Inspiration for our Cottage

In order to burn genuine Irish turf in the most authentic environment, we needed to create a typical Irish stone cottage. Although Irish cottages appear in many shapes and sizes, traditional Irish cottages follow very simple lines. We were particularly inspired by the cottage 'White of Morning' in the 1951 Irish comedy movie "The Quiet Man", starring John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara.

All the outdoor scenes were filmed on location. It is a magnificent movie and available in VHS format from many lending libraries. The cottage in the movie was a real Irish cottage in the west of Ireland in the town of Cong in County Mayo. Sadly, the original cottage is now in a state of ruin. But take care if you watch the movie: you just may find yourself entranced at the beauty of the countryside and compelled instantly to book a visit to Ireland to see for yourself!

Our Dream Cottage Comes To Life

After much searching, we found a skilled artist with many years experience in ceramic design who helped us give life to our vision. Each cottage is faithfully and lovingly created by hand to a very high quality standard and includes all the main features needed for it to be authentic.

The exterior walls and the chimney are a gleaming whitewash, as are almost all Irish cottages. The roof is thatched, window frames painted green and the red half-door has a black iron handle, all very typical.

A bush is growing against the back wall on the right and a tree on the right side almost reaches the upper loft window. The turf is piled - hopefully drying - against the house on the left.

The stone pathway outside continues along the front. And, of course, there is the inevitable green grass surrounding it all! The half door in the front is also typical of the period. It's practical. It keeps the chickens out!

Also, many is the time the owner can be seen leaning over the half door, pipe in hand, chatting with a passing neighbor.

The upper half door is often left open even when the farmer is sitting by the fire. This is partly to encourage neighbors to drop in for a pipe and a chat, and partly because the chimneys are seldom perfect and smoke is inclined to misbehave from time to time and spread throughout the room, so the fresh air provides some relief from the smoke!

"May your troubles be less
And your blessings be more,
And nothing but happiness
Come through your door"

- Old Irish Saying

The back door is open, as it frequently would be during the day or early evening, especially during the long summer evenings when the light doesn't finally fade till about 10pm. On those evenings, a fire isn't used so much for warmth but for the atmosphere of peace and tranquility provided by the aroma of turf - and the opportunity to listen to the silence.

Construction Details

For practical reasons, the interior in our cottage is left open but, with a little imagination, you can see all the details. The main room contains the fireplace, with another smaller room behind. The kitchen is beside the back door. A loft at each end of the house is accessible by a ladder, with the main bedroom being at the fireplace end for maximum warmth.

Each cottage is hand crafted in high quality china, individually hand painted and decorated using specially formulated colors, treated with a heat resistant high gloss glaze and fired twice at high temperature for durability.

Crafting each cottage individually by hand ensures that all the fine detail is faithfully reproduced and, of course, it also means that no two cottages are exactly the same. So yours is truly unique!

When you light your turf fire, watch the smoke winding its way slowly into the sky and smell the unmistakable aroma of a genuine turf fire we expect, for that moment, you will be transported back to the Emerald Isle.

From time to time, you may find the smoke will make a mistake and momentarily appear at the door or window. This is exactly what happens in real life, depending on the wind.

Seldom in an Irish cottage does the smoke from a turf fire only go up the chimney! Nobody complains. The turf aroma eventually permeates the whole cottage bringing a wonderful sense of peace and tranquility. What a wonderful way to end the evening after a hard day in the fields.

The turf fire is a reminder that the day's work is done and now is the time for a quiet pipe by the fire and, if you are lucky enough to have company drop in, perhaps time for a story and a bit of fun or, as the Irish say, 'a bit of craic'.

"If you are lucky enough to be Irish, you are lucky enough!"

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