Best gifts/design/interiors
WINNER: Article Dublin
Article Dublin, situated in what was originally Lord Powerscourt's dressing room in the Powerscourt Townhouse Centre on South William Street, first opened its doors in 2010 in a much smaller shop in the centre.
Owner John Adams had been the Habitat Ireland operations manager when the store shuttered in 2008 and wanted to do something different.
In its current location the shop features original plasterwork by stuccodore Michael Stapleton, nicknamed the French Earl for the French fashions that he wore, a habit he picked up while on Grand Tour in Europe. Period-style cabinetry lines the walls and doffs a cap at the premises' Georgian heritage.
But the array of homewares and gifts that line the shelves is completely contemporary with enticing international brands sitting next to some of the best Irish designers including the Georgian Collection, scented candles by Joseph Ensko and Helen Roden, which look utterly at home here.
Article has an enticing offer and is the kind of shop where you enter to buy something for someone else but often end up buying the same thing for yourself, says Sonya Lennon. "With items from ¤9.99 upwards, the shop feels accessible to all, an important factor in the modern shoppingscape. The displays change constantly, the presentation of the offer, the way they merchandise is brilliant."
Brendan Courtney sums up the place by saying: "If you want to buy a present for anyone, you go to Article."
Article, Powerscourt Townhouse, South William St, Dublin 2; tel: 01 679 9268; articledublin.com
HIGHLY COMMENDED
The Old Mill Stores, Connonagh, Leap, and 14 Rossa Street, Clonakilty, Co Cork; theoldmillstores.ie
The Old Mill Stores in Clonakilty is run by blow-ins Tom Keane and Claire Graham who reopened a shuttered village shop back in 2001 and filled it with their
careful edit. Their customer service is legendary – they recently loaned a reader a set of dining chairs for her stay in west Cork (she didn't like the look of the Ikea ones in her rental property). And they're in expansion mode – they've just opened a second shop in Clonakilty.
