If you're invited to a Nollaig na mBan gathering, here are thoughtful presents to bring to your host.
Traditionally, January 6th was a day that women were supposed to put their feet up, having slaved over the Christmas period, having readied the house, done the washing, cleaning and all the meals and meal planning.
That’s before tending to any children.
They gathered, had tea and shared cake and pudding, maybe even a nip of port or sherry. It’s a tradition of gathering that is being reclaimed.
Some go out to a restaurant for dinner, but the true spirit of January 6th is a gathering in the house.
Women are inviting gangs of other women into their homes. They’re reacquainting with old friends and making new ones. And wondering how they can create a more even society where women get more than a token day off.
Spark a revolution
Constance Markievicz was the first woman to be elected to Westminster Parliament in London (where she refused to take her seat), and the first to be elected to and serve in Dáil Eireann.
HomeBound’s poster of Countess Markievicz has an Evie Hone quality to it.
It also features a quote attributed to her on the eve of the 1916 Easter Rising: “Dress suitably in short skirts and strong boots, leave your jewels in the bank and buy a revolver."
An A4-size print costs €18 from Jam Art Factory.
Play on
If you’re still in the Christmas spirit and fancy a few board games and a Negroni or two, then serve them with these playful dice cocktail napkins.
A set of six linen pieces costs €77 from Rebecca Udall.
Go on, go on
If you’ve already started dry January, then having people for tea might be the way to go.
This tea kettle and set of two cups, made of borosilicate glass, is a lovely way to serve any infusions.
The set is currently on sale and costs €39,95. From Virelle Maison.
Gift prosperity
Salt was once more valuable than gold.
Its ability to preserve food, to enhance flavour and to dissolve in water made it an incredibly valuable commodity.
Share the love with an affordable gift the mná can use long after January 6th.
A 100 grams of Dingle Sea Salt, in a ceramic jar, costs €10 and will become a feature of their kitchen forever.
Light many candles
Tradition states that you burn 12 candles on the night of January 6th.
Lalor’s beeswax church candles burn slowly and evenly.
Use them to also honour any loved ones from your group no longer with you. A pack of 48 six-inch candles costs about €64.
They’re what every rural household on the western seaboard used to stock up on in case of power-cuts, in the days before mobile phone torches. You can buy here.
Soak it up
If the person you’re buying a gift for loves a bath, then this mix of Epson salts and seaweed by Wasi is lightly fragranced with sweet orange and rosemary.
Its rejuvenating effects are sure to have you feeling on top form in no time. It costs €29 and can be found in many Avoca and Meadows & Byrne shops.
There’s a full list of stockists on the website here.
Add lustre
15 layers of lacquer are applied to the Oi Soi Oi boxes, onto an MDF base.
They come in three sizes.
The medium, shown, is 18 cm long, 14 cm deep and 12 cm high. It comes in cashmere, shown, orange, beetroot, blue ink, sorbet, racing green or black. It costs €130 from Nordic Elements.
