Logbook

Me and my sinuses aren't getting on well at the momment. Shall see if it is a cold or what. Have just stocked up on throat drops (Z cleared out the usual safety backup with his cold at the start of the month and didn't replace) and bread for making nice strong garlic bread. Will also start on Lemon honey cordial shortly, when I remember where I put the recipe/instructions.

Library books due and was going to put off returning them, but then thought that this would guarantee the cold getting worse, so headed off to the local library. Was evil: bussed and then stopped in at DKs (that fabric shop). Fairly safe as I just checked their lace collection*, eyed up their wools and blinked at the prices and fondled the silks on the way past. They did have a not bad brown coarse thread silk for $12 per m (looks slightly heavier than linen, but feels completely different), but it was only a meter wide and we have a bunch of silks of this weight (in better colours) we need to do something with anyway. But consider this a public announcement if anyone else is interested. The lurid silk plaids (think Z's pink silk tartan cloak if you have seen it) are still there and down to $20 per m. So, why can't they do more plain silks in that weight thread? Didn't check the discount and upholstery wools upstairs.

Did check the pattern books - wanted to see if there were any good men's coachman jackets for Z and also to see what the Victorian selection was like. Macaull - ick. Simplicity - Martha McCann collection growing with some nice stuff but it is fairly specifically US Civil War era (there is definitely a market). There is some curious later era Victorian but it is generally Andrea Schewe and based on her "Renaissanse" patterns - no thank you. They also have a basic Regency era (well they say 1795-1825) gown (4055) and underwear set (4052). Apparently Sense and Sensibility Patterns. Looking more closely at the underwear shapes and pieces online (catalogue skips details like that...), I'm a bit suspicious that it is at the Renaisance end just to cash in on the "recent" P&P movie (very strong Keira Knightly Liz Bennett resembleance in the model). Certainly on a brief "from what I remember from PoF#whatsit" comparison, but I could have my brains dribbling from my nose down the back of my throat and be wrong.

Should finish the Victorian (well US Civil war base) layers and play with that before getting distracted by other stuff first.

*Why doesn't anyone do white heretage style lace in cottons with cotton threads so they dye ok. I only want old fashioned looking black lace for psuedo victorian. Not bloody pristine white/cream christening gowns. The white on grey we ended up with after one trial wasn't bad contrast wise and worked ok (hope I have enough for the chemise), but it isn't the same.