holmes log 1

In the spirit of me working a bit on my Watsonian scholarship stuff...

oh really tough choice, all of these are top shelf. i am especially fond of ABBE and SUSS because holmes takes the part of women who have been abused in some way. in SUSS, he even defends her against the client. in ABBE, he extends his defense to her rescuer.

VALL is just a cracking good story, and i won't spoil the crowning moment. STUD shows holmes learning something important, which gets applied many times (same with SCAN, not listed here) i love that those first two stories set important cornerstones for his consulting practice.

For @tremendousdetectivetheorist :)

Holmes wears a signet ring from the start of the series, but Watson doesn't, until around Christmas time in The Case of the Christmas Pudding (ep23). They both have rings from then on

1954 Sherlock Holmes gelatin silver photos

There is a series of children’s books published a few years back which is basically the Sherlock Holmes stories but for kids (obviously) and the illustrations are ADORABLE

Holmes is so skrunkly ❤️❤️❤️ truly a lil guy

OK BUT SERIOUSLY THOUGH

These books are an absolute masterclass in writing literature for children. The author Stephanie Baudet carefully keeps very closely to the essence of the original text, while simplifying the vocabulary and sentence structure. She ensures that new or potentially confusing concepts are presented with a little more context in a way which doesn't feel patronising.

The additions to the text are rare but always excellent - Baudet often adds in a little more input from Watson about how he's feeling, and smooths over some of Doyle's vague or wonky continuity (we get a definite answer about what happened to Mary! And Holmes' reaction to that!)

In the letters from Watson server we called them the 'Baudet Adaptation' and revere them as a legitimate contribution to the Sherlock Holmes cultural landscape.

If you know any nine year olds, or find the language of the originals tricky for whatever reason, you can basically read these and know you've read the original Sherlock Holmes stories.

(Well... minus the ones which they decided were a bit too grim to adapt for children. No Cardboard Box, sorry)

Little moment's from Granada's The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes S1Ep11, "The Resident Patient" (1985). Dir. David Carson. Jeremy Brett as Sherlock Holmes, David Burke as Dr Watson, Nicholas Clay as Dr Percy Trevelyan, Patrick Newell as Blessington, John Ringman as Inspector Lanner, and Lucy Anne Wilson as Nora

Scenes never meant to the public eye. Their very own universe, just at 221b, Baker Street.

AWW THEY LOOK SO CUTE IN THIS VERSION

It's this book!

A Study In Scarlet, illustrated by Vincent Mallié

SHERLOCK HOLMES (1984 - 1994) ↳ 5x04 | Boscombe Valley

What I think has happened at least once is Watson said or did something smart and Holmes was so happy and surprised about it, he gave Watson a quick kiss on the cheek and then continued on as normal with the case. It dawns on him half an hour later and he nearly dies.

Meanwhile Watson has spent the last 30 minutes burning up to 500°C and whistling like a kettle.

Friendly reminder that Doctor John Watson had no one. He returned from the war ill and newly disabled. He had nowhere to turn at his most vunerable moments and drifted without purpose within his new, alien life.

Friendly reminder that Sherlock Holmes had no one. He was different, no one understood him. He had been battling addiction alone for years. His only chance at survival in a world he was ill-suited for was to carve out his own niche.

Friendly reminder that they met each other when each of them desperatly needed someone. Friendly reminder that Holmes was instantly open with Watson, and Watson was instantly smitten. Friendly reminder that Holmes provided Watson with a mystery, a distraction that Watson desperatly needed. Friendly reminder that Watson showered Holmes in praise when he was so unused to it. Friendly reminder that Holmes let Watson write about his life, and Watson helped him through crippling drug addiction.

They're both broken men who begin to heal in the presence of each other. They built their lives around each other, encouraged each other, comforted each other. If they hadn't met, their lives would have been worse for it.

“Labours of Love”

Summer Holmestice 2021 for “Ghostbees” 

After my giftee ( @ghostbees ) mentioned “scrapbooking” and “English paper piecing” I went down a rabbithole of research and learnt about this wonderful quilting technique.

From the EQS website: “English Paper Piecing is a method of quilting that involves using a paper shape, most commonly a hexagon, to add stability to the quilt. The quilt is hand stitched with pieces of fabric cut a ¼ inch bigger than the paper shape. The fabric is basted to the paper shapes before the shapes are sewn together. Once the quilt top is completed the papers are removed.” The technique dates from 1770s and was popular during the early 1800s in the UK, then in the mid 19th century in the US and it made a comeback during the Great Depression of the 1930s, when the pattern was called in the sewing magazines “Grandma’s Flower Garden”, but before that it was simply known as hexagonal pattern or (you guessed it) honeycomb pattern. The paper used for these quilts were usually recycled from newspapers or scrapped letters, and the fabric used to come from old garments that had seen better days, and since a lot of the times the paper was simply left in these quilts are marvelous time capsules that contain a wealth of information about the person who made them and their environment. I encourage you to look up English paper piecing (EPP) quilts from the early Victorian decades, they’re fascinating!

So this little series of illustrations shows Watson dealing with Holmes still indulging in scrapbooking, and how the doctor picks up the discarded pieces and their old 221B era clothes to make something entirely new and uniquely theirs.

1. I keep seeing lovely examples of Victorian silk braces with floral embroidery and I couldn’t resist giving the boys some fancy ones. Also I know that a bright pink and blue shirt is probably not too historically accurate 1910s but screw it, trans flag shirt colours!

2. I both hate and love drawing furniture. Footstools/ottomans are cute, though.

3. “My dear fellow, if you didn’t spend all morning in bed instead of reading the newspaper as soon it arrives all of this could be avoided.”  Also Holmes is wearing a silk piano shawl because what are gender norms?

4. Holmes not only uses newspaper clippings for scrapbooking, but per Ghostbees’ suggestion I looked briefly into the Victorian hobby of pressing and collecting seaweed and I think it would be a fantastic subject for Holmes to branch out to (especially if there’s any poisonous types).

5. Old dressing gowns and blankets that have seen better days. The moths got ahold of them but I’m pretty sure the constant chemical experiments back at 221B claimed more than one victim. 

6. I got a bit carried away with the ink and gouache here. But it was fascinating to see the first published patterns in magazines making their appearance, especially in publications aimed at women that contained a wide range of home-related subjects. 

7. Someone in the Dreamwidth website pointed out that both Holmes and Watson are working on beehives and that warmed my heart. One interesting bit about EPP is that the paper can be left inside the quilt, so historians have been able to gather very detailed information about the person who crafted these pieces and their life. 

8. Oh god so many hexagons. Here’s an example of one of those magazines with patterns and instructions. 

9. I had too much fun giving them embroidered slippers. It’s a shame I overdid the watercolours and turned out quite muddy, but I would love to draw their clothes in more detail in the future.

10. Smooch! (Also the paisley trim is my favourite part) 

11. Initially I wanted this story to end in a picnic at Beachy Head, until I was told that quilts aren’t picnic blankets and are more appropriate for domestic use only. You still get to see some of the cliffs at least!

12. Another accidental discovery during my research: pickle and marmalade jars! I could draw a hundred of them and not get tired. That little spoon! Ugh!

13. I will never not cry about these two old fools in love. 

14. Cross stitching and lettering isn’t my forte, nor is Watson’s, but I saw several quilts had names sewn into one panel, almost like a painter signing their canvas, or dedicating  the piece to a loved one. So you know I had to add this little detail, plus some green carnations for extra queerness, a forget-me-not flower and a plump bee because I have to be extra. 

Looking back this is one of the things I’m the most proud of that I have made this year, or even longer. I work digitally for my job and I miss the feel of traditional materials, so this was a project that let me flex those watercolour muscles and try gouache for the first time. All while drawing incredibly indulgent things, so thank you Basil for giving me an excuse to have some fun. 

reblogging this version because this one has links with the research I did!

One of my favorite things about Granada Holmes is the fact that it starts with the relationship between Holmes and Watson already established. They've been living together a few years already, and we get a fast yet wonderful glimpse at what that relationship is within the first few minutes of the first episode.

In quite rapid succession we have a series of little moments and interactions that lay out exactly who these characters are and what their relationship is like. Not even 10 minutes in and you feel like you've known these characters for years. That's wonderful writing imo

Sherlock Holmes Society Christmas card for 2020 by Laurence Pernet

As illustrated by (from top to bottom):