Vicki writes…. As with most offices we have a cupboard of doom. If you work in an office you will know exactly what I mean. It’s that ancient cupboard that your predecessors left you just as their predecessors did and everyone is a little scared to open it. With this being Snowshill Manor, the place…
As this month has seen a focus on clocks with our own Snowshill tribute to the 80th anniversary of the talking clock it seemed to fit to pick something from the horological side of the collection. We all know that Mr Wade had a particular fondness for the sound of clocks ticking and chiming in…
The title of this post says it all. In what other job do you have the ability to attend a talk on being the best version of you, discover the power of innovation and prance around at 9am? Of course it’s with the National Trust! Every year the National Trust runs a two day conference…
This month we’re following a bit of a gruesome path so take this as a warning for the squeamish amongst you! These curious little brass instruments (a little clue there) are kept in Top Royal. They look harmless enough, don’t they? Any guesses on this very Victorian cure (another clue for you!) It’s a blood…
From his earliest years Charles Paget Wade was more inclined to imaginative design and invention than academic study. The saving grace of his schooldays was drawing, a subject he enjoyed and was good at. In his memoir ‘Days Far Away’ he recalls ‘I never had the faintest desire to be top of any classes…I would…
After a recent visit to Berrington Hall it seemed appropriate to pick something from Charles Wade’s costume collection as this months object of mystery. This is what is formally known as a calash. It is a type of bonnet that became very popular in women’s fashion in the 18th Century. The calash takes its name from…
Having seen other collections showcasing a monthly ‘object of mystery’ post I thought it would be fun for us to have a go. Every month we’ll find something rather quirky and unusual from Charles Wade’s collection and give a little bit of information about it. We hope you enjoy these posts! Below is a photo…
Cast your minds back to Alex’s post last year about her time on the Housekeeping Study Days at Polsedon Lacey. This year Fran and myself made the trip up to Shropshire for our turn on the HSKD, this year hosted at Attingham Park. Attingham Park is an 18th Century mansion, set in beautiful parkland all…
Welcome back to the Secrets of Snowshill blog. Sorry we’ve been a little quiet lately, it’s been just a little busy over the past year! We’ve got lot of things to share with you over the next few months. So, to get you back into the spirit of Snowshill here’s some photos of work in…
All this beautiful Spring sunshine has encouraged us to reflect on what has been a busy and productive winter this year at the Manor. Normally we start the winter clean in an upstairs room and work down or in a downstairs room and work up in a rather methodical manner that has been planned by the…
Working in an historic house can often mean walking a tightrope between access and conservation. As an organisation we want to protect houses and collections that we care for, but we also want to welcome visitors to enjoy these special places. So, where can issues arise in this? Historic houses were never designed to carry…
Early this year I went on the Housekeeping Study Days, which this time were housed in the Edwardian party house Polesden Lacey, in Surrey. The HKSD are the National Trust Preventive Conservation training. It’s four days of talks and demonstrations of every area of housekeeping you could think of, and a few you probably wouldn’t!…
On a bleak January Monday Vicki, Sue and Harriet, well wrapped up against the cold, ventured down to Blaise Castle House Museum in Bristol to learn about working with costume collections. Blaise Castle, a folly dating from the eighteenth century, could just be made out above the line of bare winter trees but we resisted…
In the last of our blogs looking back at 2014 members of the team have picked their personal highlights. We have also chosen a selection of projects and events that we are particularly looking forward to in 2015. “2014 has been a great year at Snowshill and I have had many highlights. At the top…
2014 saw us once again dedicated to the Conservation work that is so crucial to maintaining the Manor, garden and collection. The team worked hard to monitor the environmental conditions within the Manor and Cottage and limit the agents of deterioration and will continue to do so in 2015, it is a never-ending task! Snowshill…
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