Featured

Welcome to my website

Hello, I’m Fiona O’Driscoll, and this is my website. My knitted creations celebrate the natural world, the warmth of childhood and the wonderful variety of colours and textures available to me. I always use freshly washed natural fleeces from a local organic sheep farm to stuff the knitted animals as the environment and sustainability are very important to me.

Portrait by Brian Farrell

I live in Leitrim in the hidden heartlands of Ireland . I am surrounded by natural bogland and woods and my garden is regularly visited by wild animals. The badgers, hedgehogs, mice, pine martins, foxes, shrews, rabbits,hares and many birds that pass through give me inspiration for the animals I create. As I create each piece by hand they have their own unique personality and I am always changing my range to keep collectors interested and to stay fresh.

I sell my work directly, just contact me by email sundew37@gmail.com. My work is perfect for posting, unbreakable, light and no best before date! I also supply a few wonderful shops, Strokestown Park, http://www.strokestownpark.ie/, Beech hill garden centre in Cork and the Leitrim Design House https://leitrimdesignhouse.ie/ in Carrick on Shannon . I enjoy craft fairs too and sometimes share a stand with my very talented brother Niall Miller of Fuinseog Woodland Crafts.

My Etsy site is https://www.etsy.com/ie/shop/SundewCrafts

An t-éan agus an portach

THE BIRD AND THE BOG

I took part in an exhibition this Feb (2023) in the Leitrim Design House as part of a wonderful group of talented women, The Sinann Circle. I created a few new pieces inspired by the Leitrim countryside, especially the bogs that surround my house. I used mainly organic wool, naturally dyed and home spun, with a little gold thread too. I framed the pieces with dogwood and hung a small bird in front in it’s own circle of dogwood. There was a great response to the exhibition and I will continue to make similar pieces on request. They cost €60 each.

Fox Gloves

What could be more lovely than a pair of handknit fingerless gloves, in the colour of your choice and with a fair isle design of your favourite thing? With a long cuff to keep your wrists warm and giving freedom to your thumb and fingers so you can use your phone or scratch your nose. Here are some examples of ones I have made, with bats, bees, acorns, dogs, hearts, foxes or no pattern, just your favourite colours. I make them to order in 2 adult sizes (€20)and also in a child size(€15). Post is usually €2

Bee fingerless gloves, adult size large
Fox fingerless gloves for adults
Acorn fingerless gloves, adult small
Love heart fingerless gloves
Plain fingerless gloves
Rabbit fingerless gloves, child size
Dog fingerless gloves, child size
Fox gloves fingerless, child size
Bat fingerless gloves, small adult size

Púca agus Puimcín

There was a bit of a photo shoot in my garden this morning in the beautiful October sunshine. Here among some apples and hazelnuts fresh from the trees are my Púca and Puimcín. The Púca have a patterned cotton base made from recycled material, and a tiny bell inside and are of course stuffed with beautiful lamb fleece. The pumpkins are also stuffed with the fleece and have a nice weight to them. I hope they brighten up your Halloween homes for years to come. If you’d like a face on your puimcín just let me know when ordering.