Irish crochet Lace - My story
Crochet has been a huge part of my family history for generations. My grandmother Eileen O'Leary, a noted Irish needle worker taught me to crochet from the age of seven (now 30) and I've been "hooked" since. I now crochet freestyle, mostly fine crochet jewellery, formal bags, purses, lace gloves, headpieces and other accessories.
I find inspiration online, from antique books and from a vast collection of antique crochet that was left to me by my grandmother. One of the pieces left to me is a crochet lace wedding dress which my Grandmother wore for her wedding in September 1959. The entire outfit and two bridesmaids dresses were crocheted and made up by my great grandmother an I got to wear it for my wedding in 2012.
I've been crochetting for over 20 years but have only started to make lace and use traditional Irish crochet lace techniques for the last 8 years. Most of my pieces are one offs as I never follow a pattern however I am currently writing all of my designs and doing graph patterns which will be for sale here soon.
I feel I can help grow this craft and appreciation for the skill in Ireland. On my website I encourage people to appreciate Irish crochet lace as it is rare and valuable—an object to be handled with care. If you have a piece of lace lying around or in the attic and are looking for some advice just email me at livinoffthehook [!at] gmail.com with a picture or description and I will be happy to offer you some advice
