Project: Kabuto

It's Spring, so time to get working on new projects. I am wanting to remake and retool my armor. The first thing I'm wanting to do, and one that I have been wanting to do for some time is make a new Kabuto. I am getting the pieces of my shop in order to begin working on it very soon. I will post images and updates when I begin working on it.

For my new Kabuto, I'm wanting to alter and enhance certain aspects of my current one. I have some ideas of what I want out of the new one.

1. Removeable mempo/bar-grill.
2. Mempo/Bar-grill that can be attached or removed with preferribly one hand, and definatley without taking my fingered gauntlets off.
3. Increase the length of the mabizashi (brow).
4. Have more defined fukigaeshi (wings).
5. Form the hachi (bowl) to more accurate shape.
6. Shape the shikioro better to fit over shoulders.
7. Make it look more period overall.
8. Have several styles of mempos for various occasions.

Don't know if I'll be able to accomplish any or all of that. The most important thing is the removable mempo/bar-grill and to be able to add and remove it without taking off my gauntlets. The rest are less important, but still something I want to strive for. We'll see what I can get done.

2009 Goals

I know, it's late for resolutions, but this isn't a resolution. Just a few goals I'd like to meet in the SCA. With my new mundane job, vacation and income have changed for me so I'd like to start planning ahead what I'd like to accomplish in the next year or so.

• Open shop for armoring
• Make a whole new set of armor
• Attend Estrella, Gulf, and Pennsic all the same year
• Attend and fight in at least one event a month
• Prepare for, and fight in Crown

Some of these are ongoing and not just a one and done type of thing. Some are more detailed like Crown. Need to save money, find a consort, train, make garb, etc.

I'm posting these to be a reminder to me.

12th Night - 2009 version

Went to 12th Night for the 8th or 9th straight year.  You'd think I liked this event or something.  It wasn't much different than every other year. Lots of fun and fighting, as usual.

A new fighter was thinking about going up with me, but decided to spend time with his girlfriend instead.  Sheesh!  Where is his priorities? (as I remain single)  So I went up to Omaha alone.  Not a bad trip.  Tried to keep myself entertained.  For the second straight year, I hit some wicked dense fog for at least half the trip.  Very wierd.  When I got there, it started to drizzle.  This would become an issue later when I was to leave as it froze and the roads were ice covered.

I started later than I wanted, but I was tired and thought driving tired, alone was not a good choice.  When I arrived a little before noon, the tournament had already started.  Since it's a bearpit, I didn't need to be there right when it started.  It would last another 4 hours.  I had time.

I changed into my garb.  Put on armor and fought.  And fought.  And fought.  And fought some more.  I had a really great time.  I was trying to think of the last time I fought that wasn't fighter practice or a demo.  It's been awhile.  Maybe Valor in September?  Anyway, I was just wanting to knock some rust off and I did better than I even imagined.  I did better than I have ever done at 12th Night, and I wasn't really worried about it.

As I've mentioned before, I tend to overthink things and psyche myself out.  When I go out to have fun and don't think about it, I do much better.  I knew I hadn't fought in months, and I knew I was going to get beat.  I just wanted to get the rust knocked off and have some fun.  Well, I did.  At the end of the day, I checked with the list table and I had 16 wins.   I think my best prior was 12, I think.  And I know I didn't loose 16, so I had a winning record.  Yay!

At the end of the tournament, they announced they had 764 total fights (not including double-kills) in the four plus hour tournament.  I'd guess there were 30 or so fighters there.  And the winner, Ashir, won by over 10% with 91 wins.  91 wins?!  That's awesome!  I didn't even fight 91 times in that timeframe!  Good job Ashir!

I was able to see Toen, Isabeau, Shawn, and Allison.  It is always good to see them.  It's been awhile since we've all been together.  Actually.  Now that I think about it.  I dont think there was a time at 12th Night we were all together in the same place.  Funny.  What a dysfunctional family.

I sat for court.  Talked to Her Majesty Maerwynn.  Talked to quite a few people I haven't seen or been out of the loop with.  It was all good.

The event seemed smaller than normal.  I don't know if it's loosing popularity, or if it was because of the weather.  Or it could of just been my imagination.  Regardless, still a lot of fun.  Lots of good fighting.  I will be back next year.  I just wish we had a bigger Crescent Moon contigent on the field.  Kind of makes me sad.  But that is how this Shire is.  Maybe next year.  But for now, I'll try to get people to go to Winter War Maneuvers.

Project: Silk Banner

I've wanted to make a silk banner for some time now. I did some research, asked a few people for help and information, bought the stuff I needed, and thanks to Toen for the silk, and Kirstyn for helping with the dyes and frame, I now have a fancy new silk banner. It is my first attempt, and there are some mistakes, but it passes the 15 foot rule. And I know more now for the next time.

My first attempt I did a more European style banner. It is more like a pendant and tapered on one end. Meant to fly horizontally. My next one for me will be a Japanese style which will fly vertically. Below are some of the pictures of the process. Click on any picture for a larger, more detailed image.

The silk being stretched on the frame and with the pattern already drawn on it in pencil, and the basics outlines of the banner in gutta. The outline looks jagged and wavy because it's on the frame, not because we were drunk. The pattern was done before putting it on the frame, then when on the frame, distorts pattern. When it comes off the frame, it's back to normal.


Now the gutta has been applied to the silk to form the Calon Cross and my mon. The gutta acts like a dye damn. It stops the different color of dyes from crossing over into another color. It's really cool to see happen.

The dyes have been applied. I did two coats of dye, mainly because the first coat was too streaky. I think I applied it wrong by using foam brushes. It soaked up the dye, but it didn't allow it spread too easily. You can still see the streaks in the blue, but they are not as noticeable. The purple and yellow came out really well.


The finished banner with it's ties and binding edge added. I used some bias tape for the binding edge and the ties. You can see the streaks in the blue. The purple faded a little during the fixative and washing phases. But it looks more faded in this picture than in actuality. The sun is shining behind it. Not sure what the final length is, but it's over six feet long, and it flys beautifully. I will be breaking it out this weekend at Valor.

Death of Sir Ivan

As I mentioned in my previous posts, Sir Ivan is dead, and his friends gave him a proper send-off. These are the pictures of it.

Take one Lilies and call me in the morning... part II

... where was I?

Ah yes.... the Hus & Chiv versus the world. Much fun was had by all and the quarreling guilds were quelled quickly, (yes, I'm good) and now there is peace in the Kingdom.

Immediately after this, there was one last battle for the day, and basically the war. It was a Valhalla Bridge Battle. In a nutshell, you fight on a bridge. When you die, you resurrect on the other side. You keep doing this until you can't swing a stick anymore. And that's basically what I did. I had a ball. And I had a ball dying, which happened more than not. But I had fun, and more fun than I've had in awhile.

Later, I was asked to fight for Annalies in the Water Bearer's Tournament. That was fun. I went out two-stick for the first time in a LONG time. I kind of hit the ground running. Took a little bit, but it started to come back to me how to use those things. I didn't do too badly, and I think I did ok for my lack of activity recently. But again, I enjoyed myself, and didn't have a problem with any of the fights.

Before the fights, I sat down and talked with Bjarnulf the Gleamer (sorry if I misspelled your name dude) for a bit. He's a good man. Good fighter, and just a good man. You know those guys who would help you move into a new place even if you just met him? Yeah, that's him. Well, we sat and talked for quite a bit. He is getting into a Japanese persona and we just sat around and talked shop for a while. It was a good time.

Also before the fights, Mor found me. I haven't seen or talked to Mor in probably over a year. When the tournament started, Mor, Bjarnulf, Annalies and I just sat under the Royal Shadefly (yeah, I didn't realize it until it was too late) and just talked, and watched the fighting. Just catching up and telling stories.

After the tournament, I was done fighting for the day. I had my fill. The Phoenix Household, which Bjarnulf is a member, invited me to dinner with them that evening. Since I didn't have any other plans, I accepted. Besides, they were having steak. How can I turn down steak? So I stripped off my armor and headed to the Phoenix encampment with Mor.

As usual at SCA events, you can't go from point A to point 2 without running into people and talk to them. I had to stop a couple of times to see people I haven't seen in awhile, and catch-up. Talked to Rhodri a bit about his 40 fights at 40. He did 35 fighters I believe. All of them best 2-out-of-3. Awesome! I couldn't do that right now. He rocks. Also he informed me that the Fyrd fundraiser of selling snow cones one day at a quarter each raised over $150!!! Over $150 in quaters! Epic win!

At one point, I saw Sir Ivan and Sir Gilligan walking around, getting ready for the party. I yelled over at him, "If Ivan is dead, I want his shit!" They laughed, but Gilligan yelled back, "I've tried that, he's taking it with him to Valhalla!"

Speaking of Ivan's shit... Nazir talked with Ivan and acquired Ivan's polearm that he's used for many years. Ivan is known for his polearm work. He is a polearm god! Anyway, Nazir talked to Ivan and he agreed to allow Nazir to cut up his polearm into bits and give them to people who may want a piece of Ivan's good ju-ju. I so want one! I'm going to have to contact Nazir about it. That'd be sweet.

Eventually got to the Phoenix encampment, and they had already begun eating. My bad. Let me tell you, if you do not know people in the Phoenix House, you need to introduce yourselves to them. They are a great bunch of people. Everyone is so kind and generous. Wiliiam, their grand pooba (sorry William, I forgot your title), is the best. He made sure I was fed and had enough to drink.

I squired to Sir Toen at Lilies a few years ago. Every year since then, at Lilies, we smoke a cigar to comemerate that day, and to just hang out. This year, Toen was not at Lilies when I was. But that didn't stop me from continuing the tradition. One of the feasters at dinner, Evan, had several nice cigars he was gracious enough to share. So a few of us sat back with our bellies full of steak, we sat back and smoked our cigars and had some really good conversations.

Last year, after wandering around, I ended up in the Phoenix camp one night. I sat down and just chewed the fat with William and anyone else who'd walk up. We laughed, joked, told stories, and discussed some deep philosophical shit through evening. So this year, we thought we'd tackle that again. So I think we are starting a new tradition of having a good talk with William at Lilies. The cigars and steak are definately a bonus.

Time slipped by and it was getting late and I had to head home. I said my farewells, packed up my stuff and headed home.

Earlier in the week, I had thought I would just skip Lilies. I was getting burned out on the SCA, and with people, with my priorities, and with everything. I don't know what changed my mind, but I decided to go, and I'm glad I did. It was only one day, but it was one of the best Lilies I have ever had.

I'm feeling better about things in the SCA. I don't feel so crispy. I now feel like getting back into things more and being more energetic and positive. This is especially important to our newer people. We have quite a few new good people, and they don't need me being a dick and being negative. So right now, I'm feeling much better. I needed this Lilies really badly, and I didn't realize I did. Funny how things work sometimes.

I'm back in the fight.

Take one Lilies and call me in the morning.

Ahh....

After my last post, I felt a little.....underwhelmed with things in my SCA life. But after getting back from Lilies, my outlook has improved a tad. I had a good time. I got my fighting in, I saw some friends I haven't seen in awhile, I carried on a tradition, and I think I've started a new tradition.

Backing up, I haven't been excited about Lilies in a few years. I can't really put my finger on it. Every year it rolls around, and I get less and less excited about it, even though I go, and have a decent time. Hell, I was Hus'd at Lilies last year. Plus my good friend Maerwynn is Princess during this Lilies. You'd think I'd be more stoked (80's term folks) about it. But I wasn't. With things that have gone on recently, I was thinking about going one weekend, or not at all even. In the end, I day-tripped it up on Saturday.

I arrived on site around 10:15, which was a little later than I wanted to be there. Dumped my stuff, parked, and headed to the battlefield to armor up. I ran into Sir Ivan, that was my first good ju-ju of the day. Ivan is a great guy, and someone I really look up to and respect as a person and as a Knight. Why it was so special was that I didn't expect to see him there. He has basically retired because of he has a bad knee and elbow that won't allow him to fight anymore. So I didn't expect to see him there, but he was there for one last fight and party. We talked a bit, and said we would see each other later.

I proceeded to put on my armor and get into the fight, as the battles had already begun. It was a very sunny day. Highs in the mid to upper 80's, possibly low 90's. It was warm in the sun, but in the shade was decent, and there was a cool breeze coming off the lake. So it wasn't unbearable. I've definately been in worse, and hated every minute of it. So, another good ju-ju item.

I got into the fight, and I found myself waaaay out of shape and practice. As stated earlier, it's been about six months since I've been in armor and fighting in earnest. I was feeling it. Luckily, I don't think I embarassed myself too badly. I died more than I killed, but I did kill a few. And most importantly, I had fun. Probably the most fun I've had in armor in awhile. I tried to think of the experience instead of how bad I felt I was doing, and in the end, I had a great time.

One cool moment, which split into two, happened before the last battle. As we were resting between battles, a horn sounded on the field. It grabbed everyone's attention. Four long belts of the helm came from Sir Richard. Then a one-eyed man appeared in the woods behind us, claiming to be a god, and saying that he is here to claim the soul of Sir Ivan. The god was Sir Gilligan, a good friend of Ivan's and who recently moved away, but came back for Lilies, and apparently this schtick.

Gilligan gave a wonderful speech about how great Ivan was, and that his time was over and he was there to take Ivan to Valhalla. I'm paraphrasing, of course. Gilligan asked if there was anyone who would speak of his merit. Several people stood up and spoke of Ivan's great deeds and of his stature of a man. Then it was time for Gilligan to claim Ivan and take him to the afterlife. They dueled with six foor spears and Gilligan pierced the breast of Ivan, killing him on the field, with everyone watching. Then a scutum was brought to the field and several of Ivan's friends placed his body on the scutum, hoisted it on their shoulders, and carried his body into the woods, and into history. As his body left, the field broke out in Non Nobis. It was a very touching send-off for Ivan.

After Non Nobis, the Huscarls stood together at the entrance of the woods and sang Requiem for a Huscarl together. On the last verse, we all turned our backs and faced the woods and sang into the woods, towards the afterlife, and towards the soul of Sir Ivan. It was so awesome to be there and to be a part of it.

After that, there was an announcement that all the Chivalry and Huscarls were to meet with His Majesty on the top of the hill. So we all marched up the hill to attend our King. There he informed us that at Coronation, the guilds of the Kingdom had come to him with issues that needed resolving. He instructed them that they needed to work the issues out amongst themselves. But as it has been several months, and now that blood has been shed at this war between the guilds, he was tired of their in-fighting and thought it was time for their conflict to be over. So, he charged the Chiv and the Hus with the duty of quelling the guilds and to bring peace back to Calontir.

So basically it was Chiv and Hus versus the world. :) It was funny during His Majesties speech. When it was getting clear that we were going to face the entire field, people were ripping off their tabbards and sashes representing which guild they fought for and throwning them down at His Majesties feet. Some were saying "I already know how to make fire", or "I drink beer, I don't brew it", or "I was made to fight, not to sew." I believe it was Sir Halidar who said, "I do so love it when we get to be the bootheel of oppression." So in a cheer to "Long Live Calontir" we faced off with the world. We were obviously outnumbered, which made it fun. It was a broken field battle, we fought it three times, and we won two of the three times. And in the end, it was glorious and fun.

...more later...