**All of our members are required to have the following items in their kit within one year of participation.***
Each member is in charge of cleaning and maintaining their own dishes.
Required kit items for all members of Lord Grey’s Retinue:
Suggested kit items for all members of Lord Grey’s Retinue:
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A Drinking Cup & Bowl:
I will start with the most common materials, which most of us would be using:
Ceramic:
Ceramic was the most affordable and most common of the period.
There are many beautiful historically accurate variations of cups and bowls available.
Wooden:
Wooden bowls are incredibly practical and do not break easily. Look for a bowl which was carved/hollowed out from a single piece of wood (white oak ideally). The wood should be natural in finish with no stains or modern glazes. Plain with no carvings though you may of course mark it in some way to know which is yours’. They are easily and affordably found on e-Bay and in yard sales or thrift shops. Cost is about $5-20 each.
Wooden cups are something we have no research on just yet.
Pewter:
Pewter was valuable, even the dented and dinged up pieces. If you have a piece or two it would be one of your most prized possessions. It was not uncommon to have been left a single piece of dented pewter in a will.
Glass:
Glass was precious and very expensive. Only the wealthiest would have such a fragile, frivolous and rare item.
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Spoon:
Spoons would ideally be of pewter or for a poorer persona perhaps horn or wood. Pewter would be considered valuable but most people with an income would likely have one for their own daily use. The acorn top pewter spoon is the most common variation.
(There were no forks in use in England of 1471. The Italians were just starting to use them and the fad had not reached our area yet. Though you may have heard a rumor that some Italians use such an odd device)
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Knife:
Your knife was one of your main eating utensils as well.
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Large wool or natural linen bag:
The perfect hiding place for all your modern items. If made of wool please choose a plain weave, dull color. It would be a fabric not quite nice enough to make a garment from. It can be pieced together and or patched as needed. If linen, please use the heaviest natural color. We recommend purchasing a giant zip-loc bag or two to hide within the bag and contain your personal items in case of rain.
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Tick:
A heavy natural colored linen mattress which you will stuff with straw for sleeping in camp. It can be quite comfortable!
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Blanket:
Blanket should be of wool in a plain weave. The more chunky, heavy, course the better the look. Edges should be either left unfinished or hand stitched and turned.
If you are portraying someone of wealth then the quality of the wool would be improved and you may perhaps have a down filled comforter and feather bed. (Members may absolutely have modern sleeping bags for warmth as long as they are well rolled and hidden within your large wool/linen bag whenever not in use)