Q: How can I make a pavilion for very little money?

A: There are several things you can do.  Since the main outlay is for fabric, start by being creative concerning obtaining good fabric. Many pavilion-makers have bragged to me that their tents have cost $1 per yard because they have found a great deal with discontinued fabric that was on sale. Besides shopping the sales, you can try one or more of these ideas:

• If you need canvas, investigate buying a canvas tarp that truckers use to tie down their loads. A yurt owner told me this saved her quite a bit of money. Beware of color that rubs off, though!
• Does your pavilion need the same fabric or can you make do with a couple colors? End of bolts can be cheap, or some tent makers will use curtains/drapes for the walls, with a more waterproof roof.
• Does your Barony have a costume-makers guild? They may have connections to help you buy at a discount.
• Can you remake an existing tent?
• It is often cheaper to buy less expensive fabric and waterproof it later than to buy yardage with the waterproofing already on it.
• Barter instead of buy. Do you know someone that would help you with the frame or the fabric in trade for some skill you have?
• Does your area have a tent-making company? Check with them about the possibility of obtaining 'boo-boos' at cut prices.
• Try calling tent rental places to see if they have tents whose fireproofing has expired, or need repair.  You may be able to pick up a bargain on fabric that can be cut into another pattern, or on a pre-made frame.

A: It probably won't die, but you need to be careful. Change needles often, and use heavier duty ones where necessary. The fabric will be very heavy to move through the machine, so give it a hand and pull it through at the same pace you sew. When there are many layers of fabric, you can hear the motor's extra efforts as it tries to punch through all that cloth, so hand turn the knob on the right (I don't know what it's called--but it regulates the needle's movements) to help it. If you are doing canvas and get really stuck because the fabric is just too much, consider using a commercial tent maker just for the really bad seams. On a recent canvas tent, I was able to do all the seams except the peak of the conical roof, and the seam where the hoop casing, roof, walls, and overhang all met. It cost me $15 to have a pro sew those seams and $5 to set the big grommet on the peak of the roof for the center pole, and it was worth it.  My machine may not have died, but the coma wouldn't have been very pretty.....

Q: HELP!  I can't sew!

A: If you can sew a straight line, you can sew a tent. It may look intimidating when you start cutting out all those big pieces of fabric, but most tents are almost completely comprised of straight seams.  I can't sew garb worth beans--patterns stupify me, tiny little finishing details make me crazy--but give me 50 yards of fabric and I'm good to go. Come to think of it, sewing tents was how I learned to sew.

Q:  Where do I start?

A: Before you head to the fabric store, see if you have all these questions answered:

• What time period of tent do I want?
• How many people will be available to set this thing up?
• How much can I afford to spend?
• Do I have the space to transport the frame and fabric, or should I consider having the frame poles break down?
• What sort of weather am I most likely to encounter while using this tent? Do I need air vents, windows, or mud flaps?
• Do I know anyone locally who has made tents? (Local tent makers are often proud to show off their creations, and very helpful when it comes to giving shortcuts and advice)
• Does the tent I designed have enough room? If you need lots of room to struggle into a Tudor dress, you'll probably want a tent in which you can stand up and stretch out your arms.
• Is the tent I am designing as period as I will want it to be in two years? Sounds like a weird question, until you realize that tents last several years, and your tastes and approach to research may change during that time.  When in doubt, go with being more period.

A: They are:

• Not buying enough fabric. Little bits of extra yardage for window coverings or mud flaps or stake loops add up.
• Forgetting that fabric shrinks! Prewash your non-synthetic yardage before you sew, or sew it bigger than you think you need. You'll be amazed how much it shrinks.
• Forgetting that colors often bleed. If you do a red tent with white fabric stripes, be sure it's colorfast or be prepared for a red and mottled pink striped tent. If you dye your own, test the result on a small piece of fabric before you do the entire tent.
• Worrying about being perfect. Everyone has to start somewhere!
• Not getting most of the bugs worked out before you take it to the event. I am the INVENTOR of that. Also, not lashing down your pavilion poles in the back of the truck, which makes them blow out on the freeway and shatter into toothpicks.  But that's another story.....:)

A: There are some style of tents that are nearly universal through time and locations. For example, the walled tent (shaped like the profile of a house, with a sloped roof and four walls) is documented through Eastern Asian, Roman, and European civilizations.  A wedge tent, with triangular ends with a door and two sloping sides, is another good choice. If you wish, you can decorate it with a generic pattern (spirals, geometric, etc..) and hang your individual banners outside for a more finished appearance.

Q: Why should I bother making/buying a pavilion when I have a perfectly good Coleman?

A: No one should look down their noses at anyone just because they have different camping gear! Tents, like good garb and Life, always seem to be Works in Progress. If you have the means and time to make a period tent, consider these reasons for making the plunge:

• Because they are beautiful. Period tents come in all sort of colors and can be lavishly decorated to suit the owner's taste.
• Because they are pieces of artwork, as individual as the artist.
• Because they are pieces of history. One understands one's ancestors better when one lives like they did--even if it is for a weekend.
• Because it feels great to have made something that you designed yourself. I love the moment the tent is done and the poles go in for the first time. It only existed in your head, and now it's become reality.
• Because they make great landmarks! When I was at 3YC, it was easy to point people toward the general direction of my camp and say, "Mine is the royal blue round one with gold waves painted on the overhang and roof".  Many people in the area used the gilt ball at the peak as a landmark to weave their way through the sea of tents.
• Because it gives you an instant kinship with other tentmakers. I've never met a tentmaker yet that wasn't proud enough of their tent to give me a grand tour, and exchange ideas.
• Because they add to the Dream. If you are in the SCA long enough, there'll be times when night has fallen, the torches are lit, and the fog is rising from the field. Just as the bardic circles start, you can see pavilions begin to glow from inside light, like beautiful paper lanterns, and you almost feel like you really are back in time. Whether it's because it gives us a kinship to our ancestors or satisfies our basic human needs, it strikes a deep chord.

Q: How do you reconcile maintaining something as modern as a web site with the idea that pavilion-making is a historical endeavor?

A: Sir Brand from An Tir explained it to me perfectly. Throughout history there have been places to go for instruction and information.  It could have been a church or monastery, or a cathedral or a college. The people there would have been teachers or scholars or librarians. The closest equivalent that many of us have right now is the Internet. I try to be fairly cautious about approaching people at tourneys if they have an obviously period camp, because I know that introducing myself as someone who has a web site can be a jarring reminder of the present if the good gentle is trying to be true to their persona. Still, I have never had anyone turn my questions away, and I appreciate that.

Email Mira Silverlock