In an email dated Thu, 11 Sep 2003 10:17:13 am GMT, Clive and Betty Ann Rice <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes:
>Oh, Liz, that is a classic! �Love it! > >Betty Ann in Roanoke, Virginia, USA >~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ >[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: > >> So I would go through the 'price ritual'. >> See, it's not just the tatting woman that goes around and makes your life misery. What has always got me about reenacting was that people wanted the best but wanted to pay the least. My other half always said that when it came to buying equipment for fighting you couldn't spend enough. He has on too many occasions had badly weilded sword or miss used pike has ended up crashing across his head - OH says that if he hadn't got the best helmet, made sure it was padded properly and always kept the chin strap flexible he would have been laid up for months in hosiptal. Reenactment can be dangerous but you only get what you pay for. I suppose that I'm lucky - I found that I couldn't afford the cost of clothing so I went out and bought patterns, sized them up for me and made clothes. I only had 2 terms of bad dressmaking lessons and I cannot make anything modern but have a talent for period costume. But my saving grace was bartering. I found people who made wonder clothes and would offer them my lace if they gave me money off things. One lady I offered about 5 yards of handmade lace approximately 2 - 2.5" wide and made in linen to a torchon pattern that was from Belguim and from the period that we did. She was over the moon and offered to make me a cassock (it's like a jacket with buttons up the inside of the arms and the side seams of the jacket - you can then unbutton it and button the sleeves to the seams and make a cloak - warm, thick and washed in water repellant it makes a great rain jacket when you are on the field.) We worked on an hour exchange rate and she felt that the button sewing on (200 in all) equalled the work in the lace in hours - so all I had to do was pay for the material. We fixed the price at �20 for the wool suiting and thread. When it came to swopping I had been to another couple of events and had actually got 14 yards of the lace for her. I was really happy with the cassock and was quite willing to give the extra length as a bonus - she was taken aback by this gesture and said that it was nearly three times what I had agreed so she couldn't charge me anything. Result? Two happy bunnies - she had enough lace to cover her wedding dress and I was warm and dry. However, one of my biggest upsets when reenacting was the fact that I had taken care to research what pillow and bobbins I would use for the period. I also had the right type of fabric for the period covering my pillow and as a cover cloth. I have certain bobbins that when spangled also use period beads or semi precious stones and worked in either silk or linen on a period pricking. Everything done to the sciscors, pins, ink on the pricking had been done right. Even the pricking card was the right type. So there I am, period up to my eyeballs when the local lacemakers come up to you and say - 'that's not right for the period'. You feel like getting them by the throat and saying look, I've spent 10 years researching this and IT IS!!!! To which they would say, 'Oh, I don't think so'. Mind you this is the type of person who when you ask usually has done about 3 lessons at the local college and now KNOWS EVERYTHING but on too many occasions it is said by lacemakers who should know better. When I go to a demonstration I always take time to admire everything that the person is doing no matter how CRAP they might be. I'll pick on a particular bobbin that they obviously love and ask them who made it, where did they get it, how long have they had it ... etc. I will compliment their choice of pillow / pattern / thread etc and encourage them and wish them luck. No matter how dire I would never critisize them - but perhaps that is just the tutor in me - it's also why I like to hang out with you guys. Supportive is your middle name. OBTW - in the end I just used to make honiton at demonstrations - this was in the days before Binche became popular - that used to shut them up as most of the critics hadn't tried it and had no idea what I was doing. My love to you all Regards Liz Beecher I'm <A HREF="http://journals.aol.com/thelacebee/thelacebee";>blogging</A> now - see what it's all about - To unsubscribe send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] containing the line: unsubscribe lace [EMAIL PROTECTED] For help, write to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
