Realm Collections Blog

With the rise in popularity of themed-weddings ranging from century old traditions to futuristic settings, the celebration of marriage is something that many couples are preparing well for. However, time and money are the essential factors to make a themed-wedding successful. Themed-weddings are favored nowadays because of the diversity and flexible option to play around with different ideas without losing the sanctity of your wedding vows.

Richness in culture or a means to bring back old ways are also some of the reasons why themed-weddings are mostly favored by the modern couple. One of the many themes that is rich in culture would be a Celtic Wedding.

Throwing a Celtic-themed wedding may seem challenging at first but the important thing to pull this off is good research. Gathering information about the rituals and traditions of Celtic weddings will help you with the overall preparation of your wedding. From your wedding clothes down to the wedding cake, you have to decide whether you want a pure Celtic celebration or a conventional one with a Celtic theme. To help you out on this, here are some ideas and focal points which you can include in your wedding planner for a Celtic-themed wedding:

• Wedding clothes – Wearing white on your wedding day is an international tradition but what makes a Celtic wedding unique is the different symbols embroidered on your gown as well as the head dress with tiara. The most common symbol that you can have on your wedding gown is the Celtic knot which is a symbol of eternity. The groom on the other hand, can wear a kilt or a sash of his family tartan over his suit. Male members of the entourage can wear kilts while the female can wear gowns in a shade of the tartan of the kilts.
• Wedding ceremony – Hand fasting, lighting of a unity candle and using a quaich or loving cup during the marriage vows are three of the most important traditions for a Celtic-themed wedding. These traditions symbolize your unity as a couple as well as the unity of your families.
• Wedding bouquet – Include a sprig of shamrock, a branch of white heather or lavender into your wedding bouquet. Each one symbolizes good luck.
• “Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue and a five pence in your shoe.” - This is a popular Celtic tradition that is still very much present in a modern wedding. It is believed that items following this rhyme will bring good luck to the couple.

Throwing a Celtic-themed wedding can be a very memorable event especially if the traditions you will be following will symbolize your eternal love for each other.

For more inspiration to plan your Medieval-style wedding, drop by realmcollections.com.

“300″ is the film adaptation of the historically-inspired comic book of the same title which was written and illustrated by Frank Miller.

Both movie and comic book are the fictional versions of the Battle of Thermopylae which occurred in 480 BC. This historical event happened at the pass of Thermopylae where the alliance of Greek city-states fought the invading Persian Empire. The Greeks were then led by a small force commanded by King Leonidas I of Sparta while the Persians massive army was headed by Xerxes of Persia. These events were also the inspiration for the 1962 film “The 300 Spartans” which Frank Miller watched when he was still a young boy. Miller’s fascination with this film led him to write and illustrate the comic book series. This graphic novel was subsequently discovered by Gianni Nunnari who acquired its film rights. Nunnari together with Mark Canton produced the 2007 film adaptation of “300.”

Frank Miller, who is also famous for his work on another graphic novel series entitled “Sin City,” wrote and illustrated “300″ in the late 1990s. It was published as a monthly five-issue comic book limited series by Dark Horse Comics in 1998. The issues entitled Honor, Duty, Glory, Combat and Victory were then collected for a hardcover volume in 1999.

The comic book series “300″ is basically about the battle that happened between the small army of 300 led by King Leonidas of Sparta and the massive army of Persia led by King Xerxes at the pass or hot gates of Thermopylae. However, it illustrated how as few as 300 can actually stand against a powerful army with thousands of soldiers and how brave Leonidas and the 300 Spartans were for defending the hot gates and for dying to the last man by arrows.

Even though Miller’s “300″ was criticized for being historically inaccurate and for its negative take on homosexuality, Gianni Nunnari bought the movie rights and made plans for its production with other producers, writers  and director Zack Snyder. Similar to the film version of “Sin City,” “300″ was filmed as a shot-for-shot adaptation of the comic book.

If you are familiar with the comic book, you will see that iconic moments from the illustrations were precisely captured on film. A mixture of live action, animatronics, blue screens and special effects were the factors used to complete the movie version of “300″ which entirety was shot for 60 days with a budget of US$60 million and was released by Warner Bros. in December of 2005.

For some “300 The Movie” costumes, memorablia, and other accessories, drop by the “300 The Movie” section at realmcollections.com.

Leonardo Da Vinci is the epitome of the term “Renaissance Man” because of his expertise as a scientist, mathematician, engineer, inventor, anatomist, painter, sculptor, architect, botanist, musician, and writer.

He lived his life fully by exploring and answering all his curiosities in all the fields available in his time. However, Da Vinci is primarily famous for his craft as a painter through the Mona Lisa and The Last Supper. These two paintings are considered to be two of the most famous and most reproduced paintings of all time. The most recent vehicle that made Leonardo Da Vinci and his works the center of attention was the best selling book and blockbuster hit movie, “The Da Vinci Code.”

Leonardo di ser Piero Da Vinci was an Italian polymath who was born in Vinci, Italy on April 15, 1452 as the illegitimate son of notary Piero da Vinci and a peasant woman named Caterina. He was taken in by his father and while growing up in his father’s home, Leonardo became exposed to books and love for painting. When he was 15 years old his father apprenticed him to the famous workshop of Andrea del Verrochio in Florence where he showed his great talent in painting. He was able to create his own style of painting and even developed his own formula of paint that subsequently he surpassed the work done by his master. After he left Verrochio, he went on to become the court artist for the duke of Milan where he also served a variety of roles such as a civil engineer, architect, military planner and weapons designer during a time that Renaissance Italy was constantly at war.

During Da Vinci’s lifetime he was able to explore the different areas of science, the arts and other interests but he had a habit of leaving things half done that most of his best works took several years before finishing them. These include The Last Supper and The Virgin on the Rocks. He explored, invented, painted and studied most of the time by going out into nature or locking himself in his workshop. He also had a habit of writing down records of his studies and between 1490 and 1495 he meticulously recorded and illustrated most of his work in his notebooks. These covered most of his work on painting, architectures, the elements of mechanics and human anatomy.

Leonardo Da Vinci as a true Renaissance man educated himself and excelled in a wide variety of subjects.  Nowadays, Da Vinci is still a recognized polymath whose works are highly regarded and valued in millions of dollars. Many of his paintings, inventions and written works have been collected by antique enthusiasts and museums worldwide.

For more interesting facts from the Renaissance, drop by realmcollections.com for historical costumes, accessories, and more.

Dragons are magnificent creatures found in many stories from mythology, folklore and literature in different cultures around the world. Almost all of the ancient civilizations have their own version of dragons.

However, the most popular dragons are those from European and Chinese folklore and literature. Dragons from both cultures have similarities such as having serpentine or reptilian characteristics as well as magical powers.

Dragons in medieval folklore & literature have given rise to a lot of beliefs especially in magic and the unknown. Stories about these legendary creatures gave medieval knights an additional task of protecting their kingdoms and that was slaying dragons.

Stories of knights saving damsels in distress who were captured by dragons became popular plots in many stories even in today’s most popular books, movies, and other media.

Medieval dragons come in different versions according to the mythology or folklore that is telling the story. These magical creatures of flight have their own versions in Slavic, Germanic, Celtic, Basque and Italian mythologies to name a few.

One of the most famous dragons in medieval folklore & literature was Grendel the dragon from the German epic Beowulf. Grendel was a dragon who used to visit the Denmark Castle every night. One of these nights Beowulf encountered Grendel and wounded him badly. Grendel’s mother, who was half human and half dragon came to find him to get revenge. However, after a bloody battle she was slain by Beowulf in the end.

Other dragons from popular medieval folklore and literature are:

• Laidly Worm (”worm” is the German word for dragon) - the story of Margaret who was turned into a giant laidly worm by her evil step mother.

• Manuscript Dragon - a dragon adorned with many pretty jewels whose adventures include tricking people into removing precious stones from its head.

• St George’s Triumph - the story about St. George who was kidnapped and raised by an enchanter. When he was old enough to set out into the world, he encountered a dragon that ate all the children in a town. The day when it was about to eat the princess of this town, St. George appeared and slew the dragon

There are many more dragons in folklore and literature you can read about. However, if you want dragon collectibles, drop by realmcollections.com for dragon-themed gifts!

Mary Queen of Scots is known by many names which include Mary I and Marie Stuart, among others. She was notoriously known to have been involved in at least three alleged plots to have Queen Elizabeth I of England killed. Elizabeth’s death would have resulted in Mary Queen of Scots’ rise to the throne.

Due to this, she was found guilty of treason and was executed by beheading. Her decapitation became the source of many stories, some of which are fiction. This includes the executioner having to make two strikes before beheading her, saying “God save the Queen,” and discovering that Mary Queen of Scots was wearing an auburn colored wig to hide her graying hair.

Mary Queen of Scots, born as Princess Mary Stuart at Linlithgow Palace, Linlithgow West Lothian in 1542, was the daughter of James V whose death resulted in her ascending to the throne at only 6 or 7 days old.

Even though only a male descendant could inherit the throne, Mary’s case was special because Robert II of Scotland didn’t have any legitimate sons. James V was a member of the King’s court and was then the official and legitimate next in line to the Scottish throne.

Mary was crowned Queen of Scots at the age of nine months and was promised in marriage to Edward, the son of King Henry III of England when she was only 6 months old.

The betrothal of Mary to Edward resulted in a war when the Scottish Parliament broke off the engagement and treaty with England. Due to this, Henry VIII raided Scotland to force Mary’s marriage to Edward. This resulted in a devastating loss of property and lives until Mary of Guise, Mary Stuart’s mother, asked for help from the French. Eventually, the French aided the Scots but with one prize to pay: the French Marriage Treaty which was signed and agreed upon for Mary to marry Dauphin Francois, King Henry II’s three year-old son who eventually became King Francis II of France.

Henry VIII didn’t take what occurred lightly. He excluded Mary’s family, the Stuarts, from succeeding the throne even though Mary was next in line after her cousin, Queen Elizabeth I. Elizabeth was not considered a real heir to the throne since it was widely believed that Elizabeth was illegitimate. Therefore, she was never crowned as queen of the English throne. Due to this, the bad blood between Elizabeth and Mary gave rise to the alleged attempts to dethrone Elizabeth and to have Mary be crowned as the queen.

In addition, Mary went through a lot of other difficulties which included being imprisoned and tried for the murder of her ex-husband, Lord Darnley. However, Mary Queen of Scots remained with many supporters which made Queen Elizabeth come up with plans to stop Mary and her descendants from ever ascending to the English throne.

Mary was eventually put on trial via the Babington Plot which earned her a verdict of guilty, imprisonment for 20 years, and execution at the age 44.

She was beheaded at Fotheringhay Castle in Northamptonshire on February 8, 1587.

For authentic replicas of clothing and accessories during the time of Elizabeth I and Mary Queen of Scots, drop by realmcollections.com.

If you happen to be a Shakespearean actor then you might be familiar with the language, pronunciations and accents of the Elizabethan Period. Otherwise, you may have watched plays and movies with actors using the tongue of this era, and therefore, you are not at a loss on what this article is all about.

The Renaissance or Medieval Era has brought about a different kind of culture and a language that went along with it. This evolved into different forms and is at present known as the English language with all the splendor of its accent. However, the Elizabethan period’s language had a different twang to it which was quite different to how actors talk in Elizabethan period movies we see nowadays.

Authentic language, pronunciations and accents of this era can be heard in theatrical acts performed in many Renaissance Faires. Thus, these venues are the perfect schools if you wish to learn how to speak in the Elizabethan way. A word of precaution, however, you have to make sure that you learn the vocabulary and pronunciation well. You should even speak slowly.

The first steps in learning the language, pronunciations and accents of the Elizabethan period include learning how the sounds of words vary from the modern English, the terms used in addressing different people, and the vocabulary itself.

Most words from this era are pronounced with a distinct “r” sound such as when pronouncing “mother.” Other differences include:

• saying want with the “a” sounding like that of “a” in “apple”
• making sounds like “mek”
• head is “haid”
• “I” is “uh-ee”
• “mercy” is pronounced as “maircy” with a distinct and hard “r”
• “neither” is “nayther”

In addition, the Elizabethan period vocabulary is also quite interesting. Here are some examples:

• “fare-thee-well” mean “goodbye”
•  ”aye” or “yea” is yes
• “nay” is “no”
• “oft” is “often”
• “wherefore” is “why”
• “morrow” means “day”
• “anon” is “until later”
• “perchance” is “maybe”
•  ”prithee” or “pray” mean “please”

Celebrate and learn more about the Elizabethan Period with Renaissance costumes, props, accessories, and more at realmcollections.com.

“Tai Chi Chuan “or “Tai Chi” for short is a form of Chinese martial art classified as “Wudangquan.” It is usually practiced as an internal and soft-form of martial techniques for demonstration as well as for health and longevity exercises.

Today, Tai Chi is used as a training form for slow motion routines which can usually be seen practiced by many groups of people in many parts of the world. We often see the elderly, some of them in their 70s and 80s, who do Tai Chi to keep themselves fit, strong and healthy.

“Tai Chi” means “supreme ultimate fist” or “boundless fist” as translated from the Chinese term. The practice of this soft martial art started centuries ago with the oldest documented tradition of the Chen family dating back in the 1820s. The concept of the Tai Chi also follows two popular Chinese philosophies, Taoism and Confucianism which believes that it represents the fusion of the Yin and Yang into one represented by the Taijitu symbol.

The early 20th century saw the rise in popularity of Tai Chi as prominent Chinese citizens promoted its health benefits. Since then, many became interested to practice this martial art even without any formal training. It became more popular when medical studies showed that Tai Chi could be used as an alternative to exercise. Many enjoyed the different slow movements as it helps you to meditate and bring about a calm and clear mind. This will then result in good physical fitness useful for effective self-defense as well as to achieve and maintain the best of health.

Today, you can see a lot of variations which are off-shoots of the original form of Tai Chi. However, it still follows the same core training which includes the solo form. There are several variations of this form which includes the fast-slow, small circle-large circle, square-round, and low-sitting-high sitting movements, among many others. From these, not only slow steps are practiced but also variations of fast movements.

The Tai Chi Swords section at realmcollections.com is sure to suit all your Tai Chi Swords needs. We offer functional Tai Chi Swords and Practical Tai Chi Swords that will fulfill individual requirements of the Tai-Chi practitioner.

The Elizabethan Period boasts of western European clothing with vast opulence, the risen ruff, women’s use of the farthingale, and the shedding of the men’s codpiece, among many other fashion developments. Clothing during the Elizabethan period was a mixture of different cultures contributed by the French, Italian, Dutch, Polish, and Spanish. Some of the common wardrobe pieces included linen ruffs, Italian doublets,decorated hoses with trims and parallel cuts, and black jerkins to name a few.

Clothes defined the status of an individual when peasants wore stiff and plain clothes while aristocrats wore embroidered shirts and chemises.

Most affluent citizens during this era could be identified with the blackwork and edged laces on their shirts, heavy cut velvets and brocades which were designed with embroidery in gold, silver, jewels and bobbin lace, and during the latter part of this period gave rise to the use of multicolored silk with embroidery.

Most of these clothes were clasped using buttons, ribbons or cords which were made of silver and gold and accented with gemstones, aiguillettes, or aiglets using precious metals.

Clothing during the Elizabethan Period also saw the distinct fashion of women of this era. Their clothes were narrow-shouldered with wide-cuffed trumpet sleeves and they used gloves made of perfumed leather with their cuffs delicately embroidered. The latter part of the period saw the popularity of folding fans replacing the use of ostrich feather flat fans as accessories for their gowns.

In addition, Elizabethan women gave much detail to their hairstyles and headgears wherein they styled their hair by parting it in the center and fluffing it over the temples. This kind of hairstyle is seen on many of Queen Elizabeth I’s portraits. Subsequently, the front of the hair was curled and puffed high over the forehead.

For more men’s and women’s fashions from the Elizabethan Period, drop by realmcollections.com.

Renaissance Faires are outdoor gatherings usually done on weekends in the United States and many other parts of the world in which this historical period is commemorated. These are usually held outdoors with some parks having permanent historical themes while others hold temporary events such as during festivals or carnivals.

Renaissance Faires’ themes are based on the era during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I of England, the reign of Henry VIII, Vikings and pirates. Attendees can join in by wearing costumes such as those worn by the fair’s entertainers and theatrical acts. There are also several arts and crafts for sale as well as festival food to enjoy during the Renaissance Faires.

In the United States, Renaissance Faires made their debut after World War II. It was during this time that Americans’ interest in the culture of medieval and Renaissance culture took flight. In the 1950s through the 1960s, traditional revels were revived through folk music and small events similar to renaissance faires were conducted. Subsequently, these small faires became one big event with the first Renaissance Pleasure Faire with around 8,000 people as attendees came for this fundraiser in 1963. It then became a yearly event in Agoura, California which gave rise to local traditions across America. Today, there are hundreds of Renaissance Faires which are operational throughout the United States and Canada.

The themed activities and acts during Renaissance Faires include jousting and swordplay. There are also themed parks and restaurants with these activities as well as medieval food to enjoy. Visitors can also have a lot of photo opportunities with stocks and pillories displays in Renaissance Faires as background. Some of the most notable fairs across the country which you can visit include the Florida Renaissance Festival, the Arizona Renaissance Festival, King Richard’s Faire, the Great Lakes Medieval Faire, and the New York Renaissance Faire, among many others.

If you plan on attending a Renaissance Faire soon, get inspired and get in costume at realmcollections.com with a colorful and faithful collection of Medieval and Renaissance costumes and accessories.

Halloween is just around the corner. Before you know it, you will have to start thinking about costumes so better be prepared!

Shopping malls will be filled with hundreds of costumes that might confuse you as to what you really want to wear for trick-or-treating or for the numerous parties you will be attending.

You might also be toying with the idea of finally bagging the best in costume prize. However, have you considered if it would be more fun if you will be spooking and partying the night away with your whole family or with all of your friends?

Why not plan to wear costumes in groups having one theme ?

To help you out on this endeavor, here are some costume ideas for groups inspired by the unique clothing and accessories collections on Realm Collections and elsewhere:

Fellowship of the Ring – everyone can pick out their favorite character, whether they want to dress up as hobbits, elves or dwarves.

King Arthur & the Knights of the Round Table, Robin Hood & his Merrymen, Peter Pan & the Lost Boys  – these are popular groups that you might want to consider; medieval clothing and tights are the best way to go.

James & Younger Gang (Jesse & Frank James; Cole, Jim, John & Bob Younger; Clell Miller, Arthur McCoy, Charlie Pitts, John Jarrette and Bill Chadwell a.k.a. Bill Stiles), Texas Rangers – the Wild West will never lose its power to fascinate most people; cowboy hats, boots, jeans and badges should do the trick.

League of Extra Ordinary Gentlemen (Allan Quatermain, Tom Sawyer, Captain Nemo, Mina Harker, Rodney Skinner, Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde, Dorian Gray), Mystery, Inc. (Shaggy, Fred, Scooby-Do, Velma & Daphne) – wearing fictional costumes are always fun.

Other ideas include:

Harlem Globe Trotters or other sports team – you have several options on which sports team uniform you can wear.

CSI – whether you choose to be the gang from Las Vegas, Miami or New York, just don’t forget to wear overalls with “CSI” printed at the back, latex gloves, investigation kits and body bags (dead bodies optional).

For more creative ideas and other inspirations, including pirates, Romans, Greeks, and more, drop by realmcollections.com.