wear the old coat 2010

Wear the old coat, buy the new book.

Austin Phelps

It's a refreshing, breezy 50 degrees in Central Ohio. I am welcoming the season of not only woolly socks, but of tweed, tartan and all things snuggly, with much flourish. Plus, fall and winter clothes are much more interesting than warm weather fare, don't you think? If you remember, last year, I found a wonderful cobalt blue Peruvian wool coat from the 70s tucked away in a storage closet at the manor.

In the spirit of last year's mantra "wear the old coat, buy the new book", I dug out WT's old Barbour wax coat from the 80s. I paired it with a pair of boots, also from the 80s and pronounced them "tres cool". (Surprising, since I could have sworn nothing from the 80s was cool.) There are a few places on the coat where the wax has worn, so I ordered a can of wax dressing for $12. It seems simple enough to do, just heat the wax, apply it in small amounts with a rag, then hang the coat and blow with a hair dryer. Easy peasy. Cheaper than sending it off to Barbour to re-wax. They wanted $50. Forget it.

Now, since I've saved a bit of money in the fashion department, I can justify a little trip to my favorite second hand bookshop. You know, the one with the creaky hardwood floors.

PS~If you haven't seen me much around the bloggyhood, it's because I overdid it, just a tad, at the Manor Ball. I'm suffering from a bit of carpal tunnel syndrome in my right hand, so I've laid off the computer this weekend. I'll be slowly making my way back to your street in the 'hood soon! xx