Warning: picture heavy! All pictures are clickable.
Kirby and I set off for London on the earliest train we could to take advantage of the Cheap Day fares and arrived there at 11.10am. We took the underground and arrived at the V&A just after 11.30 and headed straight for the Textiles Department .
Here there are beautifully stitched samplers on display, some in slide-out cabinets to protect them from the light.
There were fabulous embroidered boxes.
And more samplers... the one on the bottom right of this picture was stunning!
There were examples of intricate lace.
And stitch diagram samplers too.
And, of course, the wonderful Jane Bostocke sampler (1598) which is the earliest dated British sampler known to survive (more here). The colours are as vibrant today as when Jane first put in those tiny stitches. Just think this sampler is 411 years old!
We then headed for the restaurant where we had an enjoyable and not too expensive lunch.
After lunch we went to the Fashion Department where we saw clothes (mainly dresses) from famous fashion designers such as Vivienne Westwood, Catherine Walker and others. Kirby took pictures and made notes for her course work. Some were made 'recycled' products; a dress made entirely from bras and another made from a leather coat. It's amazing what ideas these designers have.
After leaving the museum we decided to go to Harrods. How nice to be greeted by the doorman saying "Good afternoon ladies"! We wandered through the brightly lit departments just 'window shopping' - I think I can live without that handbag selling for over £3,000! Just think of all the stash I could buy for £3,000! We must get our priorities right!
The day went far too quickly and we took the underground back to Charing Cross. As we had 3/4 hour to wait for our train we went down to Trafalgar Square to sit in the sunshine for 1/2 hour. It's a shame that there's construction work going on so the fountains were boarded off but it was nice to relax and 'people watch'.
When I got up yesterday morning I felt quite ill. My throat is worse, I also have an ear-ache, a headache, a stiff neck and a streaming nose! I gave up on home remedies and called the doctor's surgery and was lucky enough to get a cancellation appointment. He says I have a viral infection and has given me some antibiotics. Last night I took a warm bath and was in bed by 9.30pm and slept until 7am this morning. I cannot believe I have had this bug since mid-January. Hopefully when the medication kicks in I will feel a bit better. I am wondering if this will delay my surgery. I tried to call the hospital yesterday and by the time I got through the automated machine to the correct department, an answer phoned said that she was not in the office until Monday and to dial again to speak to someone else! Don't you just hate these machines - I just want to speak to a real person - I will try again today.
As much as I feel like going back to bed I need to give the house a thorough cleaning in case my surgery does go ahead.
Thank you all for your good wishes for my surgery both in comments and emails. It's nice to know that someone out there is thinking of me.
Thanks for visiting
Take care
О! Beauty! Thanks for photos!!!