Summer in Chawton: Fleece! and Strawberry Thief

Fleece bundles; each about 4' high

Last Thursday I met Ian, the shepherd hereabouts who grazes his sheep on the CHL fields (and other fields in the area). He lives on a farm that was once part of the Chawton House estate. As the crow flies, his place is just across the A31 but to get there, one walks into the village, to the roundabout, then back along a road parallel to the one that CH is on. I got a fleece from him that I spent spare moments Thursday and Friday washing and washing. No mean feat using small tubs of water. Trish, the housekeeper, was very accommodating of my wash bins taking up space in the laundry room. Thanks, Trish!

Alan, the Head Gardener, provided me with a piece of galvanized chicken wire upon which I laid the fleece to dry. All in all, the staff here have been very generous with helping me figure out how to wash the fleece to get it ready to bring home. I am most grateful to them.

Fleece set out to dry

So then, once the fleece was set out to dry, I was away to London to visit with Johnathon, another West Van Youth Band parent whole work frequently brings him to London. We spent the two days getting to know his neighbourhood (Belsize Park, Hampstead). It was very revealing; one can definitely see how London became a big city through the merging of many many villages, each with a 'High Street'. I enjoyed walking, stopping for coffee, walking, stopping for a pint, walking, taking in wedding well wishes at a church, stopping for tea, walking, taking in a photo shoot for a very fancy wedding indeed!, walking, stopping for dinner, walking, crashing into bed! Johnathon recommended the Dillons Hotel for 40 Pounds/night.

Strawberry Thief partout!

It proved a charming place (even though breakfast was as far from gluten free as one could get!), a former family home. I particularly admired their William Morris Strawberry Thief draperies. I think Strawberry Thief was the theme for the weekend since I saw that print design in at least 4 places - the hotel drapes, upholstery on a bench in a pub, lace curtains in a family kitchen, and a throw cushion in a shop window!

My research today will take me to the Jane Austen Museum in Chawton. I read in one of Cassandra Austen's letters after Jane's death that she was enclosing Jane's bodkin (that, she indicated, Jane had used constantly for 20 years). I am on a mission to find out what sort of bodkin as that will help me figure out what it was Jane worked on when she wasn't writing.

I am pleased with the progress I have made in the invalid's dietary research; there is a lot to take forward from what I have done here especially as I want to link practices during JA's time to present day dietetics (to trace the evolution of thought in the profession). I have a bin of books I looked at during my first week here that I will revisit today to be sure I get out of them what I can before returning them to the librarian.

I still have not found out what I wanted to re: household linens. I have learned quite a bit about the textile industry of the era but exactly what people used in their kitchens, baths, and dining rooms remains unclear as does how these textiles got into their homes. I suppose none of us would write down a record of how dishcloths come into our homes and how we use them, and neither did the Austen/Knight families. Dresses for balls...yes, these got attention, but not the mundane household items. Perhaps my sleuthing in Winchester tomorrow will reveal a bit more.

Scenes from London...