Ballyseede Castle Welcome
Arrive into historic rooms, estate grounds, prosecco, canapés, and an elegant Irish dinner prepared by the castle chef.
← Ireland Retreats
Tour 2 · Castles, Modern Design & Colour
The Soft South & East
A lush, elegant autumn fiber journey through County Kerry, Ballyseede Castle, Wicklow, and Blessington Lakes, designed for knitters and fiber artists drawn to contemporary Irish design, botanical color, castle living, and softer textures.
Dates
Sept. 11–18, 2026
Duration
7 Nights / 8 Days
Arrival
Shannon Airport
Route
Kerry to Wicklow
The Feeling
Castle rooms, modern Irish design, botanical color, alpaca fiber, and the quiet softness of Ireland’s south and east.
This retreat is for the woman who wants her fiber journey to feel lush, feminine, refined, and deeply creative. The week begins in County Kerry with castle living, modern cable architecture, historic mills, afternoon tea, and garden stitching before moving east toward Wicklow for alpaca fiber, botanical dyeing, lakeside quiet, folklore, and harp music.
Across the week, guests experience private workshops, castle meals, a visit to Kerry Woollen Mills, the Ring of Kerry, an alpaca farm, drop spindle handspinning, eco-botanical dyeing at Ériu Farm, and a final folklore-inspired Tunisian crochet masterclass with Aoibhe Ní.
It is designed as a polished but soulful retreat: elegant lodging, private transportation, meaningful instruction, sensory beauty, thoughtful pacing, and enough time to let the whole experience become part of your creative life.
Signature Experiences
A week of castles, color, texture, and contemporary Irish craft.
Modern Cable Architecture
Study contemporary Irish cable design with Carol Feller of Stolen Stitches in the castle’s private lounge.
Kerry Woollen Mills
Visit a 300-year-old working mill and watch vintage industrial machinery card, spin, and shape heavy fleece.
Castle Afternoon Tea
Enjoy a formal afternoon tea followed by a Silent Stitch session in the castle’s walled secret gardens.
Alpaca Fiber Handspinning
Meet world-class alpaca herds and convert soft raw alpaca fiber into custom thread with a drop spindle.
Wicklow Botanical Dyeing
Use Irish rainwater and native mountain plants to kettle-dye a personal wool palette at Ériu Farm.
Day by Day
Full Retreat Itinerary
Seven nights through Kerry and Wicklow, balancing luxury castle living, Irish textile heritage, contemporary design, botanical color, and restorative time to make.
Day 1 · Friday, September 11
Arrival & Castle Welcome
County Kerry
Night 1
Morning
Group lands at Shannon Airport. Board the private luxury coach for a smooth 1.5-hour drive south into the dramatic mountains of County Kerry.
Afternoon
Pass through the grand entrance of Ballyseede Castle Hotel and check into luxury historic rooms. Enjoy a light castle welcome lunch followed by an exclusive guided history tour of the 30-acre estate grounds to unwind from the flight.
Evening
Prosecco and canapés reception in the ornate drawing room, followed by an elegant traditional Irish dinner prepared by the castle chef.
Day 2 · Saturday, September 12
Modern Cable Masterclass
County Kerry
Night 2
Morning
Workshop 1: Modern Cable Architectures. Spend 3.5 hours in the castle’s elegant private lounge with renowned Irish designer Carol Feller of Stolen Stitches. Learn specialized cording and the complex charting required to execute her signature Spring Coinneal Cowl.
Afternoon
Head down to the castle kitchens for a private culinary demonstration with the estate chef to learn the secrets of authentic Irish Guinness bread and traditional scones.
Evening
Cozy evening dinner in the castle dining room, followed by a fire-lit knitting circle in the library bar.
Day 3 · Sunday, September 13
Textures & Historic Mills
County Kerry
Night 3
Morning
Travel along the edge of Killarney National Park to visit Kerry Woollen Mills. Take a private VIP tour of the 300-year-old active machinery to watch vintage industrial looms card and spin heavy fleece.
Afternoon
Workshop 2: Color & Texture Manipulation. Head to the nearby artisan studio of textile artist Liz Spillane. Spend 3 hours learning how to dynamically break traditional rules by blending unexpected yarn weights, fibers, and structural anomalies into your fabric.
Evening
Return to Ballyseede Castle for a private premium Irish whiskey tasting paired with an artisanal charcuterie dinner.
Day 4 · Monday, September 14
Stately High Tea & The Garden Stitch
County Kerry
Night 4
Morning
A light, breathtaking morning coach drive down a section of the Ring of Kerry for group photos against the wild mountain backdrops.
Afternoon
Return to the castle for a formal, multi-tiered Castle Afternoon Tea service. Follow this with a Silent Stitch session as guests take camp stools and project bags into the estate’s walled secret gardens to knit undisturbed in the lush, quiet greenery.
Evening
Final dinner at the castle. Pack luggage for the morning departure east.
Day 5 · Tuesday, September 15
Alpaca Herds & The Lake Estate
County Wicklow
Night 5
Morning
Check out of the castle and journey east toward the Wicklow Mountains. Stop en route at Hushabye Farm to walk the pastures and meet their world-class alpaca herds.
Afternoon
Workshop 3: The Drop Spindle. A hands-on handspinning masterclass with Trish Kerr of Irish Alpaca Yarns, converting soft, raw alpaca fiber into luxury custom thread.
Evening
Arrive at the spectacular Tulfarris Hotel & Golf Resort, a historic 18th-century manor house nestled right on the shores of the Blessington Lakes. Check in and enjoy a relaxed lake-view dinner.
Day 6 · Wednesday, September 16
Botanical Dyeing at Ériu Farm
County Wicklow
Night 6
Morning
Travel into the deep, mystical valleys of the Wicklow Mountains to Ériu Farm. Take a guided river walk to learn about their sustainable, circular-economy sheep farming practices.
Afternoon
Workshop 4: Eco-Botanical Dyeing. Spend 4 hours utilizing harvested Irish rainwater and native mountain plants to kettle-dye your own completely unique wool palette, accompanied by a special luxury yarn gift from the farm.
Evening
Return to Tulfarris for a candlelight evening of food, folklore, and live traditional harp music.
Day 7 · Thursday, September 17
Tunisian Crochet & Farewell
County Wicklow
Night 7
Morning
Workshop 5: Folklore & Shawl Geometry. Meet local Dublin expert Aoibhe Ní for a 3.5-hour masterclass. Dive into Tunisian Crochet techniques, mapping out a unique, legend-inspired shawl while learning how ancient Brehon Laws historically dictated garment shapes.
Afternoon
Unhurried free time to walk the lakeside estate trails, pamper yourself at the resort spa, or finish your retreat projects in the drawing room.
Evening
The Grand Farewell Dinner. An upscale banquet where guests debut the gorgeous cowls, shawls, and colorwork they created across both bases, capped off with a lively, private Céilí folk-dance social.
Day 8 · Friday, September 18
Homeward Bound via Shannon
Departure
Homeward Bound
Morning
Enjoy a final luxury Irish breakfast overlooking the Blessington Lakes.
Afternoon
Board the coach for a smooth, direct highway drive across the midlands corridor back to Shannon Airport for afternoon international departures home.
Reserve Interest
Come into Ireland’s softer light.
If castle rooms, modern cables, Irish mills, botanical dyeing, alpaca fiber, Wicklow landscapes, and contemporary texture call to you, this is the Ireland retreat to watch closely. Space will be intentionally limited to preserve the intimacy of the group.