Q&A
How long have you been in the SCA?

My first event was Gyldenholt’s Baron’s Feast in 2009. My now husband, Brynjolfr and I brought a couple friends to check it out. Guild meetings were actually where we really hung out at first, though. Brewing, pewterers guild and scribal were all our early haunts.

How did you find the SCA?

There used to be a group of people that would gather every Friday night at the Fullerton train station to sword fight with shinais (bamboo practice swords). Naturally, there is a decent amount of cross-geekery that happens among sword practitioners, so many of the folks there were also SCA. After I heard about it, I hunted it down online, figured out what my local group was and started e-mailing people.

What do you consider your primary art form/science?

The academic description would be something along the lines of medieval gardening, medicine and study of rituals and folklore. The less academic answer is that I aspire to one day be the weird old lady who lives outside of town at the edge of the woods. The one who is a little strange, but knows what ritual you need to conduct if you’re having problems, or what herb will handle that nasty headache.

What other art forms do you enjoy?

Like most of us, I suffer from a bit of “SQUIRREL!” when it comes to crafting, so I’ve dabbled in a bunch of areas: brewing, metal work, and even the occasional bit of bardic. If you had asked me a year ago, though, what my primary art form was, I would have said, “weaving,” without hesitation. I love weaving. It is functional in that I’m generating useful wares, but it is also almost meditative for me. It is a great calming art (Once you get the loom warped, anyway).

What projects are you currently working on?

I recently taught a class on medieval vegetables for collegium. The headlining plant for that class is Salsify, which is a root vegetable similar in texture and use to a carrot. The flavor, however, tastes distinctly of oysters. I’m working on raising a big enough crop of them to do an arts entry focusing on them. Once I have enough grown, I would like to gather as many brave souls as I can to try eating them and collect their responses.

What do you enjoy about doing art/science?

I don’t think I’m capable of not doing arts and science? I grew up in a crafting and gardening household mundanely, and I struggle to sit still. If I don’t have a project I’m working on (or several) I’m bored. The SCA provides great “prompts” to propel me on the next adventure. I also love sharing the strange things I find digging around in history, whether it’s a plant that tastes like oysters, a cure for your crusty head, or instructions on how to conduct a funeral for a bear. I am fascinated by the way our ancestors saw the world, and the solutions they came up with for it.

What is your favorite project to date?

The Finnish bear funeral project I did for Festival of the Rose is my favorite so far. Mundanely I’m half Finnish and I very much grew up with Finnish-American cultural influences. More than just, “Hey look at this weird thing!” It was a way to learn about my ancestors and connect. Bears were sacred to the Finns and it was very important that if you hunted and ate a bear, you appeased its spirit and helped it to reincarnate. I created some of the feast, and then performed some of the ritual. I think the other thing that really inspired me was that it was a group activity. I asked friends to process with me, and they were all in! They were super excited to participate and I even had to rein them in a bit because they wanted to add more, haha. I think that excitement really helped spark the passion for my current A&S path.

How often do you work on your art/science?

Gardening is a perpetual hobby. It comes with year round tasks, so you are kind of always working. Every time I walk into my garden I see something and add it to my to-do list. More specific projects like the bear funeral or the 12th century medicine were planned to the theme of a particular event. If I had to guess I’d say I’m working on a particular thing every month. I am due with my third kiddo soon, though, so I’m gonna have to take a break for a bit, no matter how intriguing the calendar is.

Who inspires you in the SCA?

So many people! I am lucky to be surrounded by a lot of talented, passionate, hard working friends. The Honorable Lady Rekon of Saaremaa is a big inspiration to me. When I was new, hers were some of the first classes I took. I was floored by her talent and passion for teaching. She is always trying something new (and often excelling at it) and then immediately shares her knowledge with the rest of us. I distinctly remember saying to my husband as a newbie, “Man, I want to be her friend.” I am very lucky that I do, in fact, count her among my friends today. Secondly, I have to say Queen Drada. It was her Festival of the Dark Rose that inspired the Bear funeral, which was the impetus for everything that has followed.

Where do you find inspiration to do your art/science?

I have always been fascinated by the natural world, and how humans interact with it. Whether it’s folklore, ritual or medicine, I enjoy analyzing how people saw the world around them, and how it developed their interactions with nature. My current SCA path is a natural extension of my mundane life as well, as I work in conservation and (somewhat recently) got a yard. The yard helped me graduate from patio gardening to full on garden adventures, including SCA ones. In a lot of ways it feels like it was inevitable.

Is there anything else you would like to add?

I want to encourage everyone out there to take a risk and give a new thing a try! Even a thing that we don’t currently do or see in A&S. When I did the bear funeral, I honestly had no idea how it would stick. I was nervous that it would be too “out there” for people to enjoy. I was really self conscious. As it turns out, people really enjoyed seeing something unusual! This theme has continued with each project. No matter how weird they have been, people have been here for it! It has really encouraged my passion to create and to teach as well! So get out there and be your weird self!