FRONTLINES: Last week Mary Gallagher (pictured) realised a long held dream when she opened a craft gallery in Wexford in a three-storey Georgian townhouse on the corner of John's Gate Street called The Blue Egg.
Gallagher, who is a maritime transport consultant and is originally from Carrickmacross, has had a long interest in crafts, particularly ceramics. She has curated a number of exhibitions in Waterford and Wexford. Now she lives above the gallery, where she has assembled the work of 16 craftspeople from all over Ireland working in ceramics, wire, wood, stained glass and yarn. To mark the opening, ceramicist Frances Lambe made her a dozen eggs in porcelain, Gráinne Watts made another six, more decorative in style, while Alison Kay made her two big ostrich eggs (one of which is pictured here). In a surprising twist, on the opening night Gallagher discovered that the previous owners of the house were egg merchants. The current exhibition runs until next Sunday, November 6th, and is open daily from 10.30am-5.30pm.
Deirdre McQuillan
INDEX
WHAT’S HOT
Katie TaylorOur quietest boxer won her fifth European title in a row last weekend. A little more fanfare would not go amiss
Benefit Boi-ingThe packaging calls it "industrial-strength concealer" and that's not wrong. It's kinder to under-eye skin than most serious concealers. From Arnotts (€23.50)
The Chocolate Box, William Street, GalwayWonka bars, glass jars of old-fashioned sweets, and a serious contender for best hot chocolate in the country
#whatthefliuchThe brilliant hashtag for all Twitter chat about the floods. Take a bow @alan_regan
The new cover upAs demonstrated by, er, Madonna. In evening dresses to promote her new film on Wallis Simpson, W.E., she had no cleavage in sight
Irish beef on the boneHow beautiful a dish is that for winter?
WHAT’S NOT
'X Factor'Turning into car-crash TV
The clocks going backSo what if we get an extra hour in bed tomorrow? We'll be leaving work in darkness for the next four months
International wool prices risingWe'll be paying more for our cardis
Worn out from work-experience weekWe've squeezed our contacts book dry to get the young ones placements. And it's all going to be repeated in the spring
Mary Portas and her clothes for the over-40sBackfired a bit – it's not as if we are a different species. We are marching into Zara with our wrinkly heads held high
The sad lack of umbrella etiquetteIt's not a battering ram for oncoming pedestrians. Hoist them high
Following the whole Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher break upIt makes us feel cheap and nasty. Yet it also makes us feel better about our own little lives
Imperfect pearsRock hard to shrivelled in the blink of an eye
Grave expectations
The Eve of All Hallows Festival takes place in the gorgeously Gothic setting of St Patrick’s Cathedral on Monday, October 31st, when you can join a tour of its graves. The building dates from 1220 and is home to a number of graves of historical importance, including those of Richard Parsons, the first earl of Rosse and founder of the infamous Hellfire Club, and author Jonathan Swift, who was dean of St Patrick’s from 1713 to 1745. Swift’s servant, Alexander McGee, and his lifelong companion, Esther Johnston, whom he affectionately called Stella, are also buried in the cathedral. Swift’s death mask is also on display and there will be a mask-making workshop for kids – inspired by the ghoulish artefact.
At 4.30pm an organ recital by candle light is guaranteed to get you in the mood for the pagan New Year celebrations. The play list includes a broad church of music from the Star Wars theme to Danse Macabre (Opus 40) by French composer Camille Saint-Saëns and music by JS Bach. Day admission tickets cost €5.50 for adults, including the recital; €4.50 for children up to the age of 12. Under sevens go free. See stpatrickscathedral.ie. Alanna Gallagher
Take to the air
If you've been envying the jetsetting lifestyle in the TV series Pan Am, you might be interested in the Emirates airline's recruitment drive. The company is holding a series of recruitment open days in Ireland as part of its efforts to employ a 4,000-strong cabin crew from different countries. Galway's Harbour Hotel hosts an open day tomorrow, followed by the Limerick Strand hotel on November 2nd, and Cork's Gresham Metropole hotel on November 5th. Emirates launches daily Dublin-Dubai flights on January 9th. The company already employs 232 Irish people, 139 of whom are cabin crew based in Dubai. For details on eligibility requirements and on what to bring to the open days, see emiratesgroupcareers.com and jobs.ie/Emirates. Áine Kerr
New on the net
Check out mykidstime.ie, which has dozens of good ideas for filling in time this Halloween break
Whistle for your supper: Come join us
Jane Shepherdson, one of the most influential names in the fashion business, will present her edit of the autumn/winter collection from Whistles, where she is CEO, at an Irish Times reader evening in association with Brown Thomas and Whistles on Tuesday, November 15th (6.30-8.30pm). Deirdre McQuillan, fashion editor, will conduct an informal QA. The Restaurant on Level 3 at Brown Thomas will serve a Domini Kemp three-course supper, with wine. There will also be a gift for every reader who attends. Tickets cost €25 and will be offered on a first come, first served basis. Register your interest at irishtimes.com/life/style.
WORD ON THE STREET Cosmeceuticals
What it means: Is it a beauty product? Is it a drug? Or is it a cosmeceutical? You might have noticed over the past decade that ads for beauty products have become a bit more boffinish, filled with obscure scientific terms, and with a voiceover straight off the Discovery Channel. These days, you almost need a degree in biochemistry to shop for hair products, and a healthy scepticism about the medical benefits of face creams and body lotions. It's no longer enough for a product to moisturise, tone or lightly fragrance – it's got to cure all known diseases and reverse the ageing process to boot.
Where it comes from: Cosmeceuticals are lotions, potions, sprays and salves that are marketed as cosmetics, but claim to also possess medicinal qualities. Anti-dandruff shampoos, fluoride toothpaste and anti-wrinkle cream are common examples of cosmeceuticals, but in recent times, beauty-product ads have entered the realm of science fiction. Body creams release nanobots that seek and destroy impurities and shampoos transform your crowning glory into gossamer strands of pure titanium.
How to sayit: "Poor Mairead – her skin is so slathered with cosmeceuticals, they're calling her the derma-nator."
Kevin Courtney
Let there be light
With the clocks going back tomorrow, now is a good time to learn a few tricks to make your home seem brighter. Next Wednesday, November 2nd, Italian lighting expert Giulio Cavagnini will be talking to architects, interior designers and home owners about how to use light to best effect. The talk will cover light as a construction material, how the presence and absence of light can play with space, and how light density can define volume in a room. It's technical, but worthwhile for anyone considering significant refurbishment work. The event takes place at Culture Box (the former Design Yard premises), at 12 East Essex Street in Temple Bar. Booking is essential as numbers are limited. Contact Patrick Kerr of Shadowlight on 087-2776757 or see shadowlight.ie for further details.
Alanna Gallagher
Gathering of the Gaels
Up to 15,000 people will descend on Killarney next weekend (November 2nd-6th), for the annual Oireachtas na Samhna Festival. Sean-nós dancing, singing and storytelling competitions are what it's all about. Forget
Riverdance, this is the genuine article, with children and adults of all ages beating out the rhythms of the
bosca ceoil. The Corn Uí Riada sean-nós singing competition will be an important part of the weekend. Other musical highlights include the infamous Mo Hat Mo Gheansaí, The Dirty 9s and Daithí Ó Drónaí. The Cabaret Craiceáilte will entertain the crowds with music, belly dancing and poetry. See antoireachtas.ie or gaelsceal.ie.
Design week is a corker
Design Week, which runs from October 31st to November 6th, covers everything, from fashion to architecture and graphics to furniture and is a countrywide initiative. You can find out about all sorts of designers. For instance, Matteo Alessi is giving a talk at Brown Thomas, Dublin at 6pm on November 4th (pick up one of the company's parrot corkscrews, pictured above, while you're there). There is a furniture design exhibition at the Brian S Nolan shop in Dún Laoghaire. And you can learn about new designs at O'Driscoll Furniture in Lombard Street East, Dublin 2. You can also visit specific locations such as the Institute of Designers graduate exhibition at NCAD in Thomas Street, until next Saturday, or dig up some information on city gardening in the Recession-Prosperity Garden in Thorncastle Street, Dublin 4 on Saturday, November 3rd at 3pm. See designweek.ie.
Emma Cullinan