Sunday market in the park at St Patrick’s Cathedral

Every Sunday, the park near St. Patrick’s Cathedral fills with tourists and Dublin locals who come to support and shop from one of the city’s most down-to-earth marketplaces.

From 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., the park comes alive, filled with laughter and the banter that every good vendor brings with them.

St. Patrick’s Market was first established in September 2021 by Jackie Spillane as part of the Spillane World Food Markets.

The market was first described as ‘mainly focused on books and browsable’ but quickly grew in popularity, and soon, more handmade crafts were offered.

Now, during your Sunday outing to the heart of Liberties, you can find nothing short of spectacular when it comes to Irish pride.

The market has everything from sea glass jewellery, candles, painted shells, and proper Irish knickknacks. The items have hundreds of hours of hard work dedicated to them.

On a typical Sunday, the market is bustling, especially during the months leading up to national holidays, especially before St. Brigid’s Day or the upcoming St. Patrick’s celebration.

Deirdre Sharkey, a predominant seller at the markets, said, “We’ve been selling here for about four years. It’s been slow at first, especially after COVID, but now the markets are so busy each Sunday, and it’s a joy to see.”

As the owner of Celtic Incense Cottages, she values her local craft above all else. Her staples are little handmade Irish cottages.

“My inspiration comes from Irish culture and history and keeping it alive,” she says, continuing to express that: “My work brings a little bit of Irish culture to any home.”

Her hard work creates very detailed little cottage scenes and pub scenes and a beautiful range of Celtic and Contemporary jewellery.

More vendors include Sea Glass Magic by Joanna, which sells beautiful decoupage shells, locally sourced with hand-painted designs, as well as sea glass jewellery and hand-painted magnets.

Alexandra Rae Jewellery is another local business by Alex Murray. She designs each piece in her Dublin-based studio and has a shop in the Stephen’s Green shopping centre.

This stall sells carefully designed gold jewellery, which is inspired by the idea of divinity and beauty and aligns with female empowerment.

Other stalls include Amarcord Books Dublin, which gives everyone who comes to the markets an opportunity to buy a new book. They offer entire boxes worth of Irish books that celebrate local authors at lower prices.

“These markets are amazing,” says Melissa, a tourist from Germany, as she looks through the books “It’s a cool opportunity to connect with Irish culture, especially small businesses that have lots of tradition.”

A beautiful showcase of support includes Food for People by The Prem Rawat Foundation, they donate all proceeds of sales of jewelry, trinkets and other products to those in need, and help them emerge from the cycle of poverty in disadvantaged communities.

What all these stalls have in common is the outspoken need for more support towards local businesses in Dublin.

This day at St. Patrick’s park is a perfect opportunity for appreciation to those who put their heart into every individual piece of product they sell.