Wow, just a few days and my inbox is overflowing. Three day weekend meant I wasn't able to get online very much, but finally got through the discussions on various topics - all interesting and educational, or at least entertaining. ;-)
Most of the comments and observances I had have already been made by others, however... SCA - from my limited esperience the SCA has evolved over time. There seem to be a larger percentage of folks interested in historical accuracy than 20 years ago. It seems that the parameters have changed as well - when I first encountered the SCA it was predominantly Western European based. Now I hear that any culture within the 600 to 1600 period that had some type of contact with Western Europe is acceptable, which explains the wide variety of garb. An excerpt from an SCA article states, "...describe the SCA as recreating the Middle Ages "as they ought to have been." ....A better description is that we selectively recreate medieval culture, choosing elements of the culture that interest and attract us." (from http://www.sca.org/sca-intro.html) And as Lilinah said, many events are open to the public. An attempt to dress 'period' by visitors and newcomers is appreciated and basic loaner garb is provided. I took my niece to an event a couple of weekends ago, and we found a wonderful "T" tunic type dress for her to borrow that was quite accurate. (Was also pleased that the little tom-boy commented the dress was really comfortable!) Hippies - 40 years old is an ageing hippie?! Anyone 40 is a little too young to be classified as an original unless their parents were. - let alone be classified as an ageing anything! ;-D Most folks strive to establish their own identity by living outside the mainstream in one way or another. Some are just more extreme than others - and as another person commented, things no longer shock as they once did since we have become accustomed to diversity. That being said, when I see some of the "retro" fashions that have been popular the last few years I usually find myself thinking...ug, that was horrible when we wore it the first time around! (re: polyester; bellbottom hip-huggers; acid green anything; extremely bright, lid to eyebrow eyeshadow; disco music; etc...JMO.) Anyway - glad to be back and love finding all the resources mentioned. Annette M ______________________________________________________ Click here to donate to the Hurricane Katrina relief effort. http://store.yahoo.com/redcross-donate3/ _______________________________________________ h-costume mailing list h-costume@mail.indra.com http://mail.indra.com/mailman/listinfo/h-costume
