They are a lot of fun for the reasons already mentioned. My wife and I have a tradition to go to the faires near us since we’ve been married. We always get a pic taken. (when we are in the US…since we’re military, we have missed a few years.)
But it is fun. Of course, we’re interested in the fantasy of medieval life so it has a special place for us in our hearts, and I miss going when I’m not in the US.
No, I’m thinking of the Phoenician city of Tyre, I believe. The extracted something from a critter they fished out of the water, and made purple dye out of it.
And here’s a better explanation:
Ah, yes…after hours at a faire. If you can’t get laid there, shoot yourself. 
Great Og, I’ve stumbled across the perfect description of adulthood. Lissa, may I please use it in a sig file? Pretty please?
(says the woman who has been known, on rare non Halloween occasions, to dress as Cthulhu in public, and who now feels the sudden irresistable impulse to build a pillow fort, but is sad she would have no one in realspace willing to throw sock grenades at her).
Incoming!
Re: purple -
Part of the confusion comes in because the historical “purple” … isn’t. It’s more of a deep crimson (whether murex or cochineal). This article Tyrian Purple has a swatch that matches what I’ve seen in historic dyers’ swatches.
Re-black -
Black is an easy, cheap colour to get. Just raise black sheep (I’m not joking).
Failing that, or for black “other stuff”, various gall dyes with iron, or overdyes of opposite colours, will do the job, but not be as lightfast or as “black”. For most period purposes (doublets, robes and the like), black wool would do the job. Or why do you think there were entire monastic orders that wore black robes?
We may be going to Bristol this Sunday.
Anyone familiar with it able to give me any info?
Better to go early or late?
Any shows/performers/merchants to not miss?
Any tips on what to bring/eat/drink?
IIRC, it’s black leather that some take issue with.
Can someone tell me where to buy a bodice or something like that? This year I want to actually buy one. Or maybe make one! Where do I get a pattern?
Take it, with my blessings.
Don’t worry-- there’s the perfect sock-lobber waiting out there for you. It’s a great first date question: “Wanna build a pillow fort?” If they look at you like you’re a nut, move on, girl. Move on. If they say yes, and challenge you to a silverwear sword fight at the table, book a wedding chapel.
Bring yourselves.
Leave all modern conveniences in the parking lot. A camera (what we call a Flemish Painter) is OK as long as you’re not using it excessively in that stereotyped Japanese tourist manner, but prepare to be mocked (or worse, called a witch) if you’re seen with a cell phone, pager or crackberry.
If you can stand it, leave the sunglasses behind and see the shire as we see it, even if it is a bright day. Hats are good for keeping sun out of your eyes, so long as they’re not bright orange baseball caps. Actually, one of the fastest ways to be identified as a patron (or what some faires derisively call a turkey) is to not wear a hat, as hats are required of faire participants.
Magic potion, aka sunblock, is a Very Good Idea. If you’re one of the unfortunate types that get deathly ill from a bee sting, bring your epi-pen. Bees just love to swarm around trash cans full of turkey bones and soda cups.
I can’t speak as to what’s a must-see at Bristol as I’ve not been there since the pre-corporate days when it was called King Richard’s Faire. Early or late? Not much to say there other than that the day will only get warmer as it goes along.
Please be sure to drop a buck or more into the hat of anyone who’s entertained you. We’re not cavorting around in the heat under all that wool for our health, and we’re certainly not doing it for the money either. Most performers only get what’s given by the patrons after a show, and are beyond thrilled if they’re able to break even and get enough to pay for gas to get to the faire.
You got a cite for that? :dubious:
I’ve always distinguished between patrons and turkeys. Turkeys are the ones that try to dress up but fail miserably. The goths walking around in velvet dresses. The horrible mismatch of peasant and noble garb. The way-too-short kilts.
One should always be nice to patrons - without them we couldn’t have faire.
I don’t know how accurate the last part of that is. There may not be as MANY renfaires, and they may not be as elaborate in staging and infrastructure as many are now, but I think that things like sci-fi conventions and Pennsic prove that there WOULD be faires even if no Mundanes attended. Any thriving hobby that works best in small-to-large groups will eventually attract enough of a crowd that some sort of convention/faire/wargame/tournament will be organized.
Should I recommend that my daughter, who is hugely into all things Arthurian, wear her druidic priestess/Mists of Avalon get-up?
I have heard this but not quite in that way. Not “It’s got evil in it so it is evil” but more like “it is already evil and even the word says it! Which is God’s way of telling us it is evil.”
These are the same people who disapprove of D&d.
Kevin, is that you?
I’ve skimmed through this thread, and I’ve seen references to bodices and cleavage, but there’s a particular feature that I think bears mentioning.
Back when I was a wide-eyed young SCA geek and Ren Faire visitor, a frequent topic of agreement among the ladies was that the Renaissance costumes look great on women…but especially two sorts of women.
Firstly, I heard repeatedly asserted, the bodice-style garments (Tudor?) were commonly believed to flatter larger women. Coupled with fancy jewelry to distract and flatter, many of our aging, perhaps-no-longer-slim female members felt they looked much better in such garb than in normal modern street clothes.
Conversely, the late mediaeval/early renaissance garment called the cotehardie, allegedly the first tailored garment in European history, was believed to look really good on younger ladies with good figures. A slender girl looks demure and graceful; a bustier girl looks, um, amazing.
I personally concur with both assessments…particularly the cotehardie, which was widely acknowledged to contribute to our group’s high rate of retention of younger males. 
In summary, any time you have an event that is regarded as flattering to the older and possibly heavier females AND the younger, still-showing-off college-age girls, AND it’s romantic, AND the men wear tights, you’ve got a an almost self-sustaining force.
Sailboat
Even more wrong, though - the trick with tanned leather is to stop it turning black whenever it’s in contact with iron. Turning veg-tan black is as easy is brushing it with a vinegar & iron filings solution. I know, it’s how I dye my SCA leather gear.
Sometimes I think the people who come up with these supposed “they didn’t do it that way” rules have never seen a medieval portrait or illumination. Some of the things they come up with are just dumb.