Research and recreation of medieval furniture
Preface As my interest in vernacular furniture has grown, so has my curiosity about the processes which went into making household items. What tools were used to shape and join them? What were the materials and how were those materials prepared? What methods of production did cabinetmakers practice? Inspired by the late Jennie Alexander, author... Continue Reading →
I haven't posted in nearly a year, but that hasn't been for lack of productivity. Writing about what I have been working on took a back seat to working on the next project, and the next one, and the next one... So this post will condense the work done in learning to make carved-front boxes. ... Continue Reading →
Writing Disa’s processional hymn was the most challenging and enjoyable piece of writing I have done in a long time. I really wanted the music to contribute to the authenticity of her ceremony. My goal, therefore, was to produce a piece which would have been unquestioningly plausible for 9th century Birka. Which proved nearly... Continue Reading →
As a Beginner-level instrumentalist, I am very challenged in writing lyrics (and I don’t write music at all). So when asked to write music for Aelisia’s procession I had to clarify that I could write lyrics to someone else’s music given sufficient time and access to a recording of the tune (as well as, of... Continue Reading →
"Would you like to go in together on a project for a charity auction?" my friend Alasdair Mac Roibeirt asked me one day in January 2018, "We have a whole year." Foolish me, I tempted fate and replied "Sure, sounds like fun!" Out of this project came hours of practicing the carving of panels, lessons... Continue Reading →
In March of 2018 I was fortunate in acquiring a large pile of red oak beams salvaged from a rail yard. These beams had been used as dunnage in the transport of train and rail parts from the East. Ten feet long and heavy as sin, they were ugly, blackened, marred, stained, and dominated the... Continue Reading →
A good project for anyone with a little more than Beginner's level woodworking skills.
The resulting table is suitable for a meal for two, doing on-site illumination, or keeping any number of smaller items off of the ground.
Several years ago my good friend, known in the SCA as Aelisia of Cambrewell, agreed to be my running-mate as candidates for the Baronage of Glymm Mere. We were both ready for the job and capable for what lay ahead, but as I look back on the past three years I can confidently state that... Continue Reading →
Some endeavors we undertake from an inner sense of need or desire, others we are called upon to perform by those to whom we are beholden or admire. The latter was the case when the Lady Aine Skye, of inestimable virtue and talent, asked me to enter the Iron Bardic competition at Honey War 2017. ... Continue Reading →
Six-board chests, or blanket chests, were common and utilitarian pieces of furniture listed frequently in household inventories and seen in the backgrounds of medieval domestic images. They are relatively simple to make and can be inexpensive, yet sturdy and aesthetically pleasing to the eye. In the SCA, they are very useful for the dual purposes... Continue Reading →
