Dena Crain: Artist/Teacher in Kenya

It’s 2012, and it’s going to be a great year!  This year, I will be returning to my roots in more ways than one.

I’m most looking forward to making the trip north for the International Quilt Festival of Ireland in June.  With Brannon as a prominent surname in my family, many of my ancestors simply had to be Irish even though the line trails off into the mystery of time.  The earliest known relative was William “Wrighter” Brannon (Brannan, Brannen, Brenan, Brennan) who was born in 1765 in “Georgetown on the Potomac.”  There are references to his father Thomas Branen born about 1734 in Amelia, Virginia, and before him James Brannen born about 1692 in Londonderry, Ireland.  Specific proof of these connections has yet to be confirmed.  Nevertheless, I feel confident that after nearly 300 years, the “Irish” is still within me, passed down through many generations by specific cultural activities, foods and language.  If you are interested in genealogy, see my blog Crain, Ingram, Brannon and Samples Family Histories for more information.

More importantly, I will be teaching for the International Quilt Festival of Ireland.  This event promises to be like none other we have seen to date.  Organized by Jim West of Sew Many Places, this festival will be far more than a quilting event.  Jim brings an adventurer’s passion for world travel to bear on his adopted home of Ireland.

Take even a quick look at the Special Events (Tea Times, an evening with Ricky Tims, a night out at the Wicked Thimble Pub and the Connemara Experience “Cnoc Suain”) and Special Places (Kylemore Abbey and Gardens, the Irish Crystal Factory and Fat Quarter’s Chocolate Shop) pages on the Festival’s Web site and you will see what I mean.  These events and places show the importance of the Festival’s connection with Ireland.

Ireland is patchwork in both space and time.  The International Quilt Festival of Ireland will be not merely a quilt festival set in a convenient but culturally disparate location.   Instead, it will be a celebration of patchwork quilting based in Galway, Ireland, the historic home of Irish textiles, and it will allow participants to explore the roots of quilting and other fiber art and craft traditions in their native settings.  This is one quilt festival you definitely will not want to miss!

The teacher and workshop line-up is nothing short of spectacular, including (in addition to myself) such noteworthy quilt teachers as Jinny Beyer, Ricky Tims, Alan Tremain, Sharon Pederson and Ineke Berlyn.  Find these and more on the Quilting Classes page.  And if you happen to be traveling with a non-quilter or simply want to take a break and learn something different and new, be sure to see the Craft Workshops page with its listing of other textile arts along with photography, jewelry making, basketry and pottery workshops.

There is a great deal more to discover on the International Quilt Festival of Ireland Web site, but I shall leave that exploration up to you.  Grab yourself a cuppa and relax as you let your mind wander over the face of Ireland and dream of the marvelous happenings that will take place there in only a few short months.  Plan your itinerary to include one of the fabulous tours (like mine, for example) and make your bookings soon. Be sure as well to visit the International Quilt Festival on Facebook for all the latest news and have a look at Jim’s Quiltposium Magazine.

How will there be time to fit in everything you want to do?  Places are filling up quickly now that the New Year is upon us and the reality of the International Quilt Festival of Ireland is imminent.  Better start planning now!!

I’ll see you in Ireland!