Shopping for Longest Night

[Queen Coretta de la Courcel]

"Oh, yes the purple would look lovely, not with silver though. Gold, something grand with full skirts... hmmm. And I was thinking the stockings for Leyna, with her dress and all." Sun needed something dark with something bright.

I ran through ideas and discarded them as quickly. It would come to me in a minute. Again I paced idly around the shop, looking at things without really seeing them.

[Leyna de Somerville]

Looking up from the notes Armando was making, I commented, "I may look at some stockings, I don't usually wear them but it might be nice for an occasion such as this. The shoes though, the ones you described sound lovely, but I need something lower. Nic and I are almost of a height and I like being able to look him in the eye when we dance."

I looked at Sabrina for a moment. "Purple would really look lovely on you. You could always use the purple and the lilac, add some gold for flash."

[Sabrina de la Courcel (D)]

I nodded.
"I don't know, I feel so boring. Its always the same colours." I sighed fingering another bolt of fabric.

[Queen Coretta de la Courcel]

I heard what Sun had said and smiled privately. She always wore purple, or blue. Those pretty L'Enver's eyes of hers looked good in those shades.

"Gold maybe? Armando has a golden saffron silk in that is just lovely. Hmm, mayhap not just gold. There is a jade silk, from Ch'n, with an interlocking knot pattern in a gold and blue thread. Have it made up to look a little exotic. Like the gift they sent you." I'd heard about the girl that the Emperor had gifted to Sabrina. I hadn't seen her but my maids had passed me the gossip. They knew how much I liked being informed of things and I rewarded them accordingly.

[Sabrina de la Courcel (D)]

I raised a brow bemused to myself.

"Gold sounds nice, lets see some items then." I replied looking to the shoppe keep.

[Queen Coretta de la Courcel]

Armando immediately went to fetch both bolts of silk that I had mentioned. I had cooed over them when they first arrived. Hmm, mayhap together almost like a chingosam but with D'Angeline skirts. Gods I loved the versatility of silk.

With a bit of flair Armando returned and displayed the fabrics. The gold leaned toward the darker end of the spectrum and would look lovely against Sabrina's skin.

"If you wear Sidonie's gold crown, the one with the diamonds, not the state crown, it would look nice. And the Horns of Isis necklace, the one grandmother was given." I lusted after that necklace but had never been allowed to wear it.

[Sabrina de la Courcel (D)]

I nodded looking over the gold.

"Good idea." I said smiling to Coretta and then Leyna then looked back Armando. "Alright, I'll take it." I looked back at Coretta and raised a brow.

[Queen Coretta de la Courcel]

I thumbed through the sketch book still in front of me until something caught my eye. It would work beautifully with both fabrics, or even with just the gold as the underlay with something else. I turned it so the page was facing Sabrina and nudged it toward her.

"This one, you can use both fabrics, or just the gold silk and something in a taffeta or brocade. It will showcase the necklace, if you decide to wear it. Is Alexei wearing something that will contrast hideously with the gold and green? If he is, you should go with a black for the other material, it goes with everything, or make him wear black to match you."

[Sabrina de la Courcel (D)]

I smiled at the sketch, she was quite into fashion, no matter what she said.

"Very nice, I like it." I commented nodding. "I believe Alexei is wearing red." I said I gestured for a guard.
"Please retrieve my coffer from the carriage." I said in a hushed tone; he nodded and turned from us.

"I think it would suit very much Coretta." I said honestly.

[Queen Coretta de la Courcel]

I caressed the page absently, a smile on my face. Armando had humored me greatly and let me slip in a few of my designs, for a price of course. I'd made a tidy sum selling him those drawings and he had made even more selling them to his clients.

"It will suit you. Wear you hair up, no earing's though, they'll catch on the necklace. Hmm, jade heels too." I looked up from the sketch book and smiled brightly at Sun. I really was happy she liked my ideas, and that Leyna had to.

"So. Red will compliment you nicely, and the hard part of all this is done. Fantastic!"