This is of course not a full class handout or anything.  Just my notes I wrote down during class, so I can remember these things! Thank you Lady Charmayne!


Paper
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- Use a standard size. Folks are going to want to put these in a frame, so make it easy on them.
8.5 x 11, 9 x 12, 11 x 17

- Hot press paper is smooth.  Good surface.
Cold press paper is bumpy.  Bad surface.

- Use acid-free. Card stock is ok to use. Parchment is the period paper, though this is a bit expensive so you can also use pergamenata which is vegetable based. Grab parchment scraps for cheap at Gulf Wars from the merchant there making and selling parchment.


Paint
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Goauche is the paint to use. It's a water-based paint. Mix it with a little water, and use.  It's non-toxic.  Though you can use watercolors (just use less water), goauche has more pigment.

You can also mix your own paints from powdered pigments, if you can find them!
*Note - Russian ones are cheap.  Avoid
Mix the pigments with gum arabic powder and water, and use.
* Nice tip, if you put these inside a little container to mix and paint from, you can just close it up when you're done and keep those nice pigments to use again later!
Griffin Dyeworks sells pigments.

Student grade paint is cheaper and more forgiving.
Michaels and Hobby Lobby craft stores sells a Reeves student grade paint.
Windsor is one professional brand. Newton has a kit online. Hoelbein is top of the line stuff.

Brushes
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Tiny! Use small brushes.  Ok, not like, microscopic, like 3 bristles, but you know.  Just really small ones.
Fake are somewhat easier, because real ones tend to shed.  Doesn't really matter though, either kind.

Stuff for a Kit
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Paint pots or palettes.  Palettes are scriptorium-friendly. Order covers for them.
*Note - never wash these!
A cup for clean water
A cup for dirty water. And make it doesn't look like a beverage glass. Somebody might accidentally drink that dirty paint water. Eww!
Paper towels
Pencils
Eraser
A thin and acid-free liner pen, if you wish to draw over your pencil drawing.
Ruler


Tips
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- Leave a 2" border around the outside. This accounts for a standard matte should the recipient frame the scroll.
- Leave room on the scroll for the calligraphy.
- Try to match the print and the art. You can put a note on the back to the calligrapher about what style to use. It helps them out a lot if you have something specific you're doing, especially.
- As for colors to use, colors that are "period" to use are black, white, blue, green, yellow, red, silver, gold.... some others, maybe? flesh? Not really orange or pink, they might be construed as a faded red. there is some controversy here, though. Surely they had to have used flesh tones since they have people on their scrolls. We do go ahead and use a flesh tone though, because we want to make the scrolls pretty. The recipient is by odds likely not to be a Laurel in the area of C&I.  They will appreciate a lovely looking scroll.  Appearances matter, so fussing over being perfectly accurate is not critical, unless perhaps you are planning on entering this scroll in an A&S competition, in which case just avoid those "other" colors!
- Leave room for words, signatures, and seals!  Don't make lines where signatures go.  But, it is ok to put a small circile where the seal will go. You can use a Dixie cup as a good guide on the size to leave available for the seal - currently in our Kingdom, it needs to be about an inch and a half or on up to 2 inches. You don't have to worry about leaving room for the Beacon Herald's seal unless it is certain scrolls.  That seal is huge!
- Scribe's signature. You should sign your work, but please don't make a blatent obvious mark on the front. A maker's mark is totally fine. But it should be subtle or small. Or, you can just write your name in pencil on the back. If you are painting someone else's art, write "painted by".
- Don't put someone's arms on the scroll unless you have been commissioned to do so.
- Know your group and your Kingdom awards.
Badges for specific awards should be on the design. The can still be given without, but please try to add these. For example, the Meridian Cross has a badge Scrolls for that award have that badge.
The badges are online right here.
*For example there are some widely unknown badges, such as the queen's award Bough
"The scroll must incorporate a cypress tree and should include a small frog in the design."
These specifics can be found in the Meridian Scribes handbook.
Pay attention to the color of the badge. Like for a Sable axe, use sable.

-Calligraphy -- don't worry about adding titles. This will be done later.  The current sovereigns may wish to use a different title than the standard Rex and Regina.


Documentation is not necessary!  But you can write down the source that inspired your desigin on the back.  "Inspired by ____"

Where to go
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Craft stores, Hobby Lobby and Michaels for paints and supplies
Parchment and pigment - you can pick them up at Gulf Wars
Join the Scribes Yahoo and Facebook groups
The Parchment Pursuivent website
Bagatelle

- Sources for art you can use to create original scrolls - original manuscripts, Dover coloring books, the Morgan library online, the Book of Kells, sacred texts, other scrolls - even other Kindgoms'. Bookstores - check the religion and history sections. Use trim to inspire borders!



Styles of Scrolls
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Early - Norse, celtic, No gold.  "Kiddie" like as far as styling.

Middle - Color book, in style.  Flowers and bars. Goldwork.  No people. Scrolly flowers and leaves. Red and blue bars mainly, and "squashed bugs"
(This means the trompe-l’oeil style that emerged during this age, which is "A style of painting that gives an illusion of photographic reality.") In other words, 3D looking art designs that no longer looked just flat.
(good source for this is: Dover book  Ready-To-Use Medieval Herb, Plant and Flower Illustrations: 294 Different Copyright-Free Designs)

And Late - "Rembrant!" Very fancy and pretty. Hours of work, lots of tiny stuff in the background (diapering). Lots of acanthus leaves used in these styles.


Wording.  Check out the typical examples here.
http://www.loggiaserena.com/Parchment/ScrollWordings/ScrollWordings.htm
But don't be afraid to suggest a new wording! Look at other examples and if you'd like to suggest a different text, just include a note on the back. Not all scrolls have to begin with the same old "Whereas."  Be creative.

See also
https://sites.google.com/site/ironmountainnewcomers/activities/scribes
https://sites.google.com/site/ironmountainnewcomers/what-is/regalia

Must write down my ideas to be sure I remember them later.  What a busy time of year. Finishing up A&S project work, preparing for Thanksgiving, and then it is time for Magna Faire!  Thank goodness I will have some vacation days off to tinker.

Thank you Lord William! He has helped me to realize what put  me off so much about the violet oil I created.  You see, I was concerned originally that perhaps something had not gone well because I did not dry the plants before making the cold oil infusion. However this was a common period practice, and is still done today. The risk for water being in the oil turning rancid is there. However with the freshly made oil spelling and looking exactly the same this much later, I know that it is not spoiled, it just smelled funny!  This is no different from plantain oil. It smells very pungent as well. And here's the key.  When you think of violet, you think of the delicate, yet strong, floral scent.  But oil is made from the leaves of the plant, not the flowers. So it smells nothing at all like the flowers.  And, here's the best part. It's not supposed to!  There is nothing at all wrong with my oil. I was just hesitant about it, not yet having any knowledge of such a thing. I have made quite a few oil infusions since then, both dried and fresh plants. I have learned about some herbs which would be best in a heated infusion, and some which are best done cold. And since I started making the infusions, I have made quite a few salves and balms with them, as well. I feel much, much better about this violet oil now.  ^_^

As an ongoing part of my Herbal guild work (SCA activity), I decided to start identifying the plants that surround me.  These things that are normally cut down as weeds have long since fascinated me but now I have found the purpose that drives me to identify them... the desire to learn their historical purpose.  This is a record of my findings.

Some of these, naturally, I will find are not herbs at all.  And some that I never knew were probably will be.

First you must learn to identify the plant by all its parts. Every stage of the plant's life cycle helps reveal secrets to its identity. So you must observe it from start to end.

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#15 and 16?

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Carrot looking and smelling leaves
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Oh, how wonderful!  Look at this link I just came across.  It has the history of Wales in a summarized version right through the run of years I'm looking at.  I've already scoured Wikipedia, but this runs through a nice brief timeline all on one page.
http://www.britannia.com/celtic/wales/timeline/tl03.html

I still can't decide exactly when "she" would have been born but "the name Aranwen Ridhelic is a spelling appropriate for around 1200. The byname comes from 1194, when it appears in Geraldus Cambrensis' Descriptio Cambriae as Ridhelic."

The first Eisteddfod was held in 1176. Was she perhaps a youth at this time? Or maybe she was born in that year.  I was born in 1976 so I fancy this '76 year a bit. 

Isn't this bit quite fascinating?
"According to a popular Welsh legend, Prince Madog of Gwynedd, accompanied by a group of followers, made landfall on what is now Mobile Bay, Alabama some time in 1169."

I have already done a lot more with my herb garden this year than ever before, and the fun is just beginning.  I had started ramping up on the kitchen herbs last year but never used to do too good at gathering all the seeds or leaves before the season end on some of the plants. Roger gave me some plants due to his having to move which I vowed to tend well to!  And they are lovely.  The huge basil plant just started yielding seed so I'm gathering those. I'm drying and storing herbs too, not just seeds, like stevia, and some wild passion flower I found out back. Some of these will get turned into balms and salves... like the lavender, and lemon balm. Some of them will go the kitchen, like the thyme, oregano, basil, savory, and marjoram. A few plants I just don't know if they'll actually yield enough to do anything with.  Even if they don't, I'll scoop them up and move them indoors at season's end - rue, and parsley. But then there are others that are nice and full and ready now and I should start using in the kitchen right away!: texas tarragon (tastes pretty much the same as the original kind), the thriving parsley from Roger, and finally some chives. Not sure how the onions are fairing.

And yet others have been trying to get going, calendula and johnny jump ups, both making it but not yielding like I wanted, so that I could use them for some concoction or other.  But I will be patient. 

Of course too there's the cherry tomato plant and leeks we have been using, and the roma tomato that is just beginning to form fruits.

And then there's the late seeds I started. Lavender since only 1 actually grew in the 1st round, sage I thought I no longer had, woad I've never had but so thrilled to have strong sproutlings of on the 2nd try, more calendulas, and they're all shooting up quite well so far. Oh, and cilantro! I thought they weren't going to sprout.

And then there's the later seeds that can get sewn - lettuce, and fall calendulas. But since I started more calendula late, I will probably skip a third planting there.

Another link for the blog - here is the class I taught at Page School at RUM last weekend.  An introductory class to kids about herbs, and some things that can be done with them.  Designed to be variable in the teaching based on class turnout. I brought several herbs for smelling, and then using in the sachets afterwards.

I had to request a small fee for the class because I did need to pick up just a few supplies.  I was hoping I could supply them all from my own stock, and I almost did!  But not quite all were mine.  Mountain Rose Herbs has never let me down. ;)  The rose petals were gorgeous, and the orris root was nicely powdered. 

Guess what my next largess will be?  Yep, the supplies not bought and used all go to me, so now I get to play....  ;-)

Welsh Titles -- Arglwyddes/Bonesig/Boneddiges
Stress in Welsh is easy. In any word longer than one syllable, the emphasis is always on the next-to-last syllable.


bonesig
‹bo- ne -sig› feminine noun
1 (title) Lady (peer; wife of a peer)
Y Fonesig Rees Lady Rees

ETYMOLOGY: Michael D. Jones (the founder of the Welsh settlement in Patagonia) coined the word boneddes (= lady) (First example c.1876).

This is (bonedd = nobility) + (-es noun suffix indicating a female); by removing the syllable -edd he came up with the reduced form Bones

Bonesig (First example c. 1898) is (bones = lady) + (-ig diminutive suffix added to nouns)

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boneddigion ‹bo ne DHIG yon› (npl)
1 nobility,

boneddiges, PLURAL: boneddigesau ‹bo ne DHI ges, bo ne dhi GE se› (feminine noun)
1 noblewoman
y foneddiges the noblewoman

1. Measure the fighter.  IN armor.

Measure all the critical points first to know how big to cut your fabric for sewing.
The neck should go over the unarmored head and neck so it doesn't have to be armored for measuring.

2. How to cut the fabric for the tunic.It's all in the fold.


Holding it as if it was a sheet of paper, the tall part up and down,

First fold the fabric downwards like this
Then fold it across like this, left to right.
Now you can cut out the shape! 
But first we must get some measurements before we start cutting....
For this tunic it was 13 inches here.  Seam allowance added!  Remember there will be 2 edges of fabric you're sewing on, and the hem will occupy additional space, so add in your seam preference x 2!  So if you are used to leaving 1/2 inch between the edge of the fabric and where you're sewing, you'd add an extra inch! VERY important!  Use a seam gauge to see how far away from the edge of the fabric you sewing.
So for this tunic, that was 13.5, including the seam allowance amount.
If you don't add extra inches for seam allowances, the tunic will be smaller than you measured it for!  This is very important!

5. Unfold it

6. Sew it up - stop sewing at the split, if your slits will be on the sides.  If not, then just keep sewing, and cut your slit on the front and back after you've sewn.

7. Hem the slits and the bottom.


8. Finish your neck.

Just make a square, hem in the edges, then sew it down over the slit.

I audited a class on Henna at Gulf Wars.  Somehow, I had no idea it was herbal, or just hadn't really thought about it, before the class.  Now I find it of interest and would totally do it!  Anyway, here are my notes.  I scratched them down inside my class booklet so I thought I should put it all out somewhere it made more sense, so I can remember later.....

First, there are 3 terps (contain terpinol) that darken the colors: cardamom, lavendar, and tree tree oil.
Also added are lemon juice (no pulp!), sugar (it binds it), for darker stain, and of course the henna powder.


Mixed together, this should be about the consistency of stiff mashed potatoes. 
As you stir your mixture together, just add henna powder to thicken it if needed. 


It takes 24-48 hours for the color change to occur.  The dye will change, and this change varies based on every person's individual body chemistry.

The henna is applied with either jacks or cones.

You can add essential oils.  Make sure it's the real body-grade essential oil, not fragrance oils. A bit of something calming like lavender soothes the subject.

You can freeze leftover mixture for up to a year!  Just store the finished cones.  You can always reconstitute them all together later and have a nice batch of henna ready to use.

Where to get good quality henna?  www.thehennapage.com
hennapages.com has good info.
It should be a fine powder, soft is desired.  It should NOT be black henna.  This is not real.
"Black" henna is PPD and should be avoided!!!
*Side note, henna powder is soothing to the skin! You can add it to soap and prevent razorburn!

You can apply henna to non-skin, too!  You can paint with it.  Add some food coloring to the henna for colors.  Apply Mod Podge over it when finished to seal and protect it.

Now, to put henna art on a person.  Place the arm or subject you're working on upon a pillow.  This gives the part stability, plus you can move it around more easily as needed.

You can put henna in your hair and it makes a beautiful natural stain.  It's also incredibly strengthening and makes hair soft and smooth.  Leave in hair 4-5 hours and apply heat.  It repairs damage, helps strengthen, and also helps with dandruff.  Real henna will end up black/brown to blood red, purple, chocolate, orange....

It will last 1-3 weeks on skin, 4 months on hair.

Aranwen has picked up one more activity, too!  For the blog I will make a post about this to mention it here too.  Yes, I have started attending the singing night. Just 3 nights ago but already the parts of the tunes that I am singing are stuck in my head. Now I can't wait to get back to it Thursday. I know I will be doing better at it now that I have a feel for the music after the first night. I listened to the recording today so I could go over the music here at home. Repetition forms muscle memory, after all!  This I know from all the piano lessons I've had in my life........ and from Master Gareth teaching me about this being true for the recorder, as well! ;)

Oh!  One more exciting note to blog about while I'm here. I'm excited to say that at Gulf Wars this year, I will be teaching along with Magdalena! We will be covering History of Herbals, followed by putting together your own herbal/field guide. Mistress Marsali has offered to demonstrate how to soft bind your own field guide which will be especially helpful to wrap this up, so to speak!

If you've seen any of my Identification Project notes, then you may have an idea of where I am going with what I have to offer on that class. ;)  It is always fun to share what you have learned with others.

I guess I should have posted about this already, but I took my A&S project "Plantain Oil" to its second event - Midwinter A&S, last month. I had worked on some things to improve it since Magna Faire. I realized several more things I should work on, in preparation for its next event. There were some things which I had wanted to do yet didn't have time! But, I will have these things all done before Gulf Wars. :)

YIKES - Gulf Wars is almost here!!!!!

So after that, hopefully I will feel well prepared to do any further work to the entry and then take it on to... gulp... Kingdom A&S!  Well, that is the goal, anyway. :)

I hate that I missed out on the distillation class at Gulf Wars last year. I've been waiting until this year (almost here!!!!) to get the chance again. Well as luck would have it I found myself with something to distill so I had to grab a crash course courtesy of Google. Yes, I could have just frozen the rose petals and tried it later, but what fun would that be? It seemed like the most interesting thing to do with the petals so I went for it.

So I set up a kitchen-equipment method and tried it. But then I read that roses are hard to distill due to the heat damaging the delicate oil, plus you would need a TON of petals to actually extract an amount of any significance, I decided to go with a rose water instead. It's actually quite easy to do and I'm sure I'll be scooping up petals by the handfuls this summer from the front yard to continue making rosewater! The main difference is I added some water so that the petals would not be burned. The result is of course that there is water mixed in with the oil.


There isn't too terribly much of the liquid, as I just used the roses I had on hand.  And these were the last of the batch that Master Garreth gave out to all of the ladies on Valentine's day (wasn't that sweet!). 


As I was pouring out the liquid, I noticed a lovely reddish pink tint in the bottom of the pan and just knew I couldn't let that lump of petals go to the trash can. What else could I do with them?  Well, Google my friend once again helped me out. I could not really do a dye without some alum. But I sure could make Rose Beads! In fact, due to the heat and the liquid, the process is already underway quite nicely, from the sounds of it.

So yes, I took the lump and threw it in the blender. It smells like potpourri and it looks like a smoothie! Flower blend, anyone? No? Okay then, on with the next step. It has to hang out like this for 3 days so I'll have to revisit this topic later.

How did medieval people cover jars and bottles? I hear it's even better than saran wrap: waxed linen cloth.

How did they make it? --from a handy post from this forum:

A damp piece of cloth placed over a plate of food keeps flies off and what's underneath it nice all day.

Melt a small amount of beeswax in an old skillet. Dredge a piece of thin linen through the wax until soaked through, then lay out on kitchen foil or waxed paper to cool. The waxed linen makes a fantastic cover for just about anything from paint to food. I have a bunch of different sizes to cover pitchers, bowls of food, spices, condiments, etc.

Hold the cover over a heat source (careful, remember you're heating what amounts to a large wick) until softened, then use to cover anything you want. The wax sticks to the container and makes a nice seal. This is a great way to cover things like poached pears and blancmenger that are made early and eaten later in the day. Apparently, waxed covers were used in rural areas until the early years of the 1900s.