The Sulks

What do you do when an ASD student gets the teenage sulks? How do you know they are sulking? Depending on patterns of behaviour you might imagine they are sulking at you when actually they are sulking about something that happened at home last weekend. Or sulking about something that happened at school three years ago. Which is not to say all ASD students sulk. But one of mine does, and this behaviour is very difficult to penetrate. Yesterday was a sulky day. It was the third day in a row he grunted at me, instead of using words. I knew we were in trouble. How to 'break the spell'? I asked questions - how's everything at home? how have your lessons been today?, is there a problem?, all resulting in a growl. Finally, I reminded him that 'You are the Captain, I am the…?'. 'Cabin boy?' he answered, in his normal voice. It's something I used to say to him 2 years ago when we started working together. I was touched that he had remembered the response. He was fine after that - I think it perhaps gave him back a sense of being in control of his life - so much of what he has to do at school is irksome to him, and annoying, and ASD students often find it very difficult to accept circumstances they are not comfortable with.

I hand-washed my beautiful quilt last night, and it's hanging on the pulley above the bath to dry. It'll need a bit of darning and maybe a replacement here and there. Meanwhile, this is a picture of a beautiful cotton shirt I bought from eBay. It's French, and from the 40s. The collar, cuffs and pocket trims are a lovely duck-egg blue, and it has been extremely well-made with neat little darts at the waist to shape it, and beautiful button-holes (but no buttons). I had bought it intending to wear it as a light summer jacket over a dress, but when it came I found it was just tiny - child-sized. I considered cutting it up for my sewing projects, but it's so lovely, I think I'll hang on to it and use it to display my brooches. What do you think? Should I be ruthless?

A truly lucky discovery!

I bought on Ebay a 'boxful of antique linen'. The listing picture was not very clear, so perhaps others weren't keen to take a chance. It was offered as collection only, because the contents were very heavy, and the seller offered collection from a London address, so I put in a bid - the only bid - and won!

She suggested collection by car, but as I don't drive I went by tube and took a big suitcase on wheels. By the time we met, in Pimlico, it was getting dark. I met the seller by her car outside a huge and exclusive block of purpose built flats. She was very nice and as she emptied the contents of her llarge cardboard box into my case, she gave me advice on washing the contents, as she had not yet managed to do this. It was the last part of her parents' estate, she said, having divided the rest among her surviving family.

I travelled home, itching to open the case and see what I had bought. I had expected some wastage, and was mainly interested in the table linens I knew to be a part of the lot, for sewing projects I have in mind. When I got home I wheeled my booty into the dining room and opened up the case. A powerful smell of musty damp immediately filled the room. Horrible! But it didn't put me off, and I waded through the heavy contents, discovering some wonderful items - antique linen, damask, vintage cotton, lots of tablecloths and napkins, a couple of beautiful antique sheets - which I shall be sharing here as I wash and iron them, taking stock of my purchases. No real wastage, though I am having to soak some items and wash them twice to remove storage stains.

Here, then, is the first discovered treasure - a delicate and beautiful Victorian baby's nightgown, one of three wrapped in tissue paper. Wonderfully clean it features some lovely embroidery, pin-tucks and lace. I don't have a baby, and I couldn't cut it up …so what to do with it? All suggestions welcome!

Some lovely broderie anglaise and lace on the bodice

Lovely detailing on the little cuff

Pretty hem