Corset First, a bit of history… The corset may have first been seen in the light of day in Crete, in the Bronze Age of those people.  But the corset as we know it, was developed in the mid 1500s by the French (big surprise).  The idea was to give the figure a certain, hourglass shape....

10 Costumes to Make Fun at the Ren Faire Stop the Ninjas! Now, before any of you accuse me of Garb Snarking, I am talking about the people that obviously meant to arrive in what they choose to arrive in.  These are not people that don’t have the right kind of sword to go with their...

The Kilt In honor of the Stumptown Kilts post from yesterday, let’s look at the traditional garb of the Celtic people.  The kilt is a knee length garment that originated in the Scottish Highlands.  Though it fell out of fashion throughout the years as everyday wear, the kilt can be...

DressLikeaPirate.com Who do you want to be today? These guys are one of my favorite online merchants for all things pirate.  But, with this being Steampunk week, they also have a great selection of Steampunk merchandise.  Let’s take a look: Dress Like a Pirate (DLaP) carries full...

Several years ago I saw something new at the Ren Faire: a bodice chiller. Now, apparently, women’s costumes, expecially those involving corsets get very… very… very hot.  The bodice chiller is designed to fight this problem.  If you look at the picture below (this is from a...

You see a lot of codpieces at the Ren Faire.  I personally am not a codpiece wearer but many people not only favor the codpiece but they glory in it.  Performers and guests alike finish off their costume with a codpiece.  It is the accessory piece to end all accessory pieces.  When you...

So I have a bit of a crossover topic for you today. Firstly, the word tankard and then the same item as part of your costume. Tankard:  A roughly cylindrical drinking vessel with one handle. The tankard is an old creation due tot he fact that drinking from a gourd or from your hand got old....

There are several stock pieces of costuming that you will encounter at the Ren Faire.  The first one that I would like to discuss is the tabard. The tabard is a simple coat or outer-garment.  Normally the tabard will come down to right below the waist or to the mid-thigh.  Now, here is...

Don’t Garb Snark, ok.  There is no reason to run other people down because of their poor choices when it comes to costumes.  There is no reason to put others down due to the fact that they don’t know whether they should be wearing tennis shoes with their slops or whether they should have...

I don’t have a picture of this but I may start collecting them and I know you have all seen them before… the furry tail.  What is with the furry tail?  Everybody has one.  They are on men, they are on women, they are on kids.  They are literally everywhere.  I want to know why they...

Has anybody else noticed that Steampunk items have started to invade the Ren Fair?  And I don’t mean that one person with gears glued to their bracers or a pair of goggles tucked into the brim of their tricorn.  I am talking about the items in the booths that are very, definitely...

My First Costume – Part 2 So you have your basics:  shirt and pants or a shirt/blouse and skirt.  So what makes you Renaissancey and not a hippy or a wanna-be? ACCESSORIES Accessories make or break the costume of any Renaissance Festival attendee or playtron.  You can have the best...

My First Costume – Part 1 One of the problem with going to Ren Fairs in costume is:  where do you find them?  This can be more difficult than you think.  Especially if you want to actually see and try on the piece before you wear it. Basics: For most gentlemen your basic costume,...

During the process of going to Georgia Renaissance Festival a few years ago, we ended up with about eleven people attending in our little group. Several of the people were actual Ren Fair Virgins (RFV).  We all decided that we were going to go in costume. Ten of the eleven had made their...