Penelope Serafim: Difference between revisions
| Line 32: | Line 32: | ||
===Persona History:=== | ===Persona History:=== | ||
Penelope cannot, nay, will not be pinned down to a single time period or persona backstory. While she welcomes eventual illumination | Penelope cannot, nay, will not be pinned down to a single time period or persona backstory. While she welcomes eventual illumination - perhaps in the form of one of those exceptional "series-of-ancestors" persona histories she has seen successfully compiled by others who also enjoy making garb from all over the place (and time) - she currently prefers to spend her time with fibers in her hands. From a 1560s English kirtle or a 1400s houppelande to 13th - 17th Century Byzantine or a Greek chiton when it's hot (for one can take the girl out of Ansteorra, but one cannot take Ansteorra out of the girl), it will be quite the history whenever it finally coalesces.<BR> | ||
Further bulletins as events warrant, as the sage has said.<BR> | Further bulletins as events warrant, as the sage has said.<BR> | ||
<BR> | <BR> | ||
Latest revision as of 22:13, 9 June 2026
| Photo | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Portrait by Alexios Milou | ||||||||
| Information | ||||||||
| ||||||||
| Order of Precedence | ||||||||
| ||||||||
| Heraldry | ||||||||
 (Registration in Progress) |
Lady Penelope Serafim
Previously Known As: Penelope of the Steppes
Nickname(s):
Pronouns:
Additional Registered Heraldry:
Offices:
- Local Offices Held
- Regional Offices Held
- Kingdom Offices Held
Persona History:
Penelope cannot, nay, will not be pinned down to a single time period or persona backstory. While she welcomes eventual illumination - perhaps in the form of one of those exceptional "series-of-ancestors" persona histories she has seen successfully compiled by others who also enjoy making garb from all over the place (and time) - she currently prefers to spend her time with fibers in her hands. From a 1560s English kirtle or a 1400s houppelande to 13th - 17th Century Byzantine or a Greek chiton when it's hot (for one can take the girl out of Ansteorra, but one cannot take Ansteorra out of the girl), it will be quite the history whenever it finally coalesces.
Further bulletins as events warrant, as the sage has said.
Interests:
Penelope has a, erm, fun habit of realizing two weeks before an event that she'd like to have something new to wear to said event. This, combined with her "if I'm wearing it, I've made it myself" ethos, leads to a wide variety of interests and skills in the A&S realm (and a lot of sleepless nights leading up to events). She is very happy with this state of affairs.
Specifically, she enjoys:
- Volunteering: Administrative tasks, gate volunteering, waterbearing.
- Historical Costuming: Research, pattern drafting, construction.
- Fiber Arts: Fingerloop braiding, blackwork embroidery, felting, floor loom weaving, etc.
- Leatherworking: Making pouches and sandals.
Timeline of Activity:
2025
As a lifelong historical costuming nut- er, aficionado, Penelope was aware of the SCA for many years due to the plethora of excellent blogs run by SCAdians. While most of her works were made for productions of Shakespeare's plays, circa 2021 she felt drawn to create something for herself, a bit earlier period and more strictly historical. "Perhaps I'll wear it to a Renaissance Faire," she thought, "but I might as well make sure that it fits within SCA period, just in case." Thus was born her 1560s kirtle, fondly referred to as "a muslin that got out of hand" which has been serving her well to this day despite being made of a lowly linen blend found at Our Lady Joann (may she rest in peace). Its pad-stitched linen bodice and fingerloop braided laces capped with crude but distinctly self-made points exemplified the thorough dedication Penelope would one day bring to the SCA.
While dwelling in the southernmost reaches of Trimaris, Penelope attended a medieval dance class. This was her first contact with the SCA and remained her only contact with it as she moved to the East Kingdom, Meridies, and finally Ansteorra over the next several years. Landing in Ansteorra in early 2025, an incidentally SCAdian friend learned of her fondness for historical costuming and introduced her to the Barony of the Steppes, where she instantly knew that she was home.
Oh, the joy of being able to let one's hair down, to not be stared at with confusion or concern when discussing one's latest avenue of research! What fun to sit quietly embroidering among fascinating dissertations on obscure historical finds and rarely spoken of skills at an A&S night.
Penelope quickly found herself drawn to the service aspect of the SCA, as well. After all, half the fun of any event is in making it run. Her very first event was Gulf Wars XXXIII (2025), where she strode purposefully up to the fighter support tent by the main battlefields and asked if they needed an extra set of hands. HL Malkyn Hawke welcomed her with open arms - each hand holding a 2L bottle, of course - and sent her out to the battlefield where she had an absolutely magnificent time providing hydration to the many knights and fighters who knelt before her. In fact, she had such a good time that she barely took her waterbearing satchel off that day, or the next day, or the day after that. Malkyn prevailed upon her to sit down and indulge in a few pickle slices now and again, but the thrill of it all was too keen, the proximity to the action too alluring.
Needless to say, Penelope racked up a stupid number of service hours at her first Gulf. She was recognized by Baron Sean and Baroness Esme of the Steppes in the ravine (right after the ravine battle!) for her dedication and service, being awarded the Acorn of the Steppes. HL Malkyn also passed along the thanks of the event autocrats in the form of a token which Penelope wears upon her apron with honor to this day.
From that first Gulf to the next, Penelope found a way to volunteer at almost every event she attended. Most of the time this took the form of sitting Gate, generally in the role of cashier as she was not among those bothered by the additional responsibility thereof. She tried her hand at driving the archery shuttle at Steppes Warlord, somehow ended up helping manage the baronial rummage sale tent at Gatalop 41 in Meridies, and volunteered to make new baldrics for Ironwood Company (the decorated baronial fighting company of the Steppes) in the lead-up to Gulf Wars XXXIV. Of course this project and planning a cross-country move were still not enough to do, so she also decided to completely disassemble and remake a black and gold parti-colored cotehardie purchased from a baronymate so as to have a proper Ansteorran piece of garb for her final procession as an Ansteorran. It was an exciting few weeks.
2026
Gulf Wars XXXIV found Penelope back out on the field volunteering for fighter support despite a nagging orthopedic injury that kept her slightly less mobile than the year prior. She compensated for this by volunteering at Troll (Gate) as cashier, where her exceptional attention to detail caught the eye of the Exchequer who invited her to come back on Saturday to assist with final count-out for the event. Penelope had an excellent time learning the SCA's policies and procedures regarding the handling of funds, greatly enjoying driving the Exchequer's very large diesel truck around the site to gather envelopes (if she could hop out of a lifted truck in a Byzantine tunica every day, she would) with her companion. Penelope received her AoA during Ansteorran royal court, and may or may not have been crying through her laughter as Queen Cristyana spun her around and demanded the entirety of Court admire her carefully curated attire. Her fondest memory is, however, being dubbed "Goddess of the Oranges" as she carried baskets of orange slices to weary fighters on the field during one of the hotter days, clothed in a Greek chiton which she had recently finished by stamping designs on it using self-carved stamps.
Penelope moved to the East Kingdom right after Gulf, and promptly signed up to volunteer at Gate for the next event on her new barony's calendar.
Prior Groups:
Populace Provided Information:
Notable Contributions or Accomplishments:
Service to the Society
2025
- Fighter support/waterbearing during all battles for Gulf Wars XXXIII, March 2025
- Gate for Steppes Warlord, May 2025
- Archery Shuttle Driver for Steppes Warlord, May 2025
- Gate for Steppes Artisan, August 2025
- Volunteer at FateCon: spent time introducing newcomers to the SCA, September 2025
- Gate for Ansteorra Fall Coronation, October 2025
- Manage baronial rummage sale tent for Gatalop 41, October 2025
- Gate at War of the Rams XII, November 2025
2026
- Gate for Steppes 12th Night, January 2026
- Troll (Gate) for Gulf WARS XXXIV, March 2026
- Fighter support/waterbearing for Gulf Wars XXXIV, March 2026
- Assist Exchequer with final pickups and counting out for Gulf Wars XXXIV, March 2026
- Gate for Bhakail Waking of the Salamander, May 2026
Service to/through the Arts:
- 2026: Drafts pattern and partners with Arnóra orðlokarr to create nine baldrics for Steppes fighting unit, Ironwood Company.
Competitions Entered/Displayed:
- 2025: Enters the Steppes Artisan Learney Tourney for the Arts, with a Byzantine tunica based on an extant find in the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
- 2026: Enters the 14th Century Recipe Contest at Buckland Cross A Grand 14th Century Tourney, with Mushroom Pasties a Le Ménagier de Paris.
Non-Armigerous Awards and Recognitions:
- Acorn of the Steppes
- Received largess for service as a waterbearer from Malkyn Hawke at Gulf Wars 2025
- Forest Light of the Steppes
Gallery:
- Various Projects
-
Placeholder Description -
Placeholder Description
-
Placeholder Description
-
Placeholder Description
-
Placeholder Description
-
Placeholder Description
Affiliations:
Mundane Information:
Special Needs:
- Allergic to dairy
In Case of Court:
Penelope prefers to be surprised by awards; no warning is necessary. If specific unusual expectations are at play, however, advance warning would be so very helpful. An escort upon whose arm she may lean would also be greatly appreciated.
