Yes, I looked at the Wikipedia entry, too (and was intrigued by the "barre"
theory), but I thought the others were more succinct (and also mentioned the
role of Sir Walter Scott, who, I am told, is anathema to true Scotsmen).

--
Suzanne S. Barnhill
Microsoft MVP (Word)
Words into Type
Fairhope, Alabama USA
Word MVP FAQ site: http://word.mvps.org
Email cannot be acknowledged; please post all follow-ups to the newsgroup so
all may benefit.

"Jezebel" wrote in message
...
A delightful correction, thank you, but not quite as clear as you suggest
...

From Wikipedia --

Bar sinister is a phrase used by writers of fiction to represent *******y
in
armorial terms. Strictly speaking, no such phrase exists in medieval or
modern armory, but the phrase has entered the popular culture and
continues
to be used by authors; it appears to have been coined by Sir Walter Scott.

In heraldry, there exists a charge called the baton sinister, which has
been
used in the past to denote illegitimacy. This can be seen in the arms of
the
Duke of Grafton who is a descendent of an illegitimate son of King Charles
II of England). Today, the College of Arms in England uses a bordure wavy
to
mark an armiger as illegitimate. The Court of the Lord Lyon in Scotland
uses
a bordure gobony to denote the same.

The English term bend sinister (a diagonal band in the same position as
the
baton sinister, but wider and running throughout) is equivalent to the
French term barre, and this may have contributed to the confusion. In
English blazon a bar is a narrow fess, a horizontal band, symmetric with
respect to dexter and sinister.



"Suzanne S. Barnhill" wrote in message
...
I think the correct heraldic term is "bend sinister" (see
http://www.sca.org/heraldry/laurel/wrong.html for the authoritative
view,
http://www.bartleby.com/68/36/736.html for the more realistic).
Interestingly, it appears from the Google link that

http://www.houseofnames.com/xq/asp/s...wledgebase.htm
once had an indignant denial ("The term "bar sinister" is quite simply
an
impossible term of heraldry - one must assume that the layman who quotes
such a term means a bend sinister"), but this text no longer appears on
the
page.

--
Suzanne S. Barnhill
Microsoft MVP (Word)
Words into Type
Fairhope, Alabama USA
Word MVP FAQ site: http://word.mvps.org
Email cannot be acknowledged; please post all follow-ups to the
newsgroup
so
all may benefit.

"Jezebel" wrote in message
...
A bar sinister, of course.


"Suzanne S. Barnhill" wrote in message
...
Does your banner have a strange device?

--
Suzanne S. Barnhill
Microsoft MVP (Word)
Words into Type
Fairhope, Alabama USA
Word MVP FAQ site: http://word.mvps.org
Email cannot be acknowledged; please post all follow-ups to the
newsgroup
so
all may benefit.

"Jezebel" wrote in message
...
MAKING BANNERS

Use this procedure to make banners. It can also be easily adapted to
make
fighting surcoats, cloth shield covers, etc.
This all came about because I wanted my group to have more Heraldic
Display
at events/functions of the SCA (Society for Creative Anachronism).
But
before I could encourage my group to do more heraldic display, I
first
needed people to have devices from which to make the display. So, I
offered
to make a banner for anyone who registered a device. Well, that
started
a
"landrush" of people registering devices. Now I had to produce the
banners.
The procedure that follows is what I came up with. I purchase the
fabric,
line the device in, the group pays for the paint, then schedules a
"painting
day" and everyone comes and works on everyone's devices. This has
had
a
couple of good impacts on the group. First, as things stand now,
over
95%
of
our group (of about 50) has a registered device or one in the
submission
process. Second, it has brought the group together. It is an
opportunity
to
sit and talk while painting, get to REALLY know each other, and feel
good
about others because they're working on something for you.

The list of materials, plus the step-by-step procedu

MATERIALS:

Cloth:
White fabric, middle or heavy weight. Needs to be at least 60%
cotton.
White
canvas, duck, or poplin works well. Having some polyester in it,
helps
it
avoid wrinkling, but as cotton "takes the paint" the best, 100%
cotton
works
excellently.
If the material is 45" or more wide, a yard is enough. If it is less
than
that, I would recommend a yard and a half. (This is based on making
them
the
size that we are.)
A matching amount of backing material is also needed.
Paint:
There are a couple of choices.
Acrylic - Looks good. Resists the weather and is easy to locate.
Wal-Mart
has a series of acrylic paints in tubes called Basics. These are
very
inexpensive but are good for getting the white, yellow, blue, red
and
black.
The green in this series is not a heraldic green. I would recommend
purchasing either a tube of Liquitex acrylic in the correct shade of
green
or bottles of the Liquitex craft paint called Christmas Green.
Purple
is
the
most difficult, and most expensive color to obtain. Liquitex acrylic
is
the
easiest source to find.
Latex - An outdoor latex house paint will resists the elements VERY
well,
paints onto the cloth very well and is easy to obtain in large
amounts
(for
doing several banners) as you can buy it by the quart. The important
thing
is to be sure that you are getting true heraldic shades of the
colors.
Note:
Most hardware stores will mix paint to the shade you want, usually
at
no
extra cost. You merely have to buy a quart of it. If your group (or
several
individuals) goes in to buy this, the cost comes out to be very
cheap
per
person.
Other materials needed:
Paintbrushes. Several in various sizes from very small, up to 1"
wide
are
useful. Some should be straight, flat edged.
Paint thinner/brush cleaner.
Pencils
Yardstick
Flat working surface, such as table, floor, etc.
Sharpies, permanent black magic markers (fine point).
Plastic sheets (dry cleaning bags or garbage bags cut apart work
well
as
do
old shower curtains).
Clear Acrylic Spray (used for crafts)
Access to an overhead projector, or opaque projector (or a good
artist).
**If using a projector, you will also need:
Copy of device:
Paper copy of device for opaque projector
Transparency copy of device for overhead projector.
(I can produce either of these via my computer and printer. If you
cannot
do
transparencies, most copy shops can do one for you from a line
drawing
for
around 75 cents apiece.)
Masking Tape
A room that can be made dark and has a clear, flat wall.

OPTIONAL MATERIALS:
T-Shirt Liner Paint (at least black, white & yellow also useful)

THE PROCESS:
Step One is to pencil the device onto the fabric. If you are an
artist
or
have access to one, draw the device with pencil onto the fabric in
the
size
you want, then proceed to step two.
If you are not an artist, or do not have one to help, you can draw
the
device with the help of a projector. Using masking tape, the banner
cloth
is
taped to the wall. A picture of the device is projected onto the
material
(with the use of a picture projector and the copy of the device) in
the
darkened room, in the size desired.. The device is traced onto the
material
with the use of the pencils and the yardstick.
Proceed to step two.
Step Two begins with placing the material on a table (or floor) with
plastic
beneath it. DO NOT USE PAPER. (When/if paint bleeds through the
fabric,
the
paper will adhere to the cloth and be bonded to it, refusing to come
off.)
The pencil lines are gone over with the black permanent markers
(correcting
any pencil mistakes).
Proceed to step three.
Step Three consists of painting the banner. This seems
straightforward,
but
occasionally people forget some basic guidelines. Remember to take
your
time. Work the paint into the fabric as you coat it. Use different
size
brushes, as needed, to get into small areas.
Plan on doing a second painting session after the first coat of
paint
dries.
This second session will allow you to discover and cover any missed
spots,
light spots, or streaky areas that can occur and only show up after
drying
occurs. (Once the first coat dries, hold the material up to the
light
or
sun. Missed or light spots will show up easily.)
Do not skimp on paint or water it down to make it go farther. If you
do,
it
will tell in the finished product.
Proceed to step four.
Step Four is OPTIONAL.
Once dry, the lines on the device (except the outside edge of the
escutcheon/shield) are gone over with the
T-Shirt liner. This leaves a raised line of demarcation that gives a
more
3-D look to the banner. This is also good for filling in the lines
on
dark
charges (particularly black ones) if you use the white or yellow
liner.
Proceed to step five.
Step Five is done when the banner, and any lining, is dry. It should
now
be
sprayed with the clear acrylic spray. No matter what paint used,
this
is
a
good idea. It gives an extra layer of weather protection to the
banner
and
helps keep the paint from chipping with use and wear.
If desired, the back of the material can be sprayed also, for
additional
protection.
Proceed to step six.
Step Six consists of sewing on the backing and loops for hanging the
banner.
There are various methods for
doing this depending on the type of banner you are producing. Our
style
consists of having loops at the top
through which a pole may be inserted. To do this, we place the
backing
material onto the front (painted side) of the banner. The backing is
pinned
down and sewn along all sides (EXCEPT THE TOP). Once this is done,
the
material is trimmed as needed, then turned "right-side-out", and
pressed.
Then loops are made from the extra cutoff material. These loops are
then
inserted between the pieces of material that make up the front of
the
banner
and the backing piece, and pinned down. The top edge is then sewn,
sewing
the loop into place.
This finishes the banner.