A weekly edit of brands with products to look out for at Showcase 2024 including art prints, artisan bathing and shaving products and handmade glass lighting.
Karen Wilson Art
Karen Wilson has been a professional artist for over 30 years, working from her studio in the picturesque seaside town of Skerries, just north of Dublin. In 2014 Wilson opened her gallery and studio in the courtyard of a restored 15th Century watermill in the Skerries Mills Heritage Centre. The artist works with a palette knife in oils, capturing the magic of her subject in an expressive style. Her paintings feature thick buttery splashes of colour and texture, inspired by the magnificent beaches and rolling hills on her doorstep in Ireland’s Ancient East.
Wilson has developed a range of limited edition prints of her original paintings. Showcase 2024 will see the launch of a new line of printed items inspired by her wildflower meadow paintings. The collection will include limited edition prints, greeting cards, exquisite silk scarves and luxurious cotton blankets - each designed to capture the essence of Wilson's trademark floral paintings.
Find Karen Wilson Art at Stand L39 in the Local Enterprise Showcase.
Clarke's of Dublin
Soap is a passion at Clarke’s of Dublin where founder Suzanne Clarke combines creative flair with the best local ingredients to create handmade soaps, shaving products and candles. Her recipes employ seaweed from Ireland’s Wild Atlantic Way, beeswax from the royal county of Meath and gorse from the Hill of Howth. Such local ingredients are combined with olive and coconut oils, eco soy wax and quality essential oils to create luxurious products which elevate the everyday.
Clarke was recently an Artist in Residence at the Centre Culturel Irlandais in Paris with thanks to DCCI. Her research there was on perfume making in Paris and Grasse - the UNSECO heritage site and historic home of perfume making in France. She also recently collaborated with Foxford to create the Foxford Relaxing Pillow with lavender and mint utilising offcuts of material from the production of Foxford’s premium wool throws - thus creating a luxurious wellness product while minimising waste.
Some key products to expect at Showcase next month include Clarke’s Foraging Candle scented with lemon and neroli essential oils and the Badger Shaving Brush with hand-turned ash handle made in collaboration with Irish craftsman Johnny McCarty from wind fallen wood. The brush comes as part of a set with Clarke’s Cedarwood and Seaweed shaving soap and was inspired by childhood memories of her own father shaving.
Find Clarke's of Dublin at Stand C26 in the DCCI Area.
Wildbird Studio
Wildbird Studio was founded by Alison Byrne in 2016. Based in Dublin, Byrne produces a range of home and giftware, jewellery and lighting. Her products are made using various glass techniques including stained glass, fusing and flameworking. Sustainability is a key consideration for this maker - many of her products utilise recycled or waste materials and all of her packaging is recycled, recyclable or compostable.
As well as producing her own range of designs, Byrne also works on private commissions and personal artistic projects; she has served on the board of the Glass Society of Ireland from 2018 to 2023 and was the Vice Chairperson between 2020 and 2023. We love her lighting and plant holders as well as her petite wallflower frames with pressed flowers.
Find Wildbird Studio at Stand C50 in the DCCI Area.
