
University Press, New York]. In it are contained the various
forms of wedding vows and blessings of the Middle Ages with all
their regional and temporal variations. BTW, included in this
book is the blessing for the marriage bed. You see, very often a
couple wasn't married at the church, but a priest would come by
the family home (after the couple was ceremonially acknowledged
as wedded by their families) and bless the bed and wedding
chamber in the presence of both families and the newly-wedded
bride and groom. The priest and relatives would leave the room
(to continue partying in the rest of the house, or nearby), and
leave the couple to consummate their relationship in the newly
"sacralized" bed.
-------------------------
Another good source is "Documents of the Marriage Liturgy" by
Searle, Mark, and Kenneth W Stevenson. Collegeville, Minn.:
Liturgical P, 1992. This is THE book to read for copies of the
vows themselves. Includes Jewish ceremony and a number of
Christian liturgies from the Early Middle Ages to the present)
-------------------------
A 1993 wedding I attended had a bit of medieval flavor to it.
According to the program, the wedding service was taken from the
1549 "Book of Common Prayer."
-------------------------
For an authentic Renaissance ceremony, point your Web browser at
http://fermi.clas.virginia.edu/~gl8f/rialto/rialto.html, then go
to wedding. This is part of the archives of rec.org.sca, and
the weddings-e-art file begins with two ceremony scripts drawn
from the 16th century "English Book of Common Prayer".
Actually, the format has not changed much (only the language),
so the modern book would be appropriate also. For Renaissance
readings, anything in the King James Version of the Bible is
perfect. The language is pure high Renaissance. On this same
rialto site, there is another large wedding file with lots of
archived letters discussing the subject of period weddings.
Finally, for some romantic wedding poetry, look into:
Shakespeare's Sonnet 18 (Shall I compare thee to a summer's
day), Sonnet 116 (Let me not to a marriage of true minds admit
impediment), _Romeo and Juliet_, act 2, scene 2 (But soft! What
light through yonder window breaks), and Christopher Marlowe's
"Passionate Shepherd to His Love" (Come live with me and be my
love and we shall all the pleasures prove).
-------------------------
Jennifer pulls her trusty Riverside Shakespeare from the shelf.
Here's Sonnet 29:
When in disgrace with Fortune and men's eyes
I all alone beweep my outcast state,
And trouble deaf heaven with my bootless cries,
And look upon myself and curse my fate,
Wishing me like to one more rich in hope,
Featur'd like him, like him with friends possess'd,
Desiring this man's art, and that man's scope,
With what I most enjoy contented least;
Yet in these thoughts myself almost despising,
Haply I think on thee, and then my state
(Like to the lark at break of day arising
From sullen earth) sing hymns at heaven's gate,
For thy sweet love rememb'red such wealth brings,
That then I scorn to change my state with kings.
-------------------------
My husband Jherek and I wrote our own vows. They are posted at
http://paul.spu.edu/~kst/bib/vows.txt. Be aware that the
ceremony isn't historically accurate. Some of the phrasings
(e.g. bonny and boxum at bed and at board) and rituals are taken
from period sources, but we also made up some of it ourselves.
-------------------------
i've always loved this quote--we may put it in our programs.
Doubt thou the stars are fire;
Doubt that the sun doth move;
Doubt truth to be a liar;
But never doubt I love.
(from Hamlet)
-------------------------
The Form of Matrimony in the European Middle Ages
As reconstructed by W. J. Bethancourt III,
(NOTE: This is not intended to be represented as a true
medieval marriage rite, but rather a reconstruction (with such
alterations and interpolations as to make it acceptable in
modern usages) from available references for use within the SCA,
nor is it represented as a "official" rite of any Church, nor as
an official ceremony of the SCA Inc. The sources used were the
Book of Common Prayer of HRM Elizabeth I of England, extracts
from the Sarum Rite and the York Rite, and various other lesser
sources).
At the day and time appointed for solemnization of Matrimony,
the persons to be married shall come into the porch of the
Church with their friends and neighbors; and there standing
together, the Man on the right hand, and the woman on the left,
with that person who shall give the Woman betwixt them, the
Priest shall say,
Dearly beloved, we are gathered together here in the sight of
God to join together this Man and this Woman in holy Matrimony;
which is an honourable estate, instituted of God in Paradise,
and into which holy estate these two persons present come now to
be joined. Therefore if any man can shew any just cause, why
they may not lawfully be joined together, let him now speak, or
else hereafter for ever hold his peace.
And also, speaking unto the persons that shall be married, he
shall say: I require and charge you both, as ye will answer at
the dreadful day of judgement when the secrets of all hearts
shall be disclosed, that if either of you know any impediment,
why ye may not be lawfully joined together in Matrimony, that ye
confess it. For ye be well assured, that so many as be coupled
together otherwise than God's Word doth allow are not joined
together by God; neither is their Matrimony lawful. At which
day of Marriage, if any man do alledge and declare any
impediment, why they may not be coupled together in Matrimony,
by God's Law, or the Laws of the Realm; and will be bound, and
sufficient sureties with him, to the parties; or else put in a
Caution (to the full value of such charges as the persons to be
married do thereby sustain) to prove his allegation; then the
solemnization must be deferred, until such time as the truth be
tried.
If no impediment be alleged, then shall the Priest say unto the
Man: N., Wilt thou have this Woman to be thy wedded wife, to
live together after God's ordinance in the holy estate of
Matrimony? Wilt thou love her, comfort her, honour, and keep
her, in sickness and in health; and forsaking all other, keep
thee only unto her, so long as ye both shall live?
The Man shall answer: I will.
Then shall the Priest say to the Woman: N., Wilt thou have this
man to be thy wedded husband, to live together after God's
ordinance in the holy estate of Matrimony? Wilt thou obey him,
and serve him, love, honour, and keep him in sickness and in
health; and, forsaking all other, keep thee only unto him, so
long as ye both shall live?
The Woman shall answer: I will.
Thus ends the formal betrothal. They shall then advance unto
the Altar, led by the Minister, who shall then turn to the
assembled company, and say: Who giveth this Woman to be married
to this Man?
And the person who gives the Woman shall answer, and shall place
the Woman's right hand in the hand of the Minister, and then
shall retire. Then shall they give their troth to each other in
this manner: The Minister, receiving the Woman at her father's
or friend's hands, shall cause the Man with his right hand to
take the Woman by her right hand, and to say after him as
followeth: I, N., take thee N to my wedded wife, to have and
to hold from this day forward, for better for worse, for richer
for poorer, for fairer or fouler, in sickness and in health, to
love and to cherish, till death us depart, according to God's
holy ordinance; and thereunto I plight thee my troth.
Then shall they loose their hands; and the Woman, with her right
hand taking the Man by his right hand, shall likewise say after
the Minister: I N. take thee N to my wedded husband, to have
and to hold from this day forward, for better for worse, for
richer or poorer, in sickness and in health, to be bonny and
buxom at bed and at board, to love and to cherish, till death us
depart, according to God's holy ordinance; and thereunto I
plight thee my troth.
Then shall they again loose their hands; and the Man shall give
unto the Woman a Ring, laying the same upon the Book with the
accustomed duty to the Priest and Clerk. And the Priest shall
bless the Ring(s) in the following manner: Bless these Rings,
O merciful Lord, that those who wear them, that give and receive
them, may be ever faithful to one another, remain in your peace,
and live and grow old together in your love, under their own
vine and fig tree, and seeing their children's children. Amen.
And the Priest, taking the Ring, shall deliver it to the Man, to
put it on the fourth finger of the Woman's left hand. And the
Man holding the ring there, and taught by the Priest, shall say:
With this Ring I thee wed, (here placing it upon her thumb) and
with my body I thee honor, (here placing it upon her index
finger) and with all my worldly goods I thee endow; (here
placing it upon her ring finger) In the Name of the Father, and
of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
If it be a double-ring ceremony, let the Woman do the same as
the Man, giving him the ring, and repeating the same words as
he. They both shall kneel down; and the Minister shall say:
Let us pray. O Eternal God, Creator and Preserver of all
mankind, Giver of all spiritual grace, the Author of everlasting
life; Send thy blessing upon these thy servants, this man and
this woman, whom we bless in thy Name; + that, as Isaac and
Rebecca lived faithfully together, so these persons may surely
perform and keep the vow and covenant betwixt them made, whereof
this Ring given and received is a token and pledge, and may ever
hereafter remain in perfect love and peace together, and live
according to thy laws; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
And here shall be said the "Our Father." Then shall the Priest
join their right hands together, and say: Those whom God hath
joined together let no man put asunder.
Then shall the Minister speak unto the people: Forasmuch as N
and N have consented together in holy wedlock, and have
witnessed the same before God and this company, and thereto have
given and pledged their troth each to the other, and have
declared the same by giving and receiving of a Ring, and by
joining of hands; I pronounce therefore that they be Man and
Wife together, in the Name of the Father, + and of the Son, and
of the Holy Spirit. Amen
And the Minister shall add this blessing: God the Father, + God
the Son, God the Holy Spirit, bless, preserve, and keep you;
the Lord mercifully with his favour look upon you; and so fill
you with all spiritual benediction and grace, that ye may so
live together in this life, that in the world to come ye may
have life everlasting. Amen.
And here the Minister shall turn the couple to the Company, and
they may kiss each the other, and then proceed from the Altar.
And if it be the wish of the couple to take Communion, they may
do it privately, following these ceremonies.
Here endeth the Medieval Wedding
-------------------------
According to Barbara Walker in _The Woman's Encyclopedia of
Myths and Secrets_, the original Anglican marriage service for
the wife went like this: "I take thee to my wedded husband, to
have and to hold, for fairer or fouler, for better for worse,
for richer for poorer, in sickness or health, ***to be bonny and
buxom in bed*** and at board, till death us depart [sic]." (A
curious clerical note made in the margin at a later date
explained that "bonny and buxom" really meant "meek and
obedient". Somehow I don't think so.) (She attributes this
information to W. Carew Hazlitt, _Faiths and Folklores of the
British Isles_, p. 447, in case anyone cares to check up on it.)
-------------------------
There is an entire page of Handfasting information on the WWWeb,
URL: http://www.pacificnet.net/~jkdyson/aw/handfast.html. It's
not everything you'll want, but it's a fair place to start.
-------------------------
Kirsti Thomas has compiled the following bibliography of books
on the topic of medieval wedding customs. This bibliography is
also housed at: http://paul.spu.edu/~kst/bib/bib.html.
1.8: Bibliography of Medieval & Renaissance Marriage Practices compiled by Kirsti Thomas
/pub/usenet/news.answers/crafts/historical-costuming
/pub/usenet/news.answers/crafts/textiles/books/part1
/pub/usenet/news.answers/crafts/textiles/books/part2
Several of the works are in languages other than English. Since my
comprehension of Italian and French is minimal at best, I cannot
guarantee the usefulness of works in those languages. I am also in the
process of reviewing the works cited here and will be revising this
bibliography as time allows.
******************************************************************************
Charsley, Simon R. Rites of Marrying: the Wedding Industry in Scotland.
Manchester: Manchester UP, 1991.
Martin James. The Road to the Aisle. New ed. Edinburgh: Saint Andrew,
1987.
(Scottish weddings)
McGuire Kim. The Irish Wedding Book . Dublin: Wolfhound P, 1994.
Power, Patrick C. Sex and Marriage in Ancient Ireland. Dublin:
Mercier, 1976.
2.1: We're using a medieval theme for our wedding. How can we adapt that look for our invitations?
================================================================
Printing the invitations on a heavy parchment and using a type
style that imitates calligraphy will announce to everyone that
your wedding has a Medieval or Renaissance theme. Decorative
motifs that would work with the theme include simple flowers,
fancy scrolls, heraldic symbols, and metallic embossing.
Touches of rich, jewel-tone colors are very period, especially
combined with gold or silver -- think of Medieval illuminated
texts. For a small wedding, you could have a professional write
each invitation in calligraphy, but this will be expensive
(unless you know someone who'd do it as a wedding gift).
-------------------------
For our invitations, I found a nice parchment stock at a local
printer supply company and then took a period border from a clip
art book. A local printer set up the text in a calligraphy
style and printed them. Then by hand I colored the gold and ivy
border. Each invitation was folded in thirds and tied with a
satin ribbon. Cost was about $100.
-------------------------
We have been going through many Celtic art books to find a
design (or a compilation of designs) for the outside cover of
the invitations. My fiance will then make a print of whatever
he finally draws, and then we will scan that into the computer
and print the invitations at home by ourselves on a laser
printer.
-------------------------
I am using a gold Celtic Braid around the border with the symbol
of the 3 goddesses at the top. We are printing them via our
computer on parchment, folding them 1/3, sealing with wax and
mailing it inside an envelope with rsvp card and map.
-------------------------
For my wedding invitations I used a Mac and used different
design elements from clip art "Illuminated Borders" books. I'm
getting them printed digitally in 4-color with the rsvp's and a
business card for $400. Digitally is the way to go for short
run inexpensive printing.
-------------------------
There's a nice 'how-to' for drawing knotwork at
http://www.en.com/users/ivan/knotwork.html
-------------------------
We designed our invitations and announcements on my fiance's
MacIntosh using a combination of medieval fonts (my favorite is
the one that looks like ivy leaves). Our invitations were
printed on ragged-edged, prefolded, parchment stationary with
matching double-envelopes (available by special order at
graphics stores). Our announcements were printed on unfolded
8x11 inch parchment (available by the tablet at art supply
stores). Those announcements which we could hand-deliver were
rolled into a scroll and sealed with wax. Those which had to be
mailed were folded in thirds, wax sealed, and then mailed inside
an envelope.
-------------------------
One motif that ran throughout our wedding was the ancient Earth
symbol of the Greenman. Our invitations were printed in dark
green ink and featured the face of the Greenman.
-------------------------
I browsed through pattern books and looked at inked stamps until
I found a picture of a lord and lady dancing that I really
liked. Using that for inspiration, we drew our design and
scanned it into the computer. Using cardstock parchment, we
laid out the dancers two to a page and the invitation wording
two to a page (so it could be printed two-sided and cut in the
middle). I'm dry-embossing the outer edge of the invitation
(around the dancers) to add a little dimension. Then Mark
designed a map to the location, in stylized fashion, complete
with knight and dragon pictures. There is a mountainous area
called "The Bad Lands of DC", and plenty of trees and even a
picket fence around the "castle". It's really a work of art
(drawn in Wordperfect 6.0). On the back are written directions.
We also made a reply postcard with our address on one side and a
Celtic knot (under which I will handwrite the names of the
invitees) and "Yea I will gladly attend the betrothal of Lady
Amy Elizabeth Rottier of San Diego to Sir Mark David Donovan of
Cleveland"/"Nay, I regret..." on the other side. Both the
map/directions and knot/postcard are on quarters of an 8.5x11
sheet. It really came out well. Including paper, rubber stamp,
sample inks and embossing powders, embossing templates (for the
dry embossing - I bought 2), printing and cutting costs
(courtesy Kinkos), I probably paid less than $50.
-------------------------
One renaissance wedding that took place at RPFN about 6 years
ago had invites that were a sonnet. The sonnet described the
location, the date, the two getting married, the feast, and
other aspects of the wedding in period terms. They were sent
out with an additional little map (as is often done in current
weddings) with directions for those who had not been to the
faire. I had the pleasure of writing the sonnet for them (it
was in Shakespearian form, rather than traditional).
-------------------------
I'm not having a Medieval wedding, but several people have told
me my invitation looks like it was themed. It is not a wedding
invitation per se. I found it at a local stationer who works out
of her home. She had this in a notebook at a bridal faire. It
is an ivory card with a colored border. I chose a plum color.
Overlaying the color is a gold embossing of a flourish design
all around the border. It's very hard for me to describe. If
you want me to try to fax or snail mail you a copy I'd be glad
to. One thing though, since it was not designed as a wedding
invite it doesn't come with inner envelopes, but I was able to
find one that was very close through Paper Direct.
-------------------------
We made rather elaborate invitations with a medieval-style
border, initials and script. The medieval-style border was
taken from an illustrator's idea book, simplified for coloring
with a drawing program (it included ivy leaves, long straight
borders and a dragon - which made it more Tolkien-ish than
medieval). We took a few of those big initials (for my name,
his name and the name of the church) from an actual 13th c.
manuscript. We colored all the borders and the initials by
hand, using cheap felt pens in red, blue and gold - all the
outer borders were "gilded" from the drawn motif to the edge.
In the upper right-hand corner, we put in a verse from a poem by
Finland's greatest classical poet, Eino Leino; the poem is in
"Kalevala"-metre, the old epic metre of our folk poetry. It
talks about life together, something like this (apologies for my
bad attempts to follow the original flawless beat):
"Truly it was they lived together
under the tree with widest top,
truly they made a fire together,
slipped together into bed,
together it was they slept and dreamed
of their eternal selves,
on their brows a dream of happiness,
on their lips the kiss of morning."
The actual wording of the invitation was completely traditional
(since the ceremony was a traditional church ceremony). For
font, we used "American Uncial", which is rounded, sort of
Celtic-looking. The invitations were printed on ordinary white
paper, then glued that on a slightly larger sheet of 100% silk
rag paper - really beautiful pearl color, with silk fibers
clearly showing. We folded them in three and sealed them with
red wax, making a wax seal out of a rose-shaped metal button
glued to a small plastic stick. Hard work (for about 70
invitations), but they were a huge hit, and many friends put
them up for show.
-------------------------
Any competent scribe can letter your invitation in a style
appropriate to the time period and the country of your choice.
(Writing and decoration in 14th century France was totally
unlike that of 16th century England, etc.) Almost any
calligrapher will have a library of clip art that can be used to
decorate the invitation and many will be able to design the
decorative elements. As to printing, a quick print business can
print from the calligrapher's original work. It is simply
photographed, and each invitation looks like it was hand
lettered.
-------------------------
The original of our invitation was calligraphed in Secretary
hand by a friend--it was the Shakespearian sonnet which talks
about the "marriage of true minds".
2.2: Anybody have any creative ideas for wording an invitation in keeping with the medieval style of the wedding?
================================================================
and
Sir Mark David Donovan
request the honour of thy presence
at their marriage
on Saturday, the thirtieth of September in
the year of our Lord Nineteen hundred and ninety five
--------------------fold------------------------------
The ceremony will begin at two o'clock in the after-noon
at
The Griffin's Lair (his mother's name is Griffin)
xxxx Olivers Shop Road
Fried chicken, Maryland
Feasting and merriment will follow the ceremony
Medieval/Renaissance-style garb recommended
but not required
De par le Conte..., Mere de...
Par la presente missive,
Nous avons l'honneur de celebrer en vostre gent presence et cel
de ces vassaux...,
le mariage de Dame..., Fille de..., Heritiere de...,
Regente de..., Dote de...
et
Sieur..., Fils de..., Chevalier de..., Heritiers de...,
Regent de..., dans le fief de...
Seront donnes moult rejouissance et festoiement.
Translation from old French:
In the name of the baron..., father of...
In the name of the countess..., mother of...
With this present lettre,
We have the honour of celebrating in thy kind [or noble]
presence and that of these servants [or vassals or household],
the marriage of Lady..., Daughter of..., Heiress of...,
Governess of..., Dowered of...
and
Sir... Son of..., Knight of..., Hier of...,
Governor of..., in the fief [land or shire] of...
Let there be much rejoicing and feasting.
The phrase "de par le roi" means "in the name of the king," so
one presumes the phrasing to suggest the hand of a scribe (nice
idea, I think) doing the writing.
-------------------------
The honour of thy presence
is hereby requested
at the marriage of
Barbara Jean Wedemayer
and
Timothy Duane Kuehl
on Saturday the eleventh of June
in a mediaeval wedding ceremony
at half-past the seventh hour
in the eventide
Let it be known that on the 11th day of June
in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and ninety-four
the house of Wedemayer pledged its firstborn daughter
Barbara Jean
to the house of Kuehl in marriage to the firstborn son
Timothy Duane
at
(name of church)
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
**
Mr. & Mrs. Kuehl now reside
at
(our address)
City, State
Zip
2.3: I'm thinking of rolling up my invitation (but how would you mail that cheaply!). Any suggestions??!!
================================================================
You can buy tubes in which to mail them.
-------------------------
If you really want to go gala, have your invitations delivered by a friend dressed as a herald!
2.4: We bought metallic gold wax and two stamps to seal our invitations but can't for the life of us figure out how to use them! Any hints/suggestions out there would be greatly appreciated!
================================================================
We used wax seals on our invitations, and I had the same
question. Luckily, we happened to be watching a movie with a
medieval setting and saw the method used by the king to seal a
document. He held the stick of sealing wax over a candle flame
until it began to melt, then quickly positioned the stick over
the envelope and let the melting wax drip onto the desired
spot. Once he had enough wax, he picked up the stamp and pushed
it down on the soft wax. We tried doing it that way and, after
a few trial runs, determined about how long to hold the stick in
the candle flame, about how much wax we would need for a good
seal, and about how hard the wax had to be in order to get a
legible seal. After that, it was a breeze.
-------------------------
Aside from lighting the wax directly (which will produce some
blackened wax), you can use the old-fashioned spoon method.
Crumble pieces of wax into an old spoon. Warm the underside of
the spoon over a candle. When the wax is melted, carefully pour
it onto the envelope. Stamp with the seal. This, as with all
wax sealing methods, takes some practice on scrap paper.
Victorian Papers sells a fancy wax sealing set that includes a
tiny spoon with a spout just for this purpose. The spoon is
$7.95, the wax beads (easier to melt in spoon) are $8.95 per
box.
-------------------------
After putting the puddle of hot melted wax on the envelope, if
you will breathe on the seal (which leaves it a bit damp from
the moisture in your breath) it will not stick to the hot wax.
-------------------------
This is a quote from an instruction sheet entitled "Making Wax
Seals" and provided by The Swordmark Company out of Atlanta, GA,
a vendor of stationery supplies and waxseals.
"In the old days, they used to lick the seal or dip it in
water before each use--the thin coating of water would keep
the hot wax from sticking to the metal. We suggest you
lightly spray the metal seal with a non-stick lubricant
(e.g., WD40, Pam cooking spray, silicone) to ensure that
the wax won't stick.
"Light the wax, tilt the stick at an angle, and let the wax
drip into a puddle big enough for your seal. Blow out the
wax stick, and place the metal seal firmly in the way while
it is still liquid. Wait 5 seconds to allow the wax to
harden before pulling the seal from the wax.
"To cleanup, wipe the metal seal with a paper towel. If
any wax is stuck to the metal, use a pin to poke it out,
and next time lubricate that spot more carefully."
2.5: My fiance and I will be making our own invitations and would like to use a wax seal on the outside of the envelope. I was wondering if anyone ran into problems with the post office, like wax getting stuck in postal machines or anything like that?
================================================================
The post office really doesn't like it - it messes up their
machines. However, I don't believe there is any actual
prohibition against using it.
-------------------------
We didn't place the seal on the outside envelope. Rather, we
folded the announcement in thirds (leaving an overlapping lip)
and then sealed the lip. We mailed the announcement in an
envelope and sent it as a regular letter. At the same time, I
mailed a sealed announcement to myself (to see how the wax would
withstand the postal department). The seal arrived slightly
cracked. If you use wax seals, you might want to have the
envelopes hand-cancelled or use a cardboard envelope. Another
possibility is to forgo the wax and just use one of those red
or gold stickers that look like a real seal.
-------------------------
I've been experimenting and have found something that may help
people who are having problems mailing the wax seals. White
glue. White glue thinned with a little bit of water is flexible
but apparently strong enough to keep the seal together if it
does crack and, best of all, it's clear when applied with a
paint brush (and the brush can be washed in water to clean).
-------------------------
I always wrap the envelope in a nice, gaudy gold or silver
ribbon then poor wax over a spot on the ribbon and then press
the seal into the wax, sealing both ribbon and paper. I also
put the invitations inside a standard envelope which has the
recipient's name lettered quite plainly. This allows a really
fancy lettering of the recipient's name on the inside envelope,
and people like nothing in calligraphy as much as their name.
2.6: How about thank you cards? Any ideas for how we can make our thank you cards look medieval in style?
In Finland,we do not write thank-you letters; we send thank-you
cards with a photograph. Our thank-you cards consisted of
printed paper, outer card backing, and a photo of us at the
altar. The card was made of rather thick stock with a grey-white
marble motif (or cloud, maybe). The inner paper is something
called "Paris paper" - nicely uneven, but we were warned later
that it would not hold ink too well. The right-hand side of the
opened card has the photo in an oval rimmed in gold. The
left-hand side is folded in two. On top we put a motif of two
dragons holding a crowned heart (this was modified from the
invitation dragon), a line of Kahlil Gibran, and "With thanks"
in larger letters, with a medieval initial; we signed under
that. We colored the dragons and the inital by hand again. When
opened, the double-width left-hand side displays a choice of
texts we wanted to include in a wedding program, but time ran
out: some more Kahlil Gibran, some Shakespeare (Much Ado About
Nothing, Benedick and Beatrice having words), and Aragorn's and
Arwen's wedding from Lord of the Rings. We used the same font as
in our invitations.
-------------------------
We used the same ragged-edged, prefolded, stationary parchment
for our thank you cards that we used for our invitations. Using
medieval-looking fonts, we simply inkjet printed 'Thank Thee' on
the outside of the card. My favorite font was the initial T in
both 'Thank' and "Thee'--it looked like ivy vines. We handwrote
the message on the inside.
****************************************************************
3.1: Those who were married in a medieval-style ceremony, what did your wedding party and guests wear?
================================================================
My dress was upper-middle class, Spanish style in forest green
with mint green trim and pearls. My husband wore garb from the
same green but his was trimmed in gold.
-------------------------
The bride wore a Renaissance style cartridge-pleated, side-laced
dress of purple, lilac and black satin. The groom wore Tudor
style gears like you see in the pictures of Henry VIII,
including codpiece. The guests all wore their favourite garb.
The bride lent me a dress - Renaissance style back-laced dress
with plunging v-neck, in blue and silver, with a line of tiny
bells round the waist line.
-------------------------
My husband and I wore ivory and gold Elizabethan garb (not so
much because these were wedding colours, but because they were
popular Elizabethan colours). Another wedding I attended had
the male and female attendants in red and blue cotehardies,
while the bride and groom wore houppelandes.
-------------------------
In a 1993 wedding I attended, the bride's attendants wore angel
dresses -- basically these were long tunics with tied around the
waist with a rope-like belt.
-------------------------
In a trendy dresshop, I found a white, gauzy, A-line floor
length dress with a white-embroidered bodice. I dyed it green
because medieval brides did not normally wear white. I did,
however, wear it with a white lace shawl and a wreath of fresh
ivy for a tiara. I carried a bouquet of green ivy and white
sweetpea which I tied together with trailing white and green
ribbons. My bridesmaids wore long, green, crushed velvet
dresses and carried candles. The groom dressed as a medieval
huntsman in green velvet britches, knee-length leather
mocassins, white shirt and leather jerkhin. The groomsmen
dressed similarly (except they did not wear jerkhins). I made
their britches but they obtained everything else from Museum
Replicas Ltd.
-------------------------
The bride wore a cream brocade dress (a bit of fantasy here - it
was modeled after one in the Princess Bride) with her hair
uncovered. Her bridesmaids each wore a dress in a jewel tone to
match their own persona: one was in a deep red tudor, another in
emerald green cotehardie. She also made matching outfits for
her parents and his parents (the fathers discovered how much fun
tights can be - we complimented them on their legs quite
regularly!) Guests were encouraged to wear garb (although the
SCA guests wore garb as a matter of course). The groom, being
Irish, wore a saffron yellow tunic with embroidery and went
barefoot most of the day.
-------------------------
One of my cousins decided to do a Ren wedding on Twelfth Night
the same year we did ours. When I finally saw the pictures I was
quite disappointed in the quality of her "production". Not only
did she wear a white dress, the bridesmaids all wore the same
color and kind of dress. Both TOTALLY inappropriate for the
period. They were also more of an Arthurian fantasy style and
not authentic to the period. However the groom did get to wear
a full suit of armour! (Way cool!)
-------------------------
About half the guests dressed in costume, including the parents
and several newborns! Although I had a regular, off-shoulder
wedding dress (ordered before we got this bright idea!) and
wreath, Alan wore tunic, tights, and sword. The sword became
quite a prop for pictures -- my favorite photo is of all
costumed guests surrounding me as I knighted Alan. After we'd
chosen our garb, we ran across the most beautiful medieval
wedding costumes in a shop -- but it was too late and the wrong
season. (The costumes were appropriate for winter, not August.)
-------------------------
I already have a good portion of my clothing (leggings,
knee-high hand-tooled moccassins from Bald Mountain Mocs, etc.)
since we frequent RenFests in the Michigan/Illinois/Ohio area.
I'll probably buy an exceptional quality shirt and a brocaded
jacket/vest to dress my usual garb up for the occasion.
-------------------------
My dress was made by a bridal shop that makes dresses in Takoma
Park, MD. I found the perfect material after many weeks of
intensive searching - an ivory brocade with gold strewn through
it. The fabric was $25 a yard. I wanted the majority of the
dress made with this fabric, and the rest in an ivory antiqued
satin. The way it ended up: dropped waist gown with full
skirt, slim long sleeves, pointed. Low neckline. Plain
shoulders. The brocade fabric was used everywhere except the
sleeves and a front placket that ran from neck to hem. I had a
gold cord criss-crossed across the front of the bodice and tied
at the dropped waist. Everyone said I sparkled in the sun. I
felt so beautiful in that dress. My then-fiance decided he
wanted to wear a cloak and tights, so tights they wore. We had
the cloak made (reversible, in black and burgundy, with glorious
trim), found burgundy leggings in a clothing store, he made a
belt, and dyed his moccasin boots. He wore a tunic of an ivory
color, with a stand-up collar. He also wore leather bracelets
(the manly kind!). He was stunning. Anyway, it turned out that
Mark's outfit cost as much as mine. How's that for equality!
My bridesmaids wore a version of a dirndl pattern - a
floor-length skirt (in burgundy) with bodice-vested top (in
mauve). The pattern also included a shirt, but we made the
sleeves from a muslin-type cotton (off-white and speckly) and
just attached them to the vest. The guys wore a version of
Mark's outfit - black cloak (not as ornate, and not reversible),
black shirts with burgundy belts, burgundy tights, and black
ankle-high moccasin boots.
-------------------------
I suppose my dress was more like "fantasy Ren", two layers of
beige gauze skirt with lace, and a beige gauzy top with a
lace-up center (upon which were sewn pearls and brilliants).
I've always been a fiend for lace, so there was lots of it,
including a 5 foot lace "train" veil (carried by my "page"). We
bought the basic dress stuff (skirts, top) and embellished the
hell out of it. It had detachable sleaves of lace, very big and
trailing at the bottom. He wore breeches and boots, a loose
cotton shirt and a big cloak. Our parents were also dressed in
Renaissance mode, as were my Mom's folks. A lot of the guests
came in Ren or pseudo-Ren, which made it a lot of fun!
-------------------------
My fiance and I will be wearing traditional wedding clothes
(since he couldn't manage to talk his ushers into wering period
clothing!) My dress is ivory, with a V-neck neckline and
brocade detailing on the bodice, with matching detail an inch
above the hemline. My fiance bought me the necklace I will be
wearing. It is a Medieval cross (purchased through Past Times),
even on all four sides (rather than a traditional cross, which
is longer at the bottom) with a garnet in the center. The four
"ends" are in the shape of Fleur de Lys, with a pearl on three
of them. It was believed back then that this type of medallion
was good luck. The ushers will be wearing tuxedoes but not with
the traditional bowtie and cumberbund. Instead, it's the type of
tuxedo with an ascot (wide tie) and vest. Danny (the groom) will
wear tails, and the ushers will wear shorter jackets. The girls
will be wearing emerald green velvet dresses.
-------------------------
The hardest thing to do was getting enough GOOD costumes for
everyone. It is much easier to do if you do peasant or lower
middle class dress, but we did a noble wedding which is harder
to pull off. We used our costume colors in a dramatic way.
Andrea's family and attendants were dressed in yellows & browns,
while my side was predominately in blues & grays. We were both
dressed in green. Andrea had gold trim, myself with blue. Even
though it was slightly 'theatrical' it represented a symbolic
merging of the families -- Andrea's family in Earth tones, my
own family in the colors of water and sky, and us in green, the
color of new growth and renewal. It turned out that the hardest
thing with the costumes was convincing both mothers that they
REALLY had to wear them. Both fathers said "It sounds like
fun!".
3.2: Any ideas on how I can encourage my guests to dress in period clothing, too?
================================================================
I attended my first SCA event last summer - as a guest at a
friend's wedding. With each invitation, she included a small
SCA-published pamphlet that talked about how to quickly, cheaply
and easily make period dress for just such an event. Many
people chose to follow this and some even wore towels clipped
together to form tabbards. Others chose simply to come in
mundane clothing.
-------------------------
We encouraged our guests to come in period attire, but did not
make it mandatory. I included a brouchure that I had bought at
the Southern (California) Faire about assembling an outfit that
would give a period look using clothing that most people might
already have or could get easily. We also included info about
where people could rent or purchase costumes in the area. About
half of our guests at least made an attempt to come in period
attire, the rest mostly wore traditional modern dress clothing.
At least they came, so I didn't mind that they were in modern
clothing. Also try to get a caterer, photograher and minister
who will dress in period clothing, and be prepared to get the
clothing for them. We interviewed a few before we found some
that would be willing to 'dress up' for our wedding.
-------------------------
Try to get a minister who will dress in period clothing and be
prepared to get the clothing for them. We interviewed a few
before we found some that would be willing to 'dress up' for
our wedding.
-------------------------
The gentleman that did our wedding was a personal friend but is
on a referal list the Faire keeps of ordained clergy that will
do weddings in period garb, style, etc.
-------------------------
Some friends of mine had a Renaissance-style wedding a couple of
years ago. The reception was themed as a masked ball (so the
family and friends could wear any costume they wanted). The
wearing of masks was prevalent throughout the 15th and 16th
centuries, especially during the Carnival season. The film
"Much Ado About Nothing" (the Branagh version) has a very nice
masked party. The Liz Taylor-Richard Burton version of Taming
of the Shrew has a Carnival procession wandering through Padua.
And of course, there's Zefirelli's Romeo and Juliet, where R&J
meet at a masked party.
-------------------------
For those guests who cannot come up with a suitable costume I
am making 'slip on' costumes -- tunics over pants for men,
dresses for women.
3.3: HELP! My fiance wants a medieval-style wedding but I don't know the first thing about that time period, much less about the clothes they wore.
================================================================
Go to the library and take a look at some historical costume
books and pick out a time frame that suits you. Here are some
basic categories to help you decide:
If you want your whole bridal party in period garb, think about
what styles everyone will be comfortable in. Renaissance
peasants and Medieval clothing will probably be easiest to wear
for those not accustomed to heavy, confining, or unusual
clothing. These are also the easiest styles to create!
-------------------------
For any given century, there was usually one or two "cultural
centers of the world." Everyone else tried to imitate that
culture. For example, the British Isles spent most of the
11th-13th century trying to imitate France. In the late
14th-15th centuries, Italy was the place to imitate. In the
16th and 17th centuries, Spain and then England were considered
cultural centers. The cotehardie was *the* fashion for women in
the 12th - 13th centuries. The best examples of the style are
in french books of hours. Most of those books also show women
in houppelandes which was the second most popular fashion from
the 12th - mid 14th century. The houppelande is a much
"bulkier", gathered dress that is also very lovely. The main
style of clothing for most of the middle ages (popular from
Roman times through the 12th century) is the T-tunic. It is
very simple to make but has millions of variations and can be
elaborately decorated. You can decorate the sleeves, the hem,
the collar, the front, etc. It can be as long or as short as
you please, the sides can flare out instead of being cut
straight down, and the side seams can be left open below the
hips for greater range of movement. The T-tunic was worn by
both men and women and it is cut like:
-------------------\ /--------------------
|...................-----....................|
|.._________......................_________..|
|./ |......................| \.|
|/ |......................| \|
/ |......................| \
|......................|
|......................|
|......................|
|......................|
|......................|
|......................|
|......................|
|......................|
|......................|
|......................|
|......................|
|......................|
|......................|
|......................|
------------------------
3.4: My wife is desperately in need of a source of patterns for medieval/Renaissance wedding clothing for the bride, groom, and all of the wedding party. Where can we get such patterns?
================================================================
There are a number of different pattern companies that
specialize in historically-accurate period clothing. Four that
I have heard of (and there may be others) are Folkwear Patterns,
Period Patterns (by Medieval Miscellanea), Past Patterns and
Fantasy Patterns.
-------------------------
Folkwear Patterns is a large, popular company that makes
patterns inspired by folk costume, ethnic clothing, and
historical fashions. The patterns are historically accurate,
and include historical/ethnic/folkloric notes & ideas for
embellishment. Many of the ethnic clothing patterns work for
Med/Ren styles, esp. peasant clothes. The historical fashions
are mostly 19th & 20th century. Medieval Miscellanea is one of
the few makers of specifically Med/Ren clothing patterns. They
have a lot of historical annotation, but can be hard to follow.
Past Patterns makes 19th & early 20th century patterns,
historically accurate, often with historical info on the
patterns.
-------------------------
I have Period Patterns No. 56, Late Tudor and Elizabethan Gowns.
Historical notes are included with the patterns.
-------------------------
Period Patterns, Fantasy Fashion Patterns and Folkwear Patterns
are also available through Chivalry Sports (see catalog list),
although their selection is very limited. Period Patterns are
available through MacKenzie-Smith.
-------------------------
-------------------------
Fantasy Fashion patterns are in the Raiments catalog.
-------------------------
From amberly@magellan.cloudnet.com
I have ordered Folkwear patterns and have been very pleased with
them. I have seen Folkwear patterns carried in specialty
pattern shops, but they carry a very limited selection.
-------------------------
Try Folkwear Patterns. They have various enthnic patterns as
well as historical ones. Not all fabric stores carry them. I'd
recommend sitting down with the yellow pages, looking up
"Fabrics" and calling every fabric store listed. Talk to the
managers if you have to - if they don't carry Folkwear they
might know of places that do. I've made several of the Folkwear
patterns. Many of them are DIFFICULT (and I'm a *very*
experienced seamstress). Many of them are constructed in ways
that are close to the originals, which means odd pieces and
attachments. They also tend to have several sizes in the same
envelope. Proper body measurements are a must, and you need an
experienced seamstress to do it. By the way, some of the
patterns are absolutely gorgeous - so they're worth the effort.
But not for the fainthearted!
-------------------------
If historical accuracy matters, I *highly* recommend buying the
Raiments catalog of historical patterns. There are some very
easy to use patterns for men's & women's medieval and
Renaissance garments, plus they sell readymade corsets & hoops
(for noblewomen's costumes). If you aren't too concerned with
history, look through the pattern books at your local fabric
store. The Halloween sections have many simple Robin Hood style
outfits, plus there are a few Christopher Columbus patterns
still out there. You can also modify modern patterns by
extending hemlines, adding fullness to sleeves, cutting pants
into breeches, and making vests lace up instead of button. The
books _Elizabethan Costuming_ and _After a Fashion_ both have
great tips on modifying modern patterns to create historical
costumes.
-------------------------
COSTUME REFERENCES
-------------------------
I highly recommend picking up a copy of "Elizabethan Costuming".
It is by far the best practical book for Elizabethan costuming
of all classes. It includes info on dress, hair styles, and
head coverings.
-------------------------
The best place to get authentic patterns for the 16th Century is
from a book by Janet Arnold - ["Patterns of Fashion", published
in 1985 by Macmillan London Limited]. What she does is take
REAL clothing from the period, carefully studies it and makes
actual patterns from the original garments. In the book there
are a series of pattern drawings from her research. Of course,
these are to scale, and you'd have to get your own pattern paper
(or butcher's paper) to redraw the patterns - but it includes a
number of mens and womens' and children's outfits - plus it has
photographs of the actual pieces - including some close-ups of
the insides...amazing detail information that will make any
costumer drool.
-------------------------
The only way to get really period garb is to sew it yourself, of
course. If you're going for a very early period &/or for
peasant classes, the clothes are pretty easy to make & you could
round up everyone you know & have sewing parties. When doing
period events with non-costumer folk, it's always a good idea to
make it as easy & comfortable for them as possible. You might
not want to stress historical accuracy if you're dealing with
people who rarely wear anything but jeans and sneakers!
3.5: I can't sew on a button. Where can I buy medieval clothing?
================================================================
Look in regular clothing stores for things with a Medieval or
Renaissance flair. Women look for: long velvet gowns with
fitted bodices, long sleeves, and full skirts; velvet or
tapestry vests (especially those that lace up the front),
peasant blouses, ruffled blouses, long skirts. Men look for:
full pirate-style shirts, velvet tunics, velvet or tapestry or
leather vests, baggy trousers, boots. For simple peasant
outfits, go to thrift and second-hand stores for gauzy peasant
blouses, pirate shirts, long cotton skirts, and leather boots
and belts.
-------------------------
For about the past eight years, I've KNOWN what I wanted my
wedding dress to be like. If you look in french books of hours,
you see it all over the place - it's sort of an A-line dress
except much more fitted in the chest/rib cage area, scoop
neckline, fitted sleeves, huge skirt and train. Then, while
flipping through some bridal magazines, I saw this one
bridesmaid's dress, and I just kept coming back to it. So
finally I said to myself, "if you don't go try on that dress,
you'll never be happy with any other dress, not even your dream
dress." So I went to a store and tried it on - just that one
and no other. I just about cried at how pretty I FELT when I
put it on. Especially when the saleslady pulled out *the
perfect veil* to wear with it. It was THE DRESS after all. As
an added plus, since it was labelled as a bridesmaid's dress, it
was cheap compared to most wedding gowns. I paid about $400 for
the dress and veil which was less than I had planned to spend
making my original dream dress.
-------------------------
Check out local costume rental shops -- this way bridal party
members & guests don't have to pay for whole outfits they'll
never wear again. Also, take a look through thrift shops for
accessories like belts, cups, jewelry, etc. BTW, a decent
costume shop will be as "approximately period" as any of the
readymade supposedly period clothes I've ever seen for sale!)
Some stores will even sell you the costumes, if you want to keep
them or make alterations. One warning -- do not expect to be
able to do this in October. Costume shops are swamped in
October (for Halloween), so prices go up and selection goes
down.
-------------------------
I think I may have found a gown! There's a costume shop here
that supplies our local theater groups...They have something
that, although it's too big, they may be able to make me a copy
in the colors and fabrics I choose. Now I've got to pick
fabrics, check costs, and pray it can be done in the time I've
got!!
-------------------------
Ask everyone you know if they have anything in their closets.
People who do living history sometimes get tired of their
costumes and sell them. Place a small ad in the local
costumer's guild, Renaissance guild, and SCA newsletters. Ask
around on rec.sca.org and alt.renaissance.faires, too (these are
also good places to search for a costumer/seamstress).
-------------------------
I contacted my local SCA chapter and arranged to have our
wedding outfits made by someone into costuming. We made sure
they were done period so that we could use them for later Faires
and events. She went to the fabric distrinct in downtown LA and
found an elegant wool imported from England at only $5 a yard.
The total cost on our outfits was $350.
-------------------------
For the costumes, we're getting a costumer who's also involved
with local Renaissance festivals. Groomsmens outfits will be
about $65 to rent, bridesmaids about $100, groom about $100 (his costume is more elaborate). The people we're working with are
actually willing to make the clothes to our specifications, then
rent them to us. This way they get to keep the clothes and rent
them out to other people later. You may be able to get a
costumer to do this, too, especially if they do weddings a lot.
These people are also willing to make my dress, and they said
that if they can't do it then they know people from the Ren
Faire who can. If you have a Ren. Faire in your area I
definitely recommend going there, if only just to get some
ideas. By the way, we're sticking with tunics for the men and
princess-seamed dresses for the women. That way the men don't
have to wear tights, and princess dresses look good on almost
any body type. We're going with capes, too. They look really
dramatic.
-------------------------
One of my best friends is a costumer who happens to specialize
in renaissance costumes. He agreed to do our outfits as well as
clothe the rest of the wedding party and our parents. He worked
with us to design our clothing and incorporate our ideas. After
several discussions and much research, he did some renderings to
show what the final product would look like. We then went
shopping for fabrics and trims, and then he went to WORK. The
final version exceeded our expectations! They were simply
marvelous! Without his support and well-stocked closet, I don't
think we could have done it. All told, he provided 22 costumes
-- the ones he made for us (which we kept) and 20 others that he
either pulled from or made for his stock.
-------------------------
Check with local theatrical companies and college theater
departments to see if they've done any Shakespearean plays
recently and want to sell their costumes. This is a long shot,
but it doesn't hurt to ask. Also check to see if they have
particular times when everything in the wardrobe's up for sale
(some places do this once a year as a fund-raiser).
3.6: Does anybody know of a catalog which offers readymade but affordable period clothes? I can't possibly sew for everyone!
================================================================
There are a number of mailorder companies that carry readymade
period clothing. Some will even rent clothing. See the list
of catalogs in this faqsheet.
3.7: Does anyone know of good Web sites regarding medieval clothing?
================================================================
You might check the CLOTHING section of my SCA Rialto files at:
http://fermi.clas.virginia.edu/~gl8f/rialto/rialto.html. The
file patterns-msg details a number of modern patterns that can
be modified to medieval style clothing. I believe there is
another file that lists the names and addresses of various
merchants selling medieval patterns. There are various other
files on making gloves, headgear, shoes, undergarments and other
clothing apparel as well as files on Scottish and Irish clothing
and other clothing files.
________________________
There is another website that I know of which offers costuming
information: http://www.bibiana.com/velvet/peasant.html
contains directions for making Renaissance peasant clothing.
Two other sources of information about period clothing is the
Historical Costuming FAQ at
http://reality.sgi.com/employees/lara/lara.html and the Historic
Costume Mailing List (see following message).
________________________
The Historic Costume Mailing List focuses on the re-creation of
period costume, from the Bronze age to the mid-20th Century. We
discuss accurate historical reproduction of clothing, historical
techniques for garment construction, and the application of
those techniques in modern clothing design. Other topics
frequently discussed include adapting historical clothing for
the modern figure, clothing evolution, theatrical costumes,
patterns, materials, books, and sources for supplies. We have
over 600 members, of varying levels of ability, education and
interest. Members include re-creationists and reenactors of all
eras, historians, museum personnel, students and professors of
both theatre and history, and other academics, authors,
directors, dancers, professional costumers, wearable artists,
sewers interested in learning "lost" techniques, and some who
are simply "fans" of history. This is a list that brings
together many different types of people, all sharing information
and hanging out and having fun.
To join the list, send a message to:
majordomo@lunch.engr.sgi.com
In that message, say one of the following as the body of the
message:
subscribe h-costume
end
or
subscribe h-costume-digest
end
The first will put you on the list to receive approx. 5-20
messages per day. The second will put you on the list to
receive one digest approximately every 1-5 days of the past
week's mailings.
3.8: My fiance has informed me that he hates tuxes and would prefer to get married in a robe rather like the ones worn by Sir Thomas More in A Man for All Seasons. Anyone have a clue where I would find such a beast?
================================================================
I believe that the garment for which you search is called in
period a "loose gown". Patterns for several may be found in
"Patterns of Fashion, vol III" by Janet Arnold. The scaled
patterns may look complicated but this was the first garment
which my lord husband patterned and made for himself. Your lord
will look splendid, but don't skimp on the fabric.
3.9: Does anyone know where I could get a velvet cape? I am thinking about an evening wedding and an off the shoulder gown, and I get cold easily (Plus I just love them!!).
****************************************************************
Capes are probably the world's easiest thing to sew -- a
beginner can do it, even in velvet (if you're patient). Many
pattern companies have simple cape patters with variations like
collars, hoods, etc. Look in the "coats" and "evening wear"
sections of pattern companies. Depending on your gown, you
might want a full-length cape or a fingertip length one or even
a short elbow length cape. It can be simple and unadorned or
you can edge it with fur, maribou, lace, ribbon, cording,
metallic braid, etc. This is *such* an easy project! Don't
waste a lot of time searching for one readymade in stores --
just go to the fabric store. And if you don't sew, ask around.
Grandmothers, older aunts, and even mothers are often of a
generation that knew how to sew. It could be a lovely wedding
present too.
4.1: What flowers can I use in my bouquet to go along with the medieval theme of my clothing?
================================================================
In a book entitled "Period Flowers", the chapters called
"Medieval Flowers" and "Renaissance" talk about the flowers
most popular during those times.
-------------------------
There is a book called "Theme Gardens" that you might want to
check out. It has plans for several gardens--including a
medieval paradise garden, a Shakepeare garden, and others. It's
a wonderful place to look for lists of appropriate flowers.
-------------------------
Our wedding has a Celtic theme...and my bouquet will have white
roses, wine roses, thistle, and heather.
-------------------------
I carried a bouquet of green ivy, white sweetpeas, white roses,
and white carnations which I tied together with trailing white
and green ribbons.
-------------------------
Each could carry a single long-stemmed red rose trimmed with
ribbons.
-------------------------
I had a cascading hand bouquet with lots of ivy trailing and
many colorful flowers (I wanted garden-y type flowers, simple
and homey). The girls had large hand-tied bouquets of the same
flowers. My flower crown was BIG - but I'm a big girl, and they
balanced me out. The florist made a spray for the arch, too,
and it was incredible. Looked fantastic and drew the ceremony
place together (a single big focus point just behind us, instead
of distractions everywhere).
-------------------------
Here's an alternative I'm toying with (shamelessly pilfered from
Martha Stewart): Each attendant carries a bouquet made from a
single flower but using the same greenery & general shape of
bouquet. The picture I saw had one bouquet made with irises,
one with white roses, one with orange lilies, and one with a red
flower (not roses, but I can't think of what it was). It looked
really pretty, especially since all the bridesmaids had
identical gowns.
-------------------------
My attendants are each carrying a cluster of tulips tied with
ribbon. Very reasonable price at that time of year (spring).
Haven't decided yet if each will carry a different color, but
maybe. With 4, you could do the colors like winter, spring,
summer, fall.
-------------------------
Three ideas I've seen and loved: 1) A small round bouquet with
cascading ivy and ribbon (ivy is cheap filler, but beautiful,
ribbon you can get inexpensively at a craft/fabric store).
2) Long stem flowers. Tie them together with green craft wire,
wrap about 4 inches of satin ribbon around the stems (toward the
bottom) and attach a bow to the ribbon. (I like satin bows)
Add ribbons and pearls to the hanging ribbons from the bow to
make it more fancy/formal. 3) Baskets: We *might* have the
flower girls carrying small baskets filled with petals and then
have the BM carrying bigger baskets filled with flowers and
hanging ivy. My mom has bought the baskets at yardsales and
craft stores for between 25c and a buck. She will decorate them
with satin material and ribbon, then we will give them to our
florist who can make a flower arrangement for the BMs. The
florist suggested we use the BM's arrangements as table
centerpieces.
-------------------------
My fiance's name is ERIC, so my flowers were Edelweiss (a pain
to find in October!!!), Roses, Ivy, and Carnations. I know, it
sounds too cute for words, but I really liked it. For my
bridesmaids, I had bouquets that were virtually the same, except
for one type of flower. I found one kind of flower that means
"friendship forever" (my best friend's bouquet); another kind of
flower means "memories treasured" (for the bridesmaid who had
been a friend since before we could walk); "new friendship" for
my future SIL; etc. There are several good books on flowers
that tell about the meanings of different flowers. It's kind of
neat, once you get going. When I gave each bridesmaid her
bouquet, I included a little card that explained the meaning of
their special flower. We all cried baskets before we even left
my house!
-------------------------
Ancients used herbs, not flowers, in bouquets because they felt
herbs--especially garlic--had the power to cast off evil spirits
(can you imagine walking up the aisle holding a clump of
garlic!?). If a bride carried sage (the herb of wisdom) she
became wise; if she carried dill (the herb of lust) she became
lusty. Later flowers replaced herbs and took on meanings all
their own. Orange blossoms, for example, mean happiness and
fertility. Ivy means fidelity; lillies mean purity.
-------------------------
Our flower girl carried sheaves of wheat, a symbol of growth,
fertility, and renewal.
4.2: Does anyone know (or can anyone point me to a resource for) the meanings of different flowers in a bouquet?
================================================================
The language of the flowers is ancient and many of the symbols
have not changed. These examples come from Shakespeare:
Red rose and myrtle = I love you
Ivy with white and red flowers = marry me?
Forget-me-nots = my true love is yours
Pansies = you occupy my thoughts
Violets = I am faithful and loyal
Mint = great virtue
Sage = great respect
White and red roses = unity of purpose
Pink roses = ours must be a secret love
Marigolds = I am a jealous lover
Lavender = I distrust you
Basil = I hate you
-------------------------
If you are interested in creating a bouquet with a special
meaning, the following website contains a list of flowers and
their meanings: http://acm.vt.edu/~lfowler/wed/flowers.html.
4.3: I've found a wonderful company to make our "costumes", but I'm not sure what to wear for a "veil". I know veils are traditional nowadays, but our medieval wedding is anything but. Could I wear flowers in my hair instead of a veil?
================================================================
It's not necessary to wear a veil. A veil is merely traditional
and ceremonial (although in Judaism Conservative and Orthodox
ceremonies, it's a requirement). Since your wedding sounds very
much your own, the only thing that's important is that your
headpiece (if you choose to wear one) look beautiful.
-------------------------
The veils of today have only been used for the last hundred or
so years so, by not wearing one, you aren't contradicting some
ancient tradition. I like the look of flowers scattered
throughout a hairdo--nice and whimsical.
-------------------------
I'm planning to wear fresh flowers instead of a veil. Once I
decide on a dress, I'll try to figure out which flowers will
go with it.
-------------------------
Instead of a veil, I wore a wreath of fresh ivy. Anne of Cleves
(early 1500's) supposedly wore a wreath of rosemary at her
wedding.
-------------------------
All the Renaissance Faires that I have been to sell wreaths made
out of dried flowers. I've usually seen a *wide* variety of
colors and flowers used, so you should be able to find something
that matches or complements what you're wearing. I've liked the
look of the flower wreaths so much that my headpiece is going to
be a wreath similar to the ones sold at the Faires.
-------------------------
A wreath of flowers is a very ancient bridal headpiece. You
could also wear your hair loose, which symbolizes virginity
(married women wore their hair up and mostly covered). You
could have the bridesmaids wear their hair braided or up, to
emphasize the bride.
-------------------------
The headpiece I will be wearing is a wreath made of
ivory-colored flowers, with a veil attached to the back. I am
also having headpieces made by a friend of mine for my
bridesmaids. They will have different colored flowers, baby's
breath, and ribbons (which coordinate with the emerald-colored
dresses) instead of the veil.
-------------------------
We adapted a Finnish tradition of the mothers crowning the bride
to give their blessing to the daughter. Andrea entered wearing
a wreath, which she gave to one of her attendants, then both
mothers came forward and put a snood and tiara on her head.
-------------------------
I had my hair braided by a woman who does braiding at
renaissance faires. Flowers, pearls, but no headpiece and no
veil. It was the talk of the wedding! (I also paid to have my
sister's hair braided - her braid cost $38, and mine $50, plus I
gave her a $12 tip, making it an even $100 - this was one of my
slurges!).
-------------------------
I don't like veils either. I have really long hair and so I made
a headpiece that is three white silk rose buds, two mini-lilies,
& ivy. Draping down from the flowers is three loops of white
satin ribbon with long pearl sprays over the ribbon. It's a
little hard to describe, but the effect is similar to a veil
without having to actually endure netting or tulle or whatever
it is. It goes on the back of my head.
-------------------------
My friend Paivi's headpiece consisted of her magnificently long
and thick tawny hair styled around her head (not in braids, but
sort of tubes or rolls) and decorated with fresh ivy leaves and
individual white gladiolus flowers. It was really beautiful.
Paivi's cousin is getting married in a few weeks. I heard that
her veil is short, layered and rather fluffy and that she's
renting a headpiece from "Kalevala Koru". They make jewellery
based on actual historical jewellery findings., The headpiece is
a bronze or silver garland, and can be worn either closed,
crownlike on top of the head, or open at the end, tiara-like.
-------------------------
I decided to get a head band with a tear drop pearl in front
because I've always loved the look (sort of like a mythic
princess). I would highly recommend trying some on and then
finding someone to make the one you want. I had no idea what I
was looking for till I tried some on. It's amazingly easy to
have someone make one, and that way you get exactly what you
want. Also, the price for mine was incredible, it was cheaper
than it would have been had I bought one in a store.
-------------------------
We had a formal evening reception with a medieval-ish theme. I
made a veil for myself. I borrowed a small gold-and-rhinestone
tiara from a theatre and added a two-layered, gathered tulle
veil with narrow gold thread edging starting straight from the
tiara. The upper layer went to my waist and served as a blusher;
the other layer went down to the hem of my gown (no train). I
had always known I wanted a long, big veil, but I hate the look
of those white pearl-and-sequin headpieces. Nor was I too keen
on fresh flowers, because I think they look best with no veil at
all (with very well styled hair). The tiara was perfect with my
gold-accented silk gown.
4.4 I would like to use a garland of ivy as a headpiece, as it is symbolic of good luck and all. I have an ivy plant, and I wonder if just cutting off a long extension of the plant and forming it into a circle would work. Any advice?
================================================================
That's what I did. I cut off a long vine of ivy from a plant I
had been growing for some time. I wound it around about three
times, tucking it every so often so that I didn't need to use
wire or ties to keep it together. It worked great, and it held
up fantastically! I was able to wear it a week later to the
renaissance fair! After that, however, the leaves began to brown
and fall off.
-------------------------
Use a piece of flexible wire and wrap it from end to end with
white or green floral tape. Form it into a circle the size of
which sits on your head where you'd like it. Secure the two
ends together with floral tape. The morning of your wedding,
gently secure the ivy strand to the circle in several places
with floral tape. Leave it in the refrigerator, maybe on top
of a wet cloth in a tupperware container. You could add colored
ribbons, pearls, cords, tulle or silk flowers to the headband as
to your taste.
4.5: Help! I am allergic to flowers and I cannot figure out how to replace them in my wedding. I am having a medieval theme. Are there any suggestions?
****************************************************************
If your wedding is in the evening, why not a candle instead of
flowers. I can't think of anything more romantic.
-------------------------
Are you allergic to dried flowers? Some dried flowers are very
beautiful, and go well with many themes. If this doesn't work,
maybe you could consider using several candles.
-------------------------
If you cannot use any real flowers even in decorations, there is
always silk ivy. Ivy (and other greenery) has often been
suggested in these groups for medieval-style decorations, and
silk ivy doesn't look as fake as silk flowers sometimes do. It
actually looks very good in long garlands and thick branches
around the room (and high on the walls, if possible). There are
so many possibilities for medieval decorations that flowers are
not at all necessary: candles, candelabras, banners, shields,
tapestries... And if flowers are not completely forbidden, as
long as they're not close to you, maybe you could have an
arrangement on the altar (if it is a church wedding). As for you
and your possible bridesmaids, you could carry candles. Or
maybe your bridesmaids could also be readers for the ceremony
and carry fancy scrolls with ribbons, with their texts written
in the scrolls?
5.1: Can you give me some ideas of where we might hold our medieval wedding reception?
================================================================
Look for buildings in stone, half-timbered wood, brick, or very
rural. Find out about historic homes in your area, especially
those with a Tudor or English cottage or castle look. Outdoors
settings are perfect for a spring/summer Medieval wedding. If
you have the space, a big white tent would be nice & could be
decked out with banners & garlands.
-------------------------
Some possibilities we've considered:
1) Renting the Special Events pavilion at a Renaissance Faire
and holding the ceremony and reception there.
2) Finding a replica castle, keep, or gatehouse for the wedding
and catering the reception at a nearby hall (there are many
places scattered throughout the U.S. where people have created
their own castles, keeps, and medieval-looking buildings.)
3) Finding a particularly gothic church for the ceremony and
catering the reception at a nearby hall.
-------------------------
Although we wound up having our reception in the Executive
Ballroom at the Hyatt Regency Hotel, we first considered having
it on the wooded grounds of a rural church. Had we done that,
we were visualizing a ceremony under the trees, followed by a
pigroast, picnic and dancing in the grass. Another place we
considered was a 15th century chapel transported from France and
erected on the Marquette University campus here in Milwaukee,
but it was too small for our ceremony much less our reception.
-------------------------
We were married in the manor-like HyeHolde Restaurant, amid
tapestries and wood beams and candles. Perfect for setting the
tone.
-------------------------
A 1993 wedding I attended had a bit of medieval flavor to it.
The Episcopalian wedding was held in a well-hidden replica of a
14th century Scottish chapel.
-------------------------
A couple of years ago I attended a medieval-style wedding which
was held in a scout hall.
-------------------------
We had the wedding at an historic adobe in Milpitas (Higuera
Adobe) outdoors. We rented tables and chairs and had my friend,
a florist, put up and decorate an arch for the "altar".
-------------------------
After a couple of research trips to Santa Barbara, CA, we
settled on an outdoor location in Scofield Park in the hills
above the Santa Barbara Mission. Scofield has several green
fields surrounded by hills and trees with virtually no buildings
visible from the park. We were able to rent two adjacent 'Group
Sites' for $100. We used the more wooded one for the wedding,
and the other more open field for the reception area. We used
the picnic tables for the reception. We set two across one end
for the 'head table' and two rows leading away from the head
table like the arrangement in an old English manor house. That
left a 'playing' area in-between the rows of tables for the
entertainment.
-------------------------
I have done several renaissance weddings and am planning another
for my daughter. She will be getting married in a CASTLE! The
ceremony will be at night -- by candlelight -- and AFTER the
reception instead of before. We will party for a day, do the
rehearsal, then end the weekend with the candlelight wedding.
-------------------------
My fiance and I are having our medieval wedding at a place
called The Mansion in Pearl River, New York. It is modeled after
an Irish castle, complete with authentic stone work, oak
paneling, and stained glass windows. The manager, when asked if
we could have a medieval wedding, replied, "Why not? We've done
it before!"
-------------------------
For those getting married in Europe, have the wedding in a
Castle. Many of the more intact castles in the UK hire out their
banquet halls for functions. Some of the very intact ones hold
their own banquets regularly. A couple of friends just had a
high medieval Arthurian wedding at Caerphilly castle in south
Wales. It is worth bearing in mind that you have to book a long
way in advance and many castles that are open to the public are
only available in the evenings (though you will usually be able
to use the kitchens all day). Last time I was involved in
booking Caerphilly it cost 500 pounds to hire from 5.30 till
midnight with use of the kitchens all day. In the UK the best
people to contact if you don't have a particular castle in mind
would be English, Scottish or Cadw (welsh) heritage. For those
who can't use a real castle you can do wonders with some ivy,
candles, a few shields and some banners.
-------------------------
My lady and I have reserved the Great Stone Castle in which to
hold our wedding next year. The GreatStone Castle resides in
Sidney, Ohio and was constructed in 1895. It is complete with
turrents and a full wrap around porch. Inside it is richly
finished with all types of exotic hardwoods from around the
world. It is 4 stories of approximately 8000 sq. ft. The entire
upper level is reserved as the ballroom. Unfortunately this is
being renovated and will not be ready for our occassion. Our
wedding will be held in the front living area on the first floor
in front of a large fireplace. This will give my lady (Peg) the
opportunity to descend the grand staircase and make quite an
entrance. The castle sits atop a hill overlooking the downtown
area of Sidney. The grounds are very well kept with gardens and
shaded by many 100+ year old oak trees. There is a long winding
drive approaching from the rear of the castle, a great place for
a sendoff(?!!).
-------------------------
I'm having my wedding at a beautiful woman's club that will be
decorated in a medieval way. We WERE going to have it either at
the Tarrytown Castle or the Lyndhurst Castle in Tarrytown, NY,
but decided to stay in NJ. There's also a cool historical place
in Ho-Ho-kus, NJ called the Hermitage. People should call their
town halls for historical info. Also they should try their
state's own bridal magazines. New Jersey Brides provided me
with my consultant, caterer, hall and musicians.
-------------------------
I used the Boston Wedding Directory which lists many area
reception sites. It lists in all price ranges and is sectioned
by areas like Boston, Greater Boston, Northshore, etc.
-------------------------
If you go to the Massachusetts State House Bookstore, they can
sell you a booklet called "Historic places for historic parties"
for $4.00 (I think). I was amazed at what is available for
party rental. Everything from the Aquarium to historic homes.
I used it to find my site.
-------------------------
We're having our wedding at the Medieval Times in New Jersey.
They have a jousting show with a huge meal (you eat with your
hands), and the price per head was actually cheaper than what
I'd be able to get for an equivalent amount of food (hors
d'oeuvres buffet, sit down dinner, fruit with the cake) in my
area. The price they quoted us was $68.50/person, and we're
getting an hors d'oeuvres buffet before the show, the standard
Medieval times dinner and show, fruit, open beer, wine and soda
with a champagne toast. They're even making the cake to look
exactly like the Medieval Times castle! They also have private
rooms (and semi-private areas for small parties like ours), and
most of the decorations are already done for you. Since they do
weddings a lot, the party manager is really helpful, and they
have locations all over the country.
-------------------------
My fiance are planning a Mediaeval/Celtic wedding ceremony to be
done in my parents front yard between two trees. As the "altar"
we are driving my fiance's 6 foot Claymore sword into the
ground.
-------------------------
When my protege got married, the wedding was outside in her
sister's backyard with pavilions set up to provide shade for the
wedding itself, the cooks, and for the guests to dine under.
The main pavilion was decorated with large baskets of flowers
and an aisle was created with flowered garlands on poles and
large standing wooden candle holders.
-------------------------
The wedding ceremony and reception were held at the bride's
parents' home. This saved Dee considerable money and also
allowed for plenty of time to decorate the house and backyard.
The house was simply gorgeous (being only two years old,
designed and built by her parents). The backyard was spacious
and had several dozen white rose bushes and other potted plants
that added splashes of color. There was a swimming pool with a
fountain placed in it for the wedding. Fortunately nobody fell
in but I was a bit worried during the reception when people were
dancing around.
5.2: Is it possible to have a wedding at a renaissance faire?
================================================================
My fiance and I are planning our wedding for next August at the
New York Renaissance Faire in Sterling Forest, NY. We can have
it in a field or on a stage. There is a queen's banquet in the
afternoon which allows for wedding guests at group rates. We
will have the reception there.
-------------------------
Texas Ren Faire (located 1 hour north of Houston, Tx) does a
wonderful medieval wedding. It includes a ceremony at a wood
beam frame chapel (open to sky and covered in flowering vines),
a wedding parade and food (I think). For more information call
1-800-458-3435.
-------------------------
The Texas Renaissance Festival, located in Magnolia, Texas
(about 30 miles north of Houston) does weddings during the run
of the fair. They have several wedding packages and price
ranges. The price includes admission to the fair for the
wedding party and a ride in the Grande Marche for the bride and
groom. Options include wedding performed in the chapel, horse
drawn carriage for the bride. reception in the Italian gardens
(a private dining area), and full catering. The weddings must
be reserved in advance, and last year all but one slot was sold.
Performers attend the wedding adding a nice feel to the
proceedings.
-------------------------
-------------------------
I contacted the business offices of the RPFS and found that they
had an area in the back part of the Faire set aside for
weddings. The cost was $500 and the area was very pretty and
included hay bales for guests to sit on, table to serve the
reception, and a flower-covered arch under which we could have
the wedding. If I recall, the rental paid for 4 hours of use.
-------------------------
At the RPFN this year, there will be a REAL wedding in complete
period garb and, as much as possible, a complete Elizabethan
type ceremony...with mods to make it 20th century LEGAL.
-------------------------
For those people who attend the RPFI faires, you know that
Deidre in PAD makes reservations for the wedding garden at both
Northern and Southern faires. This year RPFS had an herb garden
as a backround for weddings. Linda Underhill of LHC is a
minister and she also advises as to what would be appropriate
for a "period" wedding. Contact either one of these ladies for
advice. Deidre can be reached at RPFI and Linda can be
contacted at 415-459-5123.
-------------------------
I know King Richard's Faire in Carver, MA does weddings.
-------------------------
The Maryland RenFest does weddings. The wedding takes place at
a small chapel set back in the trees in a shaded part of the
festival. The reception is next door at The Dragon Inn. This
is 3500 Sq Ft of deck. It is a very nice area, also set back in
the woods. They have an extensive costume wardrobe. Food and
drink available to the celebrants include Turkey Legs, Steak on
a Stake, Knave Sandwhiches (Italian Sausage) Popovers, soda,
lemonade, ice tea, and your choice of beer served on the
grounds. Generally a minstral or two will wander throughout the
wedding.
-------------------------
Part of my job is being the event coordinator for weddings &
special events at the Maryland Renaissance Festival. If you
want info from that perspective, just drop me a line and I'll
try to respond...or you can call me at my office (800) 296-7304.
My name is C.J.
5.3: I've been asked to decorate the reception hall for a friend of mine having a medieval style wedding. Does anyone know of any herbs/plants/assorted greenery that would be appropriate? I would appreciate any ideas as to how to decorate this hall.
================================================================
Well, the bad news is--some people in our area were asked this
question a while back and did the research--that it is not
period at all to decorate the interior of a building with vases
of flowers. That is a *Victorian* practice; our people even
came up with the name of the lady who first did it, but I've
forgotten it. The good news is that almost nobody knows this.
You *could* do whatever you think looks nice and you can afford.
I would suggest cutting evergreen branches and decking the
rafters with them, and garlands of flowers for the heads of the
wedding party. The most impressive way to decorate the
reception hall, in my opinion, is to borrow personal banners,
those of your group and neighboring shires, etc., and deck the
walls with those. Lotsa color. For my wedding, we decked the
church (ugly bare concrete) with banners and put garlands on the
heads of the wedding party.
-------------------------
We had real ivy that I had cut from a friend's yard wrapped
around the tent poles everywhere. We had shields with our
mutual coats of arms painted on and hung above our seats. I
bought burgundy and forest green table runners for the head
tables and ivory table cloths with pansies in baskets as
centerpieces. I can't wait for pictures!!!
-------------------------
At my friend Dee's medieval wedding (which was held at her
home), there were tapestries hanging on the walls, black iron
candle holders placed throughout the front rooms and on the
walls (she found some of them at a garage sale for 50 cents
each!), and medieval-style flags hanging out in the backyard
from the fenceposts. She also borrowed a hand-made suit of
armour from a member of the SCA. I highly suggest this route if
you want some medieval-ish decorations or clothing. These
people are very proud of their handcrafted work, and most won't
mind showing it off by sharing it with you. She didn't even
remotely know this man and he still freely offered the use of
his armour and a sword, shield, and crossbow as well.
-------------------------
I borrowed a suit of armor from a sister-in-law who borrowed it
from a friend-of-a-friend. No matter that the armor was really
a keg in disquise and that, if anyone had lifted the knight's
codpiece, they would have discovered a strategically-placed
spigot! Anyways, that suit of armor was the hit of the evening
as well as the site of many a posed picture! We also borrowed
three banners from some friends who purchased them at a
Renaissance Faire, and we hung them over the buffet table at
the reception.
-------------------------
Banners can be put together with fusible interfacing or glue
(although sewing looks nicer). All you need is cheap, colorful
fabrics, and maybe a few tassel or fringe trims. You can get
designs from any heraldry book in the library -- use a
photocopier to enlarge the designs. One book I recommend is
"Design Your Own Coat of Arms: An Introduction to Heraldry" by
Chorzempa, Rosemary A. (1987, Dover Publications, Inc.).
Available at art supply stores and bookstores. Lots of design
elements, clearly drawn, perfect for creating decorations that
reflect your interests and heritage.
-------------------------
We had a friend draw our coat-of-arms on shields that my fiance
cut out of plywood and sanded just right (with beveled edge and
everything!). She is also making a hanging sign for the house
(where we're having the wedding) out of wood. We're going to
sew up some banners this weekend!
-------------------------
We've decided to put hanging banners with my family crest along
the bride's side of the room and his family crest on his side as
well as on the groomsmen's surcoats. We'll also use our
combined crest/shield on a banner to introduce *our* new family.
We may have a couple of the ushers/groomsmen carry a banner on a
post (one of his & one of mine) during the processional and
present them to our fathers as a sign that we're giving them
back their names/households in order to begin one of our own.
-------------------------
You could place the table for the wedding party in front of a
wall and hang your family crest/banners behind the chairs where
you will each sit. Or, if you mounted them on poles or on
trumpets carried by 'heralds', they could lead you to wherever
you are headed, such as the altar, the banquet table, or your
awaiting carriage. Very regal-looking!
-------------------------
My MOH had made a styrofoam castle as a centerpiece for our
shower. We cut a slot in the top of it and used it as a card
receptacle.
-------------------------
You can use flowers and greenery as decorations, particularly in
garlands and swags. Dried flowers are also good. Candlelight
and/or firelight is a nice touch. Baskets decorated with
greenery and dried flowers are also good choices.
-------------------------
I ordered (from Past Times catalog) beautiful hunter green
candles with gold Fleur de Lys on them and what they call
Medieval candles, which are white with an ornate design on them.
We also purchased banners at the New York Renaissance Fair to
hang on the walls. I picked up a book called "Heraldry: A
Pictorial Archive For Artists and Designers" by Arthur Charles
Fox-Davies, which we will use to make plywood shields to be
displayed.
-------------------------
We designed several banners that I sewed together, and we ringed
the site [in a park] with rope with strips of cloth tied-on
every foot or so. I also put together three grapevine arches
festooned with ribbons. We had a vine arch at the entrance to
the wedding field, one behind the wedding itself, and one at the
entrance to the reception field.) Vine arches are a symbol of
growth, fertility, and renewal. Also, when you pass through an
arch it is an entrance to a new world.
5.4: Can you recommend any activities, besides dancing, for our reception?
================================================================
The afternoon activities at a wedding I attended consisted of a
tournament for the bride's garter (the winner of the tourney won
her garter), a fencing tournament, archery, and a small court
conducted by the bride and groom before they left.
-------------------------
My husband was dressed like Henry VIII, and in that famous
portrait (hands on hips), Henry is wearing two garters. So, at
the reception, I threw my bouquet, and he threw _his_ garter!
It was such a hoot!
-------------------------
Between courses at the meal, we invited guests to entertain with
stories, juggling, poetry, etc. -- our medieval cookbook had
mentioned entertainment between courses, we liked the idea. And
it sure beats the normal sobby wedding toasts (we couldn't
completely avoid them, though!).
-------------------------
To entertain people, we had jugglers and devil-stickers. You
might also consider 3 or 4 strolling minstrels, either playing
together or each playing to separate tables.
-------------------------
During the reception, two of the musicians suprised us by
binding our hands with a flowered band and singing a song about
love to us. Very nice. Binding the hands of the bride and groom
symbolizes the joining of the bride and groom into a new family.
-------------------------
We're thinking of including a maypole dance in the festivities.
Our thought was to use different coloured ribbons to represent
each family name and have them woven together to represent the
bonding of both families.
-------------------------
I, er, do hope that you are, um...*aware* of what a Maypole
symbolizes and that it's probably a powerful fertility blessing.
The Maypole is essentially a large ritual phallus--check
virtually any book on old English customs. There's speculation
that the ribbon-weaving dance was originally a form of elaborate
foreplay, with the men and women getting much, much *much*
closer to each other as the ribbons were woven...Since May Day
is/was the pagan holiday sacred to sexual desire, this doesn't
seem all that unlikely. (The female correspondent to the
Maypole was the May basket (womb), carried by women and filled
with flowers that day. The May basket seems to have fallen out
of favor, though...leaving just the Maypole.) That being said,
it sounds like a marvelous "uniting" ceremony. You just might
want to be aware of the sexual overtones--if any of your guests
are aware of pagan tradition, they may have a hard time avoiding
ROTFL!
-------------------------
We painted a natural gas tank that was in the [reception] area
green and put a dragon head and tail on it. We asked folks to
name the dragon. We read all the names, picked the ones we
liked best, then had a "clapping of hands" response to the
names. The winner won two tickets to the Renaissance Festival!
-------------------------
Some friends of mine had a Renaissance-style wedding a couple of
years ago. The reception was themed as a masked ball (so the
family and friends could wear any costume they wanted). There
were enough masks on each table that everyone could wear one and
take it home as a keepsake. The wearing of masks was prevalent
throughout the 15th and 16th centuries, especially during the
Carnival season. The film "Much Ado About Nothing" (the Branagh
version) has a very nice masked party. The Liz Taylor-Richard
Burton version of Taming of the Shrew has a Carnival procession
wandering through Padua. And of course, there's Zefirelli's
Romeo and Juliet, where R&J meet at a masked party.
-------------------------
Three people from SCA did a sword 'fight' concerning the meaning
of "Love" as part of the entertainment.
-------------------------
My brother and I engaged in a sword fight (covering our sibling
rivalry through the years). Alas, an excess of mead was taken
on both parts and his hand was broken, which I feared would
place a damper on the festivities but lo' he was of good humor
that day and I escaped intact with my beautious bride!
5.5: If you have an interesting idea for favors for my medieval wedding reception, please tell me!
****************************************************************
In my experience, favors at weddings are a relatively recent
addition. They probably became popular because people got tired
of the common personalized matches (with the social climate
becoming smoke-prohibitive, especially). I don't think that
these matchbooks were even meant as favors originally- they were
just a nice touch for the smoking guests to use at the wedding.
______________________
Remember, favors are not required at all. They are more
meaningful to people if they see a connection to you somehow.
______________________
In the world of chivalry, a favor was often a lady's scarf or
handkerchief, which she gave to her lover before he went into a
battle or joust. At Renaissance faires, favors are small
pendants, ribbons, rosettes, tassels, or other wearable trinkets
often given by the nobility. These favors represent the esteem
and affection of the giver for the recipient. Some other favor
ideas:
Parchment scrolls printed with a favorite poem and tied
with velvet ribbon
Miniature wreaths of dried flowers and herbs
Quill pens with a clever note attached
Velvet pouches filled with potpourri
Small flasks of mead or fruit wine
Tickets to a local Ren. faire (you might get a group rate)
______________________
How 'bout ribbon rosettes? I'd think any of the things that
people wear and give each other as friendship tokens at Faire
would be appropriate. I like the rosettes because they can be
as simple or as ornate as you like, can be made pretty easily,
and could be relatively inexpensive if you can catch sales at
craft fabric stores.
______________________
* You could buy flower seeds (in bulk) and have a print shop
print up medieval-looking envelopes for the seeds, maybe with
your SCA arms or a picture of a happy couple in medieval dress.
* You could print up parchment scrolls, maybe with a love sonnet
or just a medieval-sounding "hear-ye" kind of announcement.
Roll up and tie with ribbons.
* Gold-foil-wrapped chocolate "coins", custom imprinted with a
suitably medieval-looking phrase.
* For the sewing-machine set, you could make miniature (or
full-sized) "jester's caps" out of parti-colored fabric in the
wedding colors. Jingle bells on the tips add a special touch,
and then the guests can ring their bells to get the newlyweds to
kiss (instead of tapping their glasses). You could even require
that someone "cut a caper" or tell a joke in order to get you to
kiss.
* For those more interested in fantasy stuff: glass hand-blown
unicorns or other little figurines of glass or pewter (elves,
wizards, etc) can be fun little keepsakes, though this might get
expensive.
______________________
How about hand-made pomanders? Take a small citrus fruit
(tangerine, perhaps), tie it up with appropriate ribbons, and,
with a bow at the top, also make a wrist loop of ribbon so that
wedding attendants can wear the pomander if they wish, then
pierce the skin of the fruit that's still exposed between the
ribbons with whole cloves to cover. The pomander should dry out
over time to make a keepsake, and they smell wonderful fresh.
A bit expensive to do for more than the main wedding party,
though, unless it's a small wedding (it takes a lot of cloves).
______________________
We are having little brass bells. They are about 3 inches high
and are really cute. We're putting ribbons in our colors (one
thermographed with our names on one end and the date on the
other) on them as well. We thought that people could ring them
instead of clanging their glasses. They were very inexpensive
too, the bells were $1 each, and the ribbon was .50 for 8 yards,
and the thermography was $12 for 50 of them.
______________________
I did a little thank you scroll and rolled it up with a gold
ring around it. I bought some parchment paper to print it on
and used my laser printer.
______________________
We set up a table at the entrance to the reception room and
placed on it small parchment scrolls tied with green ribbons.
Each scroll had the name of a specific guest (or couple) on it.
The message on the scroll thanked them for sharing our wedding
with us, invited them to eat, drink and be merry, and informed
them discretely that drinks were 'on the manor'.
______________________
Scrolls for weddings are usually about 4" by 6" and are rolled
up and held together with fake gold/silver bands or rings that
you can purchase at just about any craft store.
______________________
I think that a parchment scroll done in Canterbury font (like
the old-style block printing done when the monks first started
making printed books) would be nice.
______________________
In the late Renaissance and Elizabethan periods, one gave
leather gloves to all the guests. Nosegays might be an idea
too. (I've seen many, many references to rosemary being carried
at late period weddings.)
______________________
I saw some little plastic "glass" slippers in the craft store.
[For people having a medieval fantasy wedding] you could fill
them up with Hershey's kisses or something.
______________________
My favors are going to be small (4 inch diameter) grapevine
wreaths decorated with dried flowers. I'm putting the place
cards in the center so they will do double-duty.
______________________
I would suggest bags of confits (hard candies popular among the
Elizabethans). "Dining with William Shakespeare" discusses the
Elizabethan fondness for these goodies (ever wonder why QEI had
black teeth?) and mentions, if I remember correctly, that bags
of confits might be given out at the end of a feast or exchanged
amongst friends.
______________________
We used ribbons to define the alliances of families. For
example, those of the bride's side wore small ribbons of pink
and white. Those of the groom's wore green and cream. Many have
told me they have kept the ribbons as Christmas ornaments - just
tiny streamers. It was neat for our families. One would see to
which side they belonged & then inquire about the relationship.
We distributed the ribbons at the guest register. One person was
totally responsible for explaining the tradition and helping to
pin the ribbons on. We got the idea from the fact that brides
were sometimes stripped at the altar by the men getting favors.
We found a picture of a girl worshipping the Virgin Mary
(presumably before her nuptials), and her sleeves and bodice
were totally be-ribboned to avoid being stripped.
______________________
I've seen Christmas decorations shaped like lutes that could be
decorated in one's wedding colors. They could be purchased at
an after-Christmas sale from one of those all-Christmas stores.
______________________
I was perusing a book called Crafting with Lace and it spoke
about the history of Lace making and just how valuable lace was
during the time of Catherine of Aragon, Catherine de Medici,
Elizabeth I, etc. It then occured to me that favors made with
lace would not then be out of character for a Medieval wedding.
So, lace "pockets" filled with Chocolate (for a Medieval Spain
themed wedding) would work or Potpourri for an Tudor English
wedding. Anything trimmed with lace would also work, like
handkerchiefs or scarves. The more lace you could afford to
give away, the wealthier you would be in those times...so lace
makes a nice gift for wedding guests.
______________________
You could make chocolate favors in the shape of dragons or
castles, though you might need to cast the molds for these
yourself...which is going to be the tricky part. Some rubber
stamps have dragons etc on them which can serve as a template,
but you would have to make a mold from it that would be
chocolate resistant.
______________________
There are several small ribbon embroidery kits with dragons and
castles as are there books with Celtic designs. With ingenuity,
a bookmark or some small keepsake could be made from these.
Handkerchiefs would be appropriate, too. Put the family coat of
arms (or something) on it and make your guests swear fealty to
you. BTW, if you go the embroidery route, best leave a lot of
time or hold the guest list down.
______________________
My friend had bookmarks made to give to guests. She had a friend
who's a graphic designer create a logo for their wedding. A bit
over the top for me, personally, but it added a sort of unified
theme to the celebration and all the printed material (program,
invites, thank yous).
______________________
How about lavendar stems shaped into a heart shape? I like this
idea because lavendar is a symbol of luck, and if you pack it
away with your winter clothes, it is supposed to keep the bugs
away.
______________________
My fiance and I checked out a place called "The Sequin Garden"
located in Carlstadt, NJ. They do personalized favors. If you
go there with a unusual or specific idea, they will check their
sources and make up something for you. Right now they're in the
process of checking on medieval-looking ornaments for us to give
out as favors. When we were there last time, they showed us an
ornament they made for Christmas (approximately $6.50). It was a
gold cherub with dried flowers glued to it.
______________________
At my friend's Renaissance-style wedding, the reception was
themed as a masked ball (so the family and friends could wear
any costume they wanted). There were enough masks on each table
that everyone could wear one and take it home as a keepsake.
______________________
I have friends who are potters and threw 250 mugs for their
favors. I was lucky enough to get some of the leftovers, which I
use everyday for my morning tea. Obviously not everyone can do
this, but I thought it was a neat, off beat idea.
______________________
We're hopefully going to have mugs with our names and the
wedding date on it. i figure mugs are something people can use.
DO NOT get them from an invitations specialist 'cause they are a
LOT more money..we are going through a business for companies.
______________________
Lord Iulstan Sigewealding and his lady, Juturna the Musical,
were married at the end of June. As a very nice touch for the
wedding feast, they got a lot of wooden plates for the feast and
then gifted them to the wedding guests afterwards.
______________________
The best idea I've seen so far is a nicely decorated bushel
basket full of different color and scent votive candles,
stationed by the table with the guest book and place cards.
Guests can take a candle as they enter or leave the reception.
______________________
My sister made the favors. She started with small candles (6"
tapers). Each candle had a piece of lace wrapped around it and
tied into a bow. A small piece of baby's breath was tied into
the bow. These were done in my wedding colors (pink candles
with white lace). They looked very nice and were quick to make.
______________________
We are both crazy about candles and even have some candle making
equipment. Hence, we are going to make small candles in a
meaningful shape to give as favors. Can make them months in
advance.
______________________
For my wedding this June, my mom is making the favors. We came
up with small, ivory. beeswax candles tied with a purple ribbon
and an attached card that has our names and the date. The
candles are easy to make and apparently not expensive. The wax
is available in all sorts of colors at craft shops in sheets
that you cut to whatever size you want and roll around the wick
to make a candle. Mom says they're really quick to make; she's
making them about 4" tall, and we're tying them in pairs, both
on the same wick to symbolize the unity of the marriage.
______________________
I bought 70 kazoos and to each one affixed a small label that
said: Mike and Nirah - March 25th 1995 (The labels were mailing
return address labels, printed on clear plastic. There are
several companies that will gleefully print these up for you
(they cost about $5 for a couple of hundred) that regularly
advertise in the coupon sections of the Sunday paper) I am
handing these out instead of rice after the ceremony. I would
much rather be serenaded than pelted with grain.
______________________
I went to a wedding once where the favors were personalized
kazoos, yo-yos and spinning tops (I think the groom's brother
owned a toy business). It was great fun, especially when one of
the tables seranaded the B&G on the kazoos.
______________________
For the favors, we're going to print up small booklets of the
recipes we used. This solves many problems: People will remember
the wedding whenever they make anything from our recipe booklet.
And if we print them at the college print shop, it shouldn't
cost more than 50 cents each, maybe a little more depending on
how many pages we have. Printing is 5 cents per page. And it
will give me something to play with in the last few weeks before
the wedding to keep me out of trouble. And I'll have a record of
all the food we used.
6.1: What kinds of foods did people serve at wedding feasts during the Middle Ages?
===============================================================
Mutton (lamb), roast peacock served with the tail feathers on,
braised lettuces, quail, venison, boar, eels, breads, and
cheese.
--------------------
In the 15th century, fowl was popular at feasts--and the goal
was to try to get the bird to look as life-like as possible.
The cooks would put all the feathers *back on* the bird, along
with its head and such. The ability to make the bird ultimately
look alive was considered culinary genius.
________________________
Here's some info on 16th Cy (Tudor) Britain which is very
similar to medieval (courtesy English Heritage). Foodstuffs for
the upper classes were generally roast and boiled meat, poultry,
fish, pottages, frumenty, and bread. To a lesser extent they
also ate fruit and vegetables, but many believed in the advice
given the BOKE OF KERVYNGE c.1500, "Beware of green sallettes &
rawe fruytes for they wyll make your soverayne seke." The
greatest change over this period was the increasing popularity
of sugar, so there were a lot of sweetmeat and sweet seasonings
amongst the aristocracy (and very few teeth). Tableware
changed, too: they no longer used bread trenchers much but now
had wooden boards with a central hollow for the meat and gravy
and a small side hollow for the salt. Glass is more widespead
and pottery cups known as Cistercian Ware appears to have been
popular. A prehunt breakfast served to QEI had : cold roast
veal, capon, beef, goose, mutton, pigeon pies, savoury tongue
pie, sausages and savoury snacks.
--------------------
Spices were used quite commonly. Cinnamon, cloves, mace,
saffron, and especially pepper were savored. Ginger, anise,
nutmeg are also mentioned along with many common (and not so
common) herbs such as parsley, basil, galingale, rosemary
(mentioned in Shakespears' "Hamlet") and thyme. Vegetables were
also of common consumption as part of the menu, though the
medieval feast did not follow our appetizer-entree-dessert
pattern. For example, for a time the sallat was served nearly
last but, according to legend, a certain royal served sallat to
his guests first so to fill their stomachs and save more of the
venison for himself.
____________________
An excellent source for period salads or "compound Sallet" is
Gervase Markham's _The English Housewife_. Some of the
ingredients are: chives, scallions, radish roots, boiled
carrots, turnips; also young lettuce, cabbage lettuce,
asparagus, purslane and herbs with vinegar, oil and sugar and
cucumber served with vinegar, oil, and pepper. Another compound
sallat includes: young buds and knots of wholesome herbs such
as red sage, mints, lettuce, violets, marigolds, and spinach,
served with vinegar, salad oil and sugar. Still another
compound sallat includes: blanched almonds, shredded raisins,
shredded figs, capers, twice as many olives, currants, red sage
and spinach all mixed together with a store of sugar. These
were put in the bottom of a dish and vinegar and oil put on top
with more sugar. Then oranges, lemons were cut into thin slices
without the outer peel and covered the bottom layer. Then thin
leaves of red cauliflower which covered the oranges and lemons.
Then "old olives" to cover that, and slices of pickled cucumber
with the inward heart of cabbage lettuce cut into slices. Adorn
the sides of the dish and the top with more slices of oranges
and lemons.
____________________
Here is an actual banquet menu for a medieval feast. It comes
from a book called "Two fifteenth-century cookery books" and is
edited by Thomas Austin. The introduction given by the author
is interesting: "Medieval feasts were traditionally served in
three courses. Each course included a soup, followed by a wide
range of baked, roasted, and boiled dishes, and finally an
elaborate 'sotelty', a lifelike (often edible) scene sculpted in
colored marzipan or dough...The bounty of medieval feasts is
legendary. One early historian noted that in 1398, King Richard
II [presided over a feast]. A variety of choice morsels was set
out to satisfy a trenchman's every whim ... gilded peacock and
festooned boar's head were highlights of the menu."
---------------------
Here is a late 14th century wedding menu.
WEDDING BANQUET, MILAN, 1488
From the Marriage of Marquis Gian Giacomo Trivulzio with Beatrice d'Avalos d'Aragona.
This is taken from THE ORIGINAL MEDITERRANEAN CUISINE by Barbara
Santich, Prospect Books, 1995. ISBN 0907325 59 9, page 37.
------------------------
Sugar was apparently expensive--and the recipes are for the
upper (or upper middle) class.
------------------------
This is from a book called "Life on a Medieval Barony," by
William Stearns Davis, a professor of history at the University
of Minnesota: "[Sugar is available in northern France as early
as the 13th Century.] It comes from the Levant, in small
irregular lumps. Its flavoring qualities are delightful, but it
is too expensive to use in cookery. The ordinary sweetening is
still that of the Greeks and Romans, honey, supplied from the
well-kept hives of the bees belonging to the [local] monastery."
------------------------
There are some foods you should do and some you should avoid
(because they were "discovered" in the New World and European
medievals didn't have them):
To consider: To avoid:
Pigeon/squab Squash, incl. pumpkins
Fennel Potatoes
Leeks, shallots Tomatoes
Apples, Plums Chocolate
Parsnips, turnips Yams, sweet potatoes
Pheasant
Breads and pastries
Eggs, custards
------------------------
As far as authenticity goes, i would add corn to the list of
foods to avoid.
------------------------
Chocolate was not available BUT carob was.
------------------------
The only period carob recipe I know of (Byzantine Murri) uses
carob as one of many minor flavorings in a condiment. So far
as I know, the idea of using carob to get a chocolate effect
is modern.
6.2: Sallat (salad), tarts, potage (soup), custard, poultry, suckling pig and spicy mulled wine sound great! But pigeon pies, eels, boar's head and roast peacock with the feathers put back on! I don't think my guests would go for this, so let me rephrase my question. What kinds of foods would have the "feel" of a medieval banquet but still be edible by my modernday guests?
================================================================
We usually find, when we make a "Mock - Medieval" feast, that
the best menu runs something like this: Pottage/soup with fresh
bread, cheese tart, various roasts (but including venison,
pheasant and beef) with lots of different sauces like rowan
jelly, raisin & apple & honey, mint, etc., pears in wine, and
perhaps something like jellied milk cubes (similar to turkish
delight).
-------------------
A Medieval feast usually revolved around a very fancy roast
(chicken, beef, venison, etc.). Some modern British foods are
just variations on Medieval and Renaissance dishes. For
example, roast beef with Yorkshire pudding and Cornish pasties
(little meat and/or veggie pies) come from the Medieval love of
combining meat and pastry.
---------------------
When I was a college undergrad, we had a traditional mid-winter
"Feast of the Lion" for college leaders. The motif was always a
"Robinhood" atmosphere. There was a wassail served and a toss
drank (the brandy snifters which held the wassail were the party
favors). Food was roasted chicken, yams/sweet potatoes, green
beans, and a bread pudding. All except for the yams [and green
beans], all of these items would have been available in medieval
times. There was cake and coffee at the end but, by that time,
everyone had been swept enough into the atmosphere that this
modern idea didn't spoil it. You might try other fingerfoods as
well as fruit. The only standing joke was that if it were a real
medieval feast, we would eat with only a knife and no forks.
----------------
Forks are ok in various times and places. Italy in the
Renaissance, and Elizabethan England (although they were
something of a curiosity) come to mind.
-----------------
I am a member of the Cardiff Arthurian society. Some of the
foods which we use in our banquets are: Emberday tart,
Elderflower cheese pies, Brie tart, gingerbread (with or without
apple sauce), chicken legs in honey and spices. You could also
try a soteltie (there are several different spellings). This was
a dish brought in between courses to show the chef's skill and
the host's wealth and good taste. Sotelties varied tremendously.
Some of the ones we have had at our banquets have included a
papier mache dragon filled with sweets, a sword in a cake shaped
like a stone/anvil, a pig's head stuffed with pate, and a
marzipan fish. At the reception table, you could put the
recipes next to the food.
----------------------
I suggest Brie tart. It's authentic but quiche-like, so modern
guests should like it. Here are two variations for the tart.
The first closely follows the original recipe with delicious
results. The second calls for cream and is considerbly richer.
Both are prepared according to the same instructions.
FIRST VARIATION SECOND VARIATION
SERVES 8-10 SERVES 10-12
8-inch uncooked pie pastry 8-inch uncooked pie pastry
1 lb young Brie cheese l/2 lb young Brie cheese
6 egg yolks, beaten 1/2 cup heavy cream
1/8 t saffron 3 eggs, lightly beaten
3/4 t light brown sugar 1/8-1/4 t powdered ginger
3/8 t powdered ginger 1/8 t saffron
salt 1/2 t brown sugar
salt
1. Bake pie pastry at 425 degrees for 10 minutes Let cool.
2. Remove rind from Brie. Optional: cut rind into pieces about
an inch square and sprinkle evenly on pie crust. This will give
the tart a stronger cheese flavor.
3 Combine Brie with remaining ingredients in a blender or with
an egg beater. Add salt to taste: the amount will depend on the
age of the Brie and whether or not you use the rind. Mixture
should be smooth.
4. Pour liquid into pastry shell.
5. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 to 40 minutes or until set and
brown on top.
This recipe is from "To The King's Taste" by Lorna J. Sass
------------------
I am a medievalist and was at a conference in England last year
where the organizers tried to "recreate" a medieval meal. The
first course was leeks in pastry. The second course was
fruit-stuffed cornish game hen. For dessert we had prunes
stewed in wine.
------------------------
Some friends of mine had a pig roast, and it was a full-sized
pig, too. We contacted a local butcher who sold us the pig and
also rented us the electric spit. We had to start it at 3:00
a.m., but other than that, it was relatively painless. We did
find, however, that we had to carve off the outer meat as it
finished cooking, and place it an an oven to keep warm, since we
wanted to serve everyone at once. If people will just be
feeding randomly during the day, just serve the meat as it
finishes cooking.
---------------------
At my sister's medieval-themed wedding we served crusty bread
and cheese, barley broth, baked acorn squash, brisket, roasted
cornish hen, baked apples and fruit tarts. Served in three
courses it made a lovely meal.
----------------------
We had a buffet for the reception which I put together. I
gathered coupons for deli sliced lunch meats, bought them on
sale, froze them ahead..then spent the night before the wedding
rolling them up in cute rows. We also had various cheeses,
chilled grapes and strawberries, fresh rolls of various kinds
from a bakery, olives, pickles, crackers, wine, apple juice and
several other things that I no longer recall.
----------------------
I mainly relied on lists of possible ingredients rather than
actual recipes. We had an oat and leek soup from an Irish
recipe, bread, cheese, apples, roast chicken, venison sausages,
peppered pork chops, parsnips, baked onions and a hero's portion
of rabbit masquerading as hare, all washed down with lots of
beer, cider and homebrewed elderflower and hedgerow wines.
----------------------
For a dessert, you can glaze fruit like strawberries and grapes
with sugar.
----------------------
The centerpieces at our wedding were edible! The caterer placed
a fancy mirror on each table and piled them high with stemmed
strawberries. A candle was placed in the center. It looked very
pretty and they were delicious. Silver bowls of powdered sugar
and chocolate sauce were also placed on the tables for dipping!
----------------------
How about greasy joints of beef, no silverware, and dogs to wipe
your hands on?
----------------------
We offered venison as an entree (eating utensils required!).
Although we offered a medieval cookbook to the restaurant, they
preferred not to use it. The type of venison was antelope,
which probably defies tradition. But it was very good. And we
topped it all off with mead, of course.
--------------------
We just had an event where we served sixty. The opening course
had homemade bread, with honey butter and a relish tray of
cheeses and dried fruits. This was followed by an onion and
almond creme soup. The next course was chicken breasts in a
wonderful sauce with raisins or currants, and lemonwhite, which
is rice cooked with lemon rind and raisins. The high point came
with the next course, when a subtlety was presented to the head
table. It was a dragon, with body and limbs made of bread, and
a papier mache' head with a flaming candle in its mouth. The
body (a round loaf maybe 18" (46 cm) in diameter) was then
opened and seen to be filled with beef stew. Dessert consisted
of cookies and cake served during the dance. The cake was a
three layer job decorated like a tower. Cookies were in the
shape of mushrooms made of merengues cemented with chocolate.
Now here comes the good part. All the cooking except for the
rice was done at the cook's home the day before, and only needed
re-heating at the site. And the better part, we were able to
serve this feast for only $5.00 a head. Its amazing what can be
done on a tight budget and a little imagination.
6.3: Does anyone have any information about the menu at places like Medieval Times (where the knights fight while you have dinner)? I know they do wedding receptions.
================================================================
Here is the menu from "Medieval Times" in the Chicago suburbs.
I went about two years ago and, while they aren't actually
keeping to what was available in the Middle Ages, they did try
to keep things authentic looking. Everything was on pewter
plates or in pewter bowls. There were no eating utensils.
When you first sat down you had a plate with veggies (carrots
and celery and maybe cucumber) with some dip--which tasted like
Thousand Island salad dressing to me. After that they delivered
some soup in a bowl with a handle so you could drink the soup.
It had barley in it and was either a vegetable or beef stock
based soup. Nothing too chunky in it as you had to drink the
the soup. For the main course we were served a few ribs and
a half chicken. I don't know what kind of marinade was used--
but the people I was with kind of enjoyed getting their hands
and chins all greasy. They handed out those little packaged
towelettes at the end (definitely a modernday addition to any
feast where you have to use your hands!) They also served
half of a roasted potato with seasoning on it and a pastry
for dessert.
6.4: How about drinks? What kinds of beverages did people drink during the Middle Ages?
=============================================================
The basic drinks until the 17th century were water, beer, ale,
wine, mead, milk, and rarely fruit juices (most were fermented).
Tea and coffee did not exist in the Middle Ages and
Renaissance, and neither did sparkling wines, but you may want
to ignore this in favor of modern toasting traditions! Sweet
and fruity wine punches would be appropriate but avoid
carbonation if you want to keep to the theme.
---------------------
Coffee came into use in al-Islam around 1400, at the very end
of the middle ages.
-------------------
Perry and cider. Perry is cider made from pears instead of
apples.
--------------------
For drink -- go with mead. I don't know if liquor stores carry
it, but I was recently in Bloomington, IN and visited a winery
that made mead, so there might be a winery that makes it in your
area.
-------------------
There will be no champagne toast at my wedding. Instead, we will
be serving mead as the toasting beverage. Incidentally, this
stems to the tradition of the middle ages and the origin of the
word "honeymoon". It was believed that if the newly married
couple were to drink mead each evening for the duration of one
moon following the wedding, they were assured a male heir within
one year. And, if that did occur, lavish gifts and accolades
were bestowed upon the meadmaker (artisans that were highly
revered at the time). In other words, the couple drank mead
(honey wine) for one month (moon) ... thus the word honeymoon.
The mead was drunk from a Mazer (sp) cup which was passed down
throughout the generations. The cup was usually an ornate
chalice, but for some it was rather simple.
-------------------
Bargetto Winery in Soquel California sells Chaucer's Mead
(that's just what they call it, just their label name for their
honey and fruit wines). The mead is very good, and they will
ship it. They also make wine from apricots, raspberries, and
ollalieberries (sp?).
6.5: I know that wedding cake is a modernday custom, but it's expected in our family to have a wedding cake. Any ideas of how we could incorporate a wedding cake into the menu and still keep the medieval ambience?
===============================================================
The hardest part was our cake. We searched high and low for
ideas. We were told that cakes weren't authentic -- instead,
medieval guests brought tiny desserts, cookies, etc. and piled
them together -- the forerunner of the wedding cake. We said
the heck with it and went with a regular old cake.
-----------------------
Quoting from the Aug/Sept issue of Modern Bride:
"In medieval England, guests brought small cakes and
piled them on the center of a table. The bride and
groom then attempted to kiss over them. A baker from
France conceived the idea of icing all the small cakes
together in one large cake."
------------------------
This was the forerunner of our modern tradition of the wedding
cake and smashing it into each others face (a quite repulsive
habit, not at all befitting such a grand occasion) came from the
tradition of the bride and groom eating off a common plate and
feeding each other, possibly symbolising the joining of the two
as one through marriage.
------------------------
At a medieval style wedding I attended a few years ago, the
wedding 'cake' was a huge pile of almond biscuits, made by the
bride (with help from me) the night before.
------------------------
At our mock medieval feasts, our "soteltie" (the main display
piece) is often a wonderfully decorated cake.
------------------------
Sweets have always been popular, even in medieval times, so a
wedding cake won't be too out of place. You could decorate it
with greenery and flowers or have heraldic symbols painted on
in colored icing. Several very fancy cakes in a recent bridal
magazine were shaped like fairytale castles!
------------------------
A wedding cake can be viewed as sculpture (ours was a castle,
complete with a functioning front gate).
------------------------
At my protogee's wedding, the wedding cake was a castle with a
marzipan bride and groom at the gate.
------------------------
My friend Dee had a wedding cake that looked like a castle. She
started by calling bakeries in her hometown but nobody could do
it for her. She finally found someone in another town who was
willing to travel to Dee's town to build the cake for her at the
house. The cake was BEAUTIFUL (and HUGE!).
------------------------
I wanted a castle cake, but have settled for 4 heart shaped
tiers with a castle in a globe with confetti when you shake it
music box (3 dragons on the "wall" around the castle outside the
globe) from the SanFrancisco Music Box Company.
--------------------
--------------------
Why don't you try a trifle? You don't really need to bake for
it, or if you happen to have a poundcake-mishap (as in too hard)
around, that'll do nicely. Depending on the amount of
participants in your group choose a large bowl (clear glass
looks really nice). Layer slices of poundcake, canned fruit
without much juice,whipped cream (maybe the storebought freezer
variety), vanilla pudding incl. a splash of f.ex. rum on every
layer of cake. See, that you have several layers each. Let it
soak for a while, so the various flavours mix. Trust me, it is
delicious! You are free to choose as ingredients, what you like
and the booze just makes it taste well together.
6.6: We have our menu all worked out but need some ideas about how to decorate the banquet hall and serve the food and drink in keeping with the medieval theme. Any suggestions?
=============================================================
If you can find or rent them, get brass, silver, pewter, or
wooden servingware. Pewter goblets are a great touch -- get a
pair for yourselves so you can toast each other in style!
Fellowship Foundry [see the list of catalogs for their address]
has several fanciful wedding goblet sets -- Arthur and
Guinevere, Romeo and Juliet, two dragons whose tails form a
heart shape, etc.
-----------------
You could be very authentic by having only one drinking glass.
At medieval feasts, a single wine cup would be passed from guest
to guest, and the lip of the cup would be wiped after each
person drank. Rather unsanitary for the guests, but this could
be a nice "medieval" gesture for the wedding couple.
-----------------
We arranged the family tables in a wide U, with us in the middle.
-----------------
We set two picnic tables across one end for the 'head table' and
two rows leading away from the head table like the arrangement
in an old English manor house. That left a 'playing' area
in-between the rows of tables for the entertainment. I bought
a bolt of cheap green fabric that I used for the tablecloth
at the reception feast. All I had to do was roll it out across
the tables and cut it to length. Then I placed several smaller
squares of fabric using the same colors as the banners on top of
the tables. I had also been searching for every store that had
baskets, wood plates, trays, and bowls on sale, and had
accumulated about three dozen or so. On the morning of the
wedding a couple of people were dispatched to find flowers,
fruits and vegetables to fill the baskets and bowls as part of
the general (and edible) decorations. The head table where we
sat was similar to the others except I used a fine green and
purple damask tablecloth with satin 'squares' on top with more
and nicer flowers in the baskets. Behind the head table was a
long and colorful banner.
----------------
The head table (me, he and attendents) had my "page" to serve us
(the page was a sweet kid I'd babysat for years, kinda like a
little brother to me, an only child). The page felt it his
sworn duty to drain the bottles to the last drop, so we had a
slightly inebriated 12 year old by the end of the day.
----------------
I suggest that you look for a book showing the paintings of
Pieter Brueghel (also known as Pieter Breugel), a Dutch painter
of the 15th Century. He did at least one delightful painting of
a wedding feast.
-----------------------
If you have access to medieval-appearing objects (metal goblets,
drinking horns, bits of armour, shields, banners, large candles)
along with flowers and ivy, they make good table decorations.
Another idea is to make crepe paper tablecloths with simple
heraldic motifs (stick to prime colours). This usually works
nicely in the low light of a banquet hall.
-----------------------
My daughter reads a wonderful series of books by a fellow named
Brian Jaque (sp?) called Mossflower or Redwall---she describes
amazing feasts that sound very medieval in nature (tho' they may
not be historically accurate). It would be a fun way to get
yourself in the mood.
------------------------
At our "Feast of the Lion" banquet, they created the medieval
mid-winter atmosphere by using burgundy bunting (a 'bunting' is
a swag of cloth used like a tent but with no sides--the kind you
see at jousts or feasts--where the king and queen sit but you
could use it for the bride and groom). We ate by candlelight as
well as table greenery with yule logs (made by having birch logs
with 4 to 6 candles in them surrounded with evergreens). The
dinner started with a trumpet heralder inviting us in from the
entrance area of the building, and there was an appointed
toastmaster dressed as a king including crown.
------------------------
In keeping with our medieval theme, my husband and I cut our
wedding cake using swords. We choreographed a little act where
I picked up a puny little cakeknife, looked at it with disgust,
laid it back on the table, reached over and drew out my
husband's long sword and handed it to him. I then pulled out a
short curved sword, nodded 'yes', and we proceeded to cut the
cake using our swords. Cameras were flashing from all over the
room while the guests laughed and clapped!
---------------------
Our wedding glasses were a glass flute atop a stem of a man (for
me) and a woman (for him) nude, holding the glass up, festooned
top and bottom with bunches of grapes and leaves. really
gorgeous!
---------------------
Our wedding goblets were of a pewter couple, clasping hands..the
tops were glass (very cool goblet set...you can get it from
Fellowship Foundry..they sell several styles of wedding goblet
sets).
6.7: Can you recommend any books or websites where I can get recipes for some of the medieval dishes (and maybe others) mentioned above?
6.8: Bibliography of Medieval Cookbooks compiled by Jaelle of Armida
An excellent place to begin your websearch for authentic recipes
is with Cariadoc's Miscellany, housed at:
http://fermi.clas.virginia.edu/~gl8f/cariadoc/miscellany.html.
Another good website with medieval recipes can be reached at:
http://www.vuw.ac.nz/who/Amy.Gale/recipes.
Amy Gale's historic recipes can also be reached through:
http://www.uky.edu/ArtsSciences/Classics/alibi.html#strange.
Select the category "Ethnic Recipes". Under the listing
"Historical Recipes of Different Cultures", you will find two
recipe collections: 1) Medieval and Anglo-Saxon Recipes and 2)
Medieval European Recipes.
If you are interested in various period beverages, brewed,
not distilled, try the beverages section of the SCA files at:
http://fermi.clas.virginia.edu/~gl8f/rialto/rialto.html
Following is an extensive bibliography of medieval cookbooks,
compiled by Jaelle of Armida (Judy Gerjuoy).
****************************************************************
7.1: My fiance and I love period music. Any ideas for how we could do the music for our wedding? Also, what kinds of instruments are considered period?
================================================================
A single harpist would work well or a lute/mandolin player.
Other period instruments include the flute, bagpipe, guitar,
viol (forerunner of the violin), many types of horns,
spinet/virginal (forerunners of the harpsichord), organs (much
like modern church organs), and a wide variety of drums.
-------------------------
We had a medieval-themed wedding, with Celtic undertones. For
music, we had an Uilleann piper (also called the Irish pipes).
I don't know what the music was called, but it was lovely. The
piper was fabulous, and the sound was like no other. Ethereal,
yet woodsy and homey. Definitely put us in the right frame of
mind. Mark and I both like Highland pipes (what everyone calls
"bagpipes"), but I wanted something "older", hence the Uilleann.
And, I must tell you, that the Uilleann is featured on most of
the Celtic music pieces I have at home.
-------------------------
The instrument that has changed the least since the middle ages
is, surprisingly, the TROMBONE. While it was called SACKBUT in
earlier times, it has changed only in tuning. A consort of
trombones makes a lovely early sound, and is great for
processional-type music suitable for weddings. If you want a
truly regal sound, have trombones at your wedding.
-------------------------
The dinner started with a trumpet heralder inviting us in from
the entrance area of the building. Then there was a brass and
string group of musicians (I know, not really medieval, but it
gave it an air of such), and vocal groups which sang (without
music) traditional midwinter songs.
-------------------------
At a wedding I witnessed at the Minnesota Renaissance Faire,
two musicians dressed as monks played Handel's "Air",
Pachelbel's "Canon in D", Purcell's "Trumpet Tune". and Mouret's
"Rondeau" on guitar and trumpet.
-------------------------
Try Vivaldi's "Largo." It was used in the movie version of
"The Princess Bride" and is really lovely. One guitar.
-------------------------
I used to play at a Ren festival, and one Saturday night some
people got married at the chapel there. At that time the chapel
had no roof or windows. It was just bare timber framing, but it
looked rather romantic in the rising moonlight. The groom
looked dashing in his boots and the bride was piled high with
many types of old white lace and was led to the chapel entrance
riding a white horse. Both had a profusion of flowers in their
hair. Me? I was just one of many musicians trying to figure
out what to play for these fine and brave folk...and then
someone started playing - believe it or not - the Russian Army
marching song. He played it very slooooowly and it actually
sounded quite beautifull.... and with a wooop and a laugh we all
quickly joined in. And it is THUSLY that two young souls got
married...and to the highly ironic and rather humorous
undertones of a tune that under any other circumstances no one
would have touched with a proverbial ten foot pole.
-------------------------
We had a harp and flute; a combination I would have never
thought to put together, but it was very pretty.
-------------------------
We are having a celtic harpist play for us. We were thinking of
walking in, in part, to "Brian Boru's March" a simple but
effective minor key piece by O'Carolan. You might also want to
wander into the folk section of your favorite music shop or
library and see what you can listen to to get ideas, or ask the
folks on rec.music.celtic.
-------------------------
I am having a Celtic harp at my wedding. There are two types of
harps to my knowledge--the Concert and the Celtic. The Celtic
harp is smaller. For my wedding I am looking at having the
following songs:
Wedding March by Mendelssohn
My Love is Like a Red, Red Rose
Morning Has Broken
Mairi's Wedding
Skye Boat Song
A Time For Us: from Romeo and Juliet
***************************
The above songs are good for either harp. The next list of
songs are only for the Concert harp:
Bridal Chorus by Wagner
Lara's E
Theme: from Dr. shivago
Memory: from CATS ( Andrew Lloyd Webber)
Music of the Night : from Phantom of the Opera
Scarborough Fair
-------------------------
Most harpists/harpers play weddings frequently and often have a
selection of pieces appropriate for the occasion. For the
record, most professional harpists will have a standard wedding
reportoire (which varies from performer to performer) and will
charge extra if they are required to learn a piece not in their
repertoire.
-------------------------
I'm a harper, and have several friends who play in Celtic bands
on traditional instruments or play and sing historical (period)
music. I plan to coerce many of them to play for the wedding
and reception (provided they let me play as well!) I will
probably hire one of the more traditional bands, then invite any
of my other friends who play to bring their instruments along.
-------------------------
Your answer is a brass quintet! To back up my personal bias, I
will say that no other ensemble can give you the same wide range
of repertoire from rennaissance through twentieth century
classical music to ragtime and jazz!
-------------------------
At a wedding I attended, the music was played on a modern
synthesizer but had a very medieval feel about it.
-------------------------
We found some dancers to "do" our reception. It turned out they
were free; I made a donation to their favorite charity. But
they were incredible. They specialize in Irish dancing, but had
a few medieval Celtic dances in their repertoire. They
organized the guests into rows and squares and had them going
for awhile. For music, I had brought my stereo out, and we set
it up with two extra speakers. It was more than we needed. I
bought CDs of medieval/Celtic music, and just put on the
scrambler (whatever it's called). The dancers brought their own
music, which they cued up themselves (and had no problems).
-------------------------
We're going to find a small band or strolling musician and an
enthusiastic dance instructor to conduct the "festivities" at
our medieval/renaissance theme wedding. We thought it would be
so nice to have someone show the guests a few steps of an Irish
jig or a May dance or something. Of course, I plan to have a
stereo and music for late night dancing by the roaring bonfire!
I *will* dance at my wedding!!)
-------------------------
Background music was all CDs -- chants, madrigals, etc.
-------------------------
We ended up taping our favorite songs from our collection of
celtic CDs and piping it through the ballroom's sound system.
-------------------------
The music was played on a small tape machine hidden out of
sight. When I asked where the music was coming from I was told
it was 'shy minstrels' hiding behind a curtain!
-------------------------
We had a group of students of old music to play medieval songs
and tunes before dinner (that really helped to set the mood!).
7.2: Where can I find musicians who play medieval music?
================================================================
If you're looking for early musicians (most of us can't afford
to advertise in the yellow pages - that would pretty much wipe
out most of the money we'd make!) here are a few ways to track
some down: 1) Call the American Recorder Society in Boulder CO
and ask if they have a local chapter in your area. Contact them
and ask if they have a group that performs. (Skill level can
vary WIDELY!), 2) Call local music stores, ask if they have
someone who teaches recorder. 3) Call local universities, ask
if they have an early music ensemble, student or faculty, and
4) Post to rec.music.early, or alt.fairs.renaissance, or
rec.music.celtic asking if anyone knows performers or groups in
your area. People often know people who know people.
-------------------------
Through the staff at the Renaissance Faire where we held our
wedding, we hired a woman that played hammered dulcimer.
-------------------------
Try your local Renaissance Faire....if there are not musicians
preforming there, the entertainment staff can probably provide
you with the names and addresses of local musicians who have
sent addition tapes, desperately trying to get work.
-------------------------
We were able to get 4 musicians who work at the Southern
Renaissance Faire (CA). Since the demand for Ren music is
small, their prices tend to be low. We got all 4 for the entire
afternoon & evening for $500.
-------------------------
Suggestions: 1) Peruse the local paper's arts calendar for
dances, go to them and ask the musicians, 2) Check with the
music department of local colleges, 3) Flog the web, e.g.
http://celtic.stanford.edu//Internet_Sources.html
http://www.mit.edu:8001/people/jcb/morris-teams.html
3) If all else fails, contact CDSS (country Dance & Song Society
in NOrthampton, MA) in US, EDFS in UK and ask if they have any
members in your area.
-------------------------
You might try seeing if there's a local English Country Dance or
Contra Dance community in your area. Check newspapers (ours has
a weekly listing of Contra and English country dances) and music
(instrument stores) that cater more to a traditional music crowd
rather than electric guitars and drums.
-------------------------
Word of mouth is the best way to find a band or anything else
for that matter. Ask couples or parents who have recently had a
wedding. Ask the catering people -- they go to a lot of
weddings. Ask the reception hall or restaurant people -- they
host a lot of weddings. Take an evening or two and go to all of
the local clubs and bars. You get a ready-made audition this
way. Call any local universities or colleges and ask around.
-------------------------
Actually, the way I found the group for my wedding was by
listening to the music at the Mall. San Diego's Horton Plaza
hires strolling musicians to entertain shoppers, some other
large malls do as well. Some of them are not really good,
others are, and there's a wide range of styles (ethnic,
elizabethan, country westers, a capella, and so on). For that
matter, you'd be amazed at how many strolling troubadors at the
Ren Faires have business cards.
-------------------------
For authentic live music, ask around at a local Renaissance
faire or SCA event or on rec.sca.org or alt.fairs.renaissance.
Try at a local college's music department too. There also many
tapes of Medieval folk tunes, church music & chants, & even some
new-age music used Medieval style instruments. A single harpist
would also work well, but no pianos (they weren't invented yet).
-------------------------
Ken and I have hired a harp and violin duo from the local
symphony to play at our ceremony. I have heard these two before
and the combination is lovely.
7.3: I am looking for good quality CDs for my Wedding. I need suggestions for both Dancing and Ceremony music. It doesn't need to be for any specific period, but I would like it to have a medieval flavor. All suggestions are greatly appreciated.
****************************************************************
There many recordings of Medieval folk tunes, church music, and
Gregorian chants. Even some new-age music uses Medieval style
instruments. Look at a large, well-stocked record store in the
folk music and instrumental section. Sheet music for Medieval
ballads and folk songs is available too -- check at a large
music store. If they don't have it, ask them how to order it.
College libraries sometimes have large sheet and recorded music
selections, which you can make copies of.
-------------------------
Do you have a national chain store called Best Buy near you?
It's an electronics, appliances and music store. Their
selection of medieval music (they call it ancient Music or
ancient classical) is out of this world. They have everything
from 13th century Spanish dance songs to monks to 17th century
Italian lute love songs.
-------------------------
Here's some period recommendations:
For Ceremonial Music:
"The Pleasures of the Royal Courts". Early Music Consort of
London. Elektra/Nonesuch 9 71326-2
1. The Courtly Art of the Trouveres (1200s)
2. The Burgundian Court of Philip the Good (1400s)
3. The German Court of Emperor Maximilian I (1400s)
4. Italian Music of the Medici Court (late 1400s-early 1500s)
5. The Spanish Courts in the Early 16th Century (1500s)
"North Italian Music for Cornetts and Trombones 1580-1650".
Concerto Palatino Accent Records ACC8861D
"Carlo Gesualdo: Tenebrae". Hilliard Ensemble. ECM Records
1422/23 78118-21422-2.
"Giovanni Gabrieli: Canzonas, Sonatas, Motets". Taverner
Consort, Choir and Players. EMI Classics [late 1500s, early
1600s]
"Renaissance: The Music of Josquin Desprez". The King's
Singers. RCA 09026-61814-2 [1400s-1500s]
For Dance or Background Music:
"Fantasies, Ayres and Dances: Elizabethan and Jacobean Consort
Music". The Julian Bream Consort. RCA 7801-2-RC
"Tielman Susato: Dansereye 1551". New London Consort.
L'Oiseau-Lyre 436 131-2. [1500s]
"Dances from Terpsichore". New London Consort. L'Oiseau-Lyre
414 633-2. [Early 1600s]
"The Feast of Fools". New London Consort. L'Oiseau-Lyre
433-194-2 [1200s?]
"Songs and Dances of the Middle Ages". Sonus. Dorian Discovery
Records.
"1492: Music from the Age of Discovery". Waverly Consort. EMI
Classics.
"A Florentine Carnival: Festival Music for Lorenzo de Medici".
London Pro Musica. Pickwick International. PCD 825 [1400s]
--------------------------
For background (mostly instrumental) music with a medieval or
Celtic sound to it, try any or all of the following:
-Anything by Maggie Sansone and/or Sue Richards, i.e., 'Morning
Aire', "Mist & Stone', or 'Music in the Great Hall'. Their
music is described as instrumental music and Celtic tunes from
Ireland and Scotland. Sansone plays hammered dulcimer. Richards
plays Celtic harp.
-Anything by Robert Almblade and Carolyn Cruso, i.e.,
'Ballincheol', 'The Fifth Element', or 'Tone Poems'. Mostly,
they compose their own music. They both play hammered dulcimer
plus Almblade plays cittern and Cruso also plays flute,
panpipes, pennywhistles and other wind instruments.
-Narada has produced some celtic music CDs. I have two of them:
'Celtic Odyssey' and 'Celtic Legacy', and both are very good.
-Try also 'Northern Lights' (harp & hammered dulcimer played by
Steve Coulter and Harris Moore), 'The Spiral Castle' (guitar,
Celtic harp and lute played by Linn Barnes and Allison Hampton),
and "Carolan's Cup' (hammered dulcimer played by Joemy Wilson).
In addition to the above, look for anything where the musicians
play hammered dulcimer, Celtic harp and/or lute. Also look for
groups that play the music of Turlough O'Carolan, a blind Irish
harpist (died 1738).
--------------------------
My fiance and I picked up a CD at the New York Renaissance Fair
called "The Flowers of Edinburgh". It's a beautiful CD,
approximately 40 min. which we will use during our cocktail
hour. Another CD I acquired was from Past Times called "Minstrel
Songs and Dances for a Medieval Banquet" which we will use
during dinner. I am also trying to get a CD called "Music For
The Coronation Of Queen Elizabeth I", which is mostly trumpet
music which we will use for our entrance. The rest of the
reception we will dance to regular Top 40 music. If you hire a
DJ, most of them will play the period music if you provide the
CD's or cassettes.
--------------------------
Here are the best sources I have yet found for Early, medieval,
and renaissance music books, recorded music, and instruments. I
have ordered many times from both and really like their service.
Boulder Early Music Shop
2010 14th St. Boulder, Co. 80302
(303) 499-1301
Fax (303) 449-3819
Lark In The Morning
PO Box 1176, Mendocino, Ca. 95460
(707) 964-5569
Fax (707) 964-1979
8.1: How about including a list of well-costumed, atmospheric movies that people could rent to see what a particular period might be like? If a picture is worth a thousand words, a moving picture is worth ten thousand!
=====================================================================
BORDERLINE ANCIENT/MEDIEVAL (mid- to late-400's)
SET DURING THE EARLY MEDIEVAL PERIOD (500 to @1050)
SET DURING THE MIDDLE AGES (1050 to 1450 AD)
SET DURING THE RENAISSANCE PERIOD (1450 to 1600)
BORDERLINE RENAISSANCE/MODERN (early 1600s)
****************************************************************
9.1: Catalogs
The following is a list of catalogs which have been recommended as
possible sources of historic clothing and/or fantasy items with
medieval flavor. The compiler of this list makes no claims as to the
quality of either the merchandise or service provided by these
companies.
=====================================================================
For readymade medieval clothing or period patterns and accessories:
=====================================================================
2218 East 11th Street
Davenport, IA 52803
1-319-322-6800
They have three catalogs. The Pattern catalog ($7.00) illustrates
over 1,000 patterns for men, women, children and dolls, medieval
through 1950. The Shoe catalog ($5.00) has shoes from all periods.
The General catalog ($3.00) has everything except patterns -- hats
and bonnets, readymade clothing, accessories, toys, books,
kitchenware, etc.
12710 E. Wentworth Ct.
Vail, AZ 85641
Source of readymade clothing and cloaks as well as special orders.
835 Decatur St.
New Orleans, LA 70116
1-504-524-9856
Source of cloaks in velvet, velveteen, leather and wool.
Box 10933
Winston-Salem, NC 27108
No current information available.
PO Box 18904
Tucson, AZ 85731-8904
1-602-722-1255
Source of clothing, books, weaponry and patterns. They publish
a "catalog magazine" called "Renaissance" ($14 for a 1-year
subscription).
Address unknown
1-619-949-2628.
Source of handmade period clothing. No current information available.
Tailoring & Custom Sewing
6 Parkview Avenue
Winchester, VA 22601-4406
1-703-667-2541
Source of rented or custom-sewed, historically-accurate costumes
for period weddings (1520-1920). There is also a pattern division
(P.O. Box 1363, Winchester, VA 22604) but the emphasis is on the
18th and 19th centuries. Catalogs of patterns for ladies',
men's or children's fashions are $3.50 each).
P. O. Box 45384
Westchester, CA 90045
(310) 670-6040
or
8406 Flight Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90045
No readymade clothing but a source of costuming books and other items
needed to make clothes (stitchery supplies, notions, needlework
tools, stays, hooks, clasps, and buttons) except the fabric. They
charge $5 for their catalog, refundable with an order of $30 or more.
1812 N. Queens Lane #219
Arlington, Va 22201
No information available.
11246 S. Post Oak Rd. #217
Houston, TX 77035
1-713-729-7990
Source of patterns, books, and sewing materials, but they will also
make costumes to order. Mostly Tudor stuff: bodices, skirts, and
chemises-as well as men's garb.
P.O. Box 415
Pierceton, IN 46562
1-800-338-1665
Source of books, patterns, clothing accessories and tinwear.
Emphasis is on the 18th and 19th centuries, but some stuff
is adaptable.
Post Office Box 3315
Truckee, CA 96160
1-800-829-1974
Source of medieval items (armor, swords, jewelry, cups) and Period
Patterns. The items catalog is not free, but you can request a
Period Pattern flyer for free.
361 Union Center Rd
Ulster Park, NY 12487
1-914-331-6012
Source of capes, tunics, etc. Catalogs cost $5.00 plus $1.75 for
shipping and handling.
2143 Gees Mill Road
Box 840
Conyers, GA 30207
1-800-883-8838
Source of medieval clothing and accessories such as swords, jewelry,
goblets, relics, etc.
c/o L. R. Fox
P. O. Box 443
Bloomington, IN 47402-0443
An anotated bibliography of pre-1650 costume sources (including books
and periodicals). $2.50 per copy
P.O. Box 93095
Pasadena, CA 91109
1-818-797-2723
Source of medieval and renaissance patterns. The catalog is $5.00
($7.00 if shipped first class) but is very large. They also sell
books and some accessories.
P.O. Box 422
Riverside, CA 92502
1-909-943-7333
Actually a quarterly magazine, which contains advertisements for many
companies dealing in period garb, armor, weapons, etc, etc...Lists
quite a few clothing makers, including one who says they specialize
in Renaissance wedding garb. They have two subscription plans: for
$7.00, you get a lifetime subscription, but it is sent at bulk mail
rates; for $5.00 annually, you get the magazine at first class mail
rates.
1196 Sunglow Drive
Oceanside, CA 92056
1-800-899-7673
Source of custom-designed medieval and Renaissance wedding attire for
rent or purchase. Call to request a videotape of bridal fashions.
156 E Second Street, Suite One
New York, NY 10009
1-212-995-8359
Source of custom-designed leather armor, jewelry and Renaissance-era
clothing. Catalog costs $4.00.
6109 Whipple Avenue NW
North Canton, Ohio 44720
1-216-966-2487
Source of period fabrics, trims, thread, and patterns.
PO Box 207
Beallsville, PA 15313
1-412-632-3242
A listing of catalogs and stores that sell fabric, patterns,
accessories, etc. Costs $17.95 (incl. S&H).
For medieval weapons, jewelry and other gift items (but very little
clothing and no patterns):
=====================================================================
2451 E. Enterprise Pkwy
Twinsburg, OH 44087
1-800-950-9540
Check out their wedding chalice, a reproduction of an 18th century
English piece.
Dept. TFH
2143 Gees Mill Road
Box 839
Conyers, GA. 30207
1-800-883-0300
Source of swords and knives.
P.O. Box 149
Luray, VA 22835
1-540-743-1941
Source of medieval weapons, armor, footwear, jewelry and musical
instruments. Catalog costs $2.00. Separate catalog of archery
supplies costs $1.00.
878 Willow Grove Road
Pittsgrove, NJ 08318
1-609-795-8681
Source of Celtic jewelry, i.e., penannular brooches, knotwork rings,
necklaces, pins and bracelets.
12 W. Willow Grove Ave., Box 186
Philadelphia, PA 19118-3952
1-215-242-8849
No information available.
5670 West End Road, #4
P.O. Box 1106
Arcata, CA 95521
1-800-322-6041
Source of fantasy dragon items. Check out their dragon champagne
flutes, dragon bride & groom caketopper (in pewter), and double
dragon banner.
PO Box 5254
Reno, NV 89513
1-702-746-0416
Source of middle eastern clothing and belly dancing jewelry.
2550 East 12th St.,
Oakland, CA 94601.
1-510-261-3292
Source of pewter wedding goblets.
3557 Tanner's Mill road
Gainesville, GA 30507-8828
1-770-536-2805
Source of Celtic rings, brooches and pendants.
255Gracie Station
New York, NY 10028-9998
1-800-468-7386
Source of jewelry reproduced from ancient, medieval and renaissance
designs.
P.O. Box 831
Merrifield, VA 22116
1-800-866-2538
Source of swords, helmets, suits of armor, axes, and letter openers.
280 Summer Street
Boston, MA 02210-1182
1-800-242-1020
Source of gifts and jewelry from Great Britain inspired by "the past"
(Anglo-Saxon, Viking, Medieval, Tudor, Stuart, Victorian, etc.).
Check out their medieval tapestry wall-hangings.
P.O. Box 221
Metcalfe, Ont. Canada
KOA 2PO
613-821-1846
Source of swords and stuff. No other information available.
P.O. Box 4430
Sevierville, TN 37864
Check out their Excalibur letter openers as possible favors.
P.O. Box 74
Spencer, NY 14883
P.O. Box 1762
Palm Desert, CA 92261
1-619-324-4789
Source of swords.
For stationary, parchment, invitations, sealing wax, and handstamps
for customizing your wedding invitations:
================================================================
American Stationery Co., Inc.
300 Park Avenue
Peru, Indiana 46970
1-800-428-0379
Check out 'Medieval Fantasy' and 'Storybook Ending' invitations with
matching napkins and thank you scrolls.
Address unknown
1-800-426 6740
Source of handmade papers. No other information available.
P.O. Box 7070
Madison, WI 53707
1-800-347-0070
Source of 'natural' papers (stationary and wrap) made of flower
petals. Also carry sealing wax and letter seals. Check out their
miniature sundial 'necklace', said to have been given as a romantic
present to Henry II from Eleanor of Aquitaine.
PO Box 180741
Utica, MI 48318-0741
1-810-726-6120
Source of medieval fantasy handstamps (unicorns, wizards, castles,
knights, etc.).
100 Plaza Drive
Secaucus, NJ 07094-3606
1-800-272-7377
Source of clipart, fonts, notecards and stationary (including
parchment) for making your own invitations.
105 Charles Street
Boston 02114 617-742-0002
Source of handmade papers with real flowers mixed in.
P.O. Box 49592
Atlanta, GA 30359
1-770-498-3667
Source of wax seals and sealing wax.
Address Unknown
1-800-635-3898.
No information available.
Address Unknown
1-800-800-6647
Source of sealing wax and supples.
These are specialty catalogs:
==============================================================
EZZELL Enterprises
2855 Villa Loma Drive
Colorado Springs, CO 80917
1-719-380-0509
Source of information about your family name history, coat-of-arms
and shields. Also armor and swords.
Medieval Miscellanea
6530 Spring Valley Drive
Alexandria, VA 22312
Source of historical pavilions, tents, yurts, canopies, and
bannerpoles for rental or purchase.
Sheri & Carlos Frey
620 N Logan Street
Wayne, NE 68787
1-402-375-2395
Source of handmade sculptures depicting specific individuals for
special occasions (i.e., customized brides & grooms for caketoppers).
For Early, medieval, and Renaissance music books, recorded music, and
instruments:
2010 14th St.
Boulder, Co. 80302
1-303-499-1301
No current information available.
PO Box 1176
Mendocino, Ca. 95460
1-707-964-5569
Source of hard-to-find music and musical instruments, i.e., Celtic
harps, recorders, pennywhistles, lutes, lyres and others.
45N. Industry Ct.
Deer Park, NY 11729-4614
1-800-521-0042
Small collection of Celtic and New Age Celtic music (i.e., Clannad,
Enya and others).
9.2: Websites of Interest
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Following is a list of informational websites, some of which
have been previously mentioned in the FAQ and which may provide
help to planners of medieval weddings or feasts. Please note
that this is not meant to be a list of WWW vendors.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Wedding Websites:
Weddings Online:
http://weddings-online.com
Wedding Traditions:
http://www.halcyon.com/mganson/traditions.html
Leslie's Guide to Wedding Planning:
http://acm.vt.edu/~lfowler
Soc.couples.wedding homepage:
http://www.wam.umd.edu/~sek/wedding.html
Alt.wedding homepage:
http://www.pacificnet.net/~jkdyson
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Medieval/Renaissance Websites:
Medieval & Renaissance Wedding Page:
http://paul.spu.edu/~kst/bib/bib.html
Rialto Index & Archive:
http://fermi.clas.virginia.edu/~gl8f/rialto/rialto.html
SCA Current Middle Ages Page:
http://www2.ecst.csuchico.edu/~rodmur/sca (link to Art,
Science, & History)
Joe Bethancourt's homepage:
http://www.locksley.com/locksley/ (link to Society for
Creative Anachronism)
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Med/Ren Foods, Recipes and Menus
Cariadoc's Miscellany:
http://fermi.clas.virginia.edu/~gl8f/cariadoc/miscellany.html
Menu for Wile-the-Winter-Away Feast:
http://www.contrib.andrew.cmu.edu/usr/grm/wwaway-feast.html
David Friedman's Recreational Medievalism page:
http://www.best.com/~ddfr/Medieval/Medieval.html
Amy Gale's historic recipes:
http://www.vuw.ac.nz/who/Amy.Gale/recipes (select 'Ethnic
Dishes')
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Costuming
Greater Bay Area Costumer's Guild homepage:
http://www.hooked.net/users/fishcat/costume.html
Beginner's Peasant Garb for Renaissance Faire:
http://www.bibiana.com/velvet/peasant.html
Historic Costuming FAQ:
http://reality.sgi.com/employees/lara/lara.html
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++V++++++++++
Handfasting and Neopaganism:
Handfasting Rituals and Pagan Wedding Information Page:
http://www.pacificnet.net/~jkdyson/aw/handfast.html
Laura Mitchell's handfasting ceremony:
http://www.csusm.edu/public/guests/mitchell/ceremony.html
Rain Puddles webpage of resources for Neopaganism:
http://www.teleport.com/~rain
Kirsti Thomas' Medieval & Renaissance Wedding homepage:
http://paul.spu.edu/~kst/bib/bib.html
Rowanhold Bardic Circle page:
http://www.primenet.com/~cherie/ritual.htm
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Music
SCA Music & Dance Page:
http://fermi.clas.virginia.edu/~gl8f/music_and_dance.html
Digital Tradition Folk song Database:
http://pubweb.parc.xerox.com/digitrad
Celtic Music on the Internet:
http://celtic.stanford.edu//Internet_Sources.html
Home pages of Morris and Sword Sides:
http://www.mit.edu:8001/people/jcb/morris-teams.html
The Jester's Court homepage:
http://www.millennianet.com/jester
Majestic Brass Quintet homepage:
http://www.tiac.net/users/majesty/
ftp://ftp.wu-wien.ac.at/pub/earlym-l/bibliographies
ftp://ftp.nau.edu/pub/sca/ioseph
ftp://bransle.ucs.mun.ca/pub/lyrics
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Other:
Draw Your Own Celtic Knotwork page:
http://www.en.com/users/ivan/knotwork.html
The Internet Movie Database:
http://www.msstate.edu/Movies
York University (Ontario, CA) Web Museum:
http://star06.atklab.yorku.ca/wm/rh/img/ (for info on
medieval & renaissance artwork)
The Trayned Bandes of London homepage:
http://www.rmc.ca/~nusbache/bandes.html (for info on
Elizabethan Military arts)
Labyrinth homepage for Medieval Studies at Georgetown Univ:
http://www.georgetown.edu/labyrinth/labyrinth-home.html
Richard III [1483-85] Society homepage:
http://www.webcom.com/~blanchrd/index.html
The University of Kentucky Classics Dept. homepage:
http://www.uky.edu/ArtsSciences/Classics/ then select Web
Sites of Interest Elsewhere --) Strange Bedfellows
--) Camelot Project for bibliographies of Arthurian
legends, Tristan & Isoldt, etc.)
(This is by no means a complete list :-D) Compiled by Beth Barter
(bab2@cc.bellcore.com)
AUTHOR: John Bowle
PUBLISHER: Little, Brown 1965
CATEGORY: Biography/Non-Fiction
AUTHOR: Carolly Erickson
PUBLISHER: Summit Books, 1980
CATEGORY: Biography/Non-Fiction
AUTHOR: Francis Hackett
PUBLISHER: Modern Library, 1945
CATEGORY: Non-Fiction
AUTHOR: Philip Lindsay
PUBLISHER: Meridian Books, 1953
CATEGORY: Non-Fiction
AUTHOR: Nancy Brysson Morrison
PUBLISHER: Vanguard Press, 1964
CATEGORY: Biography/Non-Fiction
AUTHOR: Jasper Godwin Ridley
PUBLISHER: Viking, 1985
CATEGORY: Non-Fiction
AUTHOR: Lacey Baldwin Smith
PUBLISHER: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1971
CATEGORY: Non-Fiction
AUTHOR: Neville Williams
PUBLISHER: Macmillan, 1971
CATEGORY: Non-Fiction
AUTHOR: Margaret Campbell Barnes
PUBLISHER: MCS, 1959
CATEGORY: Fiction
AUTHOR: Margaret George
PUBLISHER: St. Martin's Press, 1986
CATEGORY: Fiction
AUTHOR: Mary M. Luke
PUBLISHER: Doubleday, 1984
CATEGORY: Fiction
AUTHOR: Jean Plaidy
PUBLISHER: Putnam, 1972
CATEGORY: Fiction
Reinterpretation of the Wives of Henry VIII
AUTHOR: Karen Lindsay
PUBLISHER: Addison-Wesley Pub., 1995
CATEGORY:
AUTHOR: Alison Weir
PUBLISHER: Grove Weidenfeld, 1992
CATEGORY: Non-Fiction
AUTHOR: Gladys Malvern
PUBLISHER: VP, 1972
CATEGORY:
AUTHOR: Katherine Susan Anthony
PUBLISHER: 1929
CATEGORY: Biography
AUTHOR: Pamela Bennetts
PUBLISHER: STM, 1973
CATEGORY: Fiction
AUTHOR: Donald Barr Chidsey
PUBLISHER: Knopf, 1955
CATEGORY: Non-Fiction
AUTHOR: Carolly Erickson
PUBLISHER: Summit Books, 1983
CATEGORY: Biography
Genius of the Golden Age
AUTHOR: Christopher Hibbert
PUBLISHER: Addison-Wesley, 1990
CATEGORY: Non-Fiction
AUTHOR: Margaret Irwin
PUBLISHER: Harcourt, Brace and Co., 1945
CATEGORY: Fiction
AUTHOR: Elizabeth Jenkins
PUBLISHER: Coward-McCann, 1959
CATEGORY: Biography
AUTHOR: Carole Levin
PUBLISHER: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1994
CATEGORY: Non-Fiction
AUTHOR: Alison Plowden
PUBLISHER: Times Books, 1980
CATEGORY: Non-Fiction
AUTHOR: A. L. Rowse
PUBLISHER: STM, 1953
CATEGORY: Non-Fiction
AUTHOR: Dame Edith Sitwell
PUBLISHER: Little, Brown 1962
CATEGORY: Non-Fiction
AUTHOR: Lacey Baldwin Smith
PUBLISHER: Little, Brown 1975
CATEGORY: Biography
AUTHOR: Elswyth Thayne
PUBLISHER: Duell, Sloan and Pearce, 1932
CATEGORY: Biography
AUTHOR: Neville Williams
PUBLISHER: Dutton, 1968
CATEGORY: Biography
AUTHOR: Neville Williams
PUBLISHER: Macmillan, 1972
CATEGORY: Non-fiction
AUTHOR: Neville Williams
PUBLISHER: Doubleday, 1972
CATEGORY: Biography
AUTHOR: Evelyn Anthony
PUBLISHER: CWL, 1960
CATEGORY: Fiction
AUTHOR: George P. Garrett
PUBLISHER: Doubleday, 1984
CATEGORY: Fiction
----------------------------------------------------------------
AUTHOR: Nancy Lenz Harvey
PUBLISHER: MCM, 1975
CATEGORY: Non-Fiction
AUTHOR: Hilda Winifred Lewis
PUBLISHER: McKay, 1972
CATEGORY: Fiction
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