Monday 31 October 2011

Naval Officer's Sister, Fisherman's Adopted Wife


Horatio Nelson, hero of the battle of Trafalgar, was the sixth of twelve children. One of his sisters was called Susannah. What happened to her, you ask? Being from Norfolk, I imagine her marrying a fisherman, settling in a fisherman's cottage by the sea. On cold days, she tended the fire and was warmed by an Aran, fisherman's sweater. Every couple years, Horatio would stop by. One year he came home with a Norfolk sailor, wanting Susannah to clean him up. He left behind the sailor trousers. The dot print on the navy trousers arrived circa 1963 to Susannah's descendent. They needed to be worn by the sea.


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Note the sailor's trousers' buttons at the side. They're a little bit 1940s, minus the print. 

If you want to find some English seaside mythology, head to the Devon village of Budleigh Salterton, on the 'Jurassic' coast, where these photos were taken. On a sunny day, everything will be more sun-bleached; when it's overcast you'll have incredible saturated colour. The red sandstone is moulded and coloured like Petra or the Grand Canyon, and it's a perfect place to find an interesting looking rock for a door stop.


The images below are some of the flowers that also seem to love the wind blasted sandstone hills. Susannah would have sketched them. 




Outfit: Cream cable knit turtleneck, Marks and Spencer (from a Budleigh Salterton charity shop), sailor style flared trousers, Primark (charity shop), red ballet flats (Marks and Spencer). Loose red t-shirt, Topshop. 

3 comments:

  1. Oh those pants are fantastic Lauren!
    I am loving this story too:)
    Thanks for your always thoughtful comments on my blog. It is so nice to read!!
    Anna

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  2. Thank you for the sweet compliments. Seaside light makes everything look better.

    ReplyDelete