ANST - Documentation

[Ronnie]

Hanging up here, with my kitty-claws dug tightly into this branch of a new
thought that Mahee's respectful post hinted at <please pardon snips
sacrificed to bandwidth> ... 

>local turney. BUT, a newby cannot truely partisipate in A&S. I have 
>spoken to many Laurels, and those who have spoken to me, know that I 
>respect them for their skill and knowledge and that I listen to their 
>words with care, sometimes hanging on to every drop of wisdom they may 
>shed. 
>
>I am new to card weaving. My wife took a class on it. I got a five 
<snip> and you can bet, I will do my best to get my hands on them now. But 
>prier to that, unless I dropped everything I was doing, that 
>informantion was not in my hands. 
>
>There is no forum for the newby, or dabbler. I would like to see two 
>competitions sit side by side, not as equals, but side by side. One 
>which requires everything, and the other which is just "Overall 
>Impression" Let the newbies play as well without the "threat" of 
>documentation hanging over their heads. I feel that "threat" so I know 
<snip> 

>I would like to see an "Artisans" Competition at the same time as the 
> regular A$S, not once every now and then at the few events that do 
<snip> The artisans competition should be in well 
>estabished crafts, things there is no question about period or not, Card 
>weaving being a simple example. Let the Laurels who judge these excite 
>the participants. "Excellent job, did you know about this book...." The 
<snip> an art, Give the newbies someplace to play other than just on the combat 
>field.

I'm hearing, "I want to touch it.  I want to play."  Is there any way some
of us who work in these arts or sciences can set up or set aside a project
or piece of a project, that *anyone* can just play with for 5 or 10 minutes?
At Gulf A&S, I saw some *wonderful* stained glass.  The weaving against the
wall fascinated me -- mostly because the artisan was working the piece as I
watched.  And I learned, both from the watching, and from the explanations.
I'd have loved to do some hands-on on some of the things I saw (not the
entry pieces, but maybe with scrap or leftover materials).  Not in a
collegium context, but to observe the works, learn something of how it
feels, what it takes and how it's done, while it's happening, and then try a
little ourselves.   

Example: cardweaving.  I've lots of cards and several different colors and
kinds of threads to use for examples.  Although both my looms are busy just
now, I could set some weaving up on a table with some "c" clamps, or on a
waist loom, to let people play with it.  I could measure warp threads and
warp the loom with a small project right at the event.  Answer questions if
I can, and have the 2 main authorities in the craft right there, so if
people are interested, they know what the books look like to hunt for -- and
where to find them. 

This kind of thing might get more interested and enthusiastic participation
at the A&S events, as well as giving more people a chance to experience and
perhaps take on, some of these kinds of projects.  I realize some of these
skills have large equipment or money investments tied to them, and others
have some safety concerns, that might make transporting or even a small
portion of hands-on impractical for some things.  But if we wanted to
support the A&S in a very real way, maybe a site fee discount for those who
can provide such opportunties could help defray some materials costs.  And,
maybe we could have activities at an event or two to benefit the coffers of
the groups who support the A&S with such discounts -- item auctions come to
mind. 

Okay, okay: if I can't fly, maybe I could land on my feet ... 
Ronnie. 

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