Color Schemes for Faire Cast

[DonaCatalina]

I realize there is no set rule for what color anyone can wear, that very few colors have hidden meanings, and most colors except neons are period.

But on the old Forum, someone had posted color guidelines for their Faire.
i.e. Purple reserved for Royalty, Red for ranking members of the Court and so on.
If anyone knows of guidelines for their particular Faire, can you please post them.
Enquiring minds want to know. 

[nliedel]

MIRF, for cast, is pretty careful about sumptuary laws. However, no one should say anything to anyone about garb, at least not cast. It's our job to make it fun, no matter what you're in. I did have someone come up to me at my first ren faire and ream me  out about my garb and not being period. It almost made me not go back again. Thank goodness, the ale prevailed.

Purple for Royalty and gold is almost right out, unless your character is rich. Black too, unless you have the means to purchase it. I keep hearing, "your character could not afford that" everytime I try to put something shiny on. Poo!

[Lady Kathleen of Olmsted]

Before I settled on my character, I researched heavily what Earls that were loyal to the Crown, rich land owners, as well as members of the Privy Council were able to wear. The Earl of Olmsted is extremely wealthy from being land rich in Agriculture and manufacturing of Military armaments for the Crown.

My character wears Black and Red velveteens, rich Brocades, gold trimmings, lots of pearls, decorative stitching on chemises, etc. I have not been harassed by other Faire casts for what the Earl and I were wearing. I  was well aware that certain furs and colors were off limits to the upper nobility.

Research does help when developing a character and what garb goes with it. There are some faires that do get a bit anal regarding playtrons garb. I have been asked once at Minnesota Ren Faire that my sun shades did not go with my gown. I blew the person off saying that my delicate eyes needed them.

[Lady Rosalind]

Our faire (Des Moines) is new enough that we really don't have a set of hard and fast rules about color/sumptuary rules yet. By consensus, only the immediate members of the Royal Family (Queen, the soon-to-be King) wear purple, violet, or lavendar. Purple fabric is really hard to find lately, so our new Princess will be in a rich green (she's a natural red-head, with really pale skin, so it will be gorgeous). The rest of the court just tries to not duplicate too many colors among the ladies. And yes, we talk about it that way. We don't want to clash in photos!  

That said, we have a jouster (Sir Arthur) and his wife who are in a lighter purple (her dress is mostly white), and we explain that by saying he is wearing the Queen's colors as he is her champion.

Non-court members and merchants have a set of guidelines they are supposed to follow, along with workshop days to help them out. They even had a couple of workshops over the winter that I would have loved to have been able to attend (schedule conflicts). We are gradually working towards making thing better, while respecting the $$$ issues.

Just as a side-note: We are thrilled when people dress up! We hate it when people are rude to others about what they are wearing or doing as playtrons...

[isabelladangelo]

I just want to point out that the period idea of purple and the modern idea are different.  The period purplus was made from the blood of tiny sea creatures and was, essentially, our idea of a deep dark red.  Violet, our idea of purple, was easily obtained by the middle class and above (mixing madder and woad is nothing new).   
Now, that being said, the renn faire idea of "no purple" comes from Elizabethan sumputary laws in which it says that none of the non-royals other than orders of the garter may wear silk of purple color.  Again, this is only for England and well...sumptuary laws were broken...a lot.

I'm not sure where the idea of "black for rich" only came from but I've heard that one around a lot too.
http://tinyurl.com/5qlbve
Almost any painting done of peasants in the 16th c shows at least a few wearing black.  Yes, they may be dressed in their Sunday best, but it wasn't a rich only thing either. (Ink and dye from walnuts was pretty easy to obtain.)

I know at MDRF, those involved in the Living History tend to wear yellow/gold and black.   So, if you want to avoid being mistaken for a member of the cast there, I'd avoid an all yellow/gold and black dress.

[Margaret]

MIRF, for cast, is pretty careful about sumptuary laws. However, no one should say anything to anyone about garb, at least not cast. It's our job to make it fun, no matter what you're in. I did have someone come up to me at my first ren faire and ream me  out about my garb and not being period. It almost made me not go back again. Thank goodness, the ale prevailed.

Purple for Royalty and gold is almost right out, unless your character is rich. Black too, unless you have the means to purchase it. I keep hearing, "your character could not afford that" everytime I try to put something shiny on. Poo!

Remember also that the Mayor's Family dresses in red

[DonaCatalina]

MIRF, for cast, is pretty careful about sumptuary laws. However, no one should say anything to anyone about garb, at least not cast. It's our job to make it fun, no matter what you're in. I did have someone come up to me at my first ren faire and ream me  out about my garb and not being period. It almost made me not go back again. Thank goodness, the ale prevailed.

Purple for Royalty and gold is almost right out, unless your character is rich. Black too, unless you have the means to purchase it. I keep hearing, "your character could not afford that" everytime I try to put something shiny on. Poo!

Thank you, I'm not trying to make this a snarking thread. 
I'm genuinely curious about guidelines that various Faires have for their casts.
The question occured to me while I was planning color choices for His Excellency's next suit of garb.

[Lady Rosalind]

I just want to point out that the period idea of purple and the modern idea are different.  The period purplus was made from the blood of tiny sea creatures and was, essentially, our idea of a deep dark red.  Violet, our idea of purple, was easily obtained by the middle class and above (mixing madder and woad is nothing new).   
Now, that being said, the renn faire idea of "no purple" comes from Elizabethan sumputary laws in which it says that none of the non-royals other than orders of the garter may wear silk of purple color.  Again, this is only for England and well...sumptuary laws were broken...a lot.

Yes, we're aware that the modern purple is different than period purple, and of the sumptuary laws regarding silk of purple color. However, the majority of fair patrons are not aware of this, and in order to set apart the royal family, it is pretty common for faires to set aside the color purple for royalty because of this.

In our new fashion talk, we also make the point that if they had the money, people made it a point of pride to pay the fine and wear whatever they wanted. 

[peggyelizabeth]

Somewhere I have the guidelines for MNRF & IIRC, they have the combo of navy blue and burgundy as the royal colors. I'll see if I can find those.

[nliedel]

I tried the purple argument with some and it went over like a wet rock. Sigh.

[Lady_Glorianna]

MDRF provides the garb for the cast. If you have a set character and you want to do your own, you might but you have to submit your plans and fabric samples for approval.

[Queen Maggie]

Color schemes are going to vary a lot, depending on the faires... and on the costumers. Some faires have a staff that organizes from the top down: there'll be rules that are recognized, whether they be theatrical in origin (Modern purple = royalty, so the patrons can tell who's the king/ or we'll put all the couples in matching garb so the story line gets some help on stage/ or we're following the real sumptuary laws as they were written) or faires could be more diffuse in authority, as in 'we have a set of rules, it's up to the guild or the individual how they interpret it' (perhaps, so long as they pass inspection) And of course, there are faires that are almost wholly fantastic in concept, where in it seems the only rule is 'as long as no one is frightening the horses...'                                

If there are rules for the cast (and volunteers if you have them/they are allowed)they aren't always obvious to patrons or even to the playtrons...but IMO they should be used. As an historical character, I often chat to people about my garb, and the choices that went into it. I have often been asked if I made it myself (at faires other than MDRF, I usually wear my own) but even so, I tell people that I have a very fine sempstress who does the work. ( It offers a better insight into the manner of lifestyle of the period). At MDRF, garb is provided by the staff Costumer, who is one of the best designers and sewers I've ever had the pleasure to work with. I've never worn a gown by her that didn't fit perfectly, and suit my character to a tee. (Yet we still have to have a rule about you wear what you're given and everything that you're given, or else new, young cast members will tend to 'forget' to wear their biggins caps or something, because "I don't look "pretty" in it!" (answer: you're working: you're supposed to look like the housemaid, not like you're trying to find a boyfriend.)

Even if one's faire doesn't have ground rules, though, one can still use these bits of info to engage our patrons: when I talk about the purple silk clause, I tell people how it's obtained, and why it is that the silk was the object of the law (imports are not taxed the same way the wool is, people want the differences in status and position to be obvious, and the history of it's 'meaning' and what the color is really like.... that's a whole conversation with someone, that they'll remember and learn form, and look back on as a real interaction with a character.  When I talk about the hats, I mention the sermons preached about modesty, and extremes of fashion, and the average temperatures, and the health beliefs.

But, as always, any of these issues only apply to people working at the faires (paid or volunteer, as applicable) If you are performing, it's up to you to know what's going on. If you are not, it's only courteous to acknowledge, (even when you're better dressed than the local queen) that you are a visitor, who paid to get in, like the patron, and not part of the cast. I'll stay in character, but I always distinguish myself from those who actually are the ones who rehearssed and put in the time to be part of the local set up. It's not just or fair to do otherwise.

[peggyelizabeth]

it's only courteous to acknowledge, (even when you're better dressed than the local queen) that you are a visitor, who paid to get in, like the patron, and not part of the cast. I'll stay in character, but I always distinguish myself from those who actually are the ones who rehearssed and put in the time to be part of the local set up. It's not just or fair to do otherwise.

BRAVA!
One phrase I've used to that point is "nay good gentle, I am but a visitor to this town, like yourself"  It always throws people when they learn that I'm all dressed up & that "I too paid a toll to enter this lovely town"

In a recent discussion w/ a faire management person, he addressed the role of playtrons as being "participants" in the respect that we are not just watching the action at the faire, but participating in it. To that end (and yes, I'm getting back to the topic at hand) it is only courteous to follow the costume rules if you know them. Playtrons really add to the atmosphere and we have the special role of helping to bridge the sometimes wide divide of those who are on cast and those who may be walking through the gates for the first time. By not intentionally breaking the rules, we help to reinforce the theatrical conventions, thus making the whole experience more powerful.

[groomporter]

For reference, here was a website that discusses and has the actual texts of Elizabethan Sumptuary Laws

http://www.elizabethan-era.org.uk/elizabethan-sumptuary-laws.htm

Remember for cast members, (or sometimes playtrons,) wearing something above your station can always provide an entertainment moment for the public where someone of authority could accuse you of stealing a bit of clothing, or an opportunity to "bribe" one of the sheriff's men to ignore the fact that you're breaking one of the clothing laws. Skits ideas abound.

[Dayna]

Thank you PeggyElizabeth!  You couldn't have explained my image of the courteous playtron any better, thanks for helping make faire fun for everyone.

Dayna