IrishWoolen

Winter is on the way

2010-10-29T02:02:00.000-07:00

Halloween is around the corner and next week the clocks go back bringing the darker mornings and nights. Winter is officially on it's way!!

Now is the time to get those winter woolies out of storage and start wrapping up well for the cold weather. Knitwear is bigger than ever in the fashion world this season with lots of cute knits for kids featuring in the shops. A great way to stay warm in the cold weather is to wear a wooly hat that covers the ears. With a great selection of styles available it is easy to find a cute and snuggly hat to keep your little one warm this winter!

Working with Wool & Felt

2010-04-22T02:34:00.001-07:00

We love working with wool but have always been interested in designing with felt. When we came across the wonderful artist 'Katuck' we decided we would combine the two and create some little knits with fun felt designs for kids.

Kerry from Katuck finds inspiration in flowers and creates the most beautiful floral inspired felt accessories (among many other wonderful designs). We loved working with Kerry, her attention to detail on everything she produces means there is a great quality to all her items. Her use of colour is exciting and no doubt the arrival of spring will be inspiring and result in some fab new items being added to the shop. Be sure to visit and have a look at some of the lovely items on display including this gorgeous felt purse.
Thanks to Katuck we have a great range of animals to add to our little knitted sweaters which add a bit of fun for children. Some of the animals in the range are: owl, monkey, hedgehog, bunny, elephant, chick, duck etc. These little felt creations are available on any of our knits from small items like hats to larger items such as sweaters.

Contact us if you would like a custom knit to include one of Katuck's felt designs or visit our store to view items sweaters currently listed!

Another Great Teasury...

2010-04-22T02:31:00.001-07:00

Treasury Time...here comes spring

2010-03-19T16:04:00.000-07:00

I was lucky enough to catch another treasury last night - I decided to feature some spring inspired items by the talented Etsy Ireland Team!

Competition Winner

2010-03-17T13:20:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to Rach from Balanced who is the winner of our Saint Patrick's Day little knit giveaway. The prize is a lemon cardigan for a newborn handmade in soft acrylic wool.

Balanced is a beautiful shop on Etsy selling handmade jewellery - be sure to have a look at some of the unique and pretty items on sale at the moment. Well done Rach, send us on your details for posting.

Keep an eye on our blog for some upcoming competitions!

Happy Saint Patrick's Day

2010-03-17T13:07:00.000-07:00

Happy Saint Patrick's Day to everyone!

March 17th is a national holiday in Ireland so thanks to our favourite patron saint we have a much appreciated day off work.

Instead of heading to the parade we decided last minute to go with friends on a big hike for the day and spent 5 solid hours tackling Mullaghcleevaun and Tonelagee - the second and third highest mountains in Wicklow. The feet are very sore and every muscle in my body hurts but all in all I feel great for spending the day outdoors. I'm catching the highlights of the parade on the tv and enjoying a well deserved rest.

I hope all our blog readers are having a wonderful Saint Patricks Day!!

Chick Chick Chick Chick Chicky

2010-03-12T13:54:00.000-08:00

Lay a litte egg for me.....

With easter approaching we decided to create some little Easter Chicks.

These make fun little egg holders for kids and pretty decorations in general.

There is an opening at the end of the chick where you can place a painted cooking egg or a small chocolate egg.

We hope you like our little Easter Chicks and remember we have little chick families eager to find new homes!!

Order a little knit from our Etsy site on or before March 17th and receive a free knitted chick :)

A picture paints a thousand words

2010-03-08T14:52:00.001-08:00

Our very talented friend Ally Wiley has sent us some beautiful shots of baby Gianna modelling some of our favourite little knits.

Here is Gianna wearing our little peaked cap and looking adorable. You can find more work by Ally on her website. Wonderful work as always Ally!!

Saint Patrick and his Treasuries

2010-03-08T14:12:00.001-08:00

A big thank you to Vicki from EllieLee for including us in her Treasury selection...

Erin go Bragh

2010-02-25T08:49:00.000-08:00

A big thank you to Sharon from sharonclancydesigns for featuring our little blue fishermans cardigan in her latest Etsy Treasury Erin go Bragh. Take a peek and let us know what you think!

Sharon makes beautiful handmade Indie artisan jewellery. Be sure to visit her Etsy shop and see some of her designs.

Little Knit Giveaway

2010-02-24T14:47:00.000-08:00

As promised we have a little knit ready to raffle off to one of our blog followers.

This little knit is made from 100% acrylic wool so is wonderfully soft on baby's skin. Unlike pure wool knits this little cardigan is machine washable at a low temperature.

Made in a lovely light shade of yellow for spring! This cute little cardigan is made to fit a baby from birth to 3 months so would make a great gift for a newborn.

On Saint Patrick's day, March 17th we will raffle the cardigan off to one of our blog followers.

Let us know what you think of our little prize and good luck in the draw!!!

Etsy Treasury - An Irish Holiday

2010-02-24T04:02:00.000-08:00

I was lucky enough to get an Etsy Treasury this morning. Here are some of the wondeful Irish crafts on our latest treasury 'An Irish Holiday'...

Let the selling begin....

2010-02-23T07:48:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was very exciting as we made our first sale on Etsy.

One of our lovely Saint Patricks Day Sweaters has just begun its journey to San Francisco.

Hopefully the first of many sales....

Luck of the Irish

2010-02-21T13:00:00.000-08:00

What a great way to end the weekend - I managed to get my first Treasury on Etsy!!

Here is just a small selection of the the many wonderful items currently listed by the Etsy Ireland Team. Visit the treasury here to view all in detail. Please show your support by leaving us some comments....

Traditional Irish Aran knitting

2010-02-21T08:48:00.000-08:00

Famous for their warmth and beautiful detail, we have decided to create some traditional Irish Aran Sweaters for babies.

All our aran is 100& acrylic which means it is machine washable (because what mother today has time to handwash all of baby's clothes!!).

This type of wool is also softer and kinder to baby's skin than traditional versions of pure wool.

We think you will agree these little knits are something special and would look wonderful on your little ones on Saint Patrick's day. You can be assured they are authentic and made by an Irish person in the traditional style.

Sadly this style of knitting is a dying art and a talent that is not passed down through generations as readily as it was in times gone by. My mother learnt this skill from my grandmother and it is a wondeful craft we are proud to have in our family.

We hope our traditional knits bring as much joy to your family as they have to ours!!

Irish Stew

2010-02-21T07:26:00.001-08:00

In keeping with the Saint Patrick's Day theme we have decided to share our Nana's recipe for Irish Stew. I spent yesterday making up a big batch of hearty Irish stew and freezing it so that I can reach for it the next cold night that I don't feel like cooking. Stew is oh so easy to make and very cost efficient so it is ideal if you are trying to feed a big family!

There are many variations on Irish Stew. In this recipe I have decided to exclude potatoes from the mixture simply because I often like to serve my stew with a side of potato. If you like the idea of potatoes in the stew itself you can easily include it in the recipe. It honestly should take you only 10 minutes to prepare this dish and you can busy yourself with other tasks while the stew cooks away. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

Rib Steak - 1.5 lbs, Parnsip - 2 large (or 4 small), Carrot - 2 large (or 4 small), Onion - 1

Oxo stock cubes - 6 to 8, [water and large cooking pot with lid]

Method:

Remove all the fat from the meat and place the now lean meat in the cooking pot.

Chop all the vegetables (chop small but do not dice)
Place the vegetables in the pot with the meat (* NB add diced potatoes here if desired)

Cover the contents of the pot with water
Place over heat and bring to the boil
Once water is boiling, lower the temperature and leave to simmer
Simmer for approximately 1hr 45 minutes or until the meat is very tender

Crush 6 oxo stock cubes into the mixture (*tip - begin with 6 and add more if a stronger taste is needed)

Blend approximately 2 heaped teaspoons of cornflour with a tablespoon of water.
Add the cornflour and water mixture to the stew to thicken the sauce.

Serving Suggestion:
Serve with potatoes

or
Serve over buttered bread (my favourite!!)

Lá Fhéile Pádraig - Happy Saint Patrick's Day!!!

Competition Time

2010-02-19T02:46:00.001-08:00

There is less than a month to go before Saint Patricks Day so in honour of our favourite patron saint we will enter all our blog followers into a draw to win a special little baby knit. Pictures & details to follow....!!

Saint Patrick's Day is a public holiday here in Ireland - The week before Saint Patricks Day is known as "Seachtain na Gaeilge" - a week long festival to promote the Irish language. Ever wanted to learn some Irish? Visit the 'Irish word a day' site to learn some useful words.

Irish Woolen will be watching the big parade in Dublin on March 17th this year. Where and how will you celebrate Saint Patrick's Day??

Let us know what you have planned for the day!

Etsy Treasury

2010-02-17T14:50:00.001-08:00

Big thank you to Ooakie for including us in the Saint Patricks Day celebration Treasury.
Check out the Etsy Ireland Blog to see what plans are in the making to celebrate our favourite Saint!

Easter

2010-02-10T07:37:00.000-08:00

We are busy working on some new Easter themed items that include pretty cardigans for baby girls and some lovely soft baby hats. Here is a sneek preview of the cardigans Eleanor is working on....

Bits and Bobbles

2010-02-10T04:17:00.001-08:00

Did you know that you can lose up to 75% of your body heat from your head alone?

All the more reason to cover your little ones up well in these cold temperates and invest in a cheery bobble hat....

You can find a selection of knitted hats at our etsy store

Inspirational quote for the day....

2010-02-09T08:57:00.001-08:00

"We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars."

- Oscar Wilde, Irish Novelist

Coming Soon

2010-02-09T08:18:00.000-08:00

Welcome to our blog. We hope to have some really great features on the blog very soon including a 'how to' tutorial from Eleanor to help all you wannabe knitters to get started.....I had my first lesson two weeks ago and am already the proud creator of a small wooly hat!

Eleanor is busy creating some special knitted sweaters and cardigans - look forward to the St.Patricks Day and Easter themed knits.

We are new to twitter so please follow us at Irishwoolen.
Our new facebook fan page is coming soon!!

Beginnings

2010-02-09T07:53:00.001-08:00

A little about Irish Woolen.....

Irish Woolen consists of mum Eleanor (the knitter) and daughter Caroline (the internet addict).

Eleanor began knitting over 40 years ago and for many years supplied hand made Aran Sweaters to Blarney Woollen Mills.

Today Eleanor knits for pleasure and in particular loves creating little knits for babies and toddlers!

As the little knits began to take over the house Caroline discovered the wonderful world of Etsy and decided to showcase some of Eleanor's beautiful designs to the online world.

I hope you find something you like on our site - thanks for looking!!