Victorian Village Undergoes Epic Spring Clean
Published: 12th February 2019A mammoth spring clean involving nearly 60 Victorian shops, scenes and businesses is nearing completion at Flambards Theme Park in Helston, ahead of National Spring Cleaning Week (4th – 10th March).
The award-winning park’s Victorian Village includes everything from the butcher’s and the baker’s, to the blacksmith’s and a sweet shop.
What’s even more astounding is just one person undertakes the epic clean.
As soon as Flambards closes for the winter, Daiga Grinberga, the Victorian Village Housekeeper, methodically begins to work her way through the entire village, painstakingly checking and cleaning every building and its precious contents.
The work includes everything from cleaning the 277 cakes and buns, which were baked for the baker’s shop and then preserved in epoxy resin, to dusting the 75 stuffed animals and birds. Much like the Victorian’s before her she also black-leads the ranges and brasses all of the buttons on the uniforms.
As part of the cleaning process all the linen on display in the Village is also removed, hand-washed, starched and ironed.
One area of the village which does not require quite as much attention is William White’s chemist shop with its assortment of medicine bottles, apothecary jars, quartz carboys, demijohns, pill dispensers and mortars and pestles.
Discovered after being locked away and forgotten since 1909 in South Petherton, Somerset, the complete shop was purchased at auction by Flambards and re-assembled exactly as found.
“All the dust in there is original, so all I need to do is clean the outside windows of the shop front!” said Daiga Grinberga, the Victorian Village Housekeeper.
Flambards fully re-opens to the public on Saturday 6th April 2019 ready for their Easter activities.