House ID

Who are we and how did it all begin

House id was formed in 2005 by John Blackburn and Maggie Barrette two seasoned historical performers who found themselves transplanted from the lands far to the south. The household was created to help perpetuate their mutual renaissance and medieval reenactment hobby. After moving up north John and Maggie discovered that the lifestyle of traveling renaissance guilds in a large and varied festival circuit was virtually unheard of in the Pacific North West. At first the two spent a year traveling hundreds of miles to attend the hand full of Renaissance festivals in Washington and Oregon each season. Unlike the festival seasons they where used to with up to 8 fairs a year within one or two hundred miles of each other, north western events are few and far between. It seemed they where destined to go it alone without guild or household as a pair of solitary festival actors traveling vast distances to satisfy their renaissance reenactment addiction.

However all was not lost! Although between them they possessed more than 30 years of historical reenactment experience in the renaissance (Tudor era), fantasy fairs, and prate festivals neither one had ever tested the waters of the SCA (Society for Creative Anachronism). Indeed the society was uncharted lands far off in the twilight of understanding. It had simply never come up as a thing to do as their reenactment experience was quite full and left no time to explore other venues. So they took the "plunge" and begun to attend SCA events.

At first they went as vendors as this seemed a way to become exposed to the Idea of the SCA and make a little cash on the side. Not knowing much about the society, beyond what they had read on the website they decided to "go for broke," and attended more than 12 events that first season. As it latter turned out that first season in SCA they attended as many events as many society members attend in a four year period. This plunge into the Society for Creative Anachronism gave John and Maggie a good insight into the organization and its habits in a very short period of time, and they liked most of what they saw.

However there was one small snag, they had moved to Druim Doineann a small shire in North Western Washington. There was not the plethora of guilds or households they had been exposed to in their whirlwind first year traveling the Washington and Oregon festival circuit. What were they to do, Form their own household, that's what. So the two set about to use their vast reenactment, artistic, and marshal knowledge in the creation of House ID.

While the household of ID is fairly new the founding membership is well versed in the ways of historical reenactment, vocabulary, culture, artistry, and marshal skills of the preindustrial world. House Id has been described as a motley group of characters portraying a wide swath of history from roughly 700 to 1600's AD and occasionally into the golden age of piracy (1750's). We like it that way as it gives both creative outlet and a wider range of event types we can attend. We are equally at home in a Viking themed event as we are at Renaissance festivals and great Pirate gatherings. It should be noted that the SCA is far more relaxed in terms of costume, encampment, and character portrayal than the typical renaissance event. With this in mind House ID is somewhat flexible in its portrayal of different time periods and at different events. At some events you may see a household full of modern tents and coolers and at others a "period" encampment with no visible sign of the 21st century. We consider this phase in household development to be transitional as we strive for a total period encampment.

John Blackburn: Head of Household, actor, sword scholar, home brewer, and set design and construction / first event 1990

Maggie Barrette: Mistress of Household, Sword Scholar, Costume design and seamstress, actor, period vocabulary scholar and writer of "Actors guide to creating the renaissance character", social historian / first event 1986

John & Maggie's former guild (household) memberships: St. Magdalene's renaissance guild California (founders) / St. Gregory's renaissance guild California / St. Kergen's mercenary guild California (founding members) / St. John's renaissance guild of the Nights Hospitler California / Royal Scots renaissance guild California / Northern California Renaissance Pleasure Fair / C.I.R.G.A. (California Independent Renaissance Guild Association)

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ID, definition:
The ID is that place in the psyche that is the repository of our primal instincts and strong emotions. Id is that which modern humans control with intellect and a veneer of social and religious rules and morals.