Meeting Puck: Midsummer’s Magic

June 23, 2021.Reading time 10 minutes.

After a long year of closures and being sheltered in our homes, this summer feels especially celebratory! Though we yet remember the shadows of the losses of the last 16 months, so many of us are finally breathing a little easier, turning our faces toward the sun, and airing out our costumes and garb to […]

Folklore and Humanity – a review of Botanical Folk Tales of Britain and Ireland

May 27, 2021.Reading time 9 minutes.

Have you ever noticed that when you’re walking the lanes of a Renaissance or medieval faire, there is a distinct love of all things connected to the United Kingdom? A generalization, to be sure, but Renfest enthusiasts are often devoted Anglophiles who love tea, kilts, Celtic knotwork, and may even be able to quote sumptuary […]

A Corset Story

May 19, 2021.Reading time 13 minutes.

Of course, we’ve all seen women walking the lanes at the Renaissance festival in gorgeous court gowns, shimmery fairy costumes, and simpler merchant-class dresses. But perhaps there is no more ubiquitous clothing item at the RenFaire than the corset. Curvy, boned, and in materials from silk to leather, the Victorian corset has become the costume […]

Eimar Burke: Spirit and Light for Beltane

May 1, 2021.Reading time 3 minutes.

Síocháin, suaimhneas, solas agus grá. Peace, tranquility, light and love. In June of 2020, Eimear Burke was installed as the Chosen Chief of the Order of Bards, Ovates, and Druids. In March of 2021, I had the pleasure of speaking with her via Zoom from Kilkenny, IE to Evergreen, TX. Initially, my plan had been […]

It’s All fun and Games, Until someone …

March 31, 2021.Reading time 12 minutes.

For so many who love the Renaissance Festival, laughter is the great joy that drives their attendance, we daresay perhaps even more than the ale. Or mayhap it is the ale that makes the laughter so deliciously belly-jiggling! To celebrate April Fools Day, we reached out to jesters and court fools from festivals all over […]

Featured artist: Lily hufnagel of lilystrations

February 3, 2021.Reading time 16 minutes.

I recently had the sheer pleasure of chatting with Lily over Facetime, she’s a delightfully positive woman who radiates joy. A native of Pennsylvania who loves Barcelona, her playfulness was evident by the cat ears popping up behind her shoulders, courtesy of a cute pillow case. Who are you and what do you do? My […]