About

How it all began...

Willow Cottage began many years ago, with something very simple yet so precious — God-given gifts and our love of creating.

We have always enjoyed making things with our hands and trying different creative crafts. In the past, we spent time creating Quilling Art, enjoying the patience and detail that went into each piece.

A few years ago, we learned how to make St. Brigid’s Crosses, and we fell in love with them.

For the first few years, making St. Brigid’s Crosses was the main craft we pursued. We would make them once a year and supply a few church gift shops. It was a small and quiet little project, but it opened the door to something we could never have planned.

Around 2021, our family became part of the Third Order of the Institute of the Incarnate Word (IVE). It was around this same time, shortly before we began making St. Brigid’s Crosses, that a new direction slowly began to take shape in our creativity.

One of the particular aspects of the IVE charism is the evangelisation of culture — bringing Christ into the different areas of human life and allowing the Catholic faith to shape the culture around us. Living this spirituality began to inspire us to look at our own creative work in a different way.

What had simply been a love of making things gradually became an opportunity to create Catholic art and crafts — beautiful and meaningful things that could bring something of our faith and tradition into people's homes and everyday lives.

Later, we began making 3D-printed Christmas ornaments. One of the shops asked us to make a few rosettes, which, to be honest, were not particularly successful at the time! Around that time, through our religious community, with our whole family, we became friends with a priest who had a wonderful instinct for what people might appreciate. He encouraged us to create more Christian Christmas ornaments and cards.

Not long afterwards, we were entrusted with several rather unusual and unexpected projects. Some of those projects eventually inspired products that have become part of Willow Cottage today.

From there, everything seemed to move very quickly.

Along the way, we met wonderful people who offered encouragement, ideas and opportunities. Looking back, we can see that every little step led naturally to the next. What began simply as a love of creativity slowly grew into something much more meaningful.

We truly believe that God has guided this journey from the very beginning. So many of the opportunities, people and ideas that shaped Willow Cottage came when we least expected them. What may have seemed like small coincidences at the time now look to us like little signs of God's Providence, which assure us that the path we are taking as a family of nine is the right one.   We are looking forward to see what blessings God has for us for next months and hopefully years to come.

Today, Willow Cottage is becoming a place where, from the quietness of our home in the South-East of Ireland, we can create devotional gifts with faith, care and love.

Our hope is that these little creations will become more than simply beautiful things. Perhaps a rosary will accompany someone in prayer, a cross or prayer plaque will hang in a family home, or a gift will remind someone of God’s love at an important moment in their life.

If something made at Willow Cottage can help even one person take a small step closer to God on their journey towards Heaven, then all the time, work and creativity behind it is worthwhile.

Thank you for visiting Willow Cottage, and for being part of this journey.