Friday, May 06, 2005
Enlightenment through armoring….
OK then, I said I have learned a lot since I have started this particular journey. I feel like I need to make a list:
- 43 isn’t old, let alone dead.
- Lamellar is really cool body armor. It can be made of metal or cuirbolli. Or Plastic.
- The water in a vase of roses is very cold when used in a baptism at 3am.
- Cuirbolli will also work for elbows and hands, and if you can figure out how to do it, can be much cheaper than buying them made of steel.
- It is much cheaper to make things yourself than to buy them.
- Corollary: It is only less expensive to make things yourself if you have the knowledge, skill, and a ready source of materials than it is to buy the thing.
- Do not pick the wood to make your forms in the rain. Especially if the wood is wet. Disappointment is sure to follow.
- Heralds do not like slot-machine heraldry (already known). The Norse did not use heraldry much if at all….
- If you boil leather too long, when it is totally dry, it breaks easily. Very Easily (glad I wasn’t wearing the gorget when it broke in half.
- Gesso is (or used to be) a white pigment mixed with rabbit skin glue. One puts it over whatever surface one is painting, where it essentially acts as a primer/sealer. On boards, one can sand it or leave it rough.
- Gouache is essentially opaque water color (sometimes called "designer's colors"). Used to paint scrolls, for instance.
- Tempera is essentially what all paintings were done in prior to the invention of oil paint. It is the pigment of your choice mixed with egg yolk as a binder. It produces a very bright finish, but you have to use it quickly (rather like acrylic).
