Oakenmist Renaissance Faire

09/03/2026

🎶 A little music, and a chance to make some yourself.

Michele Mountain, Harpist filled the Proper Stage with traditional Celtic and Irish folk music, pairing her harp with her warm, expressive voice.

And when she wasn’t on stage, Michele welcomed curious patrons at her booth for free harp lessons, giving guests a chance to sit down and try the instrument for themselves.

Thank you, Michele, for filling our Saturday with music and sharing your craft so generously with our patrons. 💛🌿

09/01/2026

How often do you get the chance to learn how to use a sling at a Renaissance Faire? 👀

Throughout the weekend, Joe introduced Oakenmist patrons to one of humanity’s oldest projectile weapons with sling talks and demonstrations, and then gave patrons the chance to try it for themselves!

From curious adults to some very determined young slingers, plenty of you stepped up to give it a shot, and plenty of you hit the mark! We heard the crash of the cymbal targets throughout the weekend as patrons of all ages put their new skills to the test. 🔔

A huge thank you to Joe for sharing this ancient skill, his knowledge, and plenty of hands-on fun with our patrons! 💛🌿

08/30/2026

What do honey bees have to do with the Renaissance? Quite a bit, actually. 🐝🍯

At Oakenmist, McDaniel Honey Farm shared the world of honey bees, from honey and beeswax to pollen, propolis, and the many products that come from the hive.

But they didn’t just bring the honey. Throughout the weekend, patrons could stop by to see how beeswax candles were made during the Renaissance, with live demonstrations showing the process from wax to finished candle.

We love having opportunities at Oakenmist where something familiar becomes a doorway into history, and we’re grateful to McDaniel Honey Farm for sharing their knowledge with our patrons all weekend.

Thank you for helping make Oakenmist a little sweeter. 💛🌿

08/28/2026

🎶 Meet Frances and her 10-string Celtic bouzouki!

Frances of Piper Jones Band first studied the French horn before she found her way to the Celtic bouzouki in the 90s and largely taught herself to play by ear. No YouTube tutorials. No endless library of online lessons. Just listening, learning, and playing.

Her 10-string Celtic bouzouki brings a rich, full sound to Piper Jones Band, and we loved hearing it fill the B***y Stage at Oakenmist.

Thank you, Frances, for sharing your music with us and giving our patrons the chance to hear an instrument they may not encounter every day! 💛🌿

08/26/2026

Ever wanted to learn how to crack a whip? Quite a few Oakenmist patrons can officially say they have! 👀

Sean, the Whipsy Rover, spent the weekend teaching patrons one-on-one, while Terri kept everyone waiting for their turn entertained, encouraged, and safely outfitted with their very fashionable safety glasses. 😎

And apparently you all had just as much fun as they did, because whip cracking got several shoutouts in our patron survey. Here are just a couple:

“Please bring back the whip man. He was an excellent teacher and a kind person overall.”

“I ESPECIALLY LOVED learning how to crack a whip!”

A huge thank you to Sean and Terri for giving our patrons the chance to try something new, make a little noise, and learn a skill they probably weren’t expecting to pick up at Oakenmist! 💛🌿

08/24/2026

We asked what you loved at Oakenmist, and Historic London Town and Gardens kept coming up. 💙🧶

Karen and Rebekah traveled from Edgewater to Westminster and then a little further back in time for Oakenmist!

While Historic London Town usually brings Maryland’s colonial era to life, natural dyeing spans centuries. At Oakenmist, they explored Renaissance dyeing traditions and demonstrated the fascinating process of indigo dyeing.

And you all noticed! Historic London Town was repeatedly mentioned in our patron surveys as an experience you especially enjoyed.

We’re incredibly grateful that Karen and Rebekah made the trip, adapted their expertise for Oakenmist, and spent the weekend sharing it with our patrons. 💛🌿

If you enjoyed meeting them at Oakenmist, be sure to check out where they usually bring history to life! Historic London Town & Gardens in Edgewater features an original 1760s brick tavern, reconstructed historic buildings, living history demonstrations, and eight acres of woodland gardens.

08/22/2026

One of our favorite additions this year came from somewhere you might not expect at a Renaissance Faire. 📚

We were thrilled to welcome Skyler from the Carroll County Public Library to Oakenmist this year!

Throughout the weekend, Skyler shared library resources with our patrons, hosted storytimes for some of our youngest adventurers, and even signed up new library cardholders right in the marketplace.

Skyler also created something extra special just for Oakenmist: a curated reading list inspired by the themes of our Faire. If Oakenmist left you wanting a little more history, fantasy, adventure, or magic, your next adventure might already be waiting at the library. 📖

📚 Explore the Oakenmist reading list and more library resources here: oakenmist.com/library

And if you’re looking for another reason to celebrate stories, Carroll County Public Library is helping present the first-ever Carroll Book Festival on Saturday, September 19! The day will feature author events, book signings, panels, book-related vendors, children’s activities, and more ✨

Learn more at https://carrollbookfestival.org

Thank you, Skyler and the Carroll County Public Library, for bringing stories, resources, and a little library magic to Oakenmist. We’re so glad you joined us! 💛🌿

08/20/2026

The people behind Oakenmist? They’re volunteers. Every single one of them. ✨

Oakenmist has no paid staff. The people who checked you in, answered questions, directed traffic, managed our stages, assisted at the Squire’s Spot, supported our vendors, and did a hundred other things gave their time to make this weekend happen.

And we cannot forget the volunteers you never even saw. The ones who helped set everything up before the gates opened and stayed to tear it all back down after everyone else went home. Those are some of the longest, hardest hours of the entire weekend.

Some volunteered for a few hours. Others worked all weekend. Our volunteer leadership team started working on this year’s Faire the day after last year’s Faire ended.

To every person who gave their time, energy, and care to Oakenmist this year, thank you. Whether you gave us a few hours or spent the entire weekend alongside us, you helped make this Faire possible. We are incredibly grateful for every one of you. 💛🌿

There is no Oakenmist without our volunteers.

08/19/2026

Oakenmist found a new home this year, and we found some incredible people there. 💛🌿

Heather (General Manager) and Ruben (Facilities Manager) at the Carroll County Ag Center were incredible partners from our initial planning through Faire weekend. They answered questions, offered advice, solved problems, and genuinely cared about helping Oakenmist succeed.

Ruben quite literally climbed ladders dozens of times to help us get power where we needed it. When Sunday’s weather meant adjusting our ticketing setup, Heather and Ruben helped make it happen.

Donovan (Facilities Assistant) joined them Sunday, helping keep the facility clean throughout the day and through cleanup.

And just one week earlier, this arena had been filled with livestock for the Carroll County Fair. You never would have known it when we arrived.

Heather, Ruben, and Donovan, thank you for everything you did to make our first year here feel like home. 💐 We couldn’t have done it without you!

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📸 Pictured: EJ Jones outside the Shipley Arena at the Carroll County Agricultural Center.

08/17/2026

What a weekend! ✨

Seriously, thank you.

To everyone who came out to Oakenmist this weekend, we are so incredibly grateful that you chose to spend part of your weekend with us.

Oakenmist is completely volunteer-run. We have no paid staff, and so many people gave their time, energy, and heart to make this weekend happen. We have MANY more thank-yous coming because there are a lot of people who deserve them. 💛🌿

But right now, while the weekend is still fresh in your mind, we want to hear from YOU!

If you attended Oakenmist, please take a few minutes to fill out our patron survey, and please be honest with us! Tell us what you loved, what worked well, and what could have been better.

We’re not looking for perfect scores or only positive comments. Your honest feedback helps us understand what we should keep doing and where we can improve.

📝 Patron Survey:
http://oakenmist.com/2026-patron-survey

Thank you for showing up, supporting the incredible people who make Oakenmist what it is, and filling our faire with so much life this weekend. We’re so glad you were part of it! 🫶🏼

Help Us Make Oakenmist Even Better! 💛🌿 Thank you for joining us! We want to hear what you loved, what we could do better, and what you’d like to see from us in the future. It takes just 2 minutes, and your honest feedback helps us make the experience the best it can be. Note: This survey is ...