Irish language clothing and homeware le haghaidh Seachtain na Gaeilge

Cuireadh tús le Seachtain na Gaeilge ar an Luan agus beidh imeachtaí den scoth ar siúl as seo amach go dtí an 17ú Márta, Lá le Pádhraic.

Seachtain na Gaeilge began on Monday and great events will be taking place from now until March 17th, St. Patrick's Day.

Má tá fonn ort cur le do chúpla focal, tá neart ranganna teagaisc ar siúl ar fud na tíre, chomh maith le tionscnaimh nua ar nós an láithreán líonraithe shóisialta Abair Leat agus feachtas teilifíse Bród Club ar RTÉ.
If you would like to add to your cúpla focal, there are lots of Irish language classes across the country, along with new initiatives such as social media site Abair Leat and the Bród Club television campaign on RTÉ.

Is féidir linn go léir a bheith inár gcónaitheoirí sa Ghaeltacht. Tá cur síos maith ar an gcoincheap seo i ngné-alt leis an gceannlíne 'Mise agus an Ghaeilge' a bhí ar an Irish Times an tseachtain seo caite. Cé gur as Baile Átha Cliath mé, tógadh le Gaeilge sa bhaile mé agus d'fhreastal mé ar mheánscoil trí mheán na Gaeilge.
We can all be residents of the Gaeltacht. There is a good description of this concept in a feature headlined 'Mise agus an Ghaeilge' that appeared in The Irish Times last week. Although I'm from Dublin, I was raised with Irish as my first language and I attended secondary school through the medium of Irish.

Agus is féidir Seachtain na Gaeilge a cheiliúradh gach lá leis na hearraí tí agus éadach Gaelacha thíos:
And Seachtain na Gaeilge can be celebrated every day with the Irish language homewares and clothing below:

CÚPLA CUPÁN TAE i nAGHAIDH AN LAE: Cupán tae Príomhshráid ('Mainstreet') le fáil i réimse dathanna ó Placed. Tá ainmneacha na siopaí i nGaeilge (m.sh. Siopa Caife, An Sos Tae).
 Le fáil ó shiopa Etsy Placed (thart ar €12 an ceann + postas). Tá páipéir maisiúcháin (thart ar €2.60), cartaí (thart ar €3.65) agus tuaillaí tae déanta le prionta lámh (thart ar €16) i nGaeilge le fáil freisin, mar atá le feiceáil sna pictiúir thíos. Tá na hearraí ar díol in Article, Ionad Powerscourt, Baile Átha Cliath 2, freisin. Íomhanna: Placed

O'BAMA RAMA: Chuir uachtarán Mheirceá Barack Obama Gaeilge ar a ráiteas 'Yes We Can' nuair a thug sé óráid i mBaile Átha Cliath i mí Bealtaine, 2011.
Dhear I Love Mayo an prionta 'Is Féidir Linn' chun an ócáid seo a cheiliúradh agus an prionta álainn I Love Cáca Milis ('cake') thíos.
Tá an praghas idir €7.95 agus €24.95 (+ postas), ag brath ar an méid agus má tá 'mounting' de dhith uait. Le fáil ó shuíomh Garrendenny Lane freisin. Íomhanna: I Love Mayo

OH MO DHIA: Is léir gur thug Lionel Richie agus a amhrán 'Hello' an-inspioráid go deo do lucht Hairy Baby agus tá an t-léine seo le fáil i ndathanna éagsúla ar €20 (+ postas) sa sladmhargadh. Tá réimse leathan de t-léinte i nGaeilge le fáil, m.sh. an ceann thíos leis na focla cáiliúla ó fhógra Carlsberg cúpla bliain ó shin. Íomhanna: Hairy Baby

BOG STANDARD IRISH, TOP NOTCH PRINT: Is féidir le gach duine a d'fhreastal ar scoil in Éirinn an cheist, 'An Bhfuil Cead Agam dul Amach go dtí an Leithreas?' ('May I have permission to go to the toilet?' as taught to generations of Irish children) a chur. Tá an prionta seo le fáil ó shiopa Etsy FunkyGibbo (thart ar €15 + postas). Íomha: FunkyGibbo ar Etsy 

TXT SPK AS GAEILGE: OMG = Oh Mo Dhia, nó OMD, i nGaeilge. Tá an OMD hoodie le fáil ón Spailpín Fánach sa Spidéal, Conamara, ar chostas €32 (+ postas). Íomha: An Spailpín Fánach

FADA FAISIN: Ceist ghramadaí nó canúinte? Is breá liom hoodie How's Your Fada? (€35 + postas) ón chomhlacht Deir Sé. Íomha: Deir Sé

FOCAL THUAS: Tá an cluiche cailiúil Scrabble le fáil i nGaeilge ar €20 (+ postas) ón Siopa Gaeilge. Íomha: Siopa Gaeilge

Take 3: Etsy shops in Ireland

Etsy = my dream store. For the uninitiated, it's where artists, designers and crafters from all over the world reside. Etsy is a treasure trove of one-off, limited edition and personalised items for the home, along with fashion, craft supplies, toys, jewellery and lots else.

Many of the people behind Etsy's shops are based in America, which can result in high postage costs. A handy way to search for items closer to home is to use the 'Shop Local' search term. But sometimes searching for Dublin can yield results of places in the United States named after our fair city!

Here's a little selection of some of the lovely Irish makers and shakers selling their wares on Etsy:

1. handmade by me
Gorgeous fabrics made with eco-friendly dyes and printed onto a linen-cotton fabric, Dublin-based Sera sells napkins, cushion covers and fabric for curtains. Check out her blog at handmadebymeblog.com

DREAM LIVING SPACE: A galaxy filled with rockets, planets and alien craft, this colourful Space Rocket Solar System Cushion Cover (€35.81 plus delivery and also available for curtain material) from handmade by me was designed for a five-year-old boy.  

2. Jo Fulham Textiles
Based in Mullingar, Jo's shop has the cute name mojosewsew and sells purses, handbags and cushion covers made in fab fabrics. She can also personalise items as per request.

 TWIT-TWOO: This beautiful Retro Owl Cushion (€31.14) by Jo Fulham Textiles is made from a variety of fabrics, love the corduroy. I know my owl pal Aoife will want this.

3. karoArt
Creating stunning ceramics and pottery, karoArt in Dublin makes unique sculptural artworks. I think her personalised hearts tile would make a beautiful St. Valentine's Day or wedding present.

S-TILE-ISH: Made to order with a custom number of fish, the School of Fish ceramic tile (€76 plus delivery) is by karoArt

Eye of the Tiger: Irish clothing brands open store

I prefer to leave fashion blogging to those in the know, but am always keen to promote Irish design initiatives like the new Blind Tiger Collective store. It's opening its doors this Saturday in Dublin city centre.

Set up by Irish streetwear brands to offer an alternative to multinational chain stores, the collective hope their new store in the Georgian gorgeousness of South William Street will help efforts to make this side of Grafton Street a fashion hub destination.

RWAAR: The Blind Tiger Collective is catwalk cool. I heart the stag t-shirt.

Describing why Blind Tiger Collective came about, Dualta Jones (organiser and co-owner of Project A Apparel) said: "I decided that small Irish brands like my own need to come together and help promote each other in a joint effort and stake a claim on our territory."

GRRR-EAT IDEA: Tony the tiger gets a makeover in this t-shirt from The Blind Tiger Collective, a group of Irish streetwear brands

Following on from their pop-up shop in December (see the timelapse video here), the brands at Blind Tiger Collective include Turtlehead, LadyUmbrella, ShittyFuture and Little Green Threads, many of whom create very limited print runs as low as 25 pieces.

It's brilliant to see this showcase of Irish design hitting the city centre. Go n-éirí leo.

The Blind Tiger Collective, 51 William Street, Dublin 2. 
twitter.com/weareblindtiger