New Place, Shakespeares Home in Stratford-upon-Avon

New Place, Shakespeares Home in Stratford-upon-Avon ​When Shakespeare retired from London around 1610, he spent the last few years of his life in New Place, one of Stratford-upon-Avon’s largest houses, which he purchased in 1597. Unlike Shakespeare’s birthplace on Henley Street, New Place was pulled down in the 18th century. Today, Shakespeare fans can still visit the site of the house which has now been turned into an Elizabethan garden. Nash’s House, the building next door, still remains and serves as a museum dedicated to Tudor life and New Place. Both sites are cared for by the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust.​ New Place New Place, once described as a â€Å"pretty house of brick and timber,† was built towards the end of the 15th century and bought by Shakespeare in 1597 although he did not live there until his retirement from London in 1610. On display in the adjoining museum is a sketch of New Place by George Vertue showing the main house (where Shakespeare lived) enclosed by a courtyard. These street-facing buildings would have been the servant’s quarters. Francis Gastrell New Place was demolished and rebuilt in 1702 by the new owner. The house was rebuilt in brick and stone but it only survived another 57 years. In 1759, the new owner, Reverend Francis Gastrell, quarreled with the town authorities over taxation and Gastrell had the house permanently demolished in 1759. New Place was never again rebuilt and only the foundations of the house remain. Shakespeare’s Mulberry Tree Gastrell also caused controversy when he removed Shakespeare’s mulberry tree. It is said that Shakespeare planted a mulberry tree in the gardens of New Place, which posthumously attracted visitors. Gastrell complained that it made the house damp and he had it chopped for firewood or perhaps Gastrell wanted to deter the visitors! Thomas Sharpe, an enterprising local clockmaker and carpenter, bought most of the wood and carved Shakespeare mementos from it. The museum in Nash’s House displays some of the artifacts said to be made from Shakespeare’s mulberry tree.

Crystal Starfish Ornament or Decoration

Crystal Starfish Ornament or Decoration Grow crystals on a small starfish to make a sparkling crystal starfish ornament or decoration. Crystal Starfish Materials You can grow any crystal solution on the starfish, including borax, salt, alum, Epsom salt and sugar. Borax is nice because the crystals grow overnight and add a dainty sparkly appearance to the starfish. Also, these crystals survive storage and packing between holidays quite well. small dried starfishstringjar big enough to hold the starfishstringhot waterborax (e.g., 20 Mule Team Borax How To Grow Crystals on the Starfish Tie a string or piece of nylon fishing line to the starfish. Make certain the starfish can hang in the jar without touching the side or bottom. You can wrap the string around a pencil or butter knife to control its length. Remove the starfish from the container.Mix a solution of very hot or boiling water and borax. Keep stirring in borax until it stops dissolving. This will be when a small amount of solid material remains in the bottom of the container.Pour this solution into the jar.Suspend the starfish in the liquid. Make certain it is submerged, but not touching the jar. Allow the crystals to grow for several hours or overnight.Remove the crystallized starfish from the liquid and hang it to allow it to dry. Thats it! You can use it as a holiday ornament or other decoration.You can store the starfish by wrapping it gently in tissue paper to protect it from dust and humidity. Tips and Tricks Borax allows the natural color of the starfish to show. However, if you want to add color, you can. Simply add a small amount of food coloring when you mix the borax and water. The food coloring does not color the crystals, but it will dye the starfish.Try growing crystals on small shells. Youll have the best success with porous shells because they provide places for the crystals to attach and grow. More Crystal Holiday Decorations Borax Crystal SnowflakeCrystallized Holiday StockingCrystal Paper SnowflakesMore Holiday Ornament Projects