HALF of the orders placed at Showcase Ireland, the craft, gift and classical fashion fair which runs until Wednesday at the RDS, Ballsbridge, Dublin, will be in exports. They are expected to reach £12 million this year.
Within minutes of opening, Irish Dresden was announcing it had completed an order for 2,000 of its porcelain figurines, worth £205,000 for the company which employs 50 in Limerick. This was the culmination of many months work with Takara Ltd in Tokyo. But the Fair was the springboard. Eleven thousand buyers are predicted, and the organisers know for certain 1,600 will be coming from abroad. The Minister for Enterprise and Employment, Mr Bruton, had the pleasant job of declaring it open. By noon on Sunday it was packed, with most, if not all, 11,000 buyers there.
This is the 21st Showcase, and, as Ms Terry Kelly, chairwoman of the Crafts Council of Ireland, said, the industry is set for a buoyant year ahead with the 600 exhibitions from all over Ireland confident they can outdo last year's sales total figure of £17.2 million. There is a lot of good feeling about the 336 full time, and 189 part time, jobs created last year.
The Craft Village draws a big crowd and gives an overview of the huge range of work done.
Anthony Scott's figures are about as far removed from Irish Dresden as you could gel. Lumpy, but lovely, clay fired domestic animals without a hint of cuteness, though Diarmud Defiant, possibly a pointer, does stare you straight in the eye so funny, so doggish.
Or Liam Flynn's black bowls described as "feely", though in artistic circles we say tactile. They are beautiful.
Sarah Malin, who says she could not survive without Showcase, is turning sterling silver black, putting on gold detail and making jewellery in discs, squares and triangles. There is nothing to beat the simple concept.
In Alison Irwin's embroidery, the theme is medieval floors, and she even gets the look of ancient fragmentation, all in miniature sizes for hanging on the wall.
Lorraine Bowen, who designs the fabulous silk scarves for dress designers Louise Kennedy and Mary Gregory, paints images on fabric, and is very taken with leaves and botanical names.
For useful ceramics, Anthony O'Brien's blue and white range decorated with animals and fish look a lot like old Irish delph, and very attractive.
But it is a gruelling three days ahead for the intrepid 11,000 because there is so much to see. ,There are wonderful woollies (including the marvellous Joan Millar and Deirdre Fitzgerald), hand painted scarves, furniture, ironwork, glass, jewellery and tweeds. Foxford, however, has rather stolen the limelight with its Michael Collins rug, a warm tartan, saying an identical one was worn on the day he was killed.