Our Festival Facebook Friends like a challenge and scoop a cash prize!

Our Facebook Friends have been busy hitting the LIKE button on the County Waterford Community Forum Facebook Page in an effort to help Ardmore Pattern Festival win €250.  As part of their Annual Awards to recognise the contribution made by voluntary & community groups across Waterford, the Community Forum set us the task of getting as many of our Facebook Friends as possible to "Like" the County Waterford Community Forum page and nominate their favoured group for the prize and the LIKE battle began in earnest with vigorous online campaigning across the County.   

And true to form and loyal in their support, the Ardmore Pattern Festival Facebook Friends hit the jackpot and scooped the welcome prize of €250 (sponsored by Printmaster) on our behalf - thank you one and all and to the Community Forum Team for setting out this challenge!  Why not join our fantastic brigade of friends and be sure not to miss a beat on Festival news by following us on Facebook. 

Congrats also to our fellow Ardmorians – the Ardmore Tidy Towns group - who won the Environment category at the annual Co. Waterford Community & Voluntary Awards, which were presented in Clonea Strand Hotel on Friday night last, 25 November 2011. Congratulations to them for their great work in and around Ardmore. One of the Ardmore Pattern Festival 2011 launch pics also featured on the cover of the Awards Night programme (see pic)!

ARDMORE PATTERN FESTIVAL GOES FESTIVE AT MARKET

On Sunday last, we had some Festival Merchandise on sale at the Ardmore National School Christmas Market organised by the Ardmore NS Parents Association, and to add to the Christmas theme and celebrate the season we "restyled" the Ardmore Pattern Festival Logo by adding a little festive cheer (see below)!  Our thanks to the Parents Association and to those of you who bought from our stall.

If you missed us, we will be at the Annual St Declan's Hall Christmas Market on Sunday next, 4 December. We have some great gifts which we know you will love! Why not bring a little bit of Ardmore into your home or bring Ardmore a little closer to someone you love living abroad by buying them a gift which will rekindle warm memories of home - our Calendars and Hoodies will be on sale, plus some other APF goodies. All proceeds will go towards the 2012 Ardmore Pattern Festival.



The Festival Committee is thrilled to have won the Best Website category at the Irish Festival Marketing Awards in Ballinasloe, Co Galway last night (Friday, 11 November 2011). The awards - sponsored by the Carlton Hotel Group - were announced at a Gala Dinner during the AOIFE (Association of Irish Festivals & Events) Annual Conference, entitled ‘The Business of Fun’ which took place in Ballinasloe during the last few days.

We’re thrilled to have won this national award, as we were up against stiff competition from the two other short-listed festivals – the Galway Arts Festival and the Dublin Theatre Festival!! The award not only recognises the design and ease of use of the website, but it also gives recognition to the updating of content and linking the site with other social media – our Facebook and Twitter pages, which are also kept up to date regularly, making sure that you don’t miss out on any Ardmore Pattern Festival news!

John was on hand to collect the award (pictured right), and with our neighbouring Dungarvan festival, the Waterford Festival of Food winning the Best Merchandise Category, there was plenty of Déise celebrations in Ballinasloe last night! Congrats to the Festival of Food – it’s great to see the Waterford festivals being put on the national festival map.

We’d like to say a big thanks to AOIFE and the Carlton Hotel Group for short-listing (and picking) us for this award! Sincere thanks also to James and Jon at Jamjo for their wonderful web design skills and their constant help with the maintenance and updating of the site. So, make sure you keep clicking back to ardmorepatternfestival.ie to see what’s happening and also to follow us on Facebook and Twitter – remember, only eight months to go to Festival 2012!!!

Christmas is coming and the Ardmore Pattern Festival Committee has some great seasonal gift ideas which we know you will love!  Why not bring a little bit of Ardmore into your home or bring Ardmore a little closer to someone you love living abroad by buying them a gift which will rekindle warm memories of home? Here's what we have on sale with all proceeds going towards the production of the 2012 Ardmore Pattern Festival!

Ardmore Pattern Festival Calendar 2012
This quality production features amazing photographs of Ardmore (see image below).  Milestone dates for the year are highlighted to act as a reminder for you throughout the year - it will hang proudly on any wall for just €10 - available locally from Ardmore & Grange Post Offices & Quinn's Shop. Or you can purchase on-line by mailing us through this site or on ardmorepattern@gmail.com and you can pay through our site using Paypal.

The Ardmore Pattern Festival Hoodie comes in an array of colours in Kiddies & Adult sizes and features a large frontal pocket with a nifty button hole to comfortably wear your earphones so you can listen to your device tangle-free and it proudly displays the Ardmore Pattern Festival logo! 

It's ideal for wearing all year round - 'step out in style' on a walk on the beach or the lofty cliffs of Ardmore, look 'hip' in New York or 'cool'  in California, be 'trendy' in Sydney and 'chillax' in the UK - let the warmth and comfort of Ardmore embrace you wherever you are!

There are a limited number of sizes and colours available at €25 - order yours now!

The St Declan's Lapel Pin is designed by local artist Brigid Shelly, and portrays St Declan of Ardmore, with the Cathedral and Round Tower in the background.  The pin is available at just €3 and is a lovely reminder of the Patron Saint of Ardmore - a keepsake for anyone associated with the Déise at home or abroad. All proceeds from the sale of the St Declan's Lapel Pin go to the St Declan's Church Fund, Ardmore.

Last Dates for Parcel Posting for Christmas Delivery!

Don't delay in organising your Christmas Gifts - order your Ardmore Pattern Festival products today.    The last date for posting parcels within the Republic of Ireland is the 19th December, and to the UK the 18th of December.  Last date for posting to Europe is 13th December and the USA/Australia & Rest of World is the 6th December - with only 50 odd days to go, now is the time to get organised and give the gift of Ardmore this Christmas!

You can purchase any of the above on-line by mailing us through this site or on ardmorepattern@gmail.com

Thank you for your support...

The Festival Committee was delighted to meet with famous American author, Nora Roberts on her recent visit to Ardmore. Nora and her husband, Bruce Wilder stayed at the Cliff House Hotel for the Ardmore leg of their trip to Ireland and some of the Committee are pictured with Nora (right) on the balcony overlooking Ardmore Bay.

Nora Roberts is one of America’s foremost novel writers. Since her first book, Irish Thoroughbred, was published by Silhouette in 1981, she has published more than 200 novels and novellas, both as Nora Roberts and under the pseudonym, J.D. Robb. Many of her novels have been filmed and are available on DVD.

Among Nora’s publications are a trio of books entitled "The Gallaghers of Ardmore Trilogy”. The three books - Jewels of the Sun, Tears of the Moon and Heart of the Sea – are all based in our own village of Ardmore.

Nora has visited Ardmore on a number of occasions and has been a great supporter of the Ardmore Pattern Festival – publicising the Festival and linking to our website from her own site – www.noraroberts.com Have a look at Nora’s Facebook page for details and pics from her recent trip to Ardmore and other parts of Ireland.

Nora is a member of several writers groups and has won countless awards from her colleagues and the publishing industry. Recently The New Yorker called her "America’s favourite novelist."