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Kris Kinder this year was “chock full of fun, friends and shopping,” to quote Ms. Brialen Ulfsdottir. The event drew more than 600 adults and children from across Calontir and beyond.

A variety of merchants offered everything from boots to hats. There were toys, weapons, and books, tasty baked goods and aromatic soaps, jewelry and cloth. One shopper said “the quality of merchants this year was great. I spent much more than I usually do, and got some really neat stuff.”

In addition to returning favorites, there were some new merchants who offered items we haven’t seen at Kris Kinder before. My particular favorite was Silk Road Caravans, who offered several late period-style watches for very reasonable prices. In fact, much of the merchandise on display was priced to sell. As one shopper lamented, “just wish I had more to spend!”

Once again the merchants praised the event stewards for having people help them unload and set up their booths in the morning. One merchant with disabilities said she couldn’t thank the morning crew enough for their help. Merchant Malgar Thorvik said on Facebook: “Whoever came up with this is a genius.” Cleanup went just as smoothly, thanks to Aston Tor. And the weather was decent this year, a nice change from previous years.

As usual there were meetings (and more meetings). But there was also wonderful music in the commons area, and singing both in and outside the auditorium. At noon the Allegories, Myths and Saints Fashion Show took place. Ten entrants modeled clothing they designed and sewed using period illustrations of allegorical figures, mythological figures or saints. The idea was to sew and wear something that artists concocted, rather than clothing actually worn during SCA period. And the results were fabulous.

Once again the school put on a breakfast and lunch fundraiser, with a nice spread of food. I really appreciated having coffee and fruit available in the morning. The site’s manager told Sir Gustav, our event steward, that they plan to use the funds raised from the inn to hold a Christmas party for all the faculty and staff at the school.

Court was long but very interesting. Their Majesties called for an intermission after the first peerage so we could stretch our legs and visit the bathroom. There were two beautiful peerage ceremonies, a surprising three Calon Lilies given at one time, and a particularly moving award to HL Avraham for his work to eliminate bag chairs.

After pretending to forget until the end of court, His Majesty called Avraham up to make an announcement. Once again Avraham announced he would give away wooden chairs he made for free to a few lucky people, on condition they never bring a bag chair to court or the list field again. Then to his surprise the Crown awarded him an augmentation of arms for his efforts, which was followed by thunderous applause and a standing ovation. His lady wife and children rushed up to give him hugs while he wept. It was a heartwarming end to a very full day. And for some, the fun continued into the night at the post-revel at Master Rhodriʼs home where – surprise! – Calontir sang.

©2014 Lorraine Gehring

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