Claire Thurlow is a writer and writing coach who is passionate about helping people who have an urge to write. She has an MA in Creative Writing from the University of Sussex and is an experienced workshop facilitator, editor and published author.

A shepherd’s hut in a wildflower meadow, a summer house surrounded by roses, or even a deckchair in the vegetable patch? Use creative writing to transport you to the perfect, imaginary writing retreat.

Join Claire in this interactive writing workshop, a taster of the sessions she usually runs at Chawton House.

Yvette has been a volunteer at Chawton House for almost ten years. She began by working in the Chawton House gardens, and still works in the gardens when she can.  Yvette often gives tours of the Chawton House Gardens and is particularly interested in how garden landscapes have changed over time, and how the landscape influenced Jane Austen and her work. She also works in the house and with the library collection.

Join Chawton House volunteer, Yvette Carpenter, on this virtual tour of the Chawton House gardens and explore the historic landscape that once inspired Jane Austen.

This talk was  followed by a Zoom Q&A with the Chawton House team.

‘A dyed in the wool storyteller’, former student of herbal medicine: Amanda Edmiston, comes from a long line of storytellers, writers and artists.

Amanda says: ‘I’ve always been fascinated by plants and the stories around them, I love how they reveal how we connect to each other and our natural environment through their use’.

Her sessions weave together facts, folklore, traditional tales, history and herbal remedies using storytelling techniques to create a rich multi-sensory tapestry which audiences have described as being like ‘an enchanting and dynamic glimpse into a magical garden’.

For more about Amanda and her work see her website.

Part 1 of 3.

Amanda Edmiston is a professional storyteller, who’s recent project A Curious Herbal explores the fascinating life and work of 18th century herbalist Elizabeth Blackwell. In this introduction hear about Blackwell’s amazing life and how she came to produce her beautiful herbal book.

View A Curious Herbal online here (courtesy of the British Library).

Claire Lewis is the in-house photographer for Chawton House. Claire has a passion for photography and a vast amount of knowledge gained from many years of experience. She has been capturing the beauty of Chawton House and its grounds since 2019 as well as running regular workshops.

Claire Lewis has been capturing beautiful images of Chawton House and its grounds since 2019. In this short tutorial she talks you through how to get the best out of your iPhone camera.

Buy notecards featuring Claire’s photography from the Chawton House shop.

Rebecca graduated in Architecture from the University of Kent in 2010. She is Secretary to The Lutyens Trust, a UK charity dedicated to protecting and promoting the works of the Great British Architect Sir Edwin Lutyens (1869-1944). She also works at Godmersham Park, the Knight’s Kentish Country House.

Rebecca Lilley from the Lutyens Trust discusses the work of Sir Edwin Lutyens, and in particular his gardens with Chawton House’s CEO, Katie Childs. Lutyens almost certainly designed the Lower Library Terrace at Chawton House in the early 20th century, and worked closely with the well-known garden designer, Gertrude Jekyll.

Find out more about the Godmersham Park Heritage Centre.

‘A dyed in the wool storyteller’, former student of herbal medicine: Amanda Edmiston, comes from a long line of storytellers, writers and artists.

Amanda says: ‘I’ve always been fascinated by plants and the stories around them, I love how they reveal how we connect to each other and our natural environment through their use’.

Her sessions weave together facts, folklore, traditional tales, history and herbal remedies using storytelling techniques to create a rich multi-sensory tapestry which audiences have described as being like ‘an enchanting and dynamic glimpse into a magical garden’.

For more about Amanda and her work see her website.

Part 2 of 3.

Amanda Edmiston is a professional storyteller, who’s recent project A Curious Herbal explores the fascinating life and work of 18th century herbalist Elizabeth Blackwell. In this second video join Amanda for afternoon tea and hear stories of green tea, chocolate, coffee, tomatoes and cucumber.

View A Curious Herbal online here (courtesy of the British Library).

Julia is the Gardener at Chawton House. She has been a gardener for 6 years and particularly enjoys working in historic gardens.

She says: “Chawton is a lovely garden to work in and has so much history which I’m looking forward to sharing with volunteers, visitors and local organisations to help Chawton become a bigger part of the local community.”

Julia Weaver introduces herself and talks about her plans for the Chawton House gardens and what she’s been up to during lockdown closure.

‘A dyed in the wool storyteller’, former student of herbal medicine: Amanda Edmiston, comes from a long line of storytellers, writers and artists.

Amanda says: ‘I’ve always been fascinated by plants and the stories around them, I love how they reveal how we connect to each other and our natural environment through their use’.

Her sessions weave together facts, folklore, traditional tales, history and herbal remedies using storytelling techniques to create a rich multi-sensory tapestry which audiences have described as being like ‘an enchanting and dynamic glimpse into a magical garden’.

For more about Amanda and her work see her website.

Part 3 of 3.

Amanda Edmiston is a professional storyteller, who’s recent project A Curious Herbal explores the fascinating life and work of 18th century herbalist Elizabeth Blackwell. In this third and final video join Amanda for a walk through a garden and discover stories of Yarrow, Rosemary, Sage, Lemon balm, St John’s Wort and Lavender.

View A Curious Herbal online here (courtesy of the British Library).

Amanda’s final video will be followed by a Twitter Q&A.

Join the Conversation #ChawtonGardenFest

Katie Childs joined Chawton House as Chief Executive in February 2019.  Prior to this she was Head of Partnerships and Strategic Relations at the Imperial War Museum and has previously held roles at National Museum Directors’ Council and the British Museum.

In this talk Katie explores the pioneering women who defied the conventions of their gender to become plant collectors, botanists, illustrators, educators and garden designers.

Based on research conducted for a library display which was due to be shown in spring 2020 (but will now be scheduled for later this year), this talk will offer a chance to glimpse at the botanical treasures in the Chawton House library collection.

Katie’s talk was  followed by a Zoom Q&A.