Ren Faire costumes aren't historically accurate, they're historical fantasy. THAT'S A GOOD THING.
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 29 ก.ย. 2022
- Renaissance faires are criticized for lacking historical accuracy, but we should celebrate Ren Faire costumes for historical fantasy! Thank you Birch for sponsoring! Visit birchliving.com/snappydragon to get $400 off your non-toxic Birch mattress, plus two free pillows.
Renaissance Faires, or Ren Faires for short, are an insitution in the historical costuming world, and many historical costumers started with their first ren faire outfit. Renaissance festivals and events are how many people got into historical dress, and we wouldn't be here without them! But Ren Faire costumes have their own fashion that goes beyond historical dress and accuracy. Ren faire costumes are not inaccurate historical costumes, and they're not historical costuming done badly : They are part of a genre of costuming that allows for historical fantasy and creative freedom, and they don't get nearly enough credit. While I wasn't up for a full ren faire vlog, I did want to get in front of the camera and talk about why I appreciate Renaissance Faire costuming for what it is, rather than disliking it for what it's not.
DIY RenFaire costumes may not be accurate to Renaissance fashion, but they shouldn't have to be! Ren Faires are some of the few spaces where ordinary people and new costumers can play dress-up without being judged. What's more important than being accurate to Renaissance fashion history is how Ren Faire dress has evolved into its own community and genre within costuming, which allows for playful mixing of styles. Everything from hand-sewn Renaissance kirtles to elf ears and glitter and Star Trek costumes can be seen at a Ren Faire, and that's what makes these events so special. Instead of looking down on Ren Faires and Ren Faire costuming for not being historically accurate, we should celebrate Renaissance festivals for making costuming accessible and fun.
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i read birch as b*tch and started choking LMAO
When I went to a Ren Faire for the first time, I was so worried that I had NOTHING and no money either so I was just going to be there in my sweatshirt. Little did I know it was like a "Time Warp" weekend. It was honestly so fun seeing Boba Fett and Stormtroopers and historically accurate knights and all other manner of cosplayers at the same time and everyone just having fun.
Hi. If you spent an entire day with a piece of dust in you eye, you may not have. If you felt but could never find an item in your eye, you may have had Stye, which is a clogged tear duct (not necessarily one of the main ones), and is treated with several applications of steam from a comfortably hot cloth and, possibly, careful popping, and with an ointment or drops as a lubricant in the mean time.
About 10 years ago, when my son was a teenager, he decided to wear his Japanese-inspired shinigami costume (from the Bleach anime & manga) along with his wooden aikido bokuto (sword) to our local faire. During the parade, he presented his sword to the queen as a visiting warrior & was accepted into her service 😊 It was a delightful experience for him!
That's so cute!!!!
AAAAAAWWWHWHHHH I LOVE ITTTTT
thats adorable and I love it
That is so cute 🥺🥺🥺❤️❤️❤️❤️
That is so CUTE!
My mom made my first renfaire costume. We ran into the queen almost immediately and she complimented my dress. Then my mom sold me to the queen's guard for two chickens and a goat...
Renfaire, man.
My first SCA event was a parade where I wore a simple skirt made by my now-ex-husband's first-wife's mother who I'm friends with still and one of her extra chemises. I think my shoes were simple. My son wore something that resembled a tunic and carried a blue bladed rapier because he loved that thing. As we marched as a group, I was delighted to hear the banter with the crowd some of the shire members had. It wasn't a long parade and we were just one unit in it, but in due time as three year olds do Ian got tired and one of the men swung him up to sit on his shoulders. Then from their spot ahead of me, I hear: "Young lad for sale! Able to do had work and be molded for the tasks you want him to do," and other similar talk. We went through the entire downtown with the man hawking my son and I can't help but laugh as we go along. At the end, my feet were tired, the kid had had a fun experience, and the leaders of the shire had a stern talking to the person because "we do not promote the enslaving of minors in this org!"
I have a photo or two taken from that day and though my face in the photos looks intent and determined, I remember having fun until the end where I got lost trying to find my car. :D The ex-husband's first wife seemed tireless and kept me going. (We met first because she would wear her garb to the classroom at the college we attended together and I got to know her before the other chain of events started. We last together were still friends but that's been over a decade ago since she disappeared in the nether.)
I love the two chickens and a goat part best of all :)
Medieval version of being sold to one direction
Omg this made me laugh out loud!
As someone at a Ren fair said
“This is a Renaissance Fair. We’re one bucket of green paint from a sci-fi fair.”
That's part of Zilch the Tory Seller's performance! Love the guy
One of my favorite experiences from a Ren Faire is overhearing a man dressed in full Steam Punk gear tell his similarly dressed friend, "Wow, there's a lot more fairies here than I expected." It's become a catch phrase at our house for whenever something happens that we didn't expect, but absolutely should have.
That is an *excellent* phrase!
Perfect steam punk line in character! Love it.
Your challenge for next time: go dressed as a steampunk fairy! :D
That’s a very cute and funny synchronicity! 😆😦🧚🏼♀️🧚🏼🧚🏼♂️ ❤ I’m happy you were able to experience that, so cool! ✌🏻
Well that's good that they explain themselves because I know that at one point saying that could mean that he was gay. I hope that that wasn't the case of what they were saying
Honestly it's cool to see both fantasy and historically accurate costumes at fairs
It's such good people-watching!
@@SnappyDragon like it's just fun
This comment helps me feel more comfortable. I had time to make a faire appropriate themed costume for my husband but I can’t possibly make a new one for me on short notice…. So I’m repurposing my 18th century wear for both days. I worry I’ll stick out but at least I can wear something that isn’t just leggings.
The fantasy element is one of my favorites! Our local Ren Faire has a “time travelers” weekend where people dress from many different time periods. 🎉❤
Right?? The creativity, enthusiasm and love on display regardless is a treat!
The appeal of the bitchy, judgmental costume reviews is a desire to be superior. “Look, how smart we are, how much we know.” I fall into that trap. When I finished your video, I felt light and joyful. I had become a part of a warm-hearted, kind community.
I used to strive to be as "accurate" as possible, but I live in one of those climates (Texas) where it's really not feasible, so we might as well have fun.
Aaaaw ;w;
For ... other types of reenacting... 20 years ago we would call those elitist types "stitch nåzïs" because they would literally count the number of stitches you had on a uniform. (Had to do with the type of sewing machines that were available at that point in history.) Heaven forbid if you surged anything. And yes, they WOULD inspect your undergarments.
Not so much now because that type of reenacting has fallen out of fashon.
@Davida Howell: thank goodness!!!
@@davedahowell8694 hahaha the SCA
"gateway to costuming" is the best way to describe it, and we should have more gateways and far fewer gatekeepers.
Would that instead of gatekeepers, we had a welcoming committee that was properly welcoming! Which I think Ren Faires come closer too.
CONFESSION: My favorite Ren Faire cosplay ensemble was a wandering 1950s cocktail party. Suits and ties, Brillcreamed short hair, shirtwaist dresses, pearls, huge martini glasses, stupid touristy comments and drunkish giggles.
The serious reenactors and those vendors who kept things realish responded to these interloping time travelers with grace and even, in some cases, sincere respect.
Kindred spirits across time, creating a better world, if only for a few hours.
Around 2017(?) our oldest (skinny 6'4") son went as the 10th Doctor (Doctor Who) and everyone loved him. It was hilarious to watch.
Love this! I've seen people interact in character at my local faire, speaking as if they actually were time travelers and I just LOVE that!!
I once went to a Renfaire in my Time Cop outfit: frock coat, trousers, vest (with oversized pocket watch), bowler hat, and cravat. Think "men in black" circa 1880. Had some people get snippy until they saw my badge (a genuine replica from a company that produces real ones) proclaiming me Agent 42 of the Temporal Enforcement Bureau. I was handing out citations for great costumes: when you work across the multiverse, EVERYTHING is historically accurate.
who knows maybe there were time travelers back in teh day and due to teh lack of cameras we'd never know.
@@extropiantranshuman that could be considered heresy.
I’m betting that you see a lot fewer people wearing linen partlets etc in humid climates, because whether it’s more comfortable to block out the sun or _avoid_ blocking the wind largely depends on humidity. We see this a lot in what people have traditionally worn in various hot climates: desert peoples tended to cover up no matter how hot it got, but in light, breathable fabrics, whereas peoples in tropical rainforests would wear as little as possible.
Look up the British Raj. Heat means nothing when it comes to propriety and racism
@@kikidevine694
Not sure that counts as “what people traditionally wore”. Instead I’d call it “colonisers sticking to what they were used to despite clear evidence that it wasn’t working in the climate of the Indian subcontinent”.
I live in a humid part of the US. I wear a shift and a partiet because the linen wicks away the sweat and leaves me color.
Not sure this is universally true. I live in a very hot, humid locale. Just had a conversation this week with someone who lives in the hot desert. They were commenting about how a TV show set in Miami (humid) would never feature so many people in pants and long sleeves. I said I live in somewhere with a very similar environment to Miami and I wear pants almost all summer. She said she lives in the desert where it's 110 and would never wear pants in the summer. I said I've experimented with wearing shorts more this year and found the heat gets to me more on shorts days because the fabric of my pants protects me from sun heat.
Both modern and past dress in Japan goes against this assumption. They have had and still have a culture for covering up and blocking sun at the same time having a summer climat that can hit 40C in summer and humidity averaging at around 80% for august. There are more than just climate that play into why a socity chooses to cover up or not. Larg part of China also have hot and humid climate. Like Japan it also have had a culture for covering up in past and still have many see it as the best thing to do. There can also be shifts if people cover up or not. Indonesians didn't used to cover up regradless of regligious affiliation in the past, but in the last 20 years the muslim part of the poplulation have been shifting to covering up more despite them living in a tropical country with hot and humid climat.
So, I actually dressed as a nun for my first ren fair, and some of the cast members would act horrified when I'd walked by it was pretty funny
I was at a ren faire before COVID, & there were two very funny ladies dressed as drunken nuns. They sang bawdy songs as they staggered around, while enjoying a mug or two of wine! 😉
@@kirabowie honestly that sounds fun
@@GraveyardMaiden It was!😁
The most accurate medieval nuns!
@@SnappyDragon Yup!😁
I am 60 years old this year. In 1967, my mother played Queen Elizabeth at the very first Northern California Renfest. She acquired her costumes from some friends of hers that were working costumers at the Metropolitan Opera. Mom made me a cute costume with a tall "medieval" cone hat and I felt so pretty. Her costumes and wig were the only even vaguely accurate costumes on the site, but no one minded. That was when I got the costume bug. It has never left me. I have attended and been a cast member at many Renfests across the country. I even started one in Columbus GA that is still going strong today. I was so glad to hear you do this video today. As Edna Moles would say,"No costume Nazis!" Dress up. Have fun.
No costume nazis indeed!
For twenty years I had a business selling scrapbooks and related supplies. Some consultants would point out stickers NOT bought through our line and let the customer know they may have acidic paper stickers, unlike ours, which didn’t harm your photos. We used to say we didn’t want our consultants being scrapbook natzis because it offended the customers!
Bottom line: natzis in any form hurt the people involved!!
Lol😂
Ah. Black Point Forrest in Novato? My 1st Renn Faire was there in 1974, aged 19, with a group of friends. Several of us researched and had historically accurate looking costumes from 95 F friendly fabrics. It was just post hippie Era, still lots around. Some of the men performers wore pants decorated with old crocheted doilies. One fellow was dressed as a Satyr. It was magical. I sobbed when it got sold for development.
@@DawnOldham Always punch Scrapbook Nazis! You can get some very attractive punches in the form of butterflies and bunnies! 😆
@@renel7303 Black Point Forest alumnus here as well. Later time than your visit, just before it collapsed. Agreed it was sad that they couldn't keep it going.
My local renfaire just changed their story this year from “Queen Elizabeth” and elizabethan times to pure fantasy with a made up king and queen and D&D inspired story. I felt it finally recognize that the patrons were more into the fantasy than the small attempt of history.
there are so few spaces in the contemporary world for adults to play, and i cherish the existence of renaissance faires so deeply for the way they fill that gap. they’re such special spaces for joy and whimsy. thank you for this video!
I was literally talking to another adult survivor of abuse about this! Renfair can be so healing!
This is such an wonderful point! When I was younger, I fully embraced the fantasy side of Ren Faires, but as a lover of history, I became more and more confused about my feelings on the lack of historical accuracy. Thank you for reminding me that it’s ok to enjoy living out our most fanciful dreams at an event designed to be fun. Historical accuracy certainly has its place, but Ren Faires are one of the few celebrations where adults can exist in a world of imagination and play, and we shouldn’t gatekeep that away.
The way I think about it, is that each space (or project, or person) can have its own separate goals as far as historical accuracy. Sometimes I want to do experimental archaeology and sew with wool thread, sometimes I want a pretty dress with a minimum of work. Both are valid and important!
I love everything about this comment!
I’ve worked as a hawker at Tx Renfest for the past decade and I always tell my patrons that there are vanishingly few opportunities for adults to play and to take full advantage of it! Everyone is eager to smile and laugh I genuinely love it!
Love this so much. As a teenager in the late 90s going to the Faire with my friends I wore garb I'd gotten there the year prior - a flowy green dress given shape only by the bodice worn over it, along with chain mail jewelry, flower crowns, etc. I hadn't been back for a very long time, but this year went in my Star Trek uniform for an "away mission." A handful of cast members playfully admonished us about the Prime Directive (do not interfere with pre-warp civilizations); we came up with a story about how our shuttle crashed and we were looking for crystals to repair it (I was actually looking for a crystal pendant so this worked out). Turns out spotting us also gave someone a win on their RenFaire Bingo card so it was a delightful experience all told. But this was at Bristol which it seems encourages a really mixed bag of fantasy, fandom, historical, and whatever you please - it really is about cultivating joy for everyone, just like you say here.
I think an aquaintance of mine went today with a group of trekkies, and was stopped by a castmember with a star trek pin on the inside of their doublet!
Cool,just like Sheldon did in an episode of The Big Bang Theory! Sounds like fun.
This is my favourite comment, sounds like you had loads of fun! ❤
As someone who started working the Faires 30 years ago this year, I can say that the costume standards when I started were very strict within the parameters of the faire. So much so, that many of us very broke teenagers shared the same bodice or jerkin to get costume approval.
Luckily now, the entertainment and marketplace standards for costuming have been adjusted and we can dress in fabrics that are comfortable for the climate.
Thanks for covering this topic!
Edit: sorry I missed you at the event!
My daughter was a washer woman and I remember sitting at the well between workshops and watching different combinations of her costume, her sister's costume, and mine going up to costume approval.
So what do you think about a full black gown with an over coat lined with fur based on the portrait of Christina of Milan sound? Too much of an overkill for Renaissance Faire?
@@alaskacosplay what do I think? I think that sounds gorgeous!
@@alaskacosplay sounds amazing. People wear some absolutely stunning garb to faire.
How comfortable you will be weatherwise depends on the where the event is being held. It snowed at Vallhalla one year and it was the 1st week of June. We wore all our garb layers including capes, hoods, and leather gloves and were very comfy.
I was a cast member at my local Faire back in 2015, playing the Village Games-master. In other words, I parked myself in various locations over the course of the day and taught people how to play cat's cradle and Nine Man's Morris. One seven-year-old girl who I taught cat's cradle said my reconstructed Shakespearean accent reminded her of Dickon from The Secret Garden, and it made my entire weekend.
That's so sweet!
Love this! I play Catherine of Aragon at the Texas Renaissance Festival, and am lucky enough to be costumed by an amazing costuming crew. Periodically we have patrons who want to fault our gorgeous costumes for not being 100% historically accurate; what they don't realize is our costumes have to be able to handle Texas heat and humidity for 10 - 12 hour days, be able to be laundered, and do that for 8 weekends. Within those perimeters, we adhere to the historic silhouettes, but have to bear in mind what is going to "read" to the patron, what reflects the character we are trying to portray, and what is possible to wear without dying. As to our patrons' garb - there are some absolutely beautiful examples of amazing attention to historic detail, some who went to the thrift store and pulled together peasant gear., and some who are cosplaying all manner of characters. All are welcome, and what I think is most important is the JOY they should feel in wearing something that makes them happy and carefree. Life is too short to garb shame!
If someone faults your costume again, invite them (in period lingo of course) to donate $100 to your costume fund, and you'll be happy to include whatever suggestions they make, with consideration for heat safety. That should make them think about what they're saying!
Yeah, I worked TRF for a while, and I can verify that the weather is no joke. There are some very pleasant days, too, but any given day can be straight up murder, and it can turn very quickly. You absolutely have to wear something that works in the heat if you want to live.
I’ve only ever been to Bristol so I was a little confused. I didn’t realize other fairs covered other other years. We are in Queen Elizabeth’s reign up here.
@@Rystefn This weekend was BRUTAL - humidity was a bear.
I’ve been to the Texas RenFest in Magnolia many times, but. It recently. I wonder if I’ve seen you there?
Part of the fun is seeing all the costumes that other visitors come up with, adding a whole other layer to the feel.
My ren fair costume is sunscreen, more sunscreen, camp-counselor style shorts, and a tee with a feast scene from the Bayeux tapestry that says "Party like it be MLXVI", themed but comfortable! The Maine fair took place this year during a heat wave, I think most people shed most of their costumes by lunchtime
Sunscreen and more sunscreen indeed!
I was at Maine! One of the bellydancers. It was so hot I am not sure how we avoided passing out! NH was even worse that year, every day was 95+ and full sun. It was rough!
Also friendly reminder:
Western mainstream fashion is *not* the only fashion out there, even in Europe! Take central/eastern Europe for example. Tiered skirts go *far* back among rural Hungarians and Romani, though we don't know just how far back - simply because that were the fabric widths they wove at and had to make it work. Slavs and Romanians had croptop shirts, for both men and women, possibly as far into the past as the 9th century. We often didn't wear fitted bodices (or bodied petticoats) until way later than you'd think... if we started at all. And that means we had our usually awfully short shirts (and the layer underneath), sometimes very colourful, on the show.
And that's not to mention the parts of Europe (Caucasus, PLC, Ottoman empire and Orthodox Europe, as well as the Baltics up to a certain point) that had their own fashion completely.
So, if these inaccurate elements bother you, just think of them as a foreign visitor. It was probably a thing somewhere.
as a Romani woman who LOVES Ren Faire and always wears traditional clothes from my culture (usually hand me downs, obviously not time period accurate ) when I go to things like this ^^^^ THIS comment makes me so happy. my RenFaire fits usually are tiered/patterned skirts and a flowy top, and I usually wear dikhlo anyways in my day to day but I'll pick a more full coverage dikhlo for something like that
even the fashion in North-West Europe was different, (bit later) but during the roccoco style there developed a whole different art style in the Netherlands as a reaction to the French art, like a lot of the things were the complete opposite. There were huge religious and cultural differences even between neighbours and while I get that there is a focus on some countries (because of the cultural impacts/amount of knowledge) I still think it's a waste.
@@merelha5930 yep, definitely. I mostly focused on eastern Europe because it's what I'm knowledgeable about and it can often be traced back in a continuous line to when we first appeared in records, regardless of having gone through phases of assimilation, imitation and differentiation (to different degrees), but people wanted to look the best everywhere.
That being said I kinda want to make a thing with either sewing or at least drawing our fashion from 9th to 19th century, since people so often just think it was western city fashion all the way up to Russia when it switched to more "eastern" one, ignoring the whole gap of Poland, A-H and German states in between and it's sad.
@@ZeLeninovoMasoveRizoto I only said stuff about North Western Europe because people usually still toss all of those together while talking about different European fashions/cultures.
I'd love to see it if you ever finish it, I'm not too familiar with historical clothing (I'm on this site of TH-cam because I plan on making a historically based costume), but I feel like it'd be very interesting to see
I’ve been going to the Michigan ren faire for years and I can always count on seeing two people; one, the older man dressed in game accurate Witcher armor and two, the dad dressed as Jack Sparrow. Both definitely cosplay, both always so much fun to see and interact with as they tend to stay in character and be open to chatting with anyone who approaches them with a pun or reference
As a former Marylander, I so remember the "Day of Wrong". It was such fun. For a very long time, I went to the Ren Faire in a variety of "historically inspired" outfits - including one year where I showed up in my "gather dress" from my Pern cosplay - but my actual costuming life because American Civil War as I did living history at Gettysburg for nearly a decade. I think my favorite story of all those years is from when my now-husband and I were at Gettysburg, near the Virginia Monument - where Pickett's Charge started - both of us in full historical dress when he proposed... and a busload of Japanese tourist thought we were part of an event that weekend. I think there's 30 some odd Japanese tourists who have pictures of our proposal!
This is why I LOVE these fairs. I can let my freak flag fly without having to worry about anything. Plus I get to drool over the personal flair and design people come up with!
I Think Wenches Of those faire Maiden Days Were Beautifully Dressed. And Won Lord's Hearts Back in Those Elizabethan Times. My Favourite Costumes Were For Lord's of Men. We're Simple Tavern Style Clothing.A Simple Cloth Shirt and Trousers, soft Leather 👢.And Also Ancient Mariner Days.
What a marvelous video!! I think one of my most cherished memories is from my first faire. I was 21/22, and had very recently come out as being queer. At this faire, there was the bubble fairy. She was beautiful, and blew bubbles, and had a captivating smile. I was floored. We saw each other around the grounds a few times. Later in the day, we made eye contact again, and I smiled. She scampered over, gently kissed my cheek, and sneakily slipped a glass bead into my hand. I still have the bead a decade later. The smile she gave me after the little kiss lives rent free in my head. 😊
Ren Faire-ies are the best!
You sure she wasn't a real faerie, they are essentially mischievous 😁
@@yvonneburns2786 Holy moly, I got cheek smooched by a faerie O.O
That is such a CUTE story!!! I love it!!! 🥰
Hey!! We got a very beautiful charismatic bubble fairy at my home faire Oregon Shrewsberry! I love her sm as well as the stilts preformer who also gives ‘wishes’ (the same glass marbles)
Ren Faire memory- When my kids were young we went to a local fair more for a fun afternoon than a historical lesson. My daughters were at the age where every pretty woman was either a princess or a fairy. Their eyes were wide open in awe because everywhere they looked there were fairies and princesses. The women were so nice to my daughters too, sprinkling them with fairy dust and telling them they were pretty. My son, who was maybe 2 at the time, loved the turkey legs. 😅
This was so refreshing, thank you. As one of those who started working at a ren faire as my gateway into historical costuming I hadn't been able to put my finger on why some spaces lacked the same amount of joy that ren faires have. It's the celebration of someone's excitement rather than begrudging tolerance. I will wear my historical inaccuracies with pride this year for the first time in a long time. I love my ren faire outfits because they make me feel wonderful. They connect me to people and places that I miss with all my heart, they don't have to be period perfect.
This! I love going to ren faires cause I can put away my slightly more period garb for living history stuff and play with fantasy a bit. It's fun :)
We were at Folsom RenFaire this weekend and mushroom hats were very popular. There was also a patron with a dandelion staff that was amazing. I love when patrons dress up. My attitude towards patron costumes has always been if you buy a ticket and wear a costume ( of any sort) it means you are open to interacting with us.
My first faire experience was Blackpoint in 1972, my drama teacher was a Scot who gave us extra credit if we went to faire and found him. I wore a Gunnesax dress and my boyfriend's mom replaced the sleeves on his shirt with pillowcases that she put cuffs on.
I started participating in 1992. I remember a fad for furry tails hooked on women's belts especially faux fox tails.
As I understand it, lot of early RenFaire costume ideas came from Victorian sources, which we now know to be ummm "fanciful" more than historical.
Lol I was part of that fox tail epidemic. It was the first thing I ever bought at a renfair!
We got rather dramatically rained on when we went, and there was one person whose mushroom hat was doing a very effective job of keeping them dry 🍄
I did Scots, middle class (parades), and Court, starting in 1978 at the Blackpoint Renfaire. It was magical in a very literal sense, in the late '70's. We had Chameleon, a fellow who wore a pair of loose muslin pants, horns, and nothing else, who darted like quicksilver and climbed trees. There was Mad Maudlin, who wore rags and carried a rag doll, and trance-walked ever so slowly through the Faire. In my interactions with her, I found that the doll was "Willie, King of the Fairies." These characters would soon disappear as I watched us evolve into a "more historically accurate" portrayal, and I felt we lost something important that would never be replaced. And I admit that I loved the customers who showed up garbed as everything from mythical beasts to Monty Python's Holy Grail characters or a Star Trek away team. Such creativity!
I also found that of all the garb we wore in what I jokingly called "the Tropical Renaissance," the most comfortable was our Scots impression, arisaid and all. From a cold climate, but all natural fibers. That influenced my choice of materials for the season I did Court. And one of my duties as a Court PA (personal attendant) was making sure Lady Huntingdon didn't collapse from heat. Her costume was made of upholstery fabric!
@@janebeckman3431 wonderful reading memories from people I likely crossed paths with almost 50 years ago. My 1st Blackpoint was 1974. I was 19. I lived in Fresno so it was a big production to go once or twice a season. There was a guy dressed as a Satyr that was incredible. Fur on his lower half, horns coming from his curly black hair. I don't think he ever spoke but he would flirt with his actions and eyes. So much fun back then. I remember people just inside the gate with construction paper ribbons they offered to people in street clothes so they could "play faire". Costumed players would interact with them as though they were in costume. It was a nice touch.
I'm pretty sure I saw the dandelion staff patron at Maryland RenFest this season!!
I love Ren Faires! My local Faire has a "time traveler" weekend and it's awesome seeing Doctor Who, Star Trek, and steampunk designs. :)
Time Travelers weekend at Pa Ren Faire is one of their most popular.
@@kimberlyflouhouse422 Yes, it's our favorite weekend to go.
You could wear anything to a time traveler weekend. Just say you're from an alternative time frame.
It makes me so so happy to hear someone in the historic costuming world say that Ren Fest doesn't have to be historically accurate. I'm attending the Minnesota Ren Fest this weekend, the last weekend of the season, and it's theme for the weekend is Oktoberfest. I have gone every year (except 2020) for the last 15 years. My favorite warm weather costume of mine is me steampunk mermaid belly dance costume.
What an amazing sounding costume! I wish I could see a picture of it.
I work at MRF! I’ll be there on Sunday. My troupe places high value on historical accuracy, but we’re very forgiving with things like finances and (lack of) ability to make your own. My garb has been slowly “evolving” from merchant to lady over two years. I don’t sew, and I can’t afford a full costume upgrade, so my troupe is accepting that I’m getting where I need to be as fast as I can. Most recent acquisition: two snap-on front pieces that hide my front laces on my bodice. Next hurdle: something resembling sleeves!
I also attend Scarborough Ren Faire, Colorado RF, and Kansas City RF (and did a few rounds at Bristol as a patron) when I can. My Scarbie garb is … not even accurate. It’s very feminine steampunk pirate captain badass. However, now that I have more than one outfit, I can see wearing my MRF garb down there as well as my pirate gear. Memorial Day weekend is not the time in Texas to be dealing with the layers that make up my MRF garb, but the humidity in MN has be thinking I’d be ok in TX in my current garb.
I was just there! I made myself gigantic fairy wings for it haha
I help people put together faire “appropriate” costuming/accessories with second hand/thrifted items. I am a huge supporter of living archeology and think that fun festival costumes are a great gateway into learning more about historical accuracy. Just have fun!
i personally love how ren faire costumes have become their own sort of style. i also really like it because i think its pretty, sometimes accuracy doesn't matter, and thats how it should be. in my eyes ren faires are a place to have fun and flex creative muscles while meeting new people and wearing something cool if you want to
I had a blast working at the Pennsylvania Rainassance Faire as a musician about 20 years ago! For us musicians things were pretty relaxed, but I'd say my 2 bandmates and I had a mix among us of historical fantasy pieces - from commercially purchased, to thrift shop finds, to handmade. None of it historically accurate, but neither was our music, as we played traditional Irish music, the oldest tunes and pieces being from the 17th century. We had so much fun!
Small world - I worked the PA Faire last year! We don't get to make our own costumes at all anymore, though, even for the non-pro cast, we get assigned them.
I have a musician friend who was part of a similar group, only doing Scottish music and characters. Getting everyone dressed in the morning required a lot of floorspace . . .
@@FerraticaTheBard wow, things have changed loads!
Love Pa Ren Faire. Have been going since 2915. Independent acts provide their own garb, though as FerracticaTheBard noted cast members are provided most of their costumes except shoes and most accessories.
The variety of costumes by patrons is so fun. My son cosplays a lot there but has never actually done the period being presented. The cast playing with him is his favorite part.
My favorite memory is the closing day of the year my faire did Robin Hood theme. As part of the closing gate festivities the guy playing Robin proposed to the Maid Marian. They're both close friends and of course she said yes.
I was initially a bit grumpy as he had me hold the ring all day! But his fight with the Sheriff had a lot of tumbling in it.
That is an excellent story indeed!
it's the costume designer in me to design historically accurate outfits to my favorite eras while also giving them a fantasy element! like i have a king cosplay with a regency era style of outfit while also being a secret werewolf or my other planned outfit of a rococo era style dress with built-in butterfly wings! this video is so good :)
As someone who worked at the MN Renaissance fair, heavy thick fabric is a no go. The fair is run during the end of summer where temps are normally 80-90s for most of the season. My favorite part of working there was seeing such diverse and creative costumes! The MN Renaissance fair definitely is more fantasy and less historical. Love this video! ❤️
I believe I've been to that Faire on closing weekend, and went from being completely wrapped up in my (cotton) belted plaid in the early morning, to *almost* needing to remove it by midafternoon, to completely wrapped up again at sunset. Talk about needing layers!
I was going to comment something similar! I've only gone to the mn one so a historically accurate ren Faire sounds strange. I love seeing all the fairies, steampunk, vikings, and purposefully cheesy costumes. I also saw a few people wearing medieval time period type stuff from other cultures that they are a part of and I thought that was neat.
Pete, my favorite costume by far was a guy dressed up as Spock with a tricorder and everything!
I am all about fun and fantasy! I enjoy costumes so I would welcome any good excuse to act like a 57 year old kid! I finally bought a beautiful bodice that is well made. Since it's a deep shade of red, I doubt it's accurate, but it looks great!
@@SnappyDragon That's the minnesota ren fest experience!! The low of 40 high of 85 days make for a good lesson in being able to adjust an outfit as need be throughout the day
12:58 Aaaaall the gremlincore folks ^^
Totally agreeing with you on that topic. I'm a ferocious historically-accurate person... when it's the point. When it's not, I'm just so glad to see people have fun and express themselves in whichever fantasy way ! The only important thing is how one calls things.
Here in Europe we have "medieval festivals" or "medieval markets" and they're basically your Ren Faires, perhaps a tad more historical, or at least less fantasy (but visitors or even paid actors do also come in fantasy costumes). Then we do also have "fantasy festivals", usually coupled up with the geek and LARP scenes, often also featuring fantasy literature and comics. We do have fully historically accurate festivals, like Wolin in Poland for example, but they are less common and usually very specific about which time period they portray.
Being able to distinguish when it's the point is, well, the point! I handsewed my entire outfit and still wore it with a very Faire-core flower crown 🤣
I live in the Netherlands and we have several fantasy events returning every year which look and feel very close to your Ren Faires 😊🧚♀
You see everything from historically correct outfits to fairies, vampires, monsters, mushrooms, star wars and star trek & other sci-fi costumes.
I have fallen head-over-heels in LOVE with this world of fun and fantasy and *~Castlefest~* is the highlight of my every year 💚
I went to Ren Faires with friends who were in the SCA. They appreciated that the Ren Faire was a looser vibe. I also know people who straight up cosplay at Ren Faires, and that has definitely picked up since the pandemic since Ren Faires are outdoors and safer than proper conventions.
It’s why I switched from SCA to LARP way less stitch counting
For sure! I hadn't felt safe to go back to a lot of other events, but since Faire is outside and I'm Extra Vaccinated I was comfortable.
As both SCA and a Faire cast member in the 1970's/80's (Blackpoint), it sounds like things have changed a lot since then. SCA then was full of Gunne Sax dresses and polyester in colors that never saw the middle ages, with a few of us who strove for a more accurate impression. The Blackpoint Faire in the '80's (the era of the "Brown Book" -- I still know one of the authors btw) evolved into some fairly stringent standards. There were, however, some allowances for "Faire-isms" that involved clothing from some of the Faire's vendors.
And SCAdians blanche when we hear what standards Revolutionary War and Civil War re-enactors have to meet. I for one will never hand sew an entire garment; my sewing machine is my FREND. It's good to have a range of groups to choose from!
This! My husband often sells baskets at sca events, recently we went to a Ren faire for the first time and we had so much fun! It gave us the opportunity to play around with historical accuracy a little more than we allow ourselves to when do things with the sca. It seemed like kind of an anything goes vibe, where everyone was just wearing what they felt happy in, and we loved that! We thought it was really cool, and I think I will really enjoy designing and sewing more experimental garb for those events! It gives us more space to be creative.
I love this messaging so much. We talk about this a lot in the SCA, too--when strict-minded costume Laurels tell newbies they're doing it wrong, they don't come back, and they don't get the chance to learn more and build historical garb with help.
Hee hee love the " costume Laurels" remark
I was told at one early festival that my medical alert bracelet was non-compliant and I'd have to remove it. Never went back to that faire.
Hi yes I will be breathing fire at this faire
SCA in the ‘80s, and we were very liberal with the anachronism part in the bunch I hung out with. I unfortunately CAN believe someone said that about your medic alert bracelet though because some people are absolutely asshats.
@@joannevendshus5075 What a ridiculous rule! Did they require that wheelchair users be kept out because such things didn't exist in medieval time? No one should be expected to sacrifice their personal safety to participate in ren faire. Let's hope that such exclusion is discouraged in the future. In the last faire I went to, people who were not dressed historically were called time-travelers. The faire was imagined as a kind of time-warp where people from all periods and realities might meet and interact.
As a long time professional rennie with a formal education in history of costume.... THANKYOU FOR YOUR WONDERFUL TAKE ON RENN FAIRES. It's to bring joy,to preserve dying arts and for your inner child and/or wild thing to play . I'm so glad you enjoyed yourself and that goes for everyone else. Merry meet, merry part and merry meet again.
The comment on SoCal summers vs 1600 English winters resonated with me. I've only been to a couple of Ren Fairs, spent a lot more times at Scottish games, and used to scoff at the silly costumes until my brain finally made the climate and seasonal distinctions. It's always more fun to just enjoy things as they are than pick nits.
I don't understand why that is that big of an issue. If people want to be nitpicky about accuracy it would be so much easier to adapt the dresscode to that of hotter areas. It's not like southern Europe (or the Mediterranean in general) skipped 16th century.
I mean, yes but that would require letting go of the focus on Ye Olde Highly Romanticized Englande and maybe even properly representing Mediterranean PoC and all their various cultures of origin. Which many events are not ready to do 😵
This is such a wholesome video! I went to a Ren faire with my best friends a few weeks ago and we all wanted to dress up (with my personal interest in historical costuming). Being stressed out college students, none of us had the time or resources to put together a costume much less coordinate our outfits. The result was a dnd adventurer in a 17th century "pirate shirt", short skirt and shiny green cape, a 1950s teen with a giant lacy black umbrella, a horned vampire in short shorts carrying a supervillain cane, a totally normal modern guy with a backpack, and Anakin Skywalker. It was hilarious and we all had a great time joking around that we were immortals and time travellers who all got stranded in different eras. Completely anachronistic, but we fit right in at the Ren Faire! :D
The fact that you mentioned "The Day of Wrong" from MDRF made me super happy. It's one of my favorite days there. I've seen Stormtroopers in kilts, every permutation of The Doctor, someone who turned the Dudley Boyz from WWE into the O'Dudley Boyz (basically, added a kilt), a very odd French court style clown/doll getup, and so many others. It's chaotic and fantastical.
Excellent video, and greatly appreciated! Yep, nothing like seeing Stormtrooopers walking around at the local renfaire with chainmail on and carrying broadswords. Years (ahem) back, we were staying at a motel in York, PA to attend the Pennsylvania Renaissance Festival. That weekend was some important anniversary for Harley Davidson, and there were a bunch of Harley owners staying at the same motel. When we left to head to the renfaire in the morning, we had a number of people in the parking lot (all in black biker leather) snickering and pointing at us. We yelled back, "Well, you have your costumes, and we have ours!". That raised some laughs out of them :)
Well said!
My local Ren Faire has themed weekends. We usually get whole weekends themed around fairies/fantasy, wizards/witches (very Harry Potter themed,) pirates, and vikings. Doctor Who and Star Trek cosplayers became so popular that they actually started doing a themed weekend for Time Travelers, complete with a TARDIS. We also have Oktoberfest, Celtic, and Halloween weekends - actually IIRC the last half of October is dedicated to Halloween. I think every weekend the Faire is open is focused on a theme, and you're accepted and welcomed regardless of whether or not you dress up for it. A lot of the cast members participate and it's super fun.
We have a medieval faire in my town each year. I love that people dress up and have so much fun. I use to be one of those historians that would criticize costumes and then one day a few years ago I realized that as long as they are having fun who cares what they wear. So I now work with my local community and actually have a booth at the fair that talks about accurate clothing and how people would have dressed and cared for their clothing. People really love learning and enjoy spending time at the booth.
Love this! My usual ren faire garb is “wench” but I’m currently working on a dark fairy costume for going to TRF this fall. TRF really encourages patrons to think outside of HA with their themed weekends.
I went to my first renaissance fair recently in ohio. I dressed up as a dragon kin. I had my lower half and feet covered in purple faux fur with dragon feet and tail. I wore horns and ears it was amazing. I got so many compliments and I made the day of so many children. I am already planning a satyr costume for next year. I adored all the fantasy elements.
Our ren fair goes for 2 months and has a different theme each weekend. I've gotten so many of my shy to dress up friends hooked on it by making sure it's the weekend that fits them best. Cause everyone belongs at the renfair.
Oooh what a good way to bring people into the community!
Ah, you're from Kansas City!
I think you encapsulated the very thing about Ren Faire that I like the most when you said "play". The ones I've had the most fun visiting are ones where the cast and visitors both joyfully engaged in playing with the fantasy, costuming, and each other. As adults we don't get enough play time, and Ren Faires are a safe space to do that as adults (and children too). Thank you for making this video and reminding me of that aspect.
I love that you over and over again point out that "there's no reason to be exclusionist, let's just be welcoming of everyone instead!" Hear, hear!
Also fascinating to get to hear some explanation of what ren faires are, when I come from an area that don't have them. But the one historical event that I go to (where visitors as well as event organisers dress up and there is a market and general vibing as well, but medieval and a lot less fairies and no theatrical elements) also sees a big variety if how historical-ish people dress and I love when people with vastly different approaches to their clothes (I just threw something together from what I already have in my closet meets I sewed this wool kirtle by hand) can get exited and compliment each other's outfits. We're just here to have fun togheter!
I figured we could do with a celebratory Costume Commentary Hot Take rather than a critical one 😅
Passed out for the first time in my life at the local faire last year (80+ F degree heat and g-dawful midwestern humidity for the mid September pirate weeknd. Yerg. ) and 90% of my outfit was cotton or cotton blend. The difference one layer of poly makes is Real, and I don't know how people strut their stuff out in plastic Halloween costumes! I was fine after judicious application of liquids and a wet towel, and the lovely people around immediately offered help to get me to the shade or call for a kart to get me to the first aid tent. Take care of yourselves!
Also not historically accurate but fun: Ren Faire We Promise It's Not Dole Whip pineapple slush drink.
It really does make a difference!
When I first visited one, I was confused why they were dressed in non Renaissance era clothing.
It was a great experience to visit and the joy that people have for joining is fun to see. It is the first time seeing cosplay on a large scale.
One of my besties and I are dressing up for the last Saturday of the Texas Renaissance Festival. She is fairly new to ren faires in general and thus dressing up for them is fairly new for her as well. I had to encourage her to dress in what she likes for her garb even if it is inaccurate. Finding this video was a treat and I immediately shared it with her. THANK YOU!
Thank you for this! I've been going to Ren Faires for nigh on 30 years, and this past summer was the first time I've ever received a disparaging remark for my choice of costuming, (which was largely assembled from items purchased at that very faire the day before). It was doubly cruel because they said it to my back as I was walking away, referencing my costume specifically and practically yelling. Not only loud enough for me to hear them, but for others to hear them too. I was publicly humiliated. It ruined my experience, totally screwed with my self confidence, and made me question whether or not to attend faires in future.
*This was also the first year I've ever gone to a Comic Con and been ridiculed for not costuming as a specific and recognizable character. People seemed to like my costume, they kept asking me who I was and then getting disappointed and frustrated with me for being dressed as myself in genre or as my own character.
Faires and Cons should be a 'safe place' for anyone's custuming expression.
Excuse those people! Maybe I'll start printing out snarky cards to hand the gatekeepers.
One of the things I love about ren faires is the fact that they don’t have to be historically accurate - I just adore seeing everyone’s outfits at faires 🥰
I have seen MANY mushroom hats at the Ohio faire this season! They make me smile every time. We also have folks with gorgeous hoop skirts, which make me tilt my head (how on earth do they navigate the crowded stores?! And how do they travel?!), and folks in outfits that make me worry they’re going to get heatstroke but are gorgeous. My friends love getting me started on historical accuracy though lol.
People who can navigate crowds in hoopskirts are *magical*, I say. This from someone who surviveda season of Dickens Faire dancing and squeezing into crowded bars in a hoopskirt . . . I was not nearly so graceful as some.
Way back when"Game of Thrones" was a thing, I was at the NY Ren Faire with my sister & as we were leaving a guy and girl were walking towards us. He had on a Jon Snow inspired cloak over a "King of the North" t-shirt, so I stopped, banged my staff on the ground and cried out, "All hail the king of the North!" And as he passed us by, I curtsied & said, "my liege," before heading back to the car and a good laugh! Another time at the same ren faire, some dad was pushing an adorable little girl in a stroller & she had on a unicorn headband & I happily said, "They're real!" Dad, confused, asked "what's real?" And I said, "Unicorns, good sir! And you are lucky to have one!" And dad smiled and went on his way. They're such good fun & I'm sad I haven't had a chance to go to our local one since COVID. 😟 Well, there's always next year! 😁
Ok, one year I was vending at the Vegas Faire and around dusk a full on white suit Elvis cape and all came in! We had the best time with him. People shouting " the king approachs" " hail to the king" etc. It was GREAT
@@maryanngullo1 Awesomeness!!😁
I was overwhelmed about getting my costume as medieval as possible and affordable (which is kinda impossible) too the point where I didn't feel as good about it. Until you made me feel better with what I have😁. Which consisted of a overdress from amazon and a 65 dollar viking dress from etsy.
It's ren faire season again, and what I always love about going is the diversity of people there. Being able to see Obi Wan Kenobi, a fursuiter, a samurai, a fairy princess, and some random guy with a polo shirt and a jester hat is all part of the fun! The best part is how anyone there is able to take things to the level they like and are comfortable with. Want to talk in an accent the whole time? Sure! Want to sit down and take a break but insist on calling your pepsi a "magic elixir"? Go for it! Everyone is always having a good time, sucks when people try to rain on that.
Yes! Having fun! My husband once dressed as Ash from evil dead 3 at a Ren fair. Cuz, you know...the movie goes back in time to the midievil period. Some people were judgemental and rude that he wasn't "historically accurate" but there were plenty who recognized his character and loved it! I mean...he's covered in blood and has a chainsaw for a hand, so it can be a little frightening, I guess...but it was fun and different!
I visited my first renn faire a few weeks ago and honestly.. I can say that the people being there in everyday clothes and minimal renn elements, it made me feel **so** much more comfortable. I had put genuine effort into my costume, but seeing as it was my first time, I was super nervous that it wouldn't be enough.. nope! Lots of people loved it, got some compliments on my embroidery, but just the fact that there were people who were there as a fun, spur-of-the-moment family outing made me feel so much more at ease. I can say for sure though, that my favourite costumes were a single mum in a gorgeous, white, flowing dress, carrying the sword of legend, alongside her rambunctious little toddler dressed as Link. Cutest scene ever, I'm sure they were a great knight to that beautiful Zelda!
I got engaged at a Ren Faire! Just this past June, actually! My now-fiancée surprised me by showing up at my door a couple days before our fifth anniversary (we're long distance), and that same weekend, we went to a tiny little faire about an hour away from me. I never knew it was there, but it was a cute little thing that runs one day a year, and is Robin Hood themed.
I'd been working on putting together my costume for a while, so it was a fun excuse to try it out now that it fit me properly, and I had more pieces to make it feel complete. It's a Viking apron dress that I bought, but I ended up buying another apron that was made by a local vendor and fit me perfectly despite being off-the-rack.
My partner got a couple of women we'd talked to earlier that day to "take pictures" of us, but really was filming, and that's when she proposed! So our engagement photos and video are of us in our Ren Faire costumes, which is really just very Us.
I also went to the Oxford Renaissance Festival here in Ontario just this past weekend, which is one of the bigger ones we have around here, and had soooo much fun. I ended up going both days, and had a much more completely costume. It was dog friendly too, so the second day I took my dog with me, and she looks like a small wolfhound, or according to everyone who met her, that's what she looks like! So she became part of my costume by accident.
My very first Ren Faire was the New York Renaissance Faire a few years ago, and god, I wanna go back so bad, but the timing just hasn't lined up for me over the last few years! One day, though, one day...
Congratulations! How adorable 💚
First, THANK YOU for the sharp aside about Dickens Fair. Until I moved away from the Bay Area a few years ago, I went to Dickens with family and friends every year for something like 20 years, often in costume. (One of my great disappointments over the years has been the fact that as a nb/transmasc person, I almost always dressed in typically masculine costume, but cast members rarely acknowledged it, referring to me as “ma’am” no matter how I looked. It was genuinely distressing.) I know a number of folks who do or have worked there. I’ve been devastated and infuriated with their actions regarding POC cast members and really hope that public support and action rises to force appropriate change. Wish it came up more in the fair community.
Our family also used to go to Ren Faire yearly back in the Blackpoint Forest days, though not often in costume. Always loved the fantasy vibe intermingled with a bit of history. This is such a fun video, thank you!
There will be sharp asides about Dickens Faire until they get their act together! I'm sorry you had to experience that.
Oh my gosh, what Dickens festival is this? I hope it's not my local one! What do they do to POC cast members? I don't really _want_ to know, but I want to be informed if there's anything I can do about it....
@@ShinyAvalon Reference is to the Great Dickens Fair in the San Francisco Bay Area, the largest and I’m pretty sure oldest Dickens Christmas Fair in the country (there aren’t a lot of them). I’ll put a link here to another video by Snappy Dragon that explains the whole thing and has all the links to the official documents, etc. Snappy is a longtime cast member of the fair so knows whereof she speaks. The vid from this channel about it: th-cam.com/video/-5ceBDh0rBE/w-d-xo.html
The extremely abbreviated version is that the fair production company has a long history of excluding and mistreating POC and other marginalized people, refused to adopt basic remedies that *they asked for* from an advocacy group and then openly lied about the whole thing. The advocacy group (and others) have called for a strike and boycott, as of last year…and it seems the problems remain unaddressed. 😡
@@ShinyAvalon I think they're referring to the Dickens Christmas Faire held at the Cow Palace in Northern California, San Francisco area. I went there as a member of Apple Tree Morris for two or three years. You can head off problems in your event by getting involved with the planning committees, I think such events usually invite public comments and suggestions, even if you're not an official committee member. You could submit that they keep in mind being inviting to guests of all gender expressions, and consider guidelines for addressing guests who display an ambiguous gender aspect.
@@jimrodarmel8512 - mine's in Galveston (Dickens on the Strand). I'm not aware of any abuses there, but I'll keep my eye out.
I've never been to a Ren Faire, but they look like fun! (Aside from the hot weather.)
Historically inaccurate fantasy costumes are delightful! And that's mostly what I wear for everyday - inaccurately coloured 18th century shirts, long trousers that have the waistband construction of 18th century breeches, and then maybe a 1770's waistcoat and 1790's overcoat.
And BIG AGREE about not criticizing beginner's costumes! I'm very glad I wasn't on social media when I started out. I cannot imagine how discouraging it would have been, considering I've been sewing for over a decade and still get occasional mean comments snobby reenactors.
Those who criticize beginner costumes get bitten with sharp pointy giant lizard teeths!
Currently remembering very fondly the orc I saw on a renfair as a child. He was so cool!
Nice! One of my son’s first faire costume as a young adolescent was as a Middle Earth Ranger (like Strider/Aragorn). He corrected every person who mistook it for Robin Hood, there and when he wore it for Halloween. 😄 It included a bow, arrows, and quiver he made himself!
Yes, more friendly faire orcs!
I dress up whenever I want. Screw only dressing up on halloween. I also get to dress up when i larp :)
We have a local Midwinter Ren Faire that some friends and I made plans to go to this coming winter. We made those plans literally today.
It's going to be my first Ren Faire, and I was trying to figure out what to wear to it. This video came at a perfect time to really help make me feel more comfortable in picking my costume.
So thank you
A midwinter faire sounds like such fun! And perhaps like a good occasion to wear literally every petticoat in my closet at once 🤣
I really think a lot of the ren fair goers dress up the way they do because it's gorgeous, it's pretty aesthetic, and even if historically incorrect, it's fun! I do love that you are educating others that ren fair dressing isn't the way they did it back in the day. 💚
I started going to the Ren Faire in 1969 when I was 8 years old. It was small, dusty, and we sat on historically inaccurate bales of hay. My mom and I wore hippie peasant gowns, my dad wore his kilt, and my brother was pretty much dressed up as Robin Hood. Everyone came in some sort of costume, and we had a blast running around, seeing the sights and booths, and speaking Shakespearean English (or some version thereof). I remember seeing an infant get his Pampers changed under a lovely period-appropriate costume.
I don't remember people being critical of anyone who tried to dress up in something vaguely Renaissancey, but I do remember that we called people who didn't make that effort "tourists," and how an increase in the number of "tourists" over the years broke some of the magical, playful spell of our time-out-of-time experience.
It's wonderful that it's all going on 50+ years later, that Ren Faires are now everywhere, and that I can go back to the Ren Faire in Marin county and still see a guy with two leeks in the market square (causing a nearby wench to loudly admonish, "Sirrah, take thy leeks elsewhere!").
I like to think of the Ren Fest as a sort of real life equivalent of anything based on Arthurian Legend it's vaguely medieval mostly fantasy you can throw in realistic elements if you want but it's not required and nobody should be mad if there are fairies
@@elsiehupp I actually really like that It'd make a good pair costume for me and my little sis
@@elsiehupp omg yes and maid Maryann
@@elsiehupp I think Disney talking animal sidekicks fit perfectly into the ren fest vibe
Thank you so much for this! Renfair costuming is a gorgeous space for people to play with all kinds of ideas. There’s no need for costume hate. My first costumes (when I was 15) were strange, but they made me happy. I worked at a fair for several years, at a shop, and then as a performer, and they’re fun! I loved seeing what the visitors came up with. I do everything from museum interpreter to ‘Cons, I just love costume. The Winter-Backhouse book was super-important at the time it came out, and deserves respect.
I got the book’s authors wrong. Winter-Savoy? I have it somewhere! 😳
I love people getting creative with their historical costumes during faire. Lots of historical faires included fancy costume or dress, so it’s not like getting creative isn’t historically appropriate (if that is a concern).
Oh! Also I see the creativity and use of cheaper fabrics as a fun nod towards ye olde sumptuary laws. Faires would provide some great respite to the day to day oppression of poorer people.
I love a good ren fair as much as the next person. A couple years ago we were walking along doing they typical things you see it the ren fair with our kids. You know the fairy, the elf, the wizard, the fur bikini barbarian chick, the ninja, etc. Well we were looking for the ninja as a way to pass the time before the next joust since we missed the first. My duaghter out of the blue asks me if Kylo Ren counts as a ninja. We look over and sure enough a guy goes walking by dressed as Kylo Ren flanked by 3 storm troupers. Well its fair anything goes. 😂
XD Our local faire has started having "Renaissance Stormtroopers" show up in recent years, and it makes me smile every time! It's a wild bunch at ours, we get furries (including a regular who's dressed like a realistic-looking Fox Robin Hood from the old disney movie) steampunk, fairies, centaurs. I LOVE IT!
@@hellsingmongrel its faire, anything goes! Last time we went to our local faire there was a guy dressed as an Ent. Kids thought he was awesome. Back when we lived in California, there was a black Scotsman. My husband said "you must be of Moorish decent." With missing a beat he looked around and said "Shhh, I don't want anyone to find out." We knew a guy who used to walk around insulting people. The drunker he got them funnier the insults got. Mist people just laughed it off, but every so often he got someone he took it personally. One time he ran into an acquaintance of his and the fired off insults at each other from one end of the faire to the other. When they got to the end of the faire they shook and told each other it was good to see you and walked off. Good times.
Somewhere I have photos from the time I danced around the maypole with Kylo Ren several years ago.🤣
I am part of a Privateer guild here in SoCal. We try to be aware of period appropriateness, but mostly because we are nerds. We don't enforce any exacting rules, but we also all have extra garb for people who "guest" with us, so they can get a feel for what they may like to invest in or make for themselves, without spending a ton of money right away on something they may not like or feel great in. Instead of focusing on being period correct, we try to focus on character building, ie, who do you want to BE here, and what would make sense for THAT character. We primarily "play" peasant-mariner class and frankly I love the freedom from rigid standards that I feel "higher classes" have to conform to. We are a rag-tag bunch of rule-bending misfits who would be wearing whatever we could get and making due, and that IS period accurate.
Hear hear!
The mushroom theme wasn't just a trend in the US! At the Mittelalterlich Phantasie Spectaculum in Speyer, Germany last year there were two ladies with big, semitransparent gauzy mushroom hats. They were cool during daytime, but truly spectacular after dark, when they turned the built-in LEDs on. They must have been the most fotographed people that entire day.
Now that I heard you say it in the video, Ren Faire was also my intro into the world of historical dress and costuming! I focus more on the 20th century side of things but vaguely medieval and renaissance inspired fantasy was my first interest.
I haven't been to one in a while, but I used to go every year from middle school through college. One of my first years, I bought a pair of elf ears (see historical inspired fantasy interest above). For every future Faire, I was some kind of elf, be it a princess or a warrior or whatever. Which is great and all, until you realize there's an Elf-Catcher there with a giant net!
Part of my Faire experience every year was ducking into various vendors' tents asking for shelter from the Elf-Catcher, and convincing people to not let him know I had been there. I of course got "caught" a few times but it was all in good fun and no actual consequences.
Ren Faires are great and I can't wait to go again, hopefully in a costume of entirely my own making.
What a great gig for the elf-catcher! Especially if all the boothies are in on it and will shelter you.
As a LARPer -> Rennie -> Convention Photographer. My experience, midwest renfairs have become a place of being more of outdoor conventions as well as the fantasy element. They give not only the more normal people a place to explore, but the more hidden nerds a way to be outside and express themselves. Appreciate the positive coverage that this content brings.
This video was perfect and exactly what a lot of costume snobs need to see. I've been working Faire for 17 years (10 years as an actor) and it pains me when my friends say they don't want to come to Faire because their costume isn't accurate. Granted, a lot of my friends are cosplayers so I understand where they are coming from. My costume this year is so amazing and I wish I could show it to you to see what you think, I was just promoted to the guild leader for the Constables so I had to have something that was a little more than what I previously had.
Thank you for visiting the Northern California Ren Faire and featuring our site and some of our actors, it always feels great when your home Faire is shown in media. If you plan on visiting us again please reach out to me and I will give you some comp tickets. Can't wait to watch more of your videos, especially if you're going to make digs at *cough* Dickens *cough*.
Ooh, this just might be the perfect excuse to visit again! You can contact me through Instagram @missSnappyDragon
Favorite fair story: the time at Dickens Fair when I got into a lengthy conversation with Fagin about what it was like to be Jewish in Victorian London! Also, that year the guy playing Bill Sykes was genuinely terrifying and I had Nancy hide under the table I was sitting at while he stomped around looking for her. (Yes, I’m a fan of Dickens the author, and yes Oliver Twist is my favorite, first read when I was about eleven!)
And a little bit on that note: my kids always loved that we had two costume holidays each year, Halloween and Purim 😊 (sometimes the oodles of Jewish holidays come in handy!)
With the introduction of Halloween trick-or-treating, Norwegians can get three costume holidays a year if we want: guising at Halloween and either St Andrew's day (30th November) or between Christmas Day and New Year's Day (or why not both, at least here in northern Norway where the former is traditional?), and a costume ball sort of event for Carnival in February or March.
@@ragnkja that’s fabulous!
1:40 Synchronized Bed Diving needs to become an Olympic Sport! 🏅
1:51 Mini Corgi Snuffling needs to be an Olympic Event too! 😍
Between SnappyDragon's mattress sponsorship spot, and Kaz Rowe's spectacles sponsorship spot, I'm feeling a bit bereft of creature comforts over here in the Olde Worlde.
What a great overview of this subculture.
I was attached to a Dark-Ages "Historical Re-enactment" society back in the 1980s. At the time jeans, sheepskin bedspreads, mucklucks, and motorcycle gauntlets were all part of the standard kit 😂😂😂
The corgi isn't even that mini, she's just extra cute!
I wear a pair of harness boots with my outfit to the MN Renaissance Festival.
The motorcycle boots are built to last, look timeless, and shrug off the puddles at the festival which are always there.
Also, I've seen HEMA kit for competition that had bits of motorcycle gear in it, like motocross leg protection, we'd also often use baseball catchers leg guards as greaves.
@@TheMaxWhoKnewTooMuch When does HEMA cross over in to Mad Max Re-enactment? 😄😄😄
I mean... I went as a fairy with my friend as the village witch 🤣
Perfect combination!
I am so behind this. Ren Faire was my gateway into costuming too, and I've learned so much over the years. I'm lucky enough to live close to TRF and Sherwood Forest Faire and frequent them both. But I will say one of my favorite Faire memories was closing weekend of Sherwood Forest 2021. It started pouring down rain while Solar Rain was performing and they couldn't keep the fires lit. So they pulled in participants to dance in the rain at the Seven Sisters Circle. It was absolutely beautiful and completely magical.
That sounds wonderful! We actually had a great time getting rained on-- we were prepared, so when a lot of people left there were far fewer lines and crowds to deal with.
Very well said! As I watch this I’m actually making a new macrame belt for a renfaire version of an existing fantasy costume of mine (a water mage, complete with wizard staff). I’ll be wearing it to the last weekend of NorCal Renfaire, since they’re explicitly encouraging Halloween-ish costumes for that weekend. NorCal was my very first faire, 20 years ago that weekend, which I attended with a couple friends for my 18th birthday. I was a participant at several of the smaller single weekend faires in California during my 20s, but I haven’t done that in years and no longer have much garb accurate enough for participation these days anyway. Being a patron and embracing the fantastical elements is a lot of fun.
I wore a d&d tiefling cosplay to my first ren faire, very “inaccurate” body paint and all, which wasn’t very fun in San Jose weather, but the low cut piratey shirt and horns made me feel so joyous and everyone was very enthusiastic when they interacted with me even if they didn’t know who I went as. I’ve been a nitpicky snob for accuracy when I was younger, but it’s really refreshing to get over myself and just collectively have fun. Excited for your giveaway, I’m local to you and have really looked up to the work you put out!!
My first faire costume was literally an assassins creed costume that I got from a Halloween store. Spring forward a few years now my brother and I are both taking part in having an outfit for each themed weekend.
Just yesterday it was time travelers so knowing that there would be a lot of pop culture references we did a quick study of time travel shows and movies, we then dressed up in modern military gear and would randomly start bickering with one another over which ever time travel method happened to come up when we were around other people. We then also would go up to other patrons and ask for help to "get back home" since they were the one who stranded in any particular time.
this year i got to go to ren fair again with my friends (i've only been once before in the Before Times) and dressed as an elf. I had the two best interactions with kids while i was there, one kid came up to me and gave me a small plastic diamond (i have it on my desk now, under my monitor) and another kid who was sitting behind me while we watched the horse exhibition asked if I was a real elf and when I said yes I am she turned to her mom and yelled "mom!! it's a real elf!!" It was adorable. Definitely going to bring stuff to give away to any kid I see next time i go!
The looks one gets from small kidlets when in costume are just the best.
i absolutely love every single video where you appreciate costumers who are new, inexperienced, hobby, etc, and don't lay down historic law. It really makes my day, especially as someone who likes the whole cottagecore "undergarments" look (aka chemise + underbust corset)
The Texas RenFest has some really out there and great theme weekends and in recent years has been doing a Heroes and avillana weekend so folks can dress in their favorite cosplay. I went as what my brother-in-law calls “Babushka Captain America” for a couple of years and actually had a kid take a picture with me.
BABUSHKA CAPTAIN AMERICA?!?!? I need pictures STAT.
@@SnappyDragon it’s not THAT babushka, it’s just sort of quasi RenFest-ified and the fact that I’m short and of Czech/Mexican descent does the rest. But I’m really proud of the coif I embroidered and embellished for it.
I went to a Renfaire back in college (Unfortunately it's the only time I've been to one. Want to go to one again so bad.) it was the weekend before Halloween. So you had the more accurate costumes of the cast members and performers, the historical fantasy of patrons and most of the vendors, and just your regular Halloween costumes that about half the costumed patrons were wearing. There was even a group of teen girls dressed as the Ninja Turtles walking around and having fun getting pictures with cast members.
Having been a regular at the New York Ren Faire in Sterling Forest for almost 2 decades, my wife and I saw the gamut of costumes and styles (as you said, everything from fairies, the Brownies from Willow, and yes, even Star Trek groups!) It was also where we met for the first time, so Ren Faires have always been a fun part of our lives, and we've always enjoyed seeing the variety of costuming (from historically accurate clothing and armors, to fantasy costuming up to and including a group dressed as an oriental dragon!)
getting a hug or picture with people in costume instantly elevates a day no matter what I'm wearing. my highlight reel includes a Stormtrooper in a kilt, Jareth from Labyrinth, and an ENORMOUS Space Marine in to scale foam armor. fantastic!!
Yay for Ren Faire fun!! :D And yes, more costuming events!
I love your take on this topic! I was part of a cast in the late 90’s, and we definitely had the Brown Book as our guide. However…pre-cast assignment…all I had to wear were a pair of black leggings, thigh-high boots and a tunic belted by a chain mail belt. And…I had a cloak to top off the look. I fit right in amongst fairies and Storm Troopers…it was a blast!
Thank you for reminding us that it’s about the fun and the whimsical experience. I miss those days.
The last time we went to a ren faire, my husband wrote a full [Monty Python] Spanish inquisition costume. It was VERY well received. I'm slowly working on all the layers to create a purple Edwardian dress to wear the next time we go.
My friend from school once took me to a Ren Faire with his family . . . it was my first time going to one, and I had no idea what to expect, so I was in a yellow sundress and Converse XD. My two favourite costumes I saw on that trip were a guy in a full Deadpool costume with a unicorn horn and tail and a girl decked head-to-toe in nothing but holographic material that made her a real pain to look at in the midday sun! At that Faire, anyone not in vaguely-historical costuming was affectionately referred to as a time-traveller
I finally read Well Met, the academic analysis of the cultural phenom that is Ren Faire, and feel so much more wise about why I love it. 😍
I grew up in the SF Bay Area which had an incredible Ren Faire up in Marin County. The land had been donated or granted & since it was a perm location they were actually allowed to build permanent structures. So they kind of had a little town in the forest that looked like the back lot shooting location for a film. I first went to the Black Forest Faire on a school field trip with my 8th grade class circa 1974 & it was an incredible experience (our class put on our own Ren Faire at school & my mom made me a costume) At that time the vendors & actors were pretty authentic & I remember enjoying the crafts re-enactors & joust the most. Unfortunately the Black Forest location was eventually sold for development & the faire stopped several years ago but I got go with a group of friends before it closed & was amused to see several Xena Warrior Princesses & people who were basically naked except for chain mail. The Ren/Fantasy Faire I went to when I lived in Wa had more stalls selling reproduction fantasy swords, fantasy art & fantasy costumes.(We actually bought a few swords) And yes, lots of people dressed as Fairies & Pirates. The historical craftspeople, food, dance & games were gone.The vibe had really changed. I've since been to other Ren Faires, often called Renaissance Fantasy Faires but because they were in a parking lot or similar local they just didn't feel the same being much smaller & more vendor heavy. Where I live now in the Central Valley, a couple towns over has a permanent location that puts on a Ren/Fantasy Faire every Summer complete with jousting. It's so freaking hot here in the Summer! On the west coast at least these Faires usually take place in Summer, possibly early Fall & it's just too hot for authentic Elizabethan period clothing. But I really appreciate the crafts people who still make traditional hand made items & demonstrate that process. Same for the dancers, singers & actors who really get into character at the tavern every time you leave a tip. Beer/wine is so much better out of a drinking vessel than a paper cup :D Embrace the spirit & don't police other people's costumes 👍
Then we may have crossed paths at Blackpoint in 1974. 🙋♀️ That was my 1st Renn Faire as well but I could have been your babysitter. 😉 I lived in Fresno, it was a major undertaking to attend. In the late 80s to early 90s I lived in the bay area but working retail I was lucky to go once or twice a season. All my friends that grew up going to it didn't care anymore so half the time I went alone. I'd always find people to pal around with for the day. Now I'm back in the central valley too. Covid has spoiled so much fun. Between that and the heat getting on in years.
Last year my young teen daughter took a couple of my old costumes (Halloween & Faire) and combined them, herself, to make a fairy costume.
We got some plastic fairy ears and flower crown (from 1st faire i worked at 15yo). Some tinted sunscreen and glittery eyeshadow, blush, highligts & tinted lip balm.
She & my husband had the best day. She loved visiting her 1st faire. Photos melted my heart.