Maryland Ren Fair 2012 Year in Review!

Hark, Dearest Readership!

I've been wanting to do this post for a while, and the time is now! For those of you who don't know, I'm a big Renaissance Fair enthusiast and am fortunate enough to live right smack in the middle of two such fairs (Virginia and Maryland.) I unfortunately didn't get to go to Virginia fair this year, but I did get to go to the larger, longer-running Maryland fair this year.

Please note that there are A TON of wonderful things to see and do at fair, and it would simply take too long to go over them all. This post is to give newcomers a little sample of the things to see and do at fair, and hopefully change the perception perpetuated by movies like "Role Models" and the like.

Before I begin, if you're super interested in fair based on my amazing rhetoric so far, you can visit their website at: http://rennfest.com/ Now, without further ado, here are some of the highlights, happenings, and reviews from MD Renn Fair 2012!

An opening roll-play of the King just before the gates open on the final day of fair

This year was a particularly fun year for me, as I'm typically quite shy and reserved in public, I met a ton of really awesome people this year. Plus, I got to visit my good friend who worked at one of the shops at fair, which I'll be plugging a little later. The weather on the last day was absolutely amazing and I got to see some rather interesting things on the "Day of Wrong." Speaking of theme days and strange garb-- lets move on ahead to our first topic:

Costumes!

There is one thing even the most inexperienced fair-goer knows about attending fair: there will be plenty of people, young and old, in costume! From the accurate to the fantastic, to the down right freaky, MD Ren fair never disappoints!

Each weekend there is a special theme. Whether it be Celtic weekend or pirate weekend you know you're going to see some amazing outfits. Lets take a look at a few shall we?

This merry gang of fantastic friends are from the Fairy Grotto Group. Photo by Yenra Photography: http://www.yenra.me/

Toothless the dragon and a rabid white deer!!

Fluttershy, is that you!?

Shows

What many people don't know is that Renn fair does have shows other than the famous joust! You can listen to the many talented musicians, hilarious comedy acts, or even watch scenes from Shakespearean plays. Here were some of my favorite performers this year! I'll feature just one, my absolute favorite this year.

While I only got to see The Rogues (arguably THE BAND of MD Renaissance fair), once this year another group has swooped in like a mythical raven and stolen my musical heart! I'm speaking of course about the bagpipes fusion group, "Cu Dubh", pronounced "ku-du."

Album cover to Order of the Owl -- love this CD

I have their album "Order of the Owl" and it is amazing!! You can check out their website here: http://www.cudubh.com/Cu_Dubh/Cu_Dubh.html

And a performance, of which I attended, of their song "Hrafn" Which, when the Baltimore Raven-loving crowd heard meant "Raven", they went wild! At the beginning of the video, you'll note the gentleman in the middle confusedly say "this one's for them!"

youtube link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OWqchS8hWT8&feature=relmfu

I should not that the video doesn't do them justice, so you'll just have to go see them live.

There are many other talented acts, however, so if you make it to Maryland Renaissance fair next year, check them out!

Shops

What many craft fair enthusiasts may not know is that Renaissance fairs are typically a wonderful place to shop for unique gifts. Each one of the vendors has been approved for quality by the other vendors as well as other staff. Nothing there is "made in China" and you'll often meet the very person or persons who created whatever you might find in their shops.

I myself have several shops I like to frequent for all of my costuming and even real life clothing/jewelry needs. Once again, it would take several blog posts to plug all of my favorite shops, so I'll just pick one for now. It just so happens to be the shop my best sister worked at this year! I am talking, of course, about the ever popular Potomac Leather Company

I particularly liked this shot with the happy sunshine. You can visit their website here: http://www.potomacleather.com/

I've purchased a few things from here over the years and they have lasted! I have a green suede dryad vest and a lovely black, runed leather belt. They see everything from coin pouches to leather accessories like bracers and decorative belts, to full leather coats like the one you see in the picture.

I've been coveting a pair of awesome deer-skin pants from them FOREVER. My squirrel friend looks amazing in them, unsure if this deer would look equally as good. Ah well, maybe next year...

Favorite Moments

I asked my friends to share some of their favorite moments at the Maryland Renaissance fair this year. Here are some wonderful stories from real fair goers that aren't me!

Holly H.B. (otherwise known as 'The Seelie Queen of the Maryland Faerie Festival: Her Majesty, Queen Ilex Aquifolia, Protector of Animals and Mistress of Wild Natural Places') wrote...

 "My favorite memory is the praying mantis that found me one morning, and rode on my crown all day. (The Crown was made by Leah Odom of MythicalDesigns.) Ken Morrill of Yenra Photography got a great picture."

The little stow-away. Photo by Yenra Photography: http://www.yenra.me/

Molly H. a.k.a Fluttershed wrote...

 "Seeing someone dressed as Spiderman scaling the rock-climb wall!"

Brandulfr wrote...

 "I liked being able to walk in the cool rain on a really hot day in my 14th century reenactment garb while everyone else had to duck and cover to avoid damaging their costumes."

Joe K. wrote...

 "I really liked spending time at the White Hart-- drinking beer and watching the shows."

Rosanna K. wrote...

 "I liked the shows and seeing people dressed up -- I thought that was cool."

Closing Thoughts

I hope this little blog post gives you all a bit of a better idea of what goes on at fair. It was a really great year -- great weather, great activities, and as always -- great atmosphere! When I first brought my dad to the MD Renaissance fair, he mentioned that he wish he'd have known about this when I was little. Well we've been making up for lost time, haven't we?

I hope to see some of you again next year, but until then have a great winter, spring, and first part of summer! 

- Ori