A round-up of today's other stories in brief
Cool cards
Caragh Buxton is a talented self-taught graphic artist and mother of four children, based in London, who has become well known for her face-painting business (fantasticfaces.org.uk), as well as for her lively, colourful ceramics. Now she has turned her hand to greeting cards and original art prints for children and adults, illustrated with the same youthful brio and spirit as her ceramics. They can be bought from her website caraghbuxton.com or from Caragh11.etsy.com.
The cards feature cute drawings of girls walking dogs, dancing ballerinas, ritzy little dancers in red polka dots and a set of multicoloured and striped cupcakes. There are also adorable seaside and animal prints.
Deirdre McQuillan
Index
WHAT’S HOT
The Brogan brothersHot in every sense
Dolly PartonPlaying eight musical instruments – no, not all at the same time – during her Dublin gig last week. What a girl
ClapHandies.comOur favourite website address
Greta ScacchiFamous beauty, now in middle age, poses for publicity photographs without make-up. Terrific
Last of the damsonsNot for jam or crumble but as a gin infusion. Look forward to a nice red thimbleful at Christmas
Top tellyModern Family won five Emmys
Swimsuit fabricOuter garments will be made from it, apparently, in a fashion craze that is a little bit scary
Monday night shoppingEasy parking, no queues, and sometimes colossal bargains – masses of fresh produce on sale for 20c in M&S Blackrock in Dublin last Monday night
WHAT’S NOT
Rushdie on Twitter17,000 followers in five days, but we're still waiting for a meaningful 140 characters
The September dilemmaIt's neither hot nor cold. What can you wear?
"How much did you have?"The first question to those tracking their food intake with Weightwatchers Online, and enough to chill the blood
'Downton Abbey'Downer Abbey, more like it. A big disappointment, and all done before. Watch Matthew's young wife die of Spanish flu in a couple of episodes, just like Hazel Bellamy did in Upstairs Downstairs (1970-75)
"The carry-on in Fianna Fáil,"Thus rather brilliantly characterised by RTÉ's David Davin-Power, and he's not wrong
Roadworks everywhere at this time of yearAren't they all meant to be finished by the end of the summer?
NespressoHow come it takes two capsules to get a decent hit?
Sing yourself silly
Sing Along Cinema presents Saturday Night Fever, a sort-of interactive karoke with pictures that offers fun with a capital F. It's a pre-Halloween excuse to dress up and touch base with your silly side. Sing-along to the subtitles and heckle key dialogue moments. Expect dancing in the aisles, great classic disco and a grand finale invasion of the stage. The place is wall-to-wall girls. Gentlemen, rent a white suit now. Tonight, 8pm at the Sugar Club, 8 Leeson Street, Dublin 2. See thesugarclub.com; tickets €10 on the door.
Alanna Gallagher
Remember these?
‘Six at the Table’ is a tasty little read for anyone who remembers when Snickers were called Marathons and banana and jam was a perfectly legitimate sandwich filling. Sheila Maher chews on her Dublin childhood through the technicolour prism of 1970s gastronomic experiences, eating fistfuls of Moondust during the pope’s visit, and watching her dad assemble his trademark raw-onion sandwiches. The descriptions are spot-on: Sago milk pudding is “clear, softened beads, like frogspawn” while her memory of the “simple, softness of an unadorned Gollybar” makes you wistful for that politically incorrect blue paper-wrapped ice cream. The 1970s staple meatloaf gets its own chapter, which is only right and proper, although she doesn’t mention the cold meatloaf sandwiches some of us had to take to school. It’s probably the only omission in this charming and mouthwatering memoir. The book is published by Blackstaff Press, €7.99.
Róisín Ingle
Book a date with Rachlin
The Lithuania-born violinist Julian Rachlin has the talent to enthral classic music and football fans alike. This summer he opened for FC Barcelona in Split, Croatia. On Friday, October 7th, the violin virtuoso and conductor performs directs and conducts the RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra in Strings Aloud at the National Concert Hall. Often called the Bono of the classical musical world for his work with Unicef as a goodwill ambassador, it is his leading-man looks and goosebump-creating stagecraft that will make this a night to remember. Tickets cost from €10. Doors at 8pm. See rte.ie/nationalsymphonyorchestra.
Allana Gallagher
Take the family to Bundoran for European surfing
Bundoran, that bastion of country and Irish music weekends for the over-55s, is also the self-proclaimed surf capital of Ireland. From tomorrow the town hosts Eurosurf, the European Surfing Championships. Shauna Ward, Easkey Britton and Cain Kilcullen are the ones to watch on the Irish team, says Aidan Browne of Bundoran Surf Co.
The Bridge Bar, where the waveriders congregate, is at the heart of the action. Its upstairs room offers great surf views, creamy pints of plain and gorgeous pub grub. BB accommodation in a dorm bed at Bundoran Surf Co costs €20, while double rooms are €25 pps.
Bundoran is also great for children. The allure of the amusements is ongoing and kids can play safe in the surf at Budoran Waterworld. Weekend rates at the Great Northern Hotel (071-9841204, greatnorthernhotel.com) are €360 BB for two nights for two adults and two children under 12. At the Allingham Arms (071-9841075, allinghamarmshotel.ie), two nights BB for two adults and two children under 15 costs €260. See discoverbundoran.com.
Allana Gallagher
Drouhin dinner at The Merrion
The Irish Timesis pleased to offer readers an exclusive winemaker dinner, hosted by Véronique Drouhin, of the Burgundy house Joseph Drouhin. The meal has been chosen to accompany eight wines, including two vintages of the legendary Beaune Clos des Mouches Blanc, Le Montrachet Marquis de Laguiche 2004, Drouhin Oregon Pinot Noir and Grand Cru Clos Vougeot from the legendary 1999 vintage. The tasting will take place in The Merrion Hotel on Thursday, October 6th at 7.30pm. The cost per person, to include a three-course meal plus coffee, is €120. Places will be reserved on a first-come, first-served basis. Register for your place online at irishtimes.com/winetasting.
John Wilson
WORD ON THE STREET
Humble Brag
What it means: "Oh no, apparently I'm favourite to win the best actor Oscar – what if I mess up my acceptance speech?" This is a humble brag – a big, fat boast dressed up in a very skimpy layer of humility. Humble bragging is a none-too-subtle way of blowing your own trumpet while trying to appear all modest and self-deprecating.
Where it comes from:Social networks are not just for keeping in touch with your friends, you know. They're also great for making your mates envious of your fabulous life. Humble bragging allows you to lord it over everybody else online while coming across like a regular, insecure person. Comedy writer Harold Wittels was so irritated by all the humble bragging on Twitter, he created a hashtag, #humblebrag. It includes such gems as "At rehearsals for @goldenglobes. Practising not tripping or swearing" and "I just stepped on gum. Who spits gum on a red carpet?"
How to say it: "OMG, my tweet about Bono giving me advice on dealing with fame has just won humble brag of the year! Really, folks, I don't deserve it."
Kevin Courtney
Get your dancing shoes on for a London weekend: Degas awaits
Want to treat someone to a trip to London ?The Stafford London hotel by Kempinski (00-44-207493-0111, kempinski.com/London) on St James's Place is a short stroll from Buckingham Palace and a short dance from the Royal Academy of Arts where Degas and the Ballet: Picturing Movement explores the Impressionist's obsession with the dancers. While Degas's subjects lived in relative penury, there's no reason why you should. Luxuriate in style with BB, two tickets to the exhibition and afternoon tea costing €539 for two people at the five-star establishment. Repair to the Lyttelton Lounge and discuss draughtsmanship and dancers over finger sandwiches. The fitness regime can wait until you get back home. The exhibition runs until December 11th.
Alanna Gallagher
In through the bunny hole . . .
Knitting cast off its fusty image long ago and chunky knits of all hues could be seen on the catwalk in London last week, but for all the talk about stitch and bitch clubs, and celebrities seen plying their needles on movie sets, very few of us actually know how to knit.
That could be about to change if Amanda Pratt of Avoca has her way. She's the brainchild behind the Knitting Bus project, which aims to get children knitting – with a little help from the older generation.
The idea is this: a double-decker bus, which is bursting with everything the knitter needs, including rainbows of wool and simple patterns by knitwear designer Aideen Bodkin, will travel around the country calling to primary schools. Local volunteers, many of them grannies with knitting in their DNA, will give lessons from the bus.
Knitting the Generations Together will draw on the experience of more than 1,000 older volunteers who are part of Third Age, a voluntary organisation promoting the value of older people in local communities. President McAleese was the first to board the bus at its launch this week and now more than 150 primary schools have already signed up. For more information see thirdageireland.ie.
