Fodor's Expert Review Celtic Roots Studio
Athlone
Crafts
Combining a workshop and gallery, the Celtic Roots Studio in Ballinahown specializes in hand-carved sculptures and personalized jewelry from 5,000-year-old bogwood in the nearby Lough Boora bog, where the wood was preserved in the peat. The owner engraves her work, creating wish stones and all manner of carvings evocative of the natural world and Irish mythology, which make special keepsakes. Ballinahown is the last village in Westmeath as you travel to Clonmacnoise.