Did you know the Aran sweater, a highly recognizable symbol of Ireland, will feature as an iconic fashion design of the twentieth century in an exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art, New York?
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Ireland's Aran Sweater
Is Fashion Modern? opens on October 1, 2017 and runs through January 28, 2018, at the Museum of Modern Art, West 53rd Street, New York.
To celebrate the inclusion of Ireland's Aran jumper in this exhibition the good folks at Standún, Spiddal have sponsored a giveaway and are offering an Aran sweater as a prize for one lucky reader to win. And to really make this giveaway exciting, the winner can choose any Aran sweater from Standún's wonderful online collection.
But before I share the details of how to enter this giveaway, let's first learn more about the Aran sweater and the history of Standún, Spiddal.
The Exhibition Piece
The Aran jumper to be included in this exhibition is a traditional cream colored, hand-knitted piece dating back to the 1940's. Aran sweaters are part of Ireland's cultural artifacts.
Made using handspun, heavy, scoured wool it features many traditional patterns including diamond stitch, and open trellis patterns. It even showcases a different design on the front and back.
The National Museum of Ireland - Country Life in Castlebar, County Mayo included this sweater as part of an exhibition in 2008 and now it has crossed the Atlantic to share Ireland's rich, cultural heritage with New Yorkers.
The Popularity of the Aran Jumper or Sweater
Without a shadow of doubt there's a huge amount of romance and folklore associated with the Aran jumper.
Although the stitches utilized to create these masterpieces are not unique to Ireland, the combinations of stitching patterns, and styling have ensured the Aran has become a testament to Irish culture and heritage.
Aran sweaters have long contributed to the romanticism of Irish rural life and Irish folk art. Called jumpers rather than sweaters by the Irish, they became particularly popular worldwide from the 1950's onward.
The Clancy Brothers were an influential Irish folk group in the 1960's. Touring America in their trademark Aran jumpers they brought a love of Irish traditional music to the United States and rekindled appreciation for our folk music traditions in Ireland.
When the Clancy Brothers toured the world wearing Aran sweaters, these beautiful examples of Irish cratsmanship began to be exported from Ireland to shops in America, Europe and Japan.
And who supplied the Clancys with some of their beautiful sweaters? The Standúns of Spiddal of course.
A Connemara Love Story
In the early 1940's Máirtín Standún, who was born in Liverpool, England, and May, a music teacher from Mullingar, fell in love.
But theirs was not a typical love story, meeting at a dance or a local gathering. Their first meeting actually occurred in prison, when both were interned for supporting the cause of Irish Independance.
Máirtín Standún was imprisoned in the Curragh and May Mulready, was one of the first women ever interned in Mountjoy Prison.
While serving time, Máirtín met the Irish scholar and writer, Máirtín O'Cadhain from Spiddal in County Galway. In less than 15 months Standún learned how to speak Irish, and when released from prison he carried with him a passionate love for the Irish language and culture.
May and Máirtín were married and moved to Spiddal in 1946, where they founded a department store specializing in the sale of Irish merchandise and, of course, the Aran sweater.
Their move to Spiddal was inspired by May's love for Irish music and Máirtín's love for the Irish language.
This love for all things Irish, their devotion to each other and their uncompromising work ethic ensured their store grew and prospered and transformed into a memorable attraction on the Galway tourist trail.
Even some members of the iconic Irish American Kennedy family stopped by the shop in Spiddal to buy some Aran sweaters.
The Tradition Continues
May Standún was a well known fiddle player in Connemara. She was very good friends with the Clancy brothers, and helped inspire them to sport those wonderful Aran sweaters when touring the world with their folk band.
Other notable Irish musicians including Tommy Mackem, and Luke Kelly often stopped off in Spiddal to visit May and enjoy a good music session in the Standún shop.
Today, the traditions of supporting Irish culture and heritage continue at Standún, Spiddal.
May and Máirtín's granddaughters now run the shop in Spiddal and have continued their grandparents' entrepreneurial spirit by offering an online store.
It's lovely to see a family owned business and tradition continue to flourish in today's mega-business environment. Well done, girls!
The Prize
I know that readers of this little blog of mine love Aran sweaters as much as I do.
I'm thrilled to work with the girls at Standún again to bring you another little giveaway and a chance to win a beautiful piece of Aran knitwear.
This time, it's up to the winner to choose the Aran sweater he or she thinks would best suit. Or perhaps, the winner would like to gift the prize to a loved one.
Feel free to browse the pages of Standún's online catalog to pick the sweater or cardigan of your choice. You may like a ladies' cardigan, or a man's sweater, or you may like to see a little one running around sporting an Irish look. The choice is yours.
Stop on over to check out all the possibilities. Best of luck to all our entrants.
The Giveaway
One lucky winner will win an Aran sweater or cardigan of their choosing.
To enter just leave a comment on this blog post by noon on Wednesday, September 6th, 2017.
Any comment will do. What you write does not affect your chance of winning, but if you need inspiration why not tell us if you like Aran sweaters or cardigans, or if you prefer Arans in the traditional natural color or in some of the modern shades available.
A winning comment will be chosen randomly. Remember to leave your e-mail so that I can contact you should you win. Your e-mail won't be published, just used to contact our lucky contestant for mailing of the prize.
The winner will be announced on Wednesday, September 6th 2017, at the bottom of this blog post.
You may check out Irish American Mom's complete terms and conditions for sweepstakes' entries by clicking here.
A big thank you to the girls at Standún for sponsoring this prize, and wishing them every success as they continue their grandparents' legacy, inspired by the cratsmanship and designs of Ireland and Galway.
And thanks to all who join in the fun and support this giveaway celebrating all that the Aran sweater represents. Please feel free to share this post and let friends and family know they could be in with a chance to win a lovely Irish prize.
Winner Chosen
A winner has been randomly chosen using the Pick Giveaway Winner Plugin for Wordpress. The proud new owner of a beautiful traditional Irish Aran sweater will be .....
Lea Zwart
I'll send Lea an email to let her know the good news. Many thanks to all who entered this Irish American Mom giveaway and checked out all the lovely sweaters from Standún.
Slán agus beannacht,
(Goodbye and blessings)
Mairéad -Irish American Mom
Pronunciation - slawn ah-gus ban-ock-th
Mairéad - rhymes with parade
Disclosure: I do not have a business relationship with Standún.I love to publish posts about Irish and Irish American businesses. Many thanks to Standún for their generosity in sponsoring this prize, and for giving me permission to publish their lovely photographs.
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Mary Hoban
What a wonderful piece about the Standún Family. I just had coffee and a scone with my daughter Katie today in their wonderful little cafe and it gives me great pleasure to see this lovely piece on them. One can also buy the wool and the knitting instructions in Standún for these wonderful Aran Knit jumpers.
Marion Molloy Thomson
I visited Ireland in 1995 and visited my Mom & Dad's birth place. (Roscommon & Longford). They didn't meet in Ireland but in New York. I didn't buy an Aran sweater because I live in Florida but now my Son and his family have moved to N.C. and I could use a nice warm sweater when I visit them. We visited the Aran Island...beautiful.
Kristen
These are so lovely! The man in my life would look so handsome in one of these. I think he'd like one in charcoal.
Jen Rodrigues
These sweaters are so beautiful and I would love to win this. This would be perfect for the winter and fall weathers in New England.
Linda Kish
These sweaters are so nice. Where I live, I never need anything heavier than a sweater or a hoodie. I would be honored to be the lucky winner of one.
shannon fowler
These are absolutely gorgeous! Im partial to sweaters over cardigans, and the one on the website that is army green and unisex is gorgeous!
MAUREEN HARRINGTON
I saw Aran sweaters in Inish Mor many years ago . beautifully made and a treasure to own . The cardigans look so comfortable .. and warm!
Angelina
I love that a lot of Standun's sweaters are Merino wool, and I am wicked excited that they carry an Aran hoodie!
latoya
The sweaters are nice and I would love one of the cardigans to wear over my dresses at work. But I have to admit that the site also has some really cute dresses.
Arik Issan
An Aran Cardigan would be great for my sister as she is now a new New Yorker ... colder winters than in sunny California. Travel through Ireland is a must in eventual 'retirement', but that is far in the future.
KENNETH OHL
my wife loves sweaters she would really love these sweaters
Barbara Legener
I never knew what these gorgeous sweaters were called. I love the coat length sweaters.
MelodyJ
These styles are so classic.
Janet Diesing
What a beautiful sweater! I would love to win this.
Stephanie Phelps
I would love to go to Ireland and what a great story! I love this swearer and it would be amazing to win it!
Irene Litvin
This is gorgeous sweater. Glade to win it!
Donna James
I have never seen such a beautifully made sweater. I would love to win this.
monique s
I love the warmth and the look of these sweaters. Classic yet beautiful
Sue Guggenberger
Clothing... wraps us in love and provides a connection to our roots.
Sharon
The green zip up cardigan above is gorgeous. Love that color! The prices at the site are affordable and the selection is very nice.
Jovan B.
Thanks for the giveaway!
Melissa
i like the look of Aran sweaters or cardigans but have never had one! i'd love to though! 🙂
Angela P
That sweater looks so comfy and warm, love how they look, fall and winter are coming up my favorites seasons can't wait
tammy smith
I really the beautiful knits that your family make. I live in PA and the weather is always chilly starting around October. I need a new cardigan.
Margay Roberge
Those sweaters are amazing! I love the green and black ones.
Sheri Macy
I like the charcoal sweater best, but they're all very nice.
Cindy Merrill
I do not have an Irish sweater and I'd really love to have one, most of the sweaters I own are button ups, would like to try something different for Fall.
Darlene Owen
These sweaters are so beautiful and I love the vibrant green color, but the natural color is also very pretty.
Kelly D
These sweaters are so pretty, and look warm!
Richard Cone jr
Nice sweaters would love to have one
Jessica Miller
I love the sweater. It looks so comfy and cute!
Jen Isom
This would be perfect for my daughter!
Deborah Stinson
Gorgeous sweaters! I love sweaters and especially ones made with love and care! That they're Irish is even better.
Kiernan Markey
What a lovely story about the origins of the Standún Aran sweater! Máirtín and May's passion for preserving Irish culture is so meaningful—I'd love to contribute to their legacy by sporting one of their gorgeous sweaters here in the Midwest. 😉 Cheers!
Diane J
These sweaters are so beautiful. What a great article about the history of this company.
Katie Amanda
Great sweaters! I just learned I'm a bit Irish thanks to ancestry.com. It would be great to own a symbol of this heritage!
Jeanne Coulombe
Omg! I am a sweater nut and these are just beautiful oh I would love one to keep me warm from our freezing cold winter's here in Northern New Hampshire and I would have a great time telling people all about these sweaters when they ask were I got it. Thank you! for a chance 🙂
Renee Sapone
These sweaters are so pretty, and remind me of one my mom had when I was growing up. It would be so cool to have one myself it would remind me of my childhood days. Thank you for the opportunity to win! 🙂
Lauryn R
Oh my goodness, these sweaters and cardigans are absolutely beautiful!! I love them all, and the colors are so vibrant, even the white! They also look very well made and oh so soft and comfortable! Thanks for sharing! 🙂 I am a huge fan of being cozy when it's cold out and these are perfect.
Christina Sparks
That you for the review, this sweater looks very warm and comfortable. May you have a wonderful week!
Sheila Kearney
Thank you Mairead for giving us this opportunity to win such a wonderful gift! And thank you for introducing us to Standun. I browsed their catalog and was so impressed. I made sure to save their website to Pinterest. They have such a wide variety. I was fortunate enough to visit Ireland for the first time a couple years ago and never came across such lovely items. What a blessing it would be to own one!
Kim Pincombe-Cole
This gets my Irish roots so excited (my mom's maiden name is Carney)! My aunt actually just returned from a month long trip to Ireland and I've been dying over her new Irish cable knit sweaters.
My absolute favorite Aran sweater is the IRELAND'S EYE LAMBAY ARAN SWEATER in Natural - it's so gorgeous!
Emily
Gosh, these are all so lovely! Perfect for chilly Chicago winters! Thanks!
Janel
The sweaters are so beautiful, especially the 100% Cashmere crew neck sweater!
Margaret Sarsfield
Growing up, we always had a closet full of Aran sweaters to keep us warm in the winter. Nothing beats Irish wool.
Stephanie
I loved learning about the history of the Standun family and seeing these beautiful sweaters. All the option are so pretty - I know that I would have a hard time choosing my favorite.
Stephanie
steph 0828 at Hotmail dot com
Debbie Welchert
I have never owned or worn an Aran Sweater. They sound and look so wonderful and warm. There is such a great selection of sweaters it's hard to choose just one.
Audrey Stewart
I love these sweaters. My grandfather was an Irishman, with the last name Welsh. I feel connected to the Irish.
Sandy Klocinski
I love the Aran sweaters for the the quality of the stitching and design.
Katherine Tino
These sweaters are gorgeous, especially the dark gray cardigan. If I won, I'd ,definitely, choose something for me. Sorry kiddos!