The Trimaris Fashion Report
(and other things happening around the Kingdom)
"Even since the invention of ready-made, cheaply produced clothes in the middle of the last century, the demise of the tailor has been predicted. Like the panda and the whooping crane, it has been said, the march of modern life is against him. Mega-international corporations seem to own everything, calculatedly obsolete gimmickry abounds, and Coca-Cola now sells clothing as well as soft drinks by the millions of units. But craftsmen have indeed managed to survive in this age of the mass-produced and quickly thrown away, even to prosper. There is still a clear need for the uniquely personal and individual in our lives. In this age of the shoddy and the quick, the vulgar and the mass-consumed, tailors can still be counted on to champion uniqueness and quality. It is the hallmark of their tradition."
- G. Bruce Boyer
How can you disagree with this guy?
One aspect of what makes the individual in this SCA society is that we do make our own clothes. In this way, every time we come together to play in this game we all love so much, not only do we leave behind all the quick and easy conveniences of the modern world, we honor the ancient craft of tailoring with the respect it deserves. (And I bet you don't even know you're doing it either.)
CORONATION AND CROWN TOURNAMENT - AGAIN! The Coronation of Their Most Regal-Looking Majesties, Bytor and Astrith, was quite the social event of the SCA season. Clad in white and blue Tudor, the two looked simply scrumptious decked out in their finest. Let's start with Bytor. From head to toe, bulbous-toed shoes, good-looking set of legs, and a broad shouldered coat (I'm sure there was no padding necessary there!), he couldn't help but look like Henry VIII's kin in stance. Astrith, with her red hair beautifully offset by the blue of her cloak, was every inch a Queen standing next to Bytor. She wore her coronation gown with the confidence and refinement that makes her the regal-looking monarch that she is. Do I even need to spell out who created these masterpieces of Tudor garb? Of course, you can plainly see Duchess Elspeth's hand here. Now, I thought she had outdone herself in the past, but I was WRONG! Not only did she do these incredible outfits with only ONE fitting, she did them in only two weeks! Now that's a small miracle in itself. Vivat! My hat is off to you. And I need to comment on Her Majesty's wardrobe throughout the entire weekend. She wore a variety of clothing made by various people. I wish I had the names of everyone who contributed to her wardrobe because you all deserve a giant pat on the back for the most excellent work you have done. And you couldn't have asked for a more poised and charming Monarch to wear them so well.
And the next day - another Crown Tourney, another monarch-to-be, yadda, yadda, yadda. Of course the field was littered with heraldry, pomp and stuff like that!
FASHION SHOW IN THE FEAST HALL Since Trimaris' events are getting larger and larger, and Mother Nature is making it hotter and hotter, the best place to socialize is in the air-conditioned Hall. Not only are there filtered water and ice to cool you off, there's a plethora of fashionable people moving in and out of the hall the whole event. Many folks were dressed up nicely for this event, but there were two that caught my eye and made me look twice - Dueña Ysabela Celestina Manrique de Palma y Majorca and Lady Elizabeth de Whitney. OK, all you self-proclaimed garb goddesses out there, take a page from these two ladies. You know, every time I see Ysabela she has been looking fab. From head to toe, she is the perfect picture of a Spanish lady. A gold veil, wimple (even in this heat!) and a Spanish sideless surcoat of rich red and blue. Although she doesn't make her own clothes (Lady Kathryn of Tewkesbury gets the credit for them lately), she is the most happening Spanish lady in the kingdom. Elizabeth, on the other hand, does make her own clothes. I have seen her in just about every time period there is. This last outfit was modeled off of the Ditchley portrait painted of Queen Elizabeth I. Elizabeth said she made the outfit to the scale it was in the painting by using the Queen's head as a unit of measurement to get the ornamentation on the skirt the right size! That's 100 points for using your head, Elizabeth!