Dirty Fabulous gets it's Groove on!

I'm not sure if there could be a lovelier setting for a festival...

It was easy to get snap happy over the weekend as Killruddery House is as picture perfect as they come.

Being a busy working Mum has meant that it's many moons since my last festival so I was itching to get to Groove Festival in Bray.... I was not dissapointed...

I was as excited as one of those bouncy toilet roll puppies much to the amusement of our group!

Although I went to Groove with my best gal pals I could really have brought my little boys. The whole event was unbelievably child friendly and there were little tikes and bigger kids running carefree through the grounds all day. All children had to be registered in a separate tent before entering and were allocated with a separate band. A brilliant idea from the Groove organisers.

Small children could while away a few hours in the enchanted garden which was completely separate from the Groovy happenings of the festival. In this area there was a cute little coffee and crepe stand, picnic benches, chickens and even a partridge in a pear tree (well actually it was an apple tree but close enough for me)

They were entertained by these funny gentlemen where space was the name of the game.

They could try their hand at making a rocket before watching real rockets being launched by the Irish Rocketry Society. We caught the rockets being launched on Sunday and were surprised by how carried away we were in the excitement. We were shouting out the countdown as loud as the younger festival goers!

This monstro sandpit means that i'll definitely be paying Kilruddery House another visit with my toddler. He loves nothing more than whiling away a few hours in a sandpit.

 

The older children were also spoilt for choice with Aqua Sphering, Tag archery and a climbing wall. Don't worry those who were young at heart could bounce, run and climb to their hearts content!

Now back to the Grown ups....

These vintage vixens were fixing festivalers up with retro hair and make-up. We spotted many a fine victory roll over the weekend. 

(Dear Gods of the Garden, please let me wake up some morning with one of these pretty caravans in situ!)

Although I wasn't familiar with quite a few names in the weekend line-up the people at Groove knew their Groovetastic bands and had rounded up a killer line-up!

 I had really, really wanted to see Miss Kate as she looked AMAZING but we arrived just as she was finishing up. I didn't have too much time to mope as out bounded this lot: 

King Kong Company

They had the most awesome, stompin' dance tunes that much to the amusement of my group I had to flee solo immediately to the front of the stage to jump about in an ungainly manor. (I swear I really do have rhythm!). When they started playing a Dr Who mix I nearly exploded!!!

Next up was Cathy Davey, adored by Dirty Fabulous. My oldest boy is called Ruben and we all danced like troopers when this song came on! If any of you out there haven't heard Cathy Davey sing you need to rectify this...now. Imagine warm, boppy honey surrounded by family and friends...Yup, Cathy Davey makes you feel like this!

James, of the Sit Down kind arrived next and we all felt a touch of nostalgic loveliness. But it was time for refreshments and nourishment. 

We refueled on roast pig, burgers, noodles, ice-cream and bubbles (not all at once!)

This was the only one we had mind you!

mmmmm...Teddy's ice cream

The weather was typically "Irish":

 sun blazing: jackets off, rain pelting down: jackets on...and so on and so on and so on!!! 

The quirky settings just screamed for photos to be taken, we really couldn't help ourselves!

The gorgeous Claire of the Informal Florist was on hand to give festival revelers a touch of boho beauty with her ivy crowns

Before we knew it, it was time for the main event, Paloma Faith.

Our groups collective heads nearly spontaneously combusted when she bounced on stage.

She was amazing, tremendous, funny, cute and has a voice made for belting out soulful, upbeat songs.

We all agreed that Paloma was indeed our girl crush and we made our way happily back to our room for the night at The Wilton (camping? no way hosay!)

The next day after breakfast in bed (This is how a festival should be done in my opinion) and a late check out we wandered across the road back to Groove.

The weather was glorious and we spent several hours having coffees, reading news papers and eating cake in the pretty courtyard of the tea rooms whilst listening to the acts on The Harbour Bar stage.

We adored the country/folk band Old Hannah and Mongoose were an absolute delight!

I'm afraid here is where my pictures end but the festival went on!

The Booka Brass Band had us up and jumping around especially when Jerry Fish joined them on stage (we're big fans in DF HQ.)

Paul Heaton & Jacqui Abbott (from The Beautiful South) had us crooning away to endless songs. We lost count of how many time we said"oh...I love this song!"

Then the headliner of Sunday night, Mr. David Gray himself arrived on stage. His voice was pitch perfect and gave you a warm fuzzy feeling inside. He seemed like a lovely, genuine guy who was excited to be there. We all loved his new song Mutineers.

Before we knew it, it was time to leave and get back to reality!

So in summary "Groove was AWESOME!"

Yes, I can still do festivals (with a few luxury perks, such as a bed)

I can't wait to see next years line-up,  

I might even bring the whole family...although....
Until then I might take a relaxing trip back to Killruddery for one of their summer events.

A cute mini reveler enjoying Cathy Davey

Family lace

There is a wonderful rich tradition of lace making in Ireland, with a variety of styles and techniques. Most people will have heard of Carrickmacross lace but there are many many more. It has always been a cottage industry here in Ireland and it still seems to have a healthy following both here and abroad.

When I thought of doing a blog post on the pieces of lace that I had from Mum, I mentioned it to my Aunt Kay, Mum's sister. She in turn went looking for her pieces and mentioned it to other family members. Photos and stories started making their way back to me. So this post is a little larger than I thought it would be!

These are a selection of crochet lace collars and cuffs that belonged to my mum and her sister Kay.
They were all made by their granny, my Great Granny Croarkin.

I love these designs, they are very intricate and fine.

The motifs in the centre of these cuffs were a design created by great Granny Croarkin and one which she used a lot in her work. She called them "ferns" and it was her signature.

Clones and Roslea lace has a very specific style, a much richer and textured type of lace made by crochet compared to the very fine and delicate style of Carrickmacross lace. There were a number of collar and cuff sets made by my great grandmother for my Mum and her sister Kay and they were removed and reattached to various dancing costumes over a number of years. Given the time it took to make each piece and the detail and care she took in making them, they were given their due respect and handled with love, I'm chuffed to have them in such beautiful condition today.

My Auntie Kay and Mum in their Irish dancing gunas with lace collars and cuffs!

Great Granny Croarkin was from Roslea in County Fermanagh, just a hop skip and a jump from Clones in County Monaghan (8.6km to be specific!).

 This is a beautiful crochet lace collar that my Mum gave me which was made by her Granny.

It is a gorgeous warm gold colour and is worn high like a choker as opposed to the flatter collar shapes of the others.

The fern motif is used here also.

Above - Carrickmacross Lace collar made by my grandmother Peg.

The following is a recollection from my Mum's cousin Jim.-
Great Granny Croarkin in 1951
"Granny was ahead of her time. When she married Granda she sent him to London to learn tailoring and came back as the expert in the area, making suits and coats for men and suits for ladies. People came from far and wide to have their clothes made by him.
While Granda sewed in his workshop, a small shed across the street with a corregated iron roof, Granny cooked and baked and boiled  and tended the hens and pigs and in the evening she sat by the fire and crocheted by oil lamp.
This was Roslea / Clones lace - made from fine cotton thread using a really fine steel hook.
Such hooks were made locally by some blacksmiths and had a handle of cane. Many ladies used to do crochet to order for a local lady.
On market day, Wednesday, Mrs Stevely from Scotstown, came to our parlour in Roslea, to buy the crochet made by all the local ladies. I think she supplied the fine cotton thread.
Payment was minimal and when the ladies came to sell eggs or butter in Roslea on Wednesdays or their crochet they then did their weekly shopping for tea, sugar and other neccesities.
Granny's crochet was so fine and the little chains that joined the motifs, roses, shamrocks and other designs that those ladies invented themselves, had little knots in each space.
This was distinctive to Clones / Roslea lace.
In famine times, a rich lady called Cassandra Hand went to Italy and saw elderly ladies making crochet there to subsidise their family income.
She learned how to do it and brought back this skill so the ladies of Clones and Roslea, who were suffering from serious famine, could have a way to earn some money to buy food for their family.
This is where the crochet tradition began and there by candlelight or their tiny fires they worked their magic mostly at night when the work was done.
I remember Granny telling me she heard the click of the needle which told her she was doing it correctly. 
In 1955/56 Aunty Kitty (Aunty Kitty is my Grandmothers sister) entered some of grannys crochet work, I think it was a dressing table set, 2 small mats and a larger centre one, in the crafts section of Clones show, which was one of the big animal events for farm people.
And she won first prize. Granny made these dressing table sets, cuffs, collars for blouses and dresses like many many other grannys.
She crocheted the lace for surplices for mass servers and priests and usually these had grasses and roses as the motifs.
I was then proud owner of one such surplice. Even as an old lady with failing eyesight she still did her crochet and if she visited Maggie Boyle or Mrs Mc Dermot they all worked away crocheting together as they chatted and their menfolk played cards or told stories.
I was always sorry I didn't take the time to learn the art from granny but in the 1980s I found a book by... D'Arcy of Roslea and taught myself using wool at first.
There is also a book by Clones lady, Moira Treanor, on the same subject. Canal stores on Cavan Road, Clones, still sell items of Clones lace (expensive) They have a display of their pieces including a wedding dress.
Owner Victoria wore a Clones lace wedding dress.


Having taught himself to crochet, Jim made christening robes for my Mum for her first baby, my brother Tony and we were all subsequently christened in these robes. He also crocheted my own first communion dress.

Exhibit A

That's me on the left, my cousin Shelly on the right.
(I have no recollection of this momentous occasion!)
We have all the family lace and crochet kept together in a special box, it is stored in acid free tissue paper to protect it and we have my first communion gown, the christening robes and all the little collar and cuffs sets along with some really pretty dressing table sets too.

Unfortunately some some sets didn't fare so well. This beautiful piece has had some serious moth damage. I will restore it to it's former glory though!

 If you have your own pieces of lace you might be interested in this -

My husbands' family also had their own lace stories.
My husbands paternal Grandmother commissioned the nuns in Crossmaglen in 1934 to make her wedding veil.
This veil has been worn by many female family members on their special day, including my husband's mother.

One particular aunt borrowed the veil for her wedding day and as her future brother-in-law stepped in for an enthusiastic pre ceremony hug, he unfortunately stepped on the veil and made a large hole in the antique family heirloom!
The poor aunt spent a lot of her wedding day worrying about how she was going to tell her future mother-in-law what had happened to her beautiful veil.
Thankfully she was able to get the veil professionally repaired.

Unfortunately the whereabouts of the veil are now unknown : (


In contrast to the cottage industry in Ireland, where lace was generally made by women in their homes the following video shows lace being made on an industrial scale in a factory in Nottingham in the 1930s.




If you are interested in Clones crochet lace making, The Constant Knitter on Francis St, Dublin,  holds workshops, details here - http://www.theconstantknitter.ie/

With thanks to my aunt Kay, cousins and great Aunt Kitty.
xxx Caroline xxx