Focusing on the account book of the MP and antiquary Sir Edward Dering (1598-1644), which covers the decade of his life in which he came of age, was knighted, and embarked on an ambitious political and courtly career, this article argues that his account book was a space in which Dering recorded momentous life events and mediated upon his purchases. Dering revelled in his attire, spending a great deal of money on it, as well as taking the time to record each element of construction and decorative design in minute detail. Purchasing luxury goods – particularly clothing – was an important way for an ambitious politician to express his social, emotional and political links to patrons, and to show his suitability for promotion.

While he begins the account book in 1619 by chastising himself for a spending too much in a ‘prodigal year’, by the end of the account book in 1628, Dering seems content to buy expensive goods, including a costly linen damask napkin depicting the story of the prodigal son. This article traces Dering’s acquisition of luxury goods at home in Kent, in London and overseas, and places him in relation to contemporary discourses of luxury and prodigality. It argues that Dering’s consumption of luxury goods was part of a wider project of self-definition, which included having his portrait painted, and even forging his family history.