Shortgown/Basic Wardrobe JP Ryan Six Piece Pattern

Bedgown Kanniks Korner Pattern

Caraco Jacket Mill Farm Pattern

Gown A Robe Polonaise Mill Farm Pattern

Caps Kanniks Korner Pattern

Most ladies never went out without something on their heads a nice white cap does wonders for hiding a modern hairdo. Beware though it has recently come to light that those caps made of little circles of fabric and drawstring up on your head, called “mop caps” are NOT accurate.
Mocs will work with this outfit or plain black leather flats. But if possible try to get some period shoes.

 
 Please avoid makeup and nail polish too. If you feel naked with out your makeup try just a little bit of blush and mascara.
Check the source list at the end of this article for patterns and places to purchase ready-made articles.

Children

I have two boys that have been rendezvousing with my husband and I since they were 5 and 7. What I recommend for small boys is drawstring pants made of heavy cotton, wool or linen. Then the long shirt over them (shirt tail out) and belted just like I mentioned under the Men's section. As they get older then they can handle all the buttons of the drop front breeches. Just put mocs on his feet and he is off to have a good time.
Little girls basically wear the same as described for the Ladies. Mocs will do for the girls also or a plain leather ballet type shoe works too!
 When cold weather strikes as it sometimes does just dress the little ones in thermals under their period clothes. (This works for adults too. Just make sure they don’t show!) A blanket or a good sized piece of wool can be fashioned into a cape type outer garment for extra warmth.
 

Footwear

This is the toughest thing for a beginner to get without spending a good bit of time making moccasins or spending some hard cash, unless you go barefoot.   Fields are full of stickers and prickly pear.   You've been warned.  Mocs are the best, whether they're Poppins or homemade. I've seen few from Tandy that will hold up to a week at rendezvous, but many people start with these.   I did.   Rubber soled mocs are a no-no, but if you're a newbie, and keep both feet on the ground all the time, most folks won't say anything to you.   Cowboy boots are definitely out.   Round-toed boots such as Wellingtons are acceptable as long as there is no decorative stitching.   I am partial to the SW style mocs offered by a couple of firms that have a thick rawhide sole.   The cactus can't get through it, and neither can most of the rocks.   No sandals, tennis shoes, or other modern stuff even for kids. Solid color wool or cotton socks are appropriate.
See sources for moccasin patterns.
 

Camp Gear

Tents in the primitive camp must have started life as white or tan canvas.   No Boy Scout green, blue, or any other color of the rainbow in the primitive area.   Obviously medicine lodges or tentage with personal decorations are acceptable.   Poles must be wood, and stakes should be wood or iron.   No plastic or aluminum.   No nylon ropes or plastic/metal line tighteners.   If you have modern stuff inside your tent and someone can see it, keep the door closed, no matter how hot it is.   Make some wooden boxes about two-three feet long and the width of a 1x12 with a hinged lid.   Use rope handles.   This hides a lot of stuff (like all your cooking cans and boxes) plus gives you something to sit on around the fire. As an alternative, you can hide a lot of plunder just by piling it up on the side of the tent and throwing a cotton or woolen blanket over it.  A big chunk of white canvas (comes 6 feet wide at the sewing store) or a canvas painter’s drop cloth (available at home improvement stores) also works to hide it.

The least expensive dinner plates that are passable are just plain tin pie pans. Make sure they don't have the manufacturers name stamped into the metal.  Another possibility is to check flea markets, yard sales or thrift store for wooden bowls. Make sure they are real wood, have a basic shape (nothing modern) and if they have a design painted on them that you can sand it off. Sometimes you can find them for about 25 cents each! Lots of times people use bowls instead of plates to eat off of. Avoid any and all plastic cookware and utensils.   In fact, avoid stainless steel utensils.   Have a period mug or cup to drink out of.   Open your beverage, pour it into the mug, and then get rid of the container.   All pots, pans, and skillets should be either tin ware or cast iron.   No aluminum or painted cookware.

Keep all modern cooking products under cover, even when in use.   That means catsup bottles, canned food & boxes, baggies, aluminum foil, etc.

Don't use charcoal lighter to start a fire.   Set an example for your neighbors, and do it right. Flint and steel fire starting kits are available at most of trader tents. (For a lesson on how to use a flint & steel go to our web site and check out the on-line seminar given by Mark McCain, www.floridafrontiersmen.org) Do keep some firewood and lighter knot covered and out of the weather so you will be able to start a fire when you really need it.   Keep all coolers and water bottles out of sight at all times.   Burlap bags work nice to hide a trash sack, and are needed to convey bags of ice from the ice wagon to your camp (didn't think we'd let you walk across camp with a plastic bag of ice, did you?).

Lighting is a touchy subject.   To the best of my knowledge, only candle lanterns and oil lamps are appropriate.   I've seen no documentation that kerosene lamps were ever used in the fur trade.

And I know they didn't have Coleman or electric lights back then.   Do NOT bring these things for lighting.   You can tell at a glance when they are in use inside a lodge.   Remember, if someone else can see it, here it, or smell it, and it is modern, it has to go.   The dog soldiers will be enforcing that rule.  (Dog soldiers and rangers are the police of the Alafia and most rendezvous.) Flashlights are okay for emergencies, but for emergencies only.   Finding your last beer in the cooler is NOT an emergency.   Dragging a 3-year old with diarrhea out of the lodge in the wee hours IS.   Use judgment.
 

Miscellaneous
You'll need an ax to split firewood.   An old-time bow saw and a shovel may be helpful also. Cutting live trees is against the rules and grounds for expulsion from the rendezvous.
Bring guitars and banjos and dulcimers and ???

As a final note

When you are sure that rendezvous is what you really, really want to do….don’t go out and buy a bunch of stuff. Before you make the BIG investment in correct clothing, tentage and camp gear, you need to do some research and some thinking about your persona. Who are you going to be? A Fur Trapper, a Trader, Native American, etc, all this effects what you would be sleeping in what you would be wearing and what you would own in general. It can be a costly mistake to go through trade town and just buy willy nilly. Remember just because a trader is selling it at Rendezvous doesn't mean it is right for your persona.

For more information on creating a Native American personal and wardrobe please go to, Amohkali Creek

Sources for Info
Besides the sources listed below please check the “links” page on the Florida frontiersmen's web site for Traders that come to the Alafia and sell what you need on the internet.
Links Page

General Information
I highly recommend the Book of Buckskinning Series.   The first volume is dedicated to getting you started, but all the others are a wealth of information too.  These are published by Scurlock Publishing Company.  They also publish Muzzleloader Magazine: http://www.muzzleloadermag.com , dedicated to buckskinning and reenacting.