Posts Tagged ‘PirateCon’

So last weekend was PyrateCon, and yeah, I’m just getting around to putting it up now. Unfortunately, now that I have a real job I couldn’t go hang out for the conferences, which was especially a shame since it looked like there was some really interesting stuff about the local pirates. Still, we did get out there to see the wench auction and many of the costumes.

And what costumes! There were the traditionalists, of course, like last year- the ones who make their own buttons and such, but there were also a bunch of what I assume were locals, who just worked with what they had around. You know, like we do here, because there’s always something going on, so best to keep a few feathers around the house, maybe a boa, and you’re on your way. Thankfully, with another year between us and Pirates of the Caribbean movies, there were somewhat fewer Johnny Depp wannabes, though the young girls still loved them.

PyrateCon had much more of a street presence this year, too. They’ve jumped ship, leaving the CBD and mooring in the French Quarter, taking over part of Bourbon Street- including the block that includes the Funky Pirate bar, naturally.

I heard there was a bunch of in-fighting amongst the pirate community (to be expected, I suppose; organizing pirates has got to be like herding particularly well armed cats) and some splintering, but this year’s event seemed considerably larger and much better organized than last year.

Friday afternoon Charlie came back with me. I’d bought him a frilly shirt and he felt like an ass. He wasn’t really excited about it…he even went out the house’s side gate into the car, and made me promise him that he wouldn’t look like a moron. I promised him that if he felt like an idiot, it would only be because he’d feel underdressed.

We went to the last seminar of the day, which was given by Tony Swatton, who is a majorly amazing artisan who’s done the weaponry, props and armor for just about every movie you’ve ever seen. Plus he’s a really nice guy.

He made/maintains the armor for this pizza chain in California. He said it’s a lot of fun but always comes back a mess:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4SyDLsRWexw[/youtube]

Then it was off to dinner. I’ve got video and such also but haven’t had a chance to get through it all, but here are a few of dinner.

We knew we were in trouble when we got there and there was a sandwich board outside that said “Locals love us and you will too!” We took a look at the steamtable pasta and jambalaya and had dinner elsewhere, but it was a really beautiful night, and a huge kick. Tourists walking by would stop dead in their tracks, staring up openmouthed at the balcony.

Not exactly surprising, but they did set a certain tone…

I took my notebook along to PirateCon; I was originally going to take the laptop and liveblog it, but I decided that wasn’t very piratey.

I knew from perusing the website that there were some really intense people involved in PyrateCon, but…oh, I just had no idea.

Notes from “The Devil’s in the Details:”

(9AM, Friday)

-I am the only person not in full on pirate garb. I thought that surely there would be some sort of more modest pirate day wear. Accordingly, I’m wearing black jeans and a lacey blouse that’s only semi-pirate-ish, but the most pirate-y thing I own.

-Seminar largely about how to sew your own pirate clothes in the most authentic ways possible

-Lively discussion about what should go on the inside of jacket sleeves so as to allow free movement of arms for slashing, wenching, etc.

-Speaker has convinced a friend of hers to knit her a pair of period stockings: “It’s not going well.”

-”It’s all about the bits:” you can get away with having an improper waist coat if you have a lot of fun details. Weaponry of all types, grog tankards, purses all good items.

-I am sitting toward the back and am being snubbed, clearly an outsider. When the speaker’s “perfectly weighted ax” was passed along, they didn’t give it to me.

-No metal grommets, dammit!

-Also, no silk shirts. Impractical in a wet environment.

-She made her own buttons.

-Everything also should be hand sewn- a machine is a copout. If it’s an inside seam that won’t show, okay…if you absolutely have to. She doesn’t, of course, but if you have to…

-There were no left and rights in shoes??

-There’s a very serious guy who’s spending what sounds like thousands of dollars to look like “an average pirate.” None of this fancy captain stuff. An argument ensues about how/which threads would rot at sea. Wants to use rivets, which are very un-period, even if they look cool. Wax covered linen thread is what would be appropriate.

When the seminar was over, I returned to the office, and started reworking some things for my return with Charlie later in the day. It was abundantly clear that there was nothing I have in stock, costume-wise, was going to cut it. When you make your own freaking buttons, a mass produced polyester dress just isn’t going to work.

It turns out that I’m not going to be spending the whole weekend in the Quarter. I took some time to go a little more carefully through the PyrateCon site, and discovered that, unlike me, many people take this quite seriously.

There are lectures and symposia all day long while the pillaging and misbehaving is responsibly restricted to certain times and places.

I would still be willing to pay the price to just go to the rum-intensive bits, but Alison announced quite casually that Prom is Saturday.

THIS Saturday. When I went purple and was desperately wishing I had a cutlass of my own, she didn’t seem to know what my problem was. After all, there are a few days to get ready, and it’s not like it’s Saturday MORNING. Jeez, ma-you always overreact.

So the big parade starts at 6pm. The prom starts at 7. True, it’s only her junior prom and not the main event of her high school career, but… I think I still have to do the mom-thing.

Probably.

The original plan was to go hang out in the French Quarter for the big, free festival this weekend, but it didn’t quite come together.

Friday things kicked off downtown, and while I was getting dressed, the local news was covering the opening, including all of the new stuff for kids- special musical acts, crafts, and very excitingly, costumed characters to walk around and entertain.

Up pops this guy:

Who, along with his parrot starts singing a bastardized version of “What can you do with a drunken sailor-” he’d made it kid-friendly by turning it into “What can you do with a crazy pirate?”

Still, I was only watching with half an eye as I herded puppies, yelled at Alison to get it in gear, etc. But the further he got into the song, the more excited he got by it, until his head was really bobbing and weaving, the cap’s beaded fringe swinging and swirling…

I’ve become really attuned to annoyed birds and his sun conure was showing all the signs of peevishness spiraling toward snapishness. He glared suspiciously at the hat as it swung around…until the inevitable happened.
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