Small businesses are doing well in Louisburgh, County Mayo.
Tugann 'Cúrsaí' cuairt ar an gCiorcal Cniotála agus Sníomhachán I gCluain Cearbhán.
Louisburgh in County Mayo like many other small towns around the county has its fair share of unemployment. Support from the local community association means that small businesses provide jobs and benefit the town's economy.
The Knitting and Weaving Circle started when a group of local women came together. They used their knitting, crochet and wool spinning skills to create clothing and handcrafts for sale to summer visitors at a shop premises they rented in the town.
Schoolteacher Nuala Ní Lochlainn who is involved in the group shows some of the crafts which are made at the Louisburgh Community Resource Centre and in the homes of local women.
An added selling point is that the hand knitted clothing is made from wool spun by a local woman and dyed with colours created from herbs and plants gathered from the countryside around the town.
Crocheted collars, doilies and ornaments are popular with American tourists. The woollen hats, Aran sweaters and contemporary knitwear featuring Celtic motifs are are popular with the Louisburgh community, as Nuala Ní Lochlainn explains,
Tógadh an greas díreach ón Leabhar Cheanannais…
This report for 'Cúrsaí' was broadcast on 2 June 1987. The reporter is Irene Duffy.
