Check out the classes and activities we have scheduled for the 48th Festival of Maidens!
10am-4pm
Medieval Instrument Petting Zoo – Room 209 – Masters Carlo and Myrra and Sir Mieczko
Experience this extensive instrument collection hands-on (with some limitations due to health considerations).
Craftspersons’ Green – 2nd Floor Ballroom
Open to one and all! Display and work on your A&S projects and find camaraderie with fellow crafters.
Medieval Book Facsimile Display – 2nd Floor Ballroom – Meisterin Katrina Helene von Schoenborn
A display of several high-end facsimiles (photographic duplicates) of medieval books for everyone to look at.
Documentation Consultation Table – 2nd Floor Ballroom – Marquesa Violante do Porto
Got questions about preparing documentation for A&S? Let’s chat!
10am-11am
Beginner Instruments – Room 211 – Barb of Ayreton
Bring your own recorder, guitar, or oboe, and let’s help you get started! (Class size limit: 10)
Illumination 101: Create a Scroll Blank – Room 215 – THL Cydeaux of Brittany
This 2-hour class will introduce you to techniques in illumination. Work on a scroll blank that you can turn in to the kingdom for someone’s future award.
Yorkshire Manor Life in the 12th Century – Room 217 – THL Gavin White of Westburgh
Knit Belt Favors – Room 314A – Asa the Nine-Fingered
British Sheep: Part 1 – Room 317 – THL Metylda of Ravenslake
11am-12pm
Make a Treasure Box – Room 211 – Lady Dorcas the Lost
For ages 5 and up (kids under 5 must have an adult helper). Class size limit: 5
Illumination 101 Continued – Room 215 – THL Cydeaux of Brittany
See the 10am class description
Exchequer Roundtable Discussion – Room 217 – Maistresse Elayne Gwenhlian de Belleme, Midrealm Domesday Exchequer
Please bring any problems or concerns that you feel need to be addressed.
TBA – Room 314A
Contact Sofya Chyetc. if you would like to teach a class.
12-1pm
Medieval Feast Table Manners – Food Court – Metressa Alzbeta Michalik
An overview of medieval table manners during feasts with a focus on late 14th-century/early 15th-century Europe. Includes a discussion of manners that have stuck around to modern day as well as oddities that have been lost to time. Bring your lunch and practice as we learn! Those intending to take part in the Midwestern Perfectly Period Feast in November 2023 will find this class of value. No fee or limits on attendees. Look for this class off to one side of the food court.
1-2pm
Ridiculously Easy Flowers for Border Illustrations (2 hours) – Room 211 – Matildis la Libraire, OL
The border style of the mid to late 1400s emphasized speed and simplicity of its elements, which were then layered to produce the illusion of complexity. Many of the flowers are barely a step above doodling. Students paint an artist trading card in either black or white. Class limit: 12 students; 14-page handout, 12 of them full-color illustrations, for $5.
Calligraphy 101 – Room 215 – Mistress Corasande of Starhill and Sarah of Swordcliff
Learn beginner techniques for calligraphy on SCA scrolls.
Archery Marshals’ Meeting – Room 217 – Forester Dietrich, Kingdom Archery Marshal
Simple Tunics and Trousers – Room 314A – HL Grainne inghea Donnchadh
This is a class for first-time garb makers. We will do everything you need to make a basic T-tunic, including measurements, appropriate fabrics, layout, and cutting. If time allows we will cover sewing and trousers. As this is a hands-on class, if you’d like to get started on garb, bring 3-5 yards of a solid color in a natural-fiber fabric, PRE-WASHED (cotton is okay).
Tarot Cafe: Tea and Cards for the Anachronist – Room 317 – Armiger Akiyama Kazuhiko
2-3pm
Ridiculously Easy Flowers for Border Illustrations (2 hours) – Room 211 – Matildis la Libraire, OL
See the 1pm class description
CANCELLED: Period Mistakes & Corrections – Room 215 – Mistress Saraswati man.lkkam
This class is for any scribe who’s put in long hours over a scroll only to go “Whoops…Now how do I fix that??”
Field Guide to the SCA – Room 217 – Metressa Alzbeta Michalik
During the first half of this class we will discuss the sumptuary customs of the SCA and Middle Kingdom (what the fancy hats and belts mean). The second half of the class we will go out on “safari”, identifying different examples of the various ranks and learning just what it means to hold those ranks. Children 11 and younger must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.
The Eura Dress: Finnish Iron-Age Dress – Room 314A – Lady Aldin inn Gladis
This beginner-level costuming class will walk you through the steps to making a dress that was common in Viking-era Scandinavia. Bring 3-5 yards of PREWASHED linen, wool, or cotton, and we’ll help you measure, cut, and get ready to sew. Class size limit: 8
British Sheep: Then & Now – Room 317 – THL Metylda of Ravenslake
A look at several sheep breeds from the Modern UK and what we know of them in SCA Period and a comparison to their modern incarnations. Will have some examples of the modern breed’s wool on hand to touch and see spun up.
3-4pm
Daldøs: A game of sailors 14c on – Room 211 – THL Mwynwen Ysginidd called Strawberry
Writing Scroll Texts: Who Wants To! – Room 215 – Rædesmann Andreas Blacwode, (he/him/his)
Learn how to dream up creative and meaningful texts for award scrolls. Not just for scribes!
Taking the Waters: Building a Persona – Room 217 – Master Oswyn Swann
Period Garb Embellishment – Room 314A – Peer Guenin de Vaucresson, Laureate in Elizabethan costume
Period garb from the Middle Ages and Renaissance often sported bands and areas of embroidered trimmings, which were painstakingly produced by hand. The modern novice reenactor often mistakes jacquard trims for an acceptable substitute (the jacquard loom was invented in 1801) without realizing that the expense of a purchased, and noticeably out-of-period, trim can often be astronomical compared to a hand-made embellishment that could be achieved with very little effort and expense. This class will show you the simple steps for convincingly period trims and embellishments. Materials will be provided, but bring an embroidery hoop if you have one, plus a beading needle and a sewing needle (there will be loaners of those items available, also).
TBA – Room 317
Contact Sofya Chyetc. if you would like to teach a class.