As a Portlander—we’re amphibious and our heraldic device is an umbrella—I thought I was prepared for British weather. It turns out I was wrong. Nobody does foggy and damp like the Brits. After a week and a half of trying to tough it out, I have concluded that my pitiful heap of sweaters, jackets, scarves, fleeces and windbreakers are no match for British gloominess. I need a proper British coat, a long one, preferable boiled wool.
Back up about six months. While shopping with Mom in Stirling last August, I came across a beautifully tailored wool coat at Laura Ashley. It fit and draped perfectly, and it was cozy and warm. The only catch was that it was a shade of green that makes a lovely blog background but not a lovely fashion statement.
The fall collection had only just come out, and so back in the US, I kept an eye on the Laura Ashley website in the hope that they would start manufacturing the coat in more colors. My patience was rewarded. In September they produced a blackberry version.
The catch: When Mom and I tried to order it, we found that Laura Ashley doesn’t ship to the US.
Disconsolately, I watched the coat go on sale, sell out, and disappear from the website.
Flash forward to this morning. After shivering my way through my first history lecture, I decided enough was enough: It was time to find myself a warmer coat downtown.
After class, I poked through every department store in St. David’s looking for a coat with a.) long enough sleeves for a lanky tall person, and b.) a price tag that wouldn’t give Dad a heart attack. There was, alas, no overlap between the two.
Then, messaging back and forth with Levi, it occurred to me that now that I have a UK address, I can order things from Laura Ashley. I looked up their website, hoping I could find an adequate coat on clearance. AND IT’S BACK! The blackberry coat whose loss I mourned has reappeared. AND IT’S ON SALE.
It’s about time I had some good karma over here.
It IS so you!
Patience pays off!