Opening Ceremonies

Pennsic Accessibility Services has invited the Midrealm Assistive Listening System (ALS) team to demonstrate the assistive listening technology during Opening Ceremonies at Pennsic this year. Using your smartphone, the system streams the voices of the Crowns directly to Bluetooth earbuds, compatible hearing aids, or other Bluetooth listening devices, making it easier to hear the ceremony clearly. While designed as an accessibility tool for those with hearing loss, it can also improve the experience for anyone affected by distance, crowd noise, or poor acoustics.

To help attendees prepare, the Midrealm ALS team will be available at the Midrealm Royal Crafters Green (W-01) from 11:00 AM to 2:00 PM on July 28, 29, and 30 to assist with installing the app and configuring devices. Volunteers will also be stationed near the Battlefield Fort for a few hours before Opening Ceremonies to help attendees connect to the Pennsic ALS network. During installation, please allow all requested permissions, including audio and location. Final connection to the Pennsic ALS network must be completed on-site the day of the event, and participants are asked to use headphones or hearing aids rather than their phone's speaker.

For more information, seek out Sir Crispin dela Rochefoucauld or Mistress Gianna Vettori at Midrealm Royal (W01) or Dame Elisabeta Fischer with Pennsic Accessibility Services. 

Business cards with QR codes will be available at Midrealm Gate during Peace Week.

Please note: If you have already configured Midrealm ALS, there's no need to switch networks.

• Website: Middle Kingdom Assistive Listening
• Website: Pennsic Assistive Listening
• PDF: Pennsic ALS Step By Step Instructions

Piña Kolad Namadi

"A general term for hats in Persian, often used in combinations like Kolah namadi (felt hat.)"

Admittedly, the title leans more towards my predilection for the drink than the subject matter at hand, but that is neither here nor there. A dear longtime friend was to be recognized by the Order of the Pelican and I was tasked with making their cap of maintenance.

The recipient's primary persona is 16th century Turkish and their heraldic charges are a white and black swan, so how better to represent that than with with a swan in her piety?

A Hat for Valentine's Day

A request came in for a St. Valentine’s Day Massacre hat to match a Midrealm-inspired dress. I chose to build the hat from a Jędrzejko Christmas Red (583) base and paired it with remnants of green fabric featuring white roses and pearl trim. I have a few pictures of the hat in progress, as well as some finished project glamour shots.

In progress.

Her Majesty's Hat.

An Acorn Cap

One of the coordinators for the Queen’s Prize Tournament reached out with a special request: a hat to be offered as a prize in the upcoming tournament set to take place at the Festival of Maidens in the Midlands. After some setbacks with the original design, I pivoted and created an oaken-inspired piece from a Jędrzejko Blue Sea (584) wool hat body. 

The oak-and-acorn inspired hat.

Little Red Fighting Hood

After enjoying 100 Minutes War in the East Kingdom last year, Crispin and I planned to return better prepared for the cold. Crispin requested a sturdy hood to help keep out the cold, so I pulled some red fleece from the fabric stash and put together a quick hood with oak leaf dags.

The finished hood.

A Cap of Maintenance

To recap my Facebook post in The Fellowship of the Traveling Hat group:

Mounted War Games holds a special place in the history of the Traveling Hat Club as it was our inaugural meeting of the Fellowship! (Or at least where the moniker was dubbed.) 

Although we had originally planned a meeting, it wasn't in the cards due to (exceptionally embarassing) reasons, but Her Grace AnneMarie de Garmeaulx was kind enough to teach a class on needle felting, a technique we often use to embellish the hats.

While the rest of class was learning new techniques, I was distracted by my shenanigans and speed needle felting some ermine spots (or strange nazar-like ermine spots, just work with me here) onto an existing hat created on a lark before Pennsic Great Court for the Midrealm. (The shenanigan being I snuck our matching hats into the car for the trip, then snuck 'em in to the event to work on his, then wore his hat before court to "show him what I did (for me!) in class!", then accidentally pulled it off my head when Their Majesties asked if there was any regalia for the new Pelican in his elevation ceremony. Tee hee.)

Anyway, here we go!

A cap of maintenance for Sir Crispin de la Rochefoucauld.

A Happy Little Accident

With the tagline of "Everyone deserves to be part of the story," how can you not want to be involved?

Sir Crispin dela Rochefoucauld spent the better part of the year working diligently to bring an Assistive Listening System to the Middle Kingdom. From the overview on his blog: "Assistive Listening System (ALS): A portable and event-ready system that provides real-time audio during courts, classes, and announcements that is delivered directly to an attendees’ personal devices, including Bluetooth earbuds or compatible hearing technology."

Without getting too lost in the weeds, I helped facilitate onboarding for those interested in the system and collaborated on documentation. At Pennsic, Crispin scheduled three technical support sessions at the Midrealm Crafters Green, and on a lark I sketched a logo on our camp whiteboard - blending the classic three-arch Wi-Fi symbol with a nod to the triple rainbow badge created by the system’s originators.

After Pennsic, I ran the photograph through ChatGPT with the command "Stylized/clip art style, exclude the silvery frame and focus on the words Midrealm Assistive Listening System and the wi-fi symbol on the left with five circles replacing the third part of the wi-fi symbol." and was pleasantly surprised with the first draft. Add several hours of Photoshop and viola the final logo was complete!

Inspiration.

First draft.

Final-ish logo.

Pennsic War 52 Classes I Took

My scheduled commitments, paired with catching a variant of the Pennsic Plague, prevented my attendance to many classes that caught my eye this year. (And the heat, let's not forget about the oppressive humidity and heat...) Nevertheless, here we go!

1. Bycocket Workshop.  Learn about the history, construction and finishing of a wool felt bycocket. This is a hands-on workshop that **REQUIRES** that the participants bring their own wool felt blank in order to make a hat. Individuals without a blank are welcome to sit in and receive a handout. [Instructor: Lady Margarette la Gantiere]
2. Coats, Cloaks, and Other Outerwear. Weather happens. Sometimes it's cold or wet. What is the appropriate coat, cloak, or other protection from the elements for your persona? Survey of European outerwear 1000-1600 CE. [Instructor: Lady Sisuile Butler]

Pushing for Pennsic - 2025

Rather than curse myself with a monthly project update post, I humbly offer a list of garment-related items I have been working on for the two of us or for kingdom projects. My stretch goals for the winter were a bit stretchy. (Sounds familiar, eh?)

Crispin's Wardrobe Refresh

• completed projects
• green linen cotehardie
• shot linen lightweight cotehardie
• army green linen work tunic
• natural linen work tunic
• dark blue lightweight linen work tunic
• shot linen lightweight work tunic

Gianna's Wardrobe Refresh

• completed projects
• green wool cotehardie with silk sleeves
• green linen short sleeve cotehardie
• aluminum (grey) linen short sleeve cotehardie
• shot linen lightweight cotehardie
• purple archaic chiton with purple and grey trim
  
• green archaic chiton green and white trim
• natural archaic chiton with red and brown trim
• red archaic chiton
• shot linen archaic chiton
• Traveling Hat Club
• North Oaken - Middle Kingdom Coronation
• South Oaken - Royal University of the Midrealm
• Pentamere - Val Day
• Midlands - Ragnarök Rampage
• Constellation - Better War Through Archery

Other Projects

• Midrealm Royal
• award shield heraldry (1)
• award shield heraldry documentation

A Boast at Crown Tournament

From the Crown Tournament of Their Majesties Wigthegn and Neassa, the consorts were honored with original prose. Crispin and I were honored again to be represented by Lady Canay, an artisan and archer of of great renown residing in the Ayreton. 

Putting her hat in the ring for glory --
Servant, leader, lover of her people,
Praise be to Gianna Vettori!

Ethereal in beauty and presence,
she weaves noble webs to help the whole realm,
and serves with such care and effervescence.

Emboldened by her love, Sir Crispin fights,
slaying their enemies, earning honor
and envy too, from all the other knights.