Tuesday 10th July 2012

The damp and consequent mustiness! In England’s green and pleasant for the last six weeks it has regularly deluged. Some rain has persisted for 36 hours.

It’s impossible to keep the home fresh and wholesome.

There’s nothing I can do to get the stock markets going. The dead weight of dead weight weighs…

But, we must forge on as best we can. Do you know, despite it all – I had a good Sales. Targets were achieved and in some cases exceeded.

Then on Saturday the Multis gave a home concert followed by a six-course dinner at the urban farm next door. 22 dined and were brought in for £1000 not including wines (it’s BYO at the Farm).

Even you could entertain 22 to dinner thus! On an ordinary salary of £100,000 this could be achieved.

Come back later for more. The highest standards were achieved all round.

On Friday it’s Lord Arrowby’s party – as every year. He, you may recall, is that high, high Government back-room greatness who loves a drag show at the Royal Vauxhall Tavern. Last week, he texted: ‘I’m on my way to Dalston to see “Bitch! Dyke! Faghag! Whore!” ‘ To meet, he’s formidable and governmental, like Mr Darcy but his frockage might be wild. Many try to gain entry to his party and fail. He’s got an irresistible vulnerable side.

So,back to the Sales. Paul and Joe came up trumps as they have been doing recently with salmon (or coral) slacks (£89 40% down at Harrods) and highly useful black trousers (what I call in-between smart and casual) with a controversial sheen some will condemn as common (£100/50% off). These are a godsend, because my friend,Mrs Manreza, axed my adored Prada black nylon pair (‘The fly is grazed,’ she withered) and they had to be replaced.

Another replacement was a Helmut Lang jean in a rare putty shade, filling a desperate gap left after the development of a strange pale patch on my Alexander McQueen miracle creamy, rich grey (such a difficult colour) ones. They were acquired at the Designer Warehouse Sale, Thane Villas, London N1 for £69, down from £170, as was a Dolce e Gabbana double-collar and cuff shirt, also in putty,down to £105 from £250.

At The Library (yes! it’s a frock shop if you’re bone-ignorant) I improvised with credit card and indeed whole life: I took the black suit by Claudio Tonello (I’m sure they said it was Japanese; it can’t be with a name like that) with silk facings in the jersey material that I’ve already mentioned as wearing at the Bath wedding. It’s having a difficult birth into my life – will it be clingy of threads? Will I always be brushing? 40% off £900, whatever that is.

I fear I will go back to wearing the 3-year-old black suit by Niccolo Ceschi Berrini (also from The Library) with an extraordinary slub that was admired by that opera designer despite being tiny.

Then they brought out from the back  a white jacket by a rare house – a hand-stitched, crooner’s piece with dodgy shawl collar, satin facing and satin covered buttons in an intensely interesting linen/cotton mix which doesn’t take the dirt.

I already got the Zara white jacket from last summer, plus the cream suit from Topman (slightly funny smell) – but the opportunity was too great to miss. IT WAS HALF PRICE. £250.  That Zara piece is just a little bit too small.

So far I’ve worn the new white jacket three times (at the Bath wedding for the reception, at Angus Willis’s dinner and at the Multis’ home concert and subsequent urban farm dinner). It’s attracted attention. ‘Hand-stitching,’ everybody cries. You’ll be thrilled to hear it’s full length, not tiny, bum-freezing as I’ve been championing for 4 years now.

Finally, finally, the Dolce e Gabbana putty shirt I mentioned before wasn’t quite the silver shade I was looking for to replace a silk/cotton blouse by Paolo Pecora which had faded at the cuff edge and rotted underarm.  At Harrods on the first day of the Sale I’d seen the Platonic ideal but it was too small. I thought to revise that Sale and maybe, maybe … well, it was still there. I tried on the next size up, a Burberry, and I thought: I’m on my way to Val’s (he’s the one who’s keen on a drop but miraculous at the sewing machine). He can slim it down. I had a fitting at Val’s straightaway and it’s already been returned – reeking of cigarettes no longer after airing for two days.

That Burberry shirt deflated from £79 to £69 between rail and till. The starting price was £170.

Come back tomorrow for graphs of lesser pieces

Black Suit by Claudio Tonello in a Jersey Fabric

Black Suit by Claudio Tonello in Slinky Jersey: But Will It Be Clingy of Threads?

Crooner's White Jacket with Hand Stitching by Francisco Vanbenthum (Likely Name)

Crooner's White Jacket by Francisco Vanbenthum: Fuller View

More of the Crooner's White Jacket: Don't Tell Anyone, But I Had to Replace Some of the Hand-Stitching Myself By Hand. Note the Interesting Linen/Cotton Mix Fabric

Crooner's White Jacket by Francisco Vanbenthum: Detail of Hand-Stitching