Irish Travels with The Godchild, The Snippets and Boudica

• Image 1 – Godchild with The Snippets
• Image 2 – The garden of cousins’ house in Northern Ireland

I have just returned from a lovely holiday in Northern and Southern Ireland.  Travelling again, as last year with my Godchild and her three naughty whippets – better known as ‘The Snippets’.  The canine contingent was made up of The Snippets and my over sized hound, Boudica, a deer hound lurcher. All four were stuffed into the back of Godchild’s small Yaris.   Seeking “dog friendly” hotels wherever we went, but not daring to tell them we had four dogs on board…. I found great success by telling hotel owners we had 50 plus dogs with us.  The hoteliers were then so relieved when I told them we only had four, that we were allowed to bring them all in. Boudica with her fine English leather studded dog collar was much admired wherever she went…. (of course made by The Great English Outdoors)

• Image 3 – Ferocious Terrier gazes out over Strangford Loch
• Image 4 – Barbour Thread
• Image 5 – Sad remains of the once beautiful factory of the Barbour Thread Works

On my way down to stay with friends at Strangford Loch, I passed through Lisburn, and stopped at the Linen Museum there. It was a wonderful, informative and modern small museum with a demonstration of Spinners and Weavers.  I learnt so much, but most importantly of all, that Lisburn, up until 15 years ago, had been the home of Barbour Threads. Barbour threads is what I have stitched my leather work with for years and years and years, and I never knew that it came from Lisburn.  The Museum was really informative about the linen trade and how Northern Ireland was once the biggest producer in the world

• Image 6 – Lesley Wilson at the Linen Museum spinning flax to make linen
• Image 7 – The flax mill and linen works. Still hand weaving linen
• Image 8 – Marian’s Loom

A beautiful day’s sailing with friends on Strangford Loch

• Image 9 – Martin at the sails
• Image 10 – The boat I was privileged to sail on . The newly restored 32 foot wooden Yawl Square rigged – restored by much love and dedicated hard work
• Image 11 – Their Languishing Lagonda

• Image 12 – Peter with a fine pair of monster lobsters
• Image 13 – 12 Hay Stooks on my way to Ballymeena

• Image 14 – Their Apple House for winter storage of fruit
• Image 15 – The Snippets taking it easy

• Image 16 – Donegal Sheep. When we were there, Donegal had beaten Mayo in the McGrath Cup (Irish Football). The happy fans had painted their footie colours of green and yellow everywhere in Donegal – even on the sheep
• Image 17 – A Donegal Wall, near Adare
• Image 18 – Chanterelles from my cousins’ wood. Try these for the most delicious breakfast cooked with finely sliced streaky bacon

• Image 19 – My cousins’ house has some of the finest Beech trees I have ever seen. This one must have had a trunk of over 100 foot high
• Image 20 – Boxes of yarn waiting to be woven by hand into beautiful Donegal blankets… check out our new Donegal Blankets.  John the weaver can make up to 28 metres of cloth in a day.  Now that’s worth thinking about………

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