In pursuit of excellence: This is a heartening tale: Eveleen Coyle, widely-known and respected in the publishing world, has set about a career change by creating a new company, Fabulous Food Trails, to celebrate the fast-growing number of artisan food producers around the country.
She has long been passionate about food, editing a number of important Irish cookery books over the years as well as penning one of her own, devoted to the potato. Now, with her cousin Pamela Coyle (above left), she will take small groups of up to 12 on jaunts to meet producers and craftspeople, staying at hand-picked places and eating at top tables. Their first trip, at the end of June, will be to the south-east; Galway and Connemara are also on the agenda. They will be organising fishing and foraging expeditions as well as demonstrations and, having spent the past six months scouring the countryside, are very excited by the innovative work they have discovered, much of it as yet unsung. Sounds very inviting to hit the trail with them. Contact les Coyles at 01-4971245, or visit www.fabulousfoodtrails.ie.
Patsey Murphy
DOGSBODY
Having a dog is very rewarding, but it's also a lot of hard work - especially when it comes to making sure your pet gets enough exercise. Luckily, help is at hand for dog lovers who can't make it to the park with their pooch. Houndabout Town is the brainchild of former cook Emma Duckworth, and it provides experienced dog walkers who will take your canine chum for a stroll at a time of your choosing. And if you're going to be away for a few days, Houndabout Town will not only call in and take care of your pet (canine or otherwise), they'll also look after your house. A regular walk on a weekday costs €14.50. For more information, check out her website, www.houndabouttown.com, or call Emma on 085-1531394. Anna Carey
BIRTHDAY FOR BURMA
This month Nobel Peace Prize-winner and Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi celebrates her 60th birthday. On Thursday, the Amnesty shop and cafe will celebrate it with a "Burma Cafe Night". They will collect birthday messages and serve up Indian and Burmese food such as spicy coconut noodle soup. Damien Rice recently visited Burma - officially known as Myanmar - and is also releasing a single, Unplayed Piano, a tribute to the imprisoned pro-democracy leader. Messages will also be collected in the shop for Aung San Suu Kyi on the following Friday and Saturday. Burma Cafe Night, Thursday, June 9th, 7pm-10pm, Amnesty International Shop and Cafe, Fleet Street, Dublin 2.
Nicoline Greer
LOOM WITH A VIEW
In 2002, six artists who preferred to wield a loom rather than a paintbrush joined together to start Weaving Works. Linda Brindley, Tish Canniffe, Pascale De Coninck, Frances Leach, Dóri O'Connell and Heather Underwood all use the ancient technique to produce stunning, richly textured works of art. From abstract pieces to detailed representations of the Irish countryside, you'll be surprised at what a loom can do. Their latest work, Echoing Green, will be exhibited in the Courtyard Gallery, Midleton, Co Cork, July 1st-14th.
Anna Carey
METALS AND PETALS
Bronze ladies will be lurking in the Clonlea Studios in Blackrock this week, courtesy of Irish sculptor Linda Brunker, and Welsh sculptor David Williams Ellis, whose work is pictured right. They are among 40 Irish and international artists who will be exhibiting a wide range of work as part of Sculptures and Gardens, an indoor and outdoor exhibition. Timber, glass, steel and bronze will be used to create figurative and abstract pieces. The show is organised by the Solomon Gallery in the Powerscourt Townhouse Centre, which also currently has an exhibition of botanically inspired paintings. Sculpture and Gardens runs at Clonlea Studios, off Sydney Avenue, Blackrock, Dublin from Thursday, June 9th until June 26th. Free tours and lectures on Saturday afternoons. For details, contact the Solomon Gallery, 01-6794237.
Nicoline Greer
CLOG TEACHS
"They are as pure an expression of geometry as architecture can offer," writes Hector McDonnell in the introduction to his latest book, Irish Round Towers, a light-hearted, illustrated account of what he describes as these "enigmatic" relics of early Irish monasticism. The Irish for a round tower, he points out, is clog teach, a bell house, and these impressive strongholds, of which 73 remain (some over 30m, or 98.5ft, high), were part of monastic sites and built to be seen - and heard - from afar. A small dinner bell rung from a clog teach's window could be heard half a mile away. A pocket-sized paperback, Irish Round Towers is a veritable tour de force, linking the origin of Irish round towers to minarets, Roman lighthouses and the city of Ravenna. It is illustrated with rare early engravings, interspersed with humorous line drawings by McDonnell, a well-known painter and historian. "The towering tome" as he puts it, includes a gazetteer of Irish round towers. NB to publishers; get Irish place names right, please. Ballina not Ballyna; Co Clare, not Co Claire. Published by Wooden Books, £4.99 (in UK).
Deirdre McQuillan
FRAGRANT FEMME PHONE
Mobile phone handsets have become everyday fashion accessories, but the latest Siemens CL75 has a distinctly feminine look and is the first designed specifically for and by women. It's a clamshell-style phone, decorated with a floral motif in keeping with current fashion trends. The screen doubles as a mirror when inactive, making it more like a powder compact than a mobile phone. Best of all, Siemens has marked its launch by creating a bespoke perfume "inspired by the phone". The CL75 is small and light, weighing 90 grams, has a digital video camera with zoom and an 11 megabyte memory. You could even wear it around your neck, along with the perfume it inspired.
Deirdre McQuillan