A Christmas Candle, Craftshop na Méar and Kerry Writers Museum Craft fair

Listowel Arms at Christmas 2019

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Another lovely Christmas window

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Kerry Writers' Museum Craft Fair

Here are some of the crafters I missed when I posted these last.

These lovely colourful mandalas all all unique. They would make a lovely display grouped together on a wall. Great value too from this really talented lady.

Eimear was at her first craft fair and enjoying the experience.

Mary and her friend, Angela were recycling and up cycling. They had lovely affordable Christmas decorations.

Kerry Writers Museum was just the place to start your Christmas shopping for 2019.

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Looking back and remembering

This photo was taken at the opening of Craftshop na Méar on Church Street.  It shows some of the early crafters, Maureen, Mary, Una, Namir, Mary, Kelly, Mairéad and Mary with Miriam Kiely in whose old home the shop was located. Front left is the late Dan Green who died so tragically soon after.

The Craftshop verdict ; Sad its over but glad it happened.

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A Candle Story from the Schools' Folklore Collection

Long ago an old woman who lived in a thatched house before going to bed on Christmas night took her candles, quenched them and put them into a drawer in the table for fear that during the night the house might go on fire. She got out of bed early next morning to light the candles again. On opening the drawer to her surprise she found the candles lighting at both ends. She took it as a lesson that the Christmas candles would not burn anything.

Collector, Teresa Fitzmaurice- Address Beal Middle, Co. Kerry
Informant- Mrs H. Fitzmaurice, Age 42 Address, Beal Middle, Co. Kerry.
Location: Ballybunnion, Co. Kerry- Teacher: An tSr. Aodán.

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Event Guide

If you want to know what's on in Listowel over the holidays, Listowel.ie has a great new page detailing everything that 's on.

Here's the link

Events in Listowel

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+  R.I.P. Martin Hickey  +

I took this photograph on Church Street in 2013. Fred Chute took time out from his painting to chat to his old friend, Martin Hickey.

Sad to say that Listowel has lost both of these old stock in 2019.

Martin has been absent from our streets for a while now and you'd miss him. He was a great servant to his beloved Listowel Celtic and they appreciated their "boss", installing him in the well deserved office of president.

May the sod rest lightly on Martin's gentle soul.

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Christmas is a Time for Friends

I met Cathuy Mawe and Eithne Galvin in The Listowel Arms on Saturday Dec. 14 2019.

Craftshop na Méar, Convent Cross, The Irish Nillsons and a Stunning Ballybunion Sunset

Bog Cotton on Stack's Mountain

Photo: Máire Logue

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Craftshop na Méar is No More

This premises is soon to be a high end barbers'

Does it say something about us as a society that we are not prepared to spend our money on hand craft?  We will spend it willy nilly on titivating ourselves.

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Convent Cross, June 12 2018

Convent Street.

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A John Hannon Photograph

Brother and sister, Marie and Seamus Buckley of Upper William Street

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The Swedish Connection

You may have seen this handsome couple around Listowel or in St. John's and wondered why they love Listowel so much and keep returning.

That love goes back a long way. Here is the story as told by Bryan MacMahon of Ballyheigue.

Mike Nillson loves North Kerry and Irish history and literature so much that every year his family  sponsor a prize at Listowel Writers Week. The prize is awarded to the best work of Irish local heritage.

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Thank God for the Weather and the Sunsets

This stunning photograph was taken by Ita Hannon from The Nuns' Beach, Ballybunion on June 22 2018. Heaven's Reflex!

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Love's Last Gift:  Remembrance

Photo by John Stack on Jim Cogan's last birthday, two months before his death.

He is never far from my thoughts in the last five long short years.

Craftshop na Méar, Fast Fashion and recycling and Fr. Gerry Roche R.I.P.

Photo: Pat OMeara, Mallow Camera Club

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Memories of Craftshop na Méar

This photograph was taken at our Cois Tine event at Christmas 2013

Alice Taylor happened to be in town that day and she dropped in.

The canon blessed the venture. Here he is greeting his good friend, Anne Moloney.

In the early days, craft classes were a great success.

Some of the lovely local crafts which were sold in Craftshop na Méar

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No One Wants your Used Clothes anymore

This headline in an online article by a man called Adam Mintner caught my attention. Because I am a great fan of pre loved clothes and a firm believer in recycling, I read on and my eyes were opened for me.

You buy clothes. You wear them. You give them to the charity shop or pass them on to a friend. But at the end of the cycle when they are too tatty to be of use to anyone, what then?

A global network of traders collect all the useless garments and recycle them in poor countries either to be worn again or turned into stuffing or into a new material to be used again in cheap clothing.

Panipat in India is the centre of the industry that recycles clothes into yarn. There are 200 business in Panipat devoted to recycling clothes!!!!

They make a cloth known as shoddy. The cloth is made from low quality yarn recycled from woolen garments.

In the year 2000 Panipat's shoddy factories made 100,000 blankets a day, 90% of the relief blanket market.

But things have changed since then. Now Chinese factories can produce new polar fleece blankets more cheaply than recycled ones. These Chinese factories are locating in Panipat and replacing the recycled shoddy with a new cheap material.

Here's a shocking statistic; Between 2000 and 2015 global clothing production doubled.

Thanks to the new phenomenon of "Fast Fashion" the tide of second hand clothes is growing as the market to reuse them declines.

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On the very same day as I read this article online I read in the newspaper that the chain, Dealz is introducing a clothing range. Most of the garments will cost under €5 and there will be 100s of product lines.

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Fr. Gerry Roche of Athea R.I.P.

While I was in Athea last week inspecting the damage done to the mural I strolled up to their lovely church.


On the left of the door is a memorial to a local hero. The whole story is carved in stone,  in this lovely tribute.

Craftshop na Méar is closing, Maidhc Dainín again and aspects of Ballybunion

Magnificent Stag

Photo: Jim MacSweeney

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End of the Road for Craftshop na Méar

If you want to pick up your Michael Tea tea cosy or a beautiful Claddagh Design Listowel pendant, do drop in to Craftshop na Méar on Church St. before it closes its doors at Christmas 2017.

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Maidhc Dainín ÓSé;  Another Listowel Connection

Local writer and musician, Neil Brosnan sent me this photo. It was taken in Dingle in 2010 when Maidhc Dainín OSé launched Neil's first anthology, Fresh Water and Other Stories. Maidhc and Neil played many a tune together over the years.

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Ballybunion After the storms

Having been confined to the house during storms Ophelia and Brian, it was a great pleasure to go to Ballybunion and take the bracing cliff walk.

Those white specs and the smudge on my lens is foam churned up by the rough seas.

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Doon Sculpture