In this edition: - Welcome to Skaldvik! - Upcoming schedule and projects list - How far weve come! - Living in Skaldvík - What you may have on/with you - Authentic versus practical - Figuring out your personas role - Workshops, whats needed, and how to prep Welcome to Skaldvík, history by the creek! Dani and I were sitting in the encampment creating a project list. One of the items was to clear out the Year One skaldic area, then nothing more than an overgrown patch of poison ivy. Tired at the end of the work day, I mumbled the name of the area and Dani wrote down Skaldvik instead of skaldic. A few attempts to correct the word were made but something rung true. A skald is a storyteller, the poets and historians of the Vikingr age who recorded heroic deeds and every court worth anything had one. It seemed natural that the word skald should somehow be incorporated into the name of our little village as we deal in history and the retelling of it. Vík sealed it as a village name as in Old Norse it means creek or bay. How fitting as anyone who has sat around the fire pit at night can tell you from the mosquitos, there is a creek alongside the encampment. When it rains, a new one is formed by the garden irrigating the area beautifully. This wonderful, happy accident of a misspelling turned into our home name, history and story telling by the creek. Upcoming schedule and projects list Please wear/bring any costuming you have. You will be working in it if it passes. This includes footwear as this weekend is about replicating a Faire day, work projects and all. Its also the last time youll have without an audience to test if those baubles, hair, etc gets in the way of your work. If you do not have anything you feel is appropriate bring it anyway. We just create an alternative persona until we get you up and running. :). If you have leather and furs, go for it for now. :) If you see something here youd like to be involved in, PLEASE LET US KNOW ASAP. We DO need to have some early risers assisting. Sample day, all times are -ish. 8:00 am - kitchen crew, prep and clean fire pit, prepare dagmál 9:00 am - fire crew starts fire, and begins hunt for new firewood 8:00 am - 9:30 am - cleaning crew preps grounds 9:00 am - Steve attends morning notes at Pageant Wagon stage 9:45 am - Gate opening last inspection 10:15 am - two reps join Queen Elizabeth as her escorts in a scene (tbd) 11:00 am - first tour 11:15 am - Dagmál - first meal 12:00 pm - 1:00 pm first workshop 12:00 pm - ?? Workday continues, projects completed, workshops and demonstrations held 3:00 pm - prep náttmál 5:00 pm - 6:00 pm - last workshop 6:15 pm - Náttmál Crew Needed Kitchen - Prep, cook, and clean Fire - Gather, bring to site, and split wood; maintain fire and sure water bucket is filled and fire extinguisher is nearby Workmen - anyone willing to continue with projects, some stepping up to lead, and seeking their completion Beautification - you are the set dressers. Make this look Norse from carving signs, to creating the völvas nook, to working on fence, etc. Tour Guides - loud, convincing and knowledgable, the guides will lead any people standing about on a mini tour. Your job is to know everything thats going on, be entertaining and informative, able to keep audience attentions. Wouldnt hurt if you had period garb. Crafters - Whether its on the lathe, weaving on the loom, nålebinding, or making baskets, you are the ones that will engage the non-tour audiences the most because youre doing something fascinating Storytellers - Skalds and bards, weave your tale in the nook, but your job is to also take care of the nook Current Projects Pre-season - - finish tables - construct shelving unit for kitchen area - finish loom - create do not enter sign for gate entrance - finish and place lathe - start construction of woodpile shelter - start loom wall construction Seasonal - - plant leeks and other veggies thatll grow over the winter - find weavers (Mark, Eric) - learn flatbread baking - build two more 5 tables - build 8 5 benches - collect firewood - continue construction of woodpile shelter - challenge guests to tafl and kubb - build shields Tools needed - power drills (pre-season, off-hours) - period tools (saw, chisel, axe) - chainsaw - chisels How far weve come! On June 1 of this year, a mere 51 days ago as of this writing, we were given a mission by the Faire to create something magical. There was very little restriction, enormous benefits, and an opportunity to create something incredible for people who wish to learn, laugh, and live life in a new way. Yet much of this time was spent not creating a village, but the company that would own the village, the website that informed others about it, creating the social media, drawing up plans of action, etc. The list seems endless but here we are less than two weeks away and as I stand back and look at the work of everyone whos helped so far, I quickly realize two to four hours of sleep a night for the past month has been worth it. Skaldvík, the. Norse area of the Gatherings lands, has a wattle fence that will help keep patrons out as we prepare the cooking fire in a 7 long reconstruction of a longhouse firepit, sans the longhouse. A reproduction of an 11th century Icelandic loom is nearing completion, one capable of producing 48 textiles (small by comparison to the original which produced 65 weaves), two new oaken tables of reclaimed lumber from the Faire site (all taken with permission!), a large rune stone placed, the skaldic nook cleared, baskets being woven, and more stumps for temporary seating than I care to imagine. Already the work done has brought Denise Ericksson past her quota of 300 Volunteer Points (congratulations!), and others are not far behind at all. Theyve created a village and in under two weeks, Skaldvík will spring alive thanks to their work. Weve come a long way since we broke ground on July 5, with only six true working days between now and then. Many of us had no clue what we were doing but that is why we are here: to learn. Others brought expertise locally while others still, our silent benefactors of David Blauvelt, archeologist, and his mentor Dr. László Bartosiewicz, archaeozoologist and professor from the Univeristy of Edinburgh, have provided research and educated opinions that help us plan the Pict and Hun encampments that appear in the future. I look forward to the progress we have yet to make as we discover new adventures during the ever-growing process of the Faire season. Living in Skaldvík When a patron encounters you in the encampment, they are witnessing a window through time. With every breath and step taken they will see woodworkers, armorers, völva, skalds, shield makers, stone carvers, cooks, weavers, and more. Children will run around their mothers nålebinding while others may be seen in their homes, the a-frame tents, taking a well-earned nap. Every person had a job, though. When youre in the encampment, youll be performing your job most of the time. What you may have on/with you Since authenticity is our goal, here are some things that may assist in how to live life in Skaldvík: - the Norse had metal knives and wooden spoons, forks were a later invention - bowls and trenchers were their feasting gear. While we will have a lathe to produce such items, I recommend grabbing one or two woodens bowls and plates. You dont have to go this authentic, but here are some actual finds: media-cache-ak0.pinimg/originals/4c/e9/e3/4ce9e3b4e492a309d6d56ba6534015eb.jpg - Cleanliness! The Norse were a very clean people by comparison with baths taking place every Saturday. Toothpicks, tweezers, nail cleaners, ear wax spoons and more have been in archeological finds as common items. Want to get into period? Have someone wash your hair in a basin on Saturdays. They were so well-groomed, the Vikingr were said to easily steal the hearts of foreign princesses. - Speaking of hair, men often wore theirs short in the back and long in the front like a reverse mullet. While I enjoy History Channels Vikings, its not entirely accurate but they did get a few details apparently spot on: the hairstyles of many of the men and women. Wooden sculptures from the Oseberg ship depicted men in this fashion. - Women wore their hair long, very often tied up in to a bun with decorated ribbons woven in. - FALSE: all Scandinavians were blonde and blue eyed. Red, blond, brown, black, and everything in between was in existence. There were Jewish Vikingr, black Vikingr, Muslim Vikingr. We must NOT restrict ourselves by our bodily appearance. If we are to be accurate, take their wonderful world of variety into consideration! - Clothing should be of natural tones. Reds, pale golden yellows, saffron yellow, blues, greens, and browns were everywhere in paint and in textile dyes. Black is NOT acceptable given the tremendous difficulty in creating the shade. Black sheep are truly nothing more than dark brown, and dark blue dye would be introduced to bring it close to a black. But a rare find in any event. Footwear (mentioned below) may be black for the first year. - No cotton. Linen, wool, linen canvas, leather, bone, and even silk was had in their clothing. - machine stitching should not be visible - Footwear. Men wore calf-height sea boots and ankle-height everyday turn-shoes. - Jewelry. Every persons wealth was worn on their body. To be considered authentic, wear something, usually rings, brooches and pendants such as a Thors hammer, or other pieces such as beads (they LOVED beads!). - Amber was near mystical to the Vikingr, broken into little pieces and threaded to form beautiful necklaces women wore around their brooches, piled in with beads and more. - Go simple! There is no reason to spend a fortune or worry about going crazy with every little bit being perfect. They dressed simply: -- women wore a gown with a simple keyhole or close-fitting jewel neckline -- men wore the same as a kyrtle, or tunic -- both had close-fitting sleeves that ran long -- women wore an apron dress, or hangeroc, which was either a tube or two panels connected via shoulder straps, the whole of which was belted -- likewise, men wore a gusseted overtunic that was a little shorter than their thigh-length undertunic, with three-quarter or also full length sleeves. -- men also had belts -- hanging from their belts were pouches, a saex or shears, personal grooming kit, fire starter, and in the case of the women, maybe the keys to chests Authentic versus Practical The purpose of the Gathering is to educate and entertain Faire patronage through demonstrations, workshops, narration, games, and storytelling. While we endeavor to be authentic, we have neither the time nor immediate finances to do everything authentic. Year One is called The Settlement for not only our personas, but also us. Were adjusting. When the lathe is up and several augers are had, work can flow easily. Until then we have to do what we must to look the part, if were not being the part. This includes your garb. For much of what we do, we can use the three foot rule: if it looks good from three feet away, itll do just fine. Yet some things, like boots, are much harder to come by and be period. Sandals are a no go in both a work environment with hot liquids and metal. So while all shoes must be closed-toed, plain black Sandlars and other simple styles are just fine. Stay away from heels! Figuring out your personas role As you can tell by the Crews Needed list above, we need a few familiar faces around the encampment to be the village. On Saturday, we go over your character, pronunication of name, and knowing who each other area. Well do the same in Sunday. Those who wanted to wander and bring audiences in, well need you to work on projects first. Workshops I am able to offer storytelling, rune carving (later in season), lathe, and loom demonstrations once I learn. Tony has offered tallow rendering, making candles and more. We need more, and its requirements: -- it must be information, educational, and authentic -- you must be able to have a voice that reaches the back of a crowd (I can teach you that) -- you must provide your own materials -- preferred if you can run it twice a day at least, they can be variations of the same (part 1, part 2, etc) If your workshop consumes materials and audiences benefit from said materials, we may charge audiences for such. Such fees must be cleared with Gathering management prior. Were looking for: -- lathe -- loom -- basket -- cooking -- baking -- herbalism -- medicinals -- storytelling -- arms and armor demonstrations Have anything else? Just ask! Skál!
Posted on: Mon, 21 Jul 2014 18:23:45 +0000
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