Stroll, stop and shop for Irish design

Spring sunshine makes being outdoors a joy on early weekend mornings, so if you find yourself in Dublin city centre and feel like a stroll, stop and shop, Cow’s Lane is once again home to the Designer Mart in Temple Bar, Dublin 2.

The market reopened last weekend, and each Saturday, from 10am to 5pm, 20-odd artisans will have their wares on display. Given that this is the year of craft, there will also be a series of workshops in association with the Crafts Council of Ireland. Among those touting their wares will be the Printing Rooms, and its range of fine-art prints, Trinketbox jewellery and Colm De Rís pottery (below left).

Another craft initiative is underway over at the Royal Hibernian Academy on Ely Place, off Stephen’s Green. The gallery is hosting a series of pop-up shops from up-and-coming creatives – a snappy complement to the gallery’s diverse art collections. Irish Design Shop has just finished its stint in the RHA and set the bar high. It turned the glassy corner shop into a treasure trove of affordable, arty objects, from mugs and prints to jewellery and lamps – check out its selection at irishdesignshop.com.

Now it is the turn of Jenny Walsh Design (right) and James Carroll Furniture, who will be stuffing the space full of their hand-crafted bespoke furniture, some of which looks good enough to be in the gallery itself. See royalhibernianacademy.ie for further details.

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