These adorable Sheep brooches are made in Swallow Studios in County Monaghan by Liz Christy. Measuring 2.5cm x 3.5cm they are the ideal light weight gift.

Coming in a range of colours, each brooch is hand painted and the wool is hand dyed so a lot of work goes into each one!

The natural white and black look sheep are the best sellers for us in store.

They also come in a range of rainbow colours , we are currently in the process of adding them online, watch this space!

We sell Donegal Walking Socks all year round. Made up of 80% Irish new wool from Donegal of course and a small 20% synthetic, they come in a range of vibrant colours, they are soft to the touch and really warm to wear. A lot of people buy them as house socks if they feel the cold and we get many hill walkers in buying them also. They are machine washable though we always advise to hand wash any wool products to make them last.

Jacob’s Sheep Wool

We also stock a range of 100% pure Jacob’s sheep wool socks in 4 natural colours, great for hardy hill walkers and those who don’t mind a slightly rougher texture to their socks. No dye is used, the 4 colours available are completely organic.

Shown above , a pair of totally organic black sheep Jacobs wool walking socks. Extremely warm and well wearing. These are also available in knee high versions, great to wear inside wellies or to match up with a kilt.

Durability

Nothing lasts like an Aran, made using 100% wool, it’s like being wrapped in a blanket! When taken care of they last for years, how many things in your wardrobe can you say that about?

It will keep you warm during the winter and it’s perfect for an Irish summer’s evening when the sun goes down and everyone insists on spending the rest of the evening outside 😉

Ageless

Whether you are 8, 18 or 80 years of age, you can wear an Aran. Kids tend to like the soft Merino Wool style, 18 year old Hipsters like the itchier the better, preferably second hand and a bit shabby  and our more mature customer will wear either once it’s warm!

The Irish love a story….

Each of your wondrous patterns mean something different.

The Aran Sweater takes it’s name from the small cluster off islands off the west coast of Ireland at the mouth of the Galway Bay. The islanders were mostly fishermen and farmers, with relentless weather and harsh winters, the heavy handknitted Arans evolved to cope with the these harsh conditions, keeping them warm and dry (originally some Aran sweaters would be made using oiled wool, where the natural oils were left in the wool, producing a waterproof effect). Alongside this, saw the evolution of the individual family stitches that would identify different clans or families.

There were no knitting patterns in these times, everything was done from memory, but as individual family patterns evolved these were passed down from generation to generation and kept as closely guarded secrets.

As time went on, and patterns began to become recorded and written, individual stitches evolved such as the : The Trinity or Blackberry stitch is said to represent the Holy Trinity, which is done by making 3 stitches from one and one to three across the panel hence it’s name.

The Cable Stitch is a depiction of the fisherman’s ropes, and represents a wish for a fruitful day at sea.

The Diamond Stitch reflects the small fields of the islands. These diamonds are sometimes filled with Irish moss stitch, depicting the seaweed that was used to fertilise the barren fields and produce a good harvest. Hence the diamond stitch is a wish for success and wealth.

The Zig Zag Stitch, a half diamond, is often used in the Aran Sweaters, and popularly represents the twisting cliff paths on the islands. The Tree of Life is one of the original stitches, and is unique to the earliest examples of the Aran knitwear. It again reflects the importance of the clan, and is an expression of a desire for clan unity, with the continuation of life through the generations, with a wish of longevity for family members.The honeycomb represents the humble hardworking bee, fishermen believed if they saw a swarm of bees before going to sea that this was a great omen.

The Aran Today

While the Aran takes it’s name from the islanders, in reality they were made all over the country, particularly in coastal areas.  This is still the case today, The Donegal Shop stock Aran sweaters that are made in Donegal, Mayo, Kildare, we even have some made in Dublin!

Today there are a large range of aran sweaters. We like to put them into 3 categories. Machine made, handloomed and handknit Arans. The staple everyday aran is machine made, using 100% wool, generally combining the honeycomb, diamond and basket stitch, these can start at €49.99.

Next are our handloomed arans, which are made in Donegal, made on a hand operated loom, which are of a heavier weight, have a chunkier feel and look like a handknit but without the price! They start at €89.99.

Finally our handknits, made by traditional knitters in Donegal, in the old fashioned way where women are sent wool at home and knit up an aran in 3-4 weeks By a company called Magee. We are biased but believe these are the closest you can get to the traditional Handknit that started in the Aran island, Donegal shares a very similiar history of fishing, farming and harsh climates . Priced from €250, so the knitters are giving a fair wage (at 3-4 weeks work we wish it were more) and to cover the wool. Handknit sweaters have a distinctive look and often have very unusal stitch combinations that make them very unique.

A Classic

We have been selling arans for close to 20 years, and they have been through a lot! They’ve been in fashion, out of fashion, provided heat and comfort when people are reaching out for their heritage having emigrated. They’ve been seen on ski slopes, in  Vogue, The Farmers Journal, catwalks, popstars, farmers, fisherman, The Clancy Brothers and they are still going strong thankfully. They are a classic garment and hopefully always will be.

We have stocked Donegal Hand loomed Knitwear by Rossan Knitwear of Malinmore Co. Donegal since we opened in 1995. The McNelis family have been in the manufacturing business since the 1970’s. Based in the picturesque coastal area of Malinmore, with Kilcarra Wool factory not far away they are the leading hand loomers in the country.

Most knitwear these days are made on a power loom, however, Rossan use the traditional method of looming , where each garment is made and individually hand finished to an extremely high quality.

Hand loomed sweaters are also much heavier in weight than a machine made one and resemble a hand knit in appearance.

Rossan Knitwear stay with the traditional approach in terms of method and style , but have also evolved with the times very imaginatively in terms of styles and stitches.

The Donegal Style Aran has something a little different, a machine made sweater just doesn’t compare to the chunky look of the Honeycomb stitch on a hand loomed sweater.

It’s also a very versatile style that suits men and women. Both Aran sweaters above are available online and in store now.

We are delighted to be now stocking Clarkes Of Dublin soaps. Available in 5 different scents all made from ethically sourced ingredients, of course our favourite is the Donegal Seaweed!

Made here in Dublin Suzanne Clarke, the company was named in honour of her great grandfather Philip Clarke who was involved in both the 1913 Lock Out and the 1916 Easter Rising, that’s some family history!

Clarke’s create beautiful soap from the finest natural ingredients, seaweeds from the coasts of Galway and Donegal, beeswax from the Royal County Meath, Offaly goats milk, Irish spring water and the very best Atlantic sea salt from West Cork. There are five soaps in the range. These are carefully blended with the very best olive oil, coconut oil and essential oils sourced ethically from around the world. Clarkes adhere to a strict cruelty-free policy. The soaps are super softening. Clarkes make soap the traditional, time-honoured way; hand poured, hand cut and hand wrapped .They have 100% control over what ingredients go into the soap as well as 100% control over the process to make it. Each bar takes 4 to 6 weeks to cure, ensuring a good neutral PH. When a final quality inspection is complete the soap is put into pretty boxes and ready to be shipped.

We love their style and packaging and the actual soap is superb, it makes you wonder what goes into all that mass produced soap when we use Clarkes!

Just in from one of our favourite suppliers based here in Dublin, Ireland’s Eye Knitwear new Autumn/Winter range for 2015. Staying traditional but with a very contemporary twist, the model shown here in a beautiful ladies aran that is fitted and styled to perfection with a merino wool wrap. Using 100% Merino Wool soft to the touch and comfortable and warm.

Also available in mens, shown here in a traditional Merino Aran. We love the shots taken on the streets of Dublin too! the model here is just outside Christchurch in the Medieval Quarter of Dublin which dates back to the Vikings.

We are currently updating our website and look forward to having fresh new images after Easter!

“Not ’till the loom is silent,

And the shuttles cease to fly,

Shall God unroll the canvass

And explain the reason why

The dark threads are as needful

In the weaver’s skilful hand

As the threads of gold and silver

In the pattern she has planned”

We found this lovely poem in our Donegal Shop Archives today, and it reminded us of the intricacies of handweaving, an art we have supported in our products for 20 years now. Donegal is reknowned for it’s hand weaving and looming and we have the likes of Studio Donegal, Rossan Knitwear and Carnaween Clothing products in store to show the amazing craftsmanship on offer from Donegal today.

We wanted to showcase McKernan scarves this week. Remarkably Eugene and Anke McKernan make beautiful scarves on a 19th Century Hattersley Loom. Shown here is our favourite Bubble scarf. 

“The day of the festival of Patrick”. It’s a national holiday in Ireland. Traditionally a religious celebration it now emcompasses tradition and culture and is celebrated around the world. The 17th March marks the anniversary of the death of St. Patrick who is commonly recognized as the Patron Saint of Ireland c. AD 385-461.

It’s an official feast day in the Christian calendar , where mass is celebrated in honour of St. Patrick, those observing Lent are generally given a reprive from whatever they have given up for the 6 weeks of Lent, as children this meant enormous amounts of chocolate was consumed!

St. Patricks Day has become a major celebration around the world and particularly in the U.S.A where Irish Americans joined in parades and celebrations of their shared heritage.

We get a great kick here in Ireland when we see the world has joined in with the celebrations and light up some of their most famous landmarks in green for the day.

St. Patrick’s Day has become quite the party holiday in Ireland for anyone who has ever visited, you’ll know Dublin comes to a standstill for an enormous parade through the city centre with people from all over the world joining in as well local groups and bands. This year will see Brendan O’Connor aka Mrs. Brown lead the parade as the Grand Marshall.

If you are visiting Ireland this St. Patrick’s Day be sure to check out http://www.stpatricksfestival.com to see what’s on for the week long event and be sure to drop into the Donegal Shop for some lovely Irish made wool products!