Vardos and the Roma

SCA Vardos

Rachel the Goatwoman
This is the site for her new (2006) vardo! Yes, she's mad enough to have done this twice! (http://www.enslin.com/rae/gypsy/wagon.htm). It's towed by a Jeep Cherokee Sport.
This is the site for her original vardo. (http://www.enslin.com/rae/gypsy/wagon01.htm). She and her good lord towed this originally with a full-size Dodge Ram van.
Bowtop Wagon
This is the smaller vardo she and her brother built, suited to his smaller car. It was re-vamped somewhat when he got a larger car. (http://www.enslin.com/rae/gypsy/dwagon01.htm)

Rachel also has an excelllent assortment of links on her website.

Sunflower Vardo - Dulcinea's Open-Lot
An open-lot looks a lot like a bow-top, but there are some differences. Again, this is built on a pretty light utility trailer frame, so should be pull-able by a mid-size car without trouble. (http://www.rosettadesign.com/building_vardo/vardo_pages.html)
Æiric Ørvender's Tinker's Wagon (Irish Bow-Top)
This gentle's vardo is built on a 6-ft. by 12-ft. lawn trailer, and uses tent-type flexible poles for the canvas top. his site has both floorplans and photos. (http://good-times.webshots.com/album/557812280BtRGIt)
Daphne's Caravans
A lady in Ontario who builds vardos and holds vardo-building workshops. Rachel built her new vardo at Daphne's place. (http://www.daphnescaravans.com/)
Kumpania Painted Wheel
a group of SCA Roma. (http://www.paintedwheel.com/)
The Pennsic Homeowners' Association
Rachel's page of links to other gentles' mobile structures. Not necessarily vardos, but some very ingenious and clever designs. (http://www.enslin.com/rae/pages/pennsichomes.htm)
and their Yahoo! group: (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/pennsic_homes/)
Vardo Shavora
A newly-formed Yahoo! group for folks interested in building vardos or other mobile accomodations. Chiefly distinguished from the Pennsic Homeowners' Association by the fact that mostly we haven't actually built anything yet. (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/vardoshavora/)

GypsyWaggons.co.uk
An excellent pictorial library of vardos of various types, all lovingly restored or preserved.
(http://gypsywaggons.co.uk/varsuk.htm)
The Gypsy Caravan Company
Builders in the UK who do both new construction and refurbishing. Lots of photos and lots of ideas for the scrounging here (http://www.gypsycaravancompany.co.uk/index.shtml)
University of Liverpool Special Collections & Archives
A useful and interesting source of information not just about vardos, but about the Roma culture, myths and lore. Well worth perusing. (http://sca.lib.liv.ac.uk/collections/gypsy/wagons.htm)
Wonder Wagons
A page about a vardo built on a 4 x 8 trailer frame; from the look of the site, the builder will also build for others. (http://wonderworkers.com/gypsyWagon.html)

15th & 16th Century Gypsy Women's Costume (http://www.eagnet.com/edipage/areaserv/camdentor/gypsyclass.htm)
Roma Community Center, Toronto, Ontario, Canada (http://www.rcctoronto.org/)
Romany (Gypsy) Names (SCA, Academy of Saint Gabriel report) (http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/arval/romany/)
The Patrin Web Journal - Romani (Gypsy) Culture and History
(http://www.geocities.com/~patrin/patrin.htm)

Bury Me Standing: the Gypsies and Their Journey, Isabel Fonesca; Alfred A. Knopf, Inc., New York, NY, USA; 1995; ISBN: 0679406786 (hardback), 067973743X (paperback) (in print; Amazon.com listing)
Discovering Horse-drawn Caravans, D.J. Smith; Shire Publications Ltd., Aylesbury, Bucks, UK; 1981; ISBN: 0852635656
The English Gypsy Caravan, Its Origins, Builders, Technology and Conservation, 2nd ed. with new material, C.H. Ward-Jackson and Denis Harvey; Newton Abbot, Devon, North Pomfret VT.; David & Charles, 1986; ISBN: 0715387898 (hardback); LCCN: 86220237 &mdash This one is on my wish list!
The Rom: Walking in the Paths of the Gypsies, Roger C. Moreau; Key Porter Books, Toronto, ON, Canada; 1995; ISBN 1550136356 (hardback), 1550138685 (paperback) (in print; Amazon.com listing)

British Columbia Motor Vehicle Act Regulations - describes equipment requirements for vehicles in British Columbia, including trailers. (http://www.qp.gov.bc.ca/statreg/reg/M/MotorVehicle/26_58/26_58_00.htm)

On the importance of proper RV tires (http://www.newrver.com/publish/readtires.shtml)
Deciphering tire sizing information (http://www.racelinecentral.com/tires_sidewall.html)
A good explanation of tire load markings and their significance (http://www.dualport.com/bustech/load_tires.html)

Fresh water & Holding Tanks (http://www.tank-depot.com/browse.aspx?id=9)

Woodall's RV Owner's Handbook: The Complete, Illustrated Guide to Preventive Maintenance & Repairs, Gary Bunzer, ed.; Woodall Publishing Ltd., Lake Forest, IL, USA; 1999; ISBN: 0762707062 (paperback) — this edition is out of print, but used copies can be found. Amazon has a revised edition (2005) available.
RV Repair & Maintenance Manual, 4th ed., Bob Livingston; Trailer Life Books, Englewood, CO, USA; 2002; ISBN: 0934798702 (paperback) (in print; Amazon.com listing)

These two books are the standard references; every RV owner should have at least one of them and I strongly recommend both.

Rhino 3D modelling software; you can download a trial copy of Rhino's latest version. from their download page. Limit of 25 saves. (http://www.rhino3d.com/)

ITEM

Estimated

Actual

Thinkin' and dreamin', Starin' and schemin'
Horse brasses (16 Sep 07)		10.00

TOTAL to date (30-Jul-2007 )

$10.00