To celebrate Spring and all we've done this year, we will be hosting a dance and dessert revel in the Ballroom of UVa's Newcomb Hall on THURSDAY April 5th, from 7:00 - 10:00pm.

One of the most exciting things about this dance versus normal dance times is that it will be in garb. This is your chance to show off those new threads you have. If you don't have any garb and would like to borrow some, let Kendra know as soon as possible so we can find something. Or better yet... This is still three weeks away so there is time to start and finish some basic pieces. So come to a handcrafters or the 4th Sundays to get some help with this. (We do have some fabric if you need that as well). If you absolutely don't have time to make garb or want to borrow any, just bring yourself because Dance is Fun!

Plus there will be food, so you really don't want to miss this.

One of the best benchmarks for the health of any SCA group is the number of its members who regularly travel outside of their home group. Healthy cantons/shires/baronies have lots of members who travel regularly. Any group that spends all of its time locally ends up filled with tangled, incestuous and outright bone-headed ideas. Not that the broader SCA isn't filled with bone-headed ideas, but they won't be the same bone-headed ideas, and learning how the kingdom works tends to show you that things in your group don't have to be the way they are.

Further, some people aren't good fits for their local group. They need to know that the larger kingdom has people and groups that will appreciate and nurture them, if the local group is incapable of doing so. This improves the individuals, the local group and the kingdom.

Technorati Tags: SCA, UVa

Thanks to Thjora, I now have a bodice pattern for my Elisabethan garb. Ideally this will be used for the dance component of KASF, but it's kinda questionable if it will all get done in time given school deadlines. Though in the end, I will eventually make the E garb one way or another.

(This is also a test for cross-posting to LJ) ;)

Last night we had one of our normal practices and we were nicely balance. 6 women, 6 men, so we could do pretty much any dance we wanted. We did some English Country, a few Italian ones, and were generally social.

As always we went to the College Inn afterwards to get food. Evidently the group has been doing this for a VERY long time. The menu hadn't really changed in 16 years... but poof... last night it was different. They now have some flat screen TVs in there, a little mini-bar, and some new menu items. I still got my normal as always, but all of us noticed how different (yet the same) the place seemed.

Everyone seemed to have a good time, with lots of enthusiasm for dancing, promises to come to Thursday practice and a general feeling that we've got several new long-term members from the student population.

If you are interested in meeting us or getting involved there are many on grounds opportunities for you to do so. You can join us at any point during a semester or summer and all local activities are free unless otherwise stated. The calendar and email lists have the final information for scheduling. Use the contact form to reach us.

The two most regular on grounds activities are dance and fight practice. See below for details on these and the rest of our activities.

Dance

1st & 3rd Wednesdays at 7pm in New Cabell room 123. We learn and practice European Renaissance dances. Come learn and enjoy the social and courtly dances of the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries. No partner or experience is needed. In addition, no special clothes or shoes are required.

Fight Practice

Regular Thursday night fight practice takes place on grounds. Come out to see the physical side of history! Anyone interested in matters medieval is welcome, with an emphasis on the martial side of things. If you want to give heavy weapons combat or rapier a try, wear comfortable clothes and athletic shoes or boots. There's no fee for instruction!

We practice on Grounds from 5:30 until dark (or later) at the Dells behind Ruffner Hall every Thursday during Daylight Savings Time, weather permitting. (This is between Bonnycastle Rd. and Ruffner Hall, adjacent to parking lot R-1.)

Practices are outside, so during the winter and in case of rain we practice on the lower level of the Scott Stadium Parking Garage. For last minute updates, call Corby at 982-4021 Thursday during the day.

Hand Crafters

2nd & 4th Wednesdays at 7:30 off campus. Contact Kendra if you need a ride or directions. At handcrafters we do a variety of things including sewing, playing period card games, and occassionally a movie. You don't need to bring a project, you are more than welcome to just socialize or learn something new.

Thrown Weapons & Archery

4th Sundays at 1pm off campus. Contact Kendra if you need a ride. Loaner equipment is available if you are interested in giving it a try.

Workshops

In addition, we occassionally hold workshops on various subjects. In the past we have done ones on creating garb (design and sewing help was readily available), creating personas, cooking, mask making, and many others. Consult the calendar for exact times & dates of upcoming ones. These can be held on or off campus.