Spotsolas an Domhnaigh 💫 Textile artist and milliner Svitlana Savelieva recently brought her creativity to Limerick School of Art and Design (LSAD), where she facilitated a hands-on workshop for art students. Titled “Cowboy Hat & Circus Fun”, the workshop invited students to explore millinery, textiles and creative expression, sharing Svitlana’s techniques and encouraging them to discover their own creative energy. 🎪🤠 Created in collaboration with The Edge, the iconic vintage shop at Limerick’s Milk Market, the workshop marked Svitlana’s 16th creative workshop in Ireland over the past three years. A brilliant celebration of making, imagination and the next generation of Irish artists ✨

Meet the maker - Diana Skalkos ⁠ Working in ceramics, Cork-born artist Diana Skalkos creates work rooted in memory, imagination and a deep connection to the Irish landscape. After studying ceramics and sculpture in London, her practice continues to evolve through a lifelong curiosity and love of learning.⁠ ⁠ Inspired by a childhood spent barefoot in fields, surrounded by ferns, dogs and wildlife, Diana explores our relationship with nature, memory and place through her work.⁠ ⁠ ✨ Discover Diana’s vision for a contemporary Irish folk art celebrating the women of Ireland today while honouring the generations who came before them.⁠ ⁠ 👉 Read the full interview via the link here- bit.ly/3TN7X0k

🔥 Heat. Skill. Patience. Precision. Every piece in ‘Of Sand & Ash’ begins with a material that demands attention and makers who know how to push it to its limits. Step inside the world of contemporary Irish glassmaking and discover the techniques, experiments and ideas behind the finished works. What looks effortless often takes years of practice. 📍 National Design & Craft Gallery, Kilkenny 📅 6 August – 24 October 2026 🎟 Free admission Come behind the scenes of the making and see the craft for yourself. 🔗 Find out more via the link in our bio. 📸: Madeleine Hellier 'Illumnating the Marginalised, Series Beasts I-VII

📣 We’re hiring! We’re currently recruiting for two exciting opportunities with DCCI: 🎓 Craft & Education Assistant Supporting course logistics, tutor liaison, academy readiness, registrations, events and education programmes. 📍 DCCI Academies, Thomastown, Kilkenny 📅 Closing date: 16 October 2026, 12 noon 🎨Commercial Programmes Co-ordinator Supporting commercial programmes, events, content, reporting and creating opportunities for Irish makers and designers. 📍 National Design & Craft Gallery, Kilkenny 📅 Closing date: 14 October 2026, 12 noon ✨ Explore these career opportunities and find out how to apply via the link here- bit.ly/3Vu62yt

👏 How can we celebrate the best of contemporary design? Which projects will matter in fifty years? 👏 The Irish Design Excellence Awards (IDEA) is a new initiative and collaborative creation of the Design & Crafts Council Ireland (DCCI) and the National Museum of Ireland (NMI). It showcases projects nominated by Ireland’s leading design organisations and selected for their design excellence, innovation, impact, and cultural and national significance. IDEA offers a unique snapshot of contemporary Irish creativity and highlights the contribution design makes to Ireland’s cultural, social, and economic life. Projects are evaluated according to: 🔵 Cultural and National Significance 🔴 Design Excellence ⚪ Innovation ⚫ Impact 🟡 Contemporary Relevance We will announce the shortlist of candidates for the inaugural award next week, with an exhibition to follow next month. 📆 Saturday, November 7th — runs until January 23rd, 2027 ⏰ 3pm (opening) 📍 National Design & Craft Gallery, Kilkenny 🎟️ Free Irish Design Week 2026 is brought to you by Design & Crafts Council Ireland. #IrishDesignWeek2026 #IDW2026 #IDEA

🇮🇪 Explore the connections between Ireland and The Netherlands through design, culture and creative practice. 🇳🇱 Join Dr Linda King, curator of the current National Print Museum exhibition Come Fly With Me: Aviation, Tourism and Irish Design, in conversation with Declan Stone of The Stone Twins, an award-winning creative brand consultancy based in Amsterdam. ✈️ Come Fly With Me uses flight as a central thread to explore how design and print helped promote Irish modernisation and position Ireland internationally — a story spearheaded in part by a number of influential Dutch graphic designers. 🌍 📆 Monday, November 9 ⏰ 6pm 📍 National Print Museum, Dublin 🎟️ Free — no booking required Irish Design Week 2026 is brought to you by Design & Crafts Council Ireland. #IrishDesignWeek2026 #IDW2026

❓ What could AI become when communities help shape it from the start? Join designer Nathan Costello for a talk on Simulated Storytelling, a critical design project reimagining the Irish storyteller as a social robot. Using research through design, it was developed in collaboration with the community of Camp on the Dingle Peninsula, through fieldwork and staged storytelling sessions with local residents, a traditional musician and a practising seanchaí. Responding to our theme of 🇮🇪 ‘Fáilte Future Europe’ 🇪🇺, Costello says, “Fáilte sits at the heart of that question. The seanchaí tradition was built on welcome, with stories told in homes where anyone could walk in. The project carries that spirit into how AI is designed.” 🤖 A live storytelling session with the robot follows the talk. 📆 Monday November 9 ⏰ 6.30pm 📍The Harry Clarke, Lecture Theatre, NCAD, Dublin. 🎟️ Free (unticketed) Sponsored by National College of Art and Design Irish Design Week 2026 is brought to you by Design & Crafts Council Ireland. #IrishDesignWeek2026 #IDW2026

Spotsolas an Domhnaigh 💫⁠ ⁠ Artist Helen Duncan has been selected as an exhibiting artist for the RUA 145th Annual Exhibition, with her sculpture What Remains featured in this year’s exhibition.⁠ ⁠ The exhibition opens with Artists’ Reception & Varnishing Day at the Ulster Museum, Belfast on Saturday 17 October, from 10am–5pm.⁠ ⁠ Discover Helen’s work and explore What Remains as part of this landmark annual exhibition ✨⁠

Karolina Di Duca is a Polish-born visual mixed media artist and graphic designer based in Ireland, with a passion for colour, texture and storytelling through art.⁠ ⁠ Inspired by people, nature and everyday moments, Karolina finds creativity in the details we often overlook - from landscapes and conversations to interesting fabrics and colours spotted on a walk.⁠ ⁠ ✨ Discover the inspirations, ideas and creative moments behind Karolina's artistic practice.⁠ ⁠ 👉 Read the full interview via the link here- bit.ly/4z40hG2

"💡Proper Dark is an immersive encounter enlightening human imagination. Artist and industrial designer Anthony McCarthy, explores the relationship between light, darkness, movement, time and perception and asks a simple question, “What might we discover if we stop rushing past things and give ourselves time to look?” Responding to our theme of 🇮🇪 ‘Fáilte Future Europe’ 🇪🇺 Proper Dark welcomes the future by brings together Irish art, industrial design, hand-built making, light, geometry and experimentation to create something that is contemporary, accessible and experiential. 📆 Saturday November 7 & Sunday 8 ⏰ 10am - 5pm (11am on Sunday) 📍Butler Gallery, Kilkenny 🎟️ Free Irish Design Week 2026 is brought to you by Design & Crafts Council Ireland #IrishDesignWeek2026 #IDW2026"

✨ Look closer. There’s more to glass than meets the eye. From molten material to meticulously finished forms, ‘Of Sand & Ash’ invites you to discover the skill, experimentation and imagination behind contemporary Irish glassmaking. See how makers transform sand, ash, heat and time into pieces that challenge expectations of what glass can be. 👀 What will catch your eye? 📍 National Design & Craft Gallery, Kilkenny 📅 6 August – 24 October 2026 🎟 Free admission Come in, take your time and see the exhibition up close. 🔗 Find out more via the link here- bit.ly/4h4p1GI 📸: Fiona O'Doherty with her pieces 'Everyone Had A Mammy Once', 'OK, I Resign'

"⚡️ Our programme highlights for the festival this year which is united by the theme 🇮🇪 Fáilte Future Europe 🇪🇺 include: 💥 November 7th – Irish Design Excellence Award Exhibition, Kilkenny: Celebrating outstanding contemporary Irish design across multiple disciplines. 💥 November 9th – Design & Craft Conference, Dublin: Exploring authenticity, craftsmanship and human creativity in an increasingly artificial world. 💥 November 10th – Ireland’s Design History: From Arts and Crafts to AI, Dublin: Exploring Ireland’s design heritage and its digital future. 💥 November 11th – Design Futures in Heritage Craft, Dublin: Examining how traditional skills can be preserved and developed. 💥 November 11th – Irish Business Design Challenge Awards, Dublin: Rewarding and promoting sustainable Irish businesses. 💥 November 12th – European Creative Industries Summit, Dublin: Exploring how creativity can help address Europe’s defining challenges. Programme now available at bit.ly/3Tr5eJq Irish Design Week 2026 is brought to you by Design & Crafts Council Ireland #IrishDesignWeek2026 #IDW2026

Best of luck to everyone at the Irish Made Awards tonight! ✨ We’re proud to sponsor the Local Retailer Award at the Irish Made Awards, celebrating the independent shops and store owners who bring Irish-made products to their communities and play such an important role in local economies across Ireland. 🛍️❤️ Here’s to the makers, retailers and businesses championing Irish design, craft and creativity every day. Have a brilliant night! ✨

✨ A closer look at the art of glassmaking. ‘Of Sand & Ash’ brings together the work of contemporary Irish glassmakers, exploring the possibilities of a material that can be both delicate and bold, traditional and experimental. From intricate craftsmanship to striking contemporary forms, discover the stories, techniques and ideas shaping glassmaking in Ireland today. 📍 National Design & Craft Gallery, Kilkenny 📅 6 August – 24 October 2026 🎟 Free admission Come and see glass in a whole new light. ✨ 📸 : Michelle Ryan 'Late Spring/ Early Summer' 🔗 Find out more via the link here- bit.ly/4xCZKtX

Got big news? 👀 Launched something new? 🚀 Won an award? 🏆 Opened an exhibition? 🎨 Hit a creative milestone? 💥 We want to hear about it! Share your good news with us and you could be featured across our social channels. 📣✨ 📸 : Kilkee Forge 🔗 Submit your story via the link here- bit.ly/40y33F7

Your craft. Your story. Your moment. We want to hear about what inspires you, your process, and what makes your work unique. 💫 🎨 Share your story. Showcase your craft. Reach a wider audience through our meet the maker opportunity You could be featured across our e-zine, website and social channels! 🔗 Submit your story today via the link here- bit.ly/4hDAhbz 📸 : Flower Child

See glass in a whole new light. ✨ From traditional techniques to bold new approaches, ‘Of Sand & Ash’ showcases the incredible diversity of contemporary glassmaking in Ireland. 📍 National Design & Craft Gallery, Kilkenny 📅 6 August – 24 October 2026 🎟 Free admission Visit the link here to learn more- bit.ly/4h4p1GI

🚨 Only 2 spots left! 🚨 Join us at DCCI Academy for a five-day workshop exploring the art of anticlastic raising with internationally recognised jeweller, sculptor and metalsmith Michael Good. Learn directly from a leading practitioner as you transform flat sheet metal into sculptural, three-dimensional forms through hands-on exercises, demonstrations and individual projects. 📅 22–26 October 2026 📍 DCCIA Jewellery & Goldsmithing, Thomastown, Co. Kilkenny ⏰ Just 2 spots remaining - don’t miss out! 👉 Book now via the link here- bit.ly/4yjusJ2

✨ We were delighted to have Catherine Phibbs from the Irish Grown Wool Council join us at our GANS meeting at DCCI HQ in Kilkenny. Catherine presented a limited-edition print publication of the Irish Grown Wool Almanac to Mary Blanchfield, CEO, DCCI; for inclusion in the David Shaw-Smith Library. 📖 The publication raises the visibility of those contributing to Ireland’s grown wool sector, while also serving as a practical tool to help people connect with one another - whether to source, purchase or collaborate. The Irish Grown Wool Almanac is available to download for free here- bit.ly/4Aeyown Produced by Future Island in March 2026 in association with the Irish Grown Wool Council, the publication was created to celebrate Ireland’s hosting of EWE’s European Wool Day 2026 Conference & Events. 🐑