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| A mixture of thrifted and NON-THRIFTED. I'll specify what I didn't buy second-hand below. |
Well, we still haven't managed to get around to it yet (I'm the hold up, sadly - been much too busy!), but the big Medieval-style feast we're planning with friends is, in theory, coming up soon!
I thought I would share what I've gathered for the feast so far, by way of inspiration if you're planning your own event. I didn't photograph most of the textiles this time around, and I forgot a thrifted olive wood cutting board that I use daily, but here's most of what's going on the table itself:
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| Turned, solid wood bowls. They run approximately 0.50 - 1 Fr. at Brockiland (found many of them downtown), and a Fr. each at Brocki-Welt in Schlieren. I'm sure I picked the odd one up elsewhere, too. They're actually easy to find, and cost an INSANELY little amount compared to what you would pay for these new at a Weihnachtsmarkt or medieval faire. Don't forget to wash and dry thoroughly, and then treat with oil (i.e. canola) on a regular basis. They will crack if you don't oil them. :( It happened to an acquaintance of ours. Don't forget that these may be considered "decorative" items and may be stocked away from the kitchenware at your local brocki. Sometimes they're stored with the wicker baskets (which are also good medieval-esque props!). |
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| The same care instructions apply to wooden platters and serving bowls, as well as ladles/cups. Again, make sure you oil them well and regularly, and search for them outside of the kitchenware area of your brocki, too. Each brocki sorts their stock differently! |
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| Finding an appropriately coloured and shaped earthenware pitcher took a lot longer than I expected. I'm not even sure this is safe to drink from. I'm going to put water in it and fully expect that we'll be drinking beer and mead anyway. Still, the green glaze is medieval-appropriate, though I think the pattern on this would be considered ugly in any age... :S |
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| The faux iron (probably aluminium - I care not!) chandelier was my favourite find. The other little wrought iron tealight holder, the silvery candle holder at bottom, and the red glass I bought along with the chandelier all on one trip to Remar brocki in Altstetten. The wrought iron candlestick holder that the beeswax candle (self-made! Check out the Kerzenziehen days at your local Gemeinde/primary school in Nov/Dec!) stands in was from Brocki-Welt in Schlieren. I can't remember exactly where the lantern came from, but I had bought it for a Hallowe'en decoration originally (best guess is the downtown Brockiland, which has loads of people's self-made woodworking projects just waiting to be repurposed!). |
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| Stuff I DIDN'T thrift: all the drinking horns came from either MPS or other Ritter Tourniers in Switzerland. The besteck (cutlery) I bought from Ritterladen.de , and the horn shot-glass set was found at the Kaltenberger Rittertournier near Augsburg and Munich (my partner simply had to have them. I think we only used them once!). The earthenware bottle was previously holding Krumme schnapps, and I steamed off the label. I might try to remove the metal lid mechanism and serve drinks from it. Now to find a medieval-looking funnel...! |
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| The fox pelt (I would so rather have had that fox still alive...argh), the bag (previously a tea towel or something?), and the tablecloth below that we use as a picnic blanket are all thrifted, from Brockiland, Heils-Armee, and... I think Brockiland again, but don't quite recall. I didn't include the masses and masses of decorative silky-satin and velvet and woven gold and plain linen and linen-like fabrics I've accumulated, mostly because I've stitched some of them into garments, but also because they're in the bedroom and my partner is still asleep. ;) But there's reams of the stuff just waiting to be rescued at virtually every brocki, Brockiland and Heils-Armee being my best bets overall. HIOB's not too shabby, either! |
Hope it inspires you to do the same yourself! It's amazing what you can find! I've been amassing stuff for about a year now, to give you a sense of time. But if you were motivated and went every weekend to a different brocki (as many as possible), then repeated the cycle, I bet you could be fully stocked in a month or two.
Oh, one other note: THINGS I MADE! Things you can make, too!
- The beeswax candle during the Christmas holiday run-up at your Gemeinde (or Kreis, if you live in the city) primary school events ("Kerzenziehen"). That was, in retrospect, cheap, and rather fun to make. The beeswax is always very popular with the old people, while all the ankle-biters are making mud-brown paraffin candles by mixing all the colours at once (of course)! Word to the wise: go on the first day, at opening, if you want to make a coloured modern candle. By the end of the first day, all the colours are polluted! :S
- The willow basket. There's a great website that I cannot get enough of called "Jon's Bushcraft". You should definitely check it out! Next thing I'm going attempt is the nettle cordage (already ate all the leaves off the stalks in a delicious nettle soup - I recommend trying your hand at that! I just used them as I would spinach, but he's got a "bush-recipe" if you want to follow that. Or just Google for a better recipe..!). ;)
The basket's frankly hideous and it lists to one side. But I'm hoping no one will notice once I stuff it full of bread loaves or apples!
I'm really looking forward to this great feast! I'm thinking whole roasted poultry (probably just chicken, but whatever I can get at this time of year!), a roast beef or lamb or something, roasted carrots and onions (but not potatoes - they hadn't made it across the Atlantic yet!), bacon-wrapped asparagus (mmm!), apple and red cabbage stew (I make this on a regular basis anyway), and some homemade sourdough rustic bread. Maybe some baked apples and mince pies for dessert, only sans-minced meat, which is what they used to have in them. That's a yucky thought for dessert!
:) TiZ
