I write this evening with a full and grateful heart. When I proposed this event last year, I had no conception of how many people would take it up in all its multifarious enthusiasms, and it brings me enormous joy that it spoke to so very many people.

It is a truth that no event happens without many willing hands; this sort of "group project" event needs more hands than most, and I would like to take the time to make sure that they are known. Any omission is my error alone, and I beg you to help me rectify it by alerting me. (And please tag people that I have not!)

- Lady Eadgyth aet Staeningum made Gate seamless, smooth, and madly efficient in an unorthodox setting. She and her staff (Lady Aaradyn Ghyoot, Pomestnik Andreiko Eferiev, Aelia Fortunata, and Baroness Arlyana van Wyck are to be praised.

- Lord Orlando dei Medici whipped up a delicious, varied, and ample dayboard in what seemed like mere moments, with great equanimity and calm. He and his kitcheners (Baroness Aurelia Rufinia, Lady Morwenna O'Hurlihie, Baroness Alanna of Skye, and Elian of the Fellswood) were exemplary and speedy, and magicked the kitchen into tidy order even more quickly than they provided luncheon. They too are to be praised.

- Maître Lucien de Pontivy and Mesterno Sofia 'Zsof' Tyzes graciously got up absurdly early to come to the site with me and set up, lifting countless heavy tables, rearranging furniture, and putting my sketchy notes into actuality. Morwenna O'Hurlihie showed up even before her her appointed time and leapt in with good cheer to move everything that needed moving. And I am certain that as the bustle grew, there were even more people just putting things where they needed to go, because my only memory is of a whirl of effective activity.

- Many many hands made light work of cleanup; much of that even happened during court, so that when I came back downstairs almost the entire vestry hall was already reset. I know that Zsof, Master Peregrine the Illuminator, Lord Drake Oranwood, and Baroness Katarzyna Gwodz (Varju) were prime movers in the cleanup, that Baroness Marieta Charay and Duchess Thyra Eiriksdotter whisked away big bags of trash, and many other people just Made It Go. We were the last people offsite, and we pulled out of the parking lot half and hour before our hard stop, well clear of the next group.

- Of course, a Laurels' Prize Tourney cannot go forward with challenges. I am deeply grateful to everyone who offered a challenge and brought their knowledge, ingenuity, and joy in their art to share:

Mistress Eleanor Catlyng, Mistress Rhonwen glyn Conwy, Mistress Eva Woderose, Mistress Cassandra Grey, Mistress Elysabeth Underhill, Mistress Agatha Wanderer, Maîtresse Nicolette Bonhomme, Mistress Angharad verch Rees, Mistress Alesone Grey, Mistress Caryl de Trecesson, Mistress Morgaine ferch Cadwr, Mistress Johanna Dudley, Master Magnus hvalmagi, Mistress Brunissende Dragonette, Mistress Ygraine of Kellswood, Mistress Morwenna Westerne, Master Aleksandr Ruslanovich Kievchanin, Master Angus Pembridge, Master Lucien de Pontivy, Master Peregrine the Illuminator, Mistress Lakshmi Amman of Sri Ranganatha Temple, Mistress Anne of Framlingham, Mistress Catrin o'r Rhyd For, Master Christian Lansinger von Jaueregk, Master Anton of Winteroak

- Likewise, I am completely delighted by everyone who answered a challenge. These were not small things to do, nor simple questions to answer, and you dove in with enthusiasm and joy and brought all the wonderful things you discovered and learned and made to share, and did so open-heartedly. I salute you, and if I can assist in any further way in making more connections happen for you, please do not hesitate to contact me.

- I would like to also particularly thank Countess Kayleigh Drake, who brought this event format to Carolingia from Ansteorra over a decade ago. I enjoyed that event tremendously as an entrant, and I am grateful to have had the opportunity to bring it to life once more.

- And finally, my rock of support, my font of ideas, my light in the darkness, the one who just leaps in and solves what needs to be solved, and the one who makes it possible for all of this crazy imagining to come to fruition - Maître Lucien de Pontivy.

Thank you all - I am a lucky event steward. May your event aftermath be as brain-full and delightedly exhausted as my own.

- Mistress Aildreda de Tamwurthe

Greetings artisans and scientists of the East! I write to inform you all that, due to wildly enthusiastic responses, I have elected to close the challenges of the Laurels' Prize Tourney to any further entrants. The principle goal of the event is to be able to provide excellent conversations between challenge-offerers and challenge-accepters, and I want to make sure that everyone has enough time and space to be able to have those, just as originally promised.

If you have questions or concerns, please contact me directly at molly.eskridge@gmail.com.

Thank you so much for your enthusiasm! It speaks so very well of the manifold talents of the East.

Late-breaking news from the Laurels' Prize Tourney!!

Mistress Elysabeth Underhill is offering a research paper challenge - bring your pages to us! I quote directly from her excellent challenge:

"Is your true art in the SCA the 'art' of research? Do you love writing papers and documentation? Do you typically find yourself exceeding the documentation page limit in competitions because you have so much contextual and historical information about your project that the judges 'must' see. Are you doing data analysis or conducting a study or experiment? If any of these situations applies to you, then this is your challenge!

"Bring your research to the Laurel’s Challenge. Research should be presented in the form of a paper with sources and a citation system of some type. There is no page limit - write until your heart is content. Challengers are encouraged to bring multiple copies of their work to hand out to interested people at the event."

Please note that it is 100% ok to bring an unfinished paper to the event, since this challenge is being offered so late in the game.

Does this strike your fancy? Go to the Tourney site, read Mistress Elysabeth's challenge in full, answer the form to tell us you're entering, and write like the wind!

Good day, fabulous artisans and scientists of Carolingia! The Laurels' Prize Tourney is only a month away, and here are two messages from the event steward:

- If you are entering a challenge and have not already done so, please fill out the Google form indicating that you will be entering; the response to our little event has been so fabulous that space must be carefully allocated, and we want to make sure that all our wonderful entrants have enough! The link to the form is below each challenge description on the Challenge page, right where it says "Yes - I want to enter this challenge!"

(And of course, if you would like to preregister for the event, that is always something that will delight our gate staff!)

- Due to the above-mentioned enthusiastic response, we must regretfully report that we will no longer be able to offer display space for folks who are not answering a challenge; we simply must prioritize space for people who *are* answering a challenge.

If you have any questions or concerns about either of these matters, or anything else related to the event, please drop me a note at molly.eskridge@gmail.com.

Thank you so much for all your wonderful interest, and we look forward to seeing you in Medfield on March 25!

As the moment of the winter solstice passes, what better time than to consider a challenge of Astronomical Science? For our last challenge, Master Anton invites you to make one or more astronomical instruments of a type known to us before 1600, and then use it and see how it works!

There may be even more challenges coming in the turn of the year, and we will keep you posted. In the intervening time, may the returning light illumine your arts and sciences with clarity and purpose - so that you may bring your excellent work to the Laurels' Prize Tourney to share!

March 25, 2017 in the Barony of Carolingia - come and play!

As you plan for winter holidays, forget not the Feast of Fools! It is in that spirit of revelry and spectacle that today we turn to challenges of Performance and the Arts that accompany it:

- Mistress Lakshmi invites you to create a moment in time; use performance in persona to transport your audience to elsewhere and elsewhen!

- Mistress Catrin invites you to design a mumming, masque, or disguising; be it diorama, sketches, finger puppets, or other modality of your choosing, explain to her your theatrical vision!

- Master Peregrine challenges you to write and perform a brand new original piece of music in a style that existed before the year 1600; create something never before heard!

- Mistress Anne asks you to present a performance of an existing piece of historical text - sung or spoken, bring the words of our ancestors to life!

- Master Christian invites you to compose and present a poetic dialog - perform it in any way that makes the two (or more!) voices distinct and clear for your hearers!

- Master Lucien invites you to consider the Robert ap Huw manuscript and perform - on the harp - any single piece from that manuscript!

These and many other challenges await you at the Laurels' Prize Tourney in Carolingia this coming March. Come and grace our stage - the audience for performances will be open to all attendees!

Good day, fair artisans!

One of the deepest rabbit holes of historical recreation is that of Material Culture - what do people have in their homes, their shops, their pockets? What do they carry when they travel? What objects populate their everyday existence? The Material Culture challenges of the Laurels' Prize Tourney invite you to journey down this very rabbit hole!

- Mistress Ygraine invites you to recreate an item that would be useful to a hunter or archer, or something with a hunting or archery theme.

- Master Aleksandr would like to see something that would be found on the route one travels between Muscovy and London in the late sixteenth century.

- Mistress Morwenna asks that you bring her an item that would be familiar to a gentlewoman of Elizabeth's England.

- Master Angus invites you to create an everyday tool, something that would be at the hand of a craftsperson every day that they plied their trade.

As you can see, our Material Culture challenges are our broadest in scope - let your imagination run and think capaciously! And when you have finished, bring your challenge reply to the Tourney in March in Carolingia. We look forward to seeing it!

Have you ever considered how to mark something as "ALL MINE!!" in an attractive and historical way? By lucky hap, there is an entire world of heraldic design and practice that is aimed at solving precisely this problem!

For the Laurels' Prize Tourney, Mistress Brunissende challenges you to make an item that uses your personal registered heraldry (or that of a group to which you belong) in a way that your persona would have utilized it.

What do you want to tell the world belongs to you? Or speaks with your voice? Fly your flag high!

This beautiful challenge and many more are part of this coming Spring's Laurels' Prize Tourney in Carolingia - step up to a challenge that inspires you!

Good day, artisans! Not only are we in the thick of the festive season, but we are heading into a *weekend* in the festive season - what better time to think about challenges concerning Food and Drink?!

The Laurels' Prize Tourney offers the interested cook or victualler five separate challenges:

- Mistress Morgaine challenges you to learn about honey-based drinks through research and making.

- Mistress Johanna celebrates fairs, feast days, and holidays by inviting you to make food that would be served on those occasions.

- Master Alesone invites you to make something that would be been have been purchased from a London grocer.

- Master Magnus challenges you to recreate a historical beverage without relying on a redacted recipe - meet the source!
- Mistress Caryl invites you to try to make Thomas Dawson's fascinating "Water of Life"!

These delicious challenges and many more may be found at the Tourney's site, where you can also find additional information about the event itself (including that it is March 25 in the Barony of Carolingia). To your very good health!

Good morning, artisans! Today, the Laurels' Prize Tourney invites you to consider the fiber arts - the magic that turns simple animal and vegetable matter into beautiful clothing and objects.

We have two marvellous challenges for you to consider:

- Mistress Nicolette Bonhomme invites you to tackle two possible approaches to weaving - weave from an extant historical pattern or blaze a new trail and make your own draft from an extant piece!

- Mistress Angharad verch Reese invites you to create a version of an extant knitted item. What could be a more delightful project for the fireside?

These challenges and many more may be found at our event site - each one accompanied by the chance to sit and chat in depth about your work with someone who is deeply engaged in exactly that subject!