Susan! While working at the yarn shop yesterday, I was browsing through a book on textile history, and there was a picture of a knitted purse (looks sort of like a tube sock) made of brown silk at a very fine gauge with white beads knitted in. The beads were placed to make a list of major engagements in the Peninsular Wars. The inscription was "9th Regt / Place name / place name / etc. / Edwin Morton" The letters were in a flouncy italic style, and the whole thing must have been a pain in the ass to make, since the letters would have been formed from the top down, in rows, much the way an old dot matrix printer would have formed lines of type. At the top and bottom of the purse, the beads were placed to make a toothed edging. The tooth shapes at the bottom ended up forming a sort of flower pattern because of the decreases used to close up the bottom of the bag.

I thought of you, and thought it might be a fun detail to throw in somewhere. Unfortunately, there was nothing in the book to tell me what collection the thing was from, so I couldn't find out anything more about the person who made it

This is a driveby, as I'm out the door soon, but I just wanted to announce that what was once my old column, "Writing for the Real World," has become "How to Suceed As a Failing Writer," and now lives at Gotpoetry.com.

We're kicking off with a re-run, to set the tone, but soon there will be more caustic, cyncial and hopefully entertaining and interesting musings on living a writer's life.

Susan, you need to read Roz's most recent livejournal entry; she's been reading Charles Greville and his take on Wellington. I've been having a ball, discussing the Gordons and Uxbridge at Waterloo. Go look.

What's her username?

That sounds fascinating, Anne. Do you remember the name of the book?

Susan, she's just rozk on lj.

"A History of Hand Knitting" by Richard Rutt, whose day job was that of Bishop of Leicester.

Really.

Thanks! Maybe I'll sic the Interlibrary Loan goddesses on that one.

Deb, my MiL just asked for the name of your new book so she could buy it for the library!

I hadn't mentioned it to her in months, so it was pretty cool that she remembered to ask.

This post has no other point.

Doooooooooodesse, sounds like a point to me....

Susan, detailed insent.

I have some commentary.

Also? Insent to erika, as well. I am Badass Editor Woman tonight.

Question (yes, this is the proper thread for this) to all the LAistes/istas who read here:

I want to set a very old - as in, she died under the reign of Elisabeth Bathory and in fact shares a name with the Blood Countess's head henchwoman, she turned him during the Terror in Paris - vampire couple somewhere along the coast, in or around LA. It can't be far, and it can't be a closely knit community where people would pry.

Alternately, I am perfectly willing to set them into a reasonably old (turn of the last century) mausoleum or crypt. But neighbourhood? Coastal town? Somewhere within an hour of North Hollywood, as the crow (or the vampire) flies?

Help?