Tuesday, 1 April 2014

Beyond the Velvet Rope - My 1st Day as a Room Guide

Well hello and happy Tuesday to you all, I trust you all had a marvellous weekend and enjoyed bringing in BST and Mothers day with some gorgeous weather! I can’t seem to find the words to convey just how excited and proud I was this particular Sunday; as for me along with it being a jolly special day for all it was my first day as a Room Guide at Packwood!

As you will be aware this blog was started as a way to share that experience with you and to give you a ‘volunteers eye view’ of this special property (hint for you there is almost always cake in view…it really is how you imagine it to be) marvellous! I will tell you ‘my’ story of the house but as for the house’s many stories, well that will require a visit!

As you may have seen I had been doing a little swotting up in readiness (didn't even touch the sides!) I even had my husband testing me on Friday night - he’s a tough marker incidentally and if I got a date wrong would exclaim “Come on you should know this!” Harsh.  Fortunately the other volunteers were more understanding about learning as I went along!

When I arrived I met with Jane and we ‘opened up the house’. To see the property in such an intimate way and to go round ‘waking her up’ was such a wonderful experience. I say this and yet she clearly hasn't warmed to me yet (some of the blinds need an expert hand – which I certainly do not have as yet!) Opening curtains and winding clocks Jane moved around with a loving fluidity and a keen eye for detail, I was reminded gently I should leave things looking as Baron Ash would have wanted them (in other words neat and tidy!) Basically once I think it’s tidy enough, do it again!

Volunteers are grouped in ‘Days’ each with a Day Leader who hosts a morning briefing and allocates volunteers to their various posts throughout the day. Break times (or as I like to call them cake times) are also given and cover provided.

I started in Queen Margaret’s Bedroom (named for the bed after Baron Ash acquired it at auction) along with the wall coverings known as ‘poor mans tapestries’; these are painted canvas but to my mind (and eye) easily as beautiful. Each room has a folder containing information about the room and each of the pieces within. I can tell you these folders were referred to by me as ‘The Oracle’ and were consulted on a regular basis! I also learned a great deal from the other volunteer room guides. They are a fantastic bunch of seriously knowledgeable people!

After the first cake break I went up into the Fetherston room. This room, previously Baron Ash’s bedroom currently holds a display from the weavers guild Stratford Upon Avon Guild of Weavers, Spinners & Dyers This room has an interesting display of textiles, natural dyes and weaving looms with a loom ‘in progress’ as they complete a section of a replica of one of the tapestries at Packwood. There are some smaller looms for people to get involved and have a go at weaving themselves. I must confess I was in my element in this room! As a keen crafter just being around textiles and raw wool makes me happy (no honestly!?) I lost an hour up there getting children (and ‘grown-ups’) all excited about weaving. One father was so amazed at his particularly hectic little boy sitting quietly for so long with such intense concentration he promised to make him a loom when they got home! I am assured the boy will make an expert weaver!

My final room was the downstairs drawing room. Another interesting room it houses Queen Mary’s teacup amongst other beautiful objects. I chatted to a lot of visitors in this room, it was lovely to see people really interested and inspired by the mixture of elements to the house and wanting to know more about the man who bought it all together.

As expected whilst the place is a dream and the other volunteers a delight it really was the interactions with you, the visitors that made my day. It was so lovely seeing little children’s faces light up when they spotted their hunted for Dalmatian (there are several hidden throughout the house for children to spot!) or having a laugh with a Scottish family out for mothers day – Mum I hope he did buy you that cake after he was so rude about you incidentally! Hearing peoples stories about why Packwood is special to them made me feel quite at home even if I was ‘consulting the oracle’ a little often. Sometimes listening is more important than sharing a thousand facts.

Baron Ash I hope I did you justice for my first day. I was as always sad to leave and eager to return and in the meantime I shall enjoy my ‘further reading’!

And here's a few photo's from that beautiful sunny day...have we tempted you yet?










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