Celtic Stickmakers Club

Happy new year !

admin — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 21:54:15 +0000

On behalf of the Committee and members of the Celtic Stickmakers Club I would like to wish you all a happy and prosperous new year . I hope you are all harvesting straight , perfect , unblemished sticks , and if you are , please tell me where they are ! Our Club is getting the new year off to a busy start with a workshop at our Chairmans’ residence at Rathangan in Kildare on Saturday next the 21st of January commencing at 11:00am . Then on Saturday the 11th of February we head South again to the Scout Hall in Togher where we will be holding a workshop for our friends in the real capital of Ireland !!(at least that’s what they say ! ) This will also commence at 11:00am . Again , all are welcome to these workshops whether you are a member or not to see and hear people who take pleasure in demonstrating the craft of stickmaking . Bring a friend and a stick or two and everyone might learn a thing or two . Our colleague John O’ Gorman of Southern Stickmaking supplies will be in attendance at both venues with a comprhensive range of stickmaking materials for sale . So if you want to try something different come along to either venue for an informative and fun day out .Any of the Committe can be contacted for further information or directions . Enjoy ! Robin O’ Reilly Hon’ Sec’ Celtic Stickmakers Club .

Annual General Meeting 2011

admin — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 09:48:49 +0000

Greetings to all our Fellow Stickmakers wherever you may be ! We are coming to the end of a very eventful year for the Celtic Stickmakers Club culminating in the Open competition which we held at the Game Fair at Birr Castle in August . The results are proof enough that our members are slowly but surely bringing the standard of stickmaking in the South up to the standard of our friends and colleagues up North ! Well done to all .
Our A.G.M. will take place on Sunday the 30th of October 2011 at 2:00pm in O’ Loughlins Hotel , Main Street , Portlaoise, Co. Laois . The agenda will comprise of the following ; Chairmans’ report , Treasurers report , and Secretaries report , followed by the election of officers and any other business . All are welcome and as always new members are also welcome . We will be preparing to organise work shops for the coming Winter and Spring and we intend to advertise these on our website . Stickmaking is by nature a craft suited to this time of year ,i.e.cutting sticks and huddling around the stove in your workshop on long Winter nights creating works of art -and avoiding hypothermia !! So enjoy !
Robin O’ Reilly , Hon’ Sec’ Celtic Stickmakers Club

Stick Competition Birr Sunday 28th of August 2011

admin — Mon, 08 Aug 2011 11:36:12 +0000

Greetings to all our Fellow and Lady Stickmakers ! The Great Game Fair in Birr will soon be upon us , and the chance for all of you battle hardened stickmakers to show your skills to an enthusiastic audience at Birr ! Sunday the 28th of August 2011 is the day for your diary . Last years’ event was a great success and we were given the opportunity by Mr Albert Titterington and his team to showcase all that is good in Irish stickmaking ,and we hope to continue in that vein again this year .This year we have €200.00 ,a perpetual trophy a tankard , and rosette for 1st place and €i00.00 , a tankard and rosette for the reserve stick . Our judge on the day is Mr Andrew Jones the renowned Welsh stickmaker and co-author of “stickmaking ” with Mr Clive George . I know he is looking forward to the day and the competition . I would like to take this opportunity to say a big thank you to Birdwatch Ireland for their generous donation of €150.00 towards prize money and the cost of rosettes for our competition .Believe me every little helps and is greatly appreciated in these times . Just remember the competition is open style and anyone can come along and enter a stick . I can be contacted at e-mail , clawback07@yahoo.co.uk for a list of categories and a set of rules for the competition or to answer any questions you might have . We look forward to seeing you there ,and bring a stick and some fine weather (please ! )

Spring is in the Stickmaking air !

admin — Wed, 23 Feb 2011 22:10:51 +0000

Yes indeed , this is a busy time of year for the Celtic Stickmakers Club . Already this year we have had a very successful workshop in the Scout Hall in Togher in Cork which was well attended and proved to be very enjoyable for everyone . Our thanks goes to our colleague Martin Thompson who organised the venue and , with his Scouting friends ,” fed and watered ” us in style ! On Saturday next , the 26th of February 2011 we will be holding a workshop in the Scout Hall in Abbeyside , Dungarvan , Co. Waterford commencing at 11:00am . Again , all are welcome whether you are a member or not . Bring a stick or the makings of a stick and find out more about this enjoyable craft in a very easy going atmosphere . It’s amazing what you can learn from each other and have a laugh at the same time ! Our thanks again to Martin for helping to secure the venue .
Then on Saturday the 5th of March 2011 we head back to Cork , this time to the home of our colleague Paddy Rahilly in Newmarket ,Co. Cork , where we will hold a workshop also commencing at 11:00 am . This is a workshop that is always both informative and great fun and if you are in the area at the time , do drop in , you’re guaranteed to learn something about stickmaking !Our colleague John O’ Gorman will be in attendance at these venues with a host of stickmaking materials for all your needs .
We also hope to have a demonstration on stickmaking in the Midlands in the near future , but dates have to be arranged ; I will keep you posted . In May of this year we have been invited to participate in the Irish Forestry , Woodland and Bio Energy Show in the grounds of Birr Castle . This is a celebration of all things to do with forestry , woodland and timber , and is being held on the 6th, 7th , and 8th of May 2011 ,an ideal hangout for all lovers of sticks and stickmaking ! So as you can see Spring is a busy time for the Celtic Stickmakers ! If we can offer you any advice on any aspect of Stickmaking do not hesitate to contact us ; someone always has a solution to the trickiest problems ! So till the next time , keep ‘em straight! Robin O’ Reilly Hon’ Sec ‘ Celtic Stickmakers Club

Annual General Meeting 2010

admin — Fri, 15 Oct 2010 22:02:28 +0000

Greetings to all our stickmaking friends . It’s that time of year again when everyone wants to be a treasurer or secretary or chaiperson ! Well now is your chance , as the A.G.M. of the Celtic Stickmakers Club takes place in O’ Loughlins Hotel in Portlaoise, Co. Laois on Sunday the 31st of October 2010 at 2;00pm . We are hoping for a good turnout as there are some topics of interest to be discussed on the day . 2010 has been a great year so far for the Club and it is going from strength to strength thanks to the dedication of all its’ members . So if you have any thoughts or ideas on improving things please make your way to Portlaoise on the day . As all stickmakers know , if we can’t make a good stick we can sure talk a good stick ! Looking forward to seeing you there , Robin O’ Reilly , Hon’ Sec’

Birr Stickmaking Competition a resounding success !

admin — Tue, 14 Sep 2010 11:55:58 +0000

Sunday the 29th of August saw the first ever all Ireland stickmaking competition take place at the Birr Game Fair with a terrific showing of sticks from North and South of the country . In all we had two hundred and twelve sticks on display by 11:00am on Sunday ! Judging of the sticks by Mr Tom Kavanagh and Mr Linsey Carlisle began in the early afternoon and continued until nearly 3:30 , and both men are to be complimented on their thorough and fair assessement of every stick present . Eventually after much consideration a winner of best in show and runner up were decided upon , and I don’t think anyone could argue with their decision ! Stephen Hall took the prize for best in show and Roger Hannah took runner-up . Mr Albert Titterington the director of the Fair was present at the prize giving and made a moving speech, while I had the honour of presenting him with a rams horn stick created by our chairman Mr Tom Kavanagh to commemorate the occasion .I would like to take this opportunity to thank some people who made such a big contribution to the day being such a success , particularly Jim Matthews and John Lutton who took this “greenhorn ” under their wings for the day and showed me the finer points on running a stickmaking competition and categorised the sticks for us and reduced my chances of complete heart failure by 100per cent ! Also Roger Hannah who offered advice and help throughout the day and was there whenever he was needed, (which was all the time ! ).I would not have been “fed and watered” on the day if not for Tom Burke who maintained a constant flow of coffee and buns and was such a big help in numbering all the sticks on Sunday morning !To all the above a huge thank you for making the competition go smoothly . A big congratulations to all the stickmakers who won in the fourteen categories , and while we have a way to go ,some of our own members from the Celtic Stickmakers Club stepped up to the line and did us proud !It’s hard to get back into “ordinary” stick making after such an occasion , but the show must go on and the pursuit of perfection is never ending ! Yours in Stickmaking Robin Hon’ Sec’

Birr Game Fair 2010

admin — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 10:43:26 +0000

Well , it’s that time of year again and we look forward to the Game Fair at Birr on Saturday and Sunday the 28th and 29th of August 2010 . This year there is a difference for us stickmakers , as we go into competition for the first time ever on an all Ireland competition basis. An invitation has been extended to our colleagues from the North of Ireland to join us in an historic first for the Birr Game Fair ; an invitation they have gracefully accepted !This competition will be open to all and will consist of fourteen classes including two for novices only , which , I must stress does not exclude novices from the other twelve , so let your creative juices flow ! (As we stickmakers always say ! ) Some basic rules and guidelines will apply . The competition willtake place on the Celtic Stickmakers CLub stand on Sunday the 29th of August 2010 . Entries will be taken from 10:00am Sunday morning , with final entries accepted up to 12:30 pm . Entrants will be allowed a maximum of three sticks per class . There will be an entrance fee of one euro for each stick entered in any class . No sticks are to be removed from the show before 4:00pm on the day without special permission . The sticks will be judged by Mr Tom kavanagh and Mr lindsay Carlisle on the day . There will be rosettes for first second and third places in each class . Mr Albert Titterington of the Great Game Fairs of Ireland has generously donated a perpetual trophy , a tankard , and two hundred euros for the best stick in show ! Also the reserve stick in show will receive a tankard and rosette . I must take this opportunity to thank Mr Albert Titterington and his team for his kindness and help to us over the years in Birr and for being a motivator in getting this competition up and running . They say competition is healthy and I know this one will be just that , but we will also be striving to ensure that it will be fun and enjoyable for everyone involved ,so if stickmaking appeals to you come to Birr for the Game Fair .If we cannot make the stick be assured we can talk the stick ! Enjoy !

An Historic First !

admin — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 23:37:26 +0000

Greetings to all in the stickmaking world . On Sunday last the 7th of March , our friends in the Northern Ireland Stickmakers Club joined us in Dublin for what turned out to be a most enjoyable get together , and believe me , was an eyeopener for us all ! In the words of our Chairman Tom Kavanagh , this was a meeting of minds that we had strived for since the founding of our Club , and proved informative and enjoyable to everyone who attended . There was a sharing of ideas and of the trials and errors that help us all to try to get to where we want to be in stickmaking . We were treated to some works of art in the form of “fancy sticks ” which were inspiring to say the least , and I believe we gave them some ideas to take home with them ! A big thanks to Jim Matthews who helped set this up and to Barry , and Roger , and all the members of the Northern Ireland Stickmakers who graced us with the pleasure of their company . Also a big thank you to Stephen and Mary Coffey and all the Scouting people who provided thousands of gallons of tea and tons of sandwiches for us ! As you know stickmaking is a hungry business !! Looking forward to seeing you all at our workshop at Paddy Rahillys’ residence on Saturday next the 13th of March

News update .

admin — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 12:33:36 +0000

Greetings to all fellow Stickmakers . It is with regret that I inform you of the sudden passing of one of our colleagues in the Celtic Stickmakers Club . Mr John Hayes late of Mill street , Blarney , Co. Cork was a popular member of our Club since its’ inception in 2006 , and his passing is a sad shock to us all . I would like to extend our heart felt sympathy to his family from the Committee and members of the Celtic Stickmakers Club on their sad loss .

Upcoming events

admin — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 19:47:02 +0000

To help us all create the perfect stick, there are a number of events to note in your calendar:

February 6 – Workshop – Tom Kavanagh’s Home, Clonsast, Rathangan, Co Kildare, 11 am
February 13 – Workshop – Scout Hall, Toher, Co Cork, 11 am
February 28 – Get-together – O’Loughlins Hotel, Portlaoise, Co Laois, – including a stickmaker’s competition!
March 7 – Get-together – Scout Hall, Bunting Road, Dublin (just off the Long Mile Road).

We have invited our stickmaking friends from Northern Ireland to join us and swap ideas. I encourage everyone to bring a stick or two or three on the day!

For more information about these events, contact me.

Yours in stickmaking,

Robin O’Reilly

Hon’ Sec’ Celtic Stickmakers Club