
Erin go baaa: Woolly map of Ireland seeks home
And, in case you think it was made by a crowd of knitwits, the map was created in Co. Wicklow by a group of up to 18 women skilled in knitting, sewing and crochet.
They started the project in 2019 before work paused during the pandemic and resumed again in late 2022. The women met every Wednesday at Carnew Community Care centre, where they came up with ideas of landmarks and historical sites across the island that they could knit together. Pic: Niall Carson/PA Wire
While 18 people started off the project, three of the women died over the years, and two others went into nursing homes. The youngest member of the group is 65, while the eldest is soon to turn 90. Group member Mary Blake said that after creating a number of other woollen projects, a member of the community centre suggested knitting a map of Ireland.
The woollen map project quickly took off and now features prominent landmarks and sites across the island, including Glendalough, Croagh Patrick, the Phoenix Park, the Giant's Causeway and Fungie the Dolphin. By the time it was complete, it measured 12ft by 11ft.
Ms Blake said: 'We all decided which bits would represent areas of significance and we put it all together like a jigsaw. We covered the whole of Ireland in green squares, all different shades of green, before we started doing any of the knitting. Pic: Niall Carson/PA Wire
'Then we started with Leinster, and somebody said, 'I'll do Mount Leinster', and someone else started on Hook Head, and different people did different parts. We worked together on everything. Most of it took place in Carnew Community Care, which is a centre for older people.
'We meet every Wednesday morning and whatever we don't get finished, we bring home the bits to get done. We started in 2019, and then Covid came and put a stop to that. So we couldn't get wool, and we couldn't meet either.
'We got back together at the end of 2022, but we'd lost a few people in the meantime, during Covid. We lost one of our members, Margaret [Dowse], so decided to add bits in to represent her life close to the Shannon. Pic: Niall Carson/PA Wire
'We couldn't do something to represent every county, but we did places like Glendalough, the Japanese Gardens, a Viking ship, the Guinness gate, Phoenix Park, and Dublin Zoo. We also have Harland and Wolff, the Titanic ship with parts of it sinking, Theresa's cottage in Donegal, the Ulster Museum… and we have loads of animals in it, the Giant's Causeway made out of Smarties boxes.
'We have lots of fishermen, the Aran Islands, windmills, Croagh Patrick, Galway Races, the best dressed lady, the Shannon, Sherkin Island, Blarney Castle, and Fungie,' she said.
'One of our ladies is going to be 90 next year and I'd say the youngest person we have is over 65.' She added: 'It gives people a purpose. We also knit blankets for local hospitals.'
Ms Blake said they would like to see it on public display.
'We don't really mind, whoever wants it is welcome to have it, but we would love to see it in a public place, somewhere that it can be viewed and give everybody an opportunity to see it. We're open to whoever wants to take it,' she said.
One of the members, Ann Edwards, said it was a fun experience. 'I have lots of favourites, but I think Hook Head and the Viking ship are particularly nice and colourful and great to work on,' she said. Fungi the Dolphin from Dingle which features on a knitted map of Ireland in Carnew Community Care centre in Carnew Co. Wicklow. The 12 foot by 11 foot wool map of Ireland, which took four years of knitting and crocheting to complete, is in search of a new home to go on public display. Picture date: Monday July 14, 2025. PA Photo. Photo credit should read: Niall Carson/PA Wire Some of the knitters in Carnew Community Care centre in Carnew Co. Wicklow, with their knitted Map of Ireland. The 12 foot by 11 foot wool map of Ireland, which took four years of knitting and crocheting to complete, is in search of a new home to go on public display. Picture date: Monday July 14, 2025. PA Photo. Photo credit should read: Niall Carson/PA Wire The Giant's Causeway in Co Antrim made from boxes of Smarties sweets, which features on a knitted map of Ireland in Carnew Community Care centre in Carnew Co. Wicklow. The 12 foot by 11 foot wool map of Ireland, which took four years of knitting and crocheting to complete, is in search of a new home to go on public display. Picture date: Monday July 14, 2025. PA Photo. Photo credit should read: Niall Carson/PA Wire Mary Blake points to a boat in memory of Margaret Dowse who passed away during the creation of her group's knitted map of Ireland in Carnew Community Care centre in Carnew Co. Wicklow. The 12 foot by 11 foot wool map of Ireland, which took four years of knitting and crocheting to complete, is in search of a new home to go on public display. Picture date: Monday July 14, 2025. PA Photo. Photo credit should read: Niall Carson/PA Wire Hook Head lighthouse which features on a knitted map of Ireland in Carnew Community Care centre in Carnew Co. Wicklow. The 12 foot by 11 foot wool map of Ireland, which took four years of knitting and crocheting to complete, is in search of a new home to go on public display. Picture date: Monday July 14, 2025. PA Photo. Photo credit should read: Niall Carson/PA Wire A stone tower from Glendalough in Co Wicklow which features on a knitted map of Ireland in Carnew Community Care centre in Carnew Co. Wicklow. The 12 foot by 11 foot wool map of Ireland, which took four years of knitting and crocheting to complete, is in search of a new home to go on public display. Picture date: Monday July 14, 2025. PA Photo. Photo credit should read: Niall Carson/PA Wire
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Irish Times
13 hours ago
- Irish Times
Rare sighting of humpback whale in Donegal Bay caught on camera
Locals in Dungloe have nicknamed a local abandoned housing estate as "the Titanic", as it has been sinking since being completed in 2007. Video: Joe Dunne


Irish Daily Mirror
2 days ago
- Irish Daily Mirror
Education Minister defends length of school summer holidays in Ireland
The Education Minister has defended the length of schools' summer holidays, saying they offer people a chance to "take a break". Helen McEntee acknowledged that it was a challenge for parents in need of childcare, and any decision on changing the length of the school year would require a considered approach. There has been some commentary in recent weeks that the length of the school holidays – three months for secondary schools and two months for primary – are out of date, as Ireland has some of the longest school breaks in Europe. Visiting a Clondalkin primary school on Thursday, where children were taking part in a summer programme for two weeks, Ms McEntee said: "I'm here in a school where you have principals, teachers, SNAs, who are working and supporting children throughout the summer. "We've always had a particular time period for school holidays. "What we find, particularly for our secondary schools, is that they're actually coming back earlier now, in August, so the Leaving Cert results will be out from the 22nd, some students are actually in that week and, in fact, the following week is when a lot of schools are coming back. "Our teachers work hard, our schools are very active throughout the year. I think the time that's taken throughout the summer gives everybody a chance to take a break." A view of the summer programme at St Mary's Junior National School in Clondalkin, Dublin. It features baking, literacy and outdoor classes for students over the summer break. Picture date: Thursday July 24, 2025. PA Photo. Photo credit should read: Grainne Ni Aodha/PA Wire The children at St Mary's Junior National School learn literacy and numerical skills, and how to bake, as part of the summer programme, which gives educational support to children, including those with special educational needs. They can also paint in the school's outdoor wooden classroom, called the sun room, which was funded by the Arts Council. Ms McEntee said 1,800 schools are taking part in the summer programme this year, including 80 special schools, a 16 per cent increase on last year. Asked if the activity of the summer programme suggested the summer break was too long, she said the programme initially began "with a particular emphasis on special education". "For children with additional needs, to have that structure and to have that focus, is really, really important. 'And I think there was an acknowledgement that to have that extra support throughout the summer is something that would be hugely beneficial, not just for the students, but also for the parents. "It's obviously since expanded, it's not just a focus on special schools or additional needs, it's a focus on our DEIS schools, making sure that where children – and it's not all children that access the programme – but if there is that need there to have that extra support, that structure throughout the summer, it's there. Education Minister Helen McEntee (left) and junior minister Emer Higgins (centre) during a visit to the summer programme at St Mary's Junior National School in Clondalkin, Dublin. It features baking, literacy and outdoor classes for students over the summer break. Picture date: Thursday July 24, 2025. PA Photo. Photo credit should read: Grainne Ni Aodha/PA Wire "It's also fun. "I do acknowledge, I have to say, the challenges for parents when it comes to childcare, when it comes to the fact that in many households you have both parents working now full time, so the summer does pose challenges. "But you know, I think any changes to summer breaks, any changes to holidays, that's something that would always have to be considered in engagement and consultation with schools, with teachers, with parents, with families overall." Ms McEntee also announced a National Convention on Education, to inform a long-term strategy for primary and secondary education in Ireland. Professor Anne Looney, who will chair the convention, said in a statement she was looking forward to being involved in ensuring "we give our learners and those who work with them the best opportunities to flourish and succeed." Subscribe to our newsletter for the latest news from the Irish Mirror direct to your inbox: Sign up here.

Irish Times
2 days ago
- Irish Times
Cyprus wildfires: 'We'll no longer have this paradise'
Locals in Dungloe have nicknamed a local abandoned housing estate as "the Titanic", as it has been sinking since being completed in 2007. Video: Joe Dunne