[Sca-cooks] Twelfth Night Gifts

[kingstaste at mindspring.com]

<snip many, many questions regarding holiday gifts and wish lists>

Personal and table linens? Ideal garb for cooking? Garb you'd most like to
dine in (and what meal would it go well with it?)?



	I think this category is the one I'd most like to see gifts from.  Nice,
absorbent napkins are wonderful.  Serena gave out several sets of a simple
tan and white small check napkins a few years back, and I'm still using
them.  They aren't anything fancy, so I'll use them to mop up a spill.  They
are soft and absorbent, so I use them for messy dining.  They are a
convenient size (maybe 12" or 14" square?) so I use them to wrap my pottery
feast gear in.  They are pale enough that if I had to bleach them, I could,
but they are cotton and everything has washed out so far.  The fact that
they are simple, not embroidered or hand-detailed in some way makes them
really useful, as opposed to something I would only use as a show piece.
	A personal-sized table cloth is nice, as is one that will cover a cafeteria
table.  Multiples that provide for a matching dining area (at least 4
tables' worth) are really nice.  Often I find that I have plenty of table
cloths, but they are all different.  A matching set really sets off a dining
experience.
	For your A&S-inclined friends, table setting cloths and serving pieces to
help with food entry presentations might be a nice thing.  Temair raided my
kitchen Saturday morning for two jars to put her quinces preserved in honey
in.  (She won the only award Serena did not sweep for her olives - Temair's
quince entry won best presentation, Serena won judges, populace and one more
I can't remember...)  We spent a lot of time talking about food A&S entries
and ways to make them more contextual.  Perhaps you could coordinate a
tablecloth and serving pieces that would be appropriate for their favorite
source, such as Rumpolt or Platina.

	As for garb to cook in, that's a great idea.  I have a cyclas that is made
from unbleached hemp cloth, and it is wonderful.  Durable, soft (now that it
has been laundered a few times), covers most of me, and isn't a apron I have
to take off.   Nothing wrong with aprons though, in fact I could have used
one this weekend.  A set of aprons for your friends that regularly run
kitchens to keep for their volunteers would be great.  I don't know about
garb to dine in, mostly folks change right before Court and then eat in
their court garb.  Now, big napkins (or bibs) to cover up court garb might
be a good idea. :)




What sort of music would you like to dine by or dance to after feast?

Live music, hands down.  Perhaps you could give the gift of a private
performance from a local performer for a future feast, vigil, ceremony, etc.

Sharon
gordonse at one.net


The winds are whipping around my house in downtown South Downs, and I'm 400
miles from where Wilma went through.  It is getting cold (although no snow
here like a bit farther north!), and I've pulled out my sweater and long
sleeved shirts.  I've been booking Santa gigs for a couple of months now,
but it is just starting to feel like Fall and thoughts of the holiday season
are bubbling up.  Thanks for posing your questions, they are timely!
Christianna